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Does anyone tow a caravan with their California?

T

TNT

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4
Hi,

My wife and I have been looking into the possibilities of owning a California as it has been a dream of mine for some years. We currently have a caravan weighing in at 1300kgs which we tow with a 2008 140 Alhambra. I would like to carry on using the caravan if we bought a California for longer stays away as we have two kids and a dog; we also like using the caravan club CL sites which don't have facilities therefore the shower and toilet come in useful. I checked out the data for either the older auto or DSG as I prefer towing with an auto over a manual box. The Weights for the california all seem to be in excess of what we need however I read a recent post on the caravan club site that seems to suggest the California is not fit for purpose as a tow vehicle. Now personally I can't believe that it wouldn't be a fantastic tow vehicle but the post does concern me. It could be that the owners of this particular vehicle may have been unlucky, so does anyone have any experiences good or bad regarding towing? A copy of the post is below. Thanks in advance for any advice. Tony


Our much loved and admired combination of a VW California towing a 2 Berth Luna Spirit caravan, has earned the reputation of being "Not Fit For Purpose". Why? Although the Automatic Gear Box Specification allows a 2.55 ton trailor load towing maximum, it refuses to tow our Lunar 1 ton caravan over long up hill terrain. 

VW Customer Care were finally convinced when the car came to a standstill once again, this time on the flat M42 South of Birmingham, whilst being driven alone without our caravan. VW are most sympathetic, indeed had proved themselves so during the whole of the time when innumerable electronic faults and failures had forced calling the friendly RAC (who got pretty fed up with our California) and later garage attention, all free of charge under the Warranty. Thank you for that VW!

However our California is now out of Warranty and we are left "holding the baby" but have been given the following advice from VW. "When towing, avoid long uphill journeys, but if unavoidable, stop for an hour, every hour, to allow the car to cool down". 

Thus, if the car with a 2.55 ton Spec. refuses to tow a 1 ton Lunar Spirit up long, uphill ascents, as well as along the flat, then it earns the label "Not Fit For Purpose" and those many Members and Club Site Managers who have stopped to admire our VW California outfit should beware, hence the WARNING.
 
When searching out 1-2 yr old Calis 18 months ago, three VW Van dealers advised me against choosing (specific) Calis that had been used for towing.
They meant towing caravans and one one occasion a Cali owned and used by a mechanic for towing prestige cars on a trailer (to renovate).
"All moving parts would be put under much more strain than in those Calis that were used 'normally'"
So I'd be inclined to take that as data.

I guess it doesn't mean you shouldn't tow with them (although the mention of giving rests on long hills would worry me) but that when you put it back into circulation, you might want to disguise the fact ;)
Or be happy to take the hit on the residual ...
 
I have a Cali (180 DSG) and have towed our Coachman 380/2 since we bought the car in Oct 11. We towed her from Leuchars in Scotland to hte Channel Tunnel and across to northern Germany with absolutely no problems whatsoever. The tech data allows be to tow up to 2000kg braked weight, it is irrelevant what that weight consists of. If the Cali is incapable of towing such weights, the tech data should reduce the weight it can tow safely. Frankly, I think there is more to this as if the manufacturer has not stated clearly that I can't tow a van, and I tow within weight limits specified by the manufacturer, he doesn't have a leg to stand on. And defining a long hill is interesting as a slightly vague description. On out longest trip, lots of inclines but the 180 pulled easily and well with no change in temprature or other indicators of stress. All vehicles that tow suffer extra stresses, the Cali is no different so I expect the brakes to wear a little quicker, but not much if drive properly.

I agree with you, I get the best of all worlds with the Cali and small van. We take the van for stays of over 3 days (3 Cali dogs need the larger awning) but we have the flexibility for weekend getaways and cup of bovril after a long mountain tab, and a quick old bloke sleep - lol.
 
We towed with our 2002 T4 Westfalia Cali. We pulled a Knaus van back from Germany with no problems at all. Nothing. ( It was the old 5 pot 2 litre diesel).

Mind you, we found the Cali so easy to use that we rarely used the van and it's now long gone. Cali is easier to use and nicer.

David
 
I used to tow a caravan but eveyone said I look like a traveller from Dale Farm !!!

article-2056104-0E75CDAF00000578-410_468x299.jpg
 
Our handbook says it can tow over 2500KG, which is a very reasonable indeed, considering there all up weight is over 3000KG, fully loaded, We've a 180 4 motion manual Cali, I would have thought that the automatic gearbox would easily cope, but considering Californians are touring vehicles and could be expected to travel in various foreign countries, I suppose Volkswagen are being cautious, considering they may be used in north Africa, and beyond! where temperatures could exceed 50°C, Especially in the Sahara desert regions, where the auto gearbox has to be cooled down somewhat, that's why the automatic gearbox has a large cooling radiator sandwiched between the engine cooling radiator, The air conditioning radiator. not forgetting the intercooler, so I suppose for the European market I'm quite sure it would be more than adequate, I suppose in a commercial sense they tend to be manual gearboxes in commercial vans, so perhaps are not susceptible to heat buildup as in automatic gearboxes, where the torque converter generates masses amount of heat, due to friction of the oil molecules through the vains of the converter. that's why automatic gearboxes are not as efficient as manual gearboxes, and need to be cooled down via a radiator of some sort at the front of the vehicle in the airflow. especially if one wants to tow slowing the vehicle down somewhat and the engine and drivetrain has to work that much harder and not forgetting the brakes.
May be it would be prudent not to go to very hot countries if you own a automatic gearbox vehicle and also want to tow a very large caravan etc, just in case, perhaps if Volkswagen sell 'California's' in North Africa they may have larger gearbox cooler radiators on their automatic versions? or perhaps they only sell manual out there where there may not be so much of a problem, even if there is a problem? After all the shakes of Arabia, love nothing better than to surf the Sand Dunes, in their 'automatic' land cruisers, and they swear by automatics, then again, they don't tow two and half ton trailers in the searing heat! do they.
'just a thought'. :thumb
 
Hi their-TNT,
If all that is making you keep your caravan is simply toilet facilities, and a shower.
 Have a gander at this,  the 'Thetford 335' chemical toilet, fits in the right hand cupboard in the California very nicely indeed:

http://www.campervanaccessories.co.uk/t ... -p-94.html

And for your shower room take a look at this:

http://www.volkswagen-vans.co.uk/downlo ... v_2011.pdf

http://www.google.co.uk/m/products/cata ... EwQ8wIwAw#

"Wheres  a will, there's a way".

Having said that, I wouldn't really bother with the shower facilities, as practically every camp in the UK and beyond, has these facilities, as and when required.

Anyway that's my opinion, for what it's worth. :grin:
 
I generally stay at CC sites and CLs and use the shower etc there. I guess may not have used the Cali enough yet but I do like the van space with the 3 Cali Collies for longer stays. Love my Cali, love my van,
 
Having bought a LR Defender that had clearly been used for a lot of heavy towing, I would NEVER buy a used car with a tow bar ever again!

Worn halfshafts, one busted hub, gearbox died, etc, etc. It really does place an awful lot of strain on anything.
 
kernowLad

I used to do a a lot of off-roading in my defenders over the years, and have come to the conclusion that unless one upgrades the wheel driveing flanges, upgraded half-shafts, and especially the rear differential if one has a 90, it always ends in disaster, especially if you go for larger wheels,
towing also puts extra strain on the transmission, whatever vehicle one chooses, but with off-road vehicles, with low ratio gearboxs, and unsympathetic use of the right foot ,can impose untold damage on the transmission,
having said all that I've never really had any problems towing with defenders, as long as you don't abuse them.

 And they are very capable towing vehicles, 
not really had any major problems with the gearboxs apart from backlash and clonking noises practically from new!

When I think about it, tis amazing that I persisted with these vehicles. I suppose I was flying the British flag, to Landrover were sold to India!  :sad
know most of their products are destined for urban cityscapes, of drug dealing pimped up status symbols? (And I might add they are selling like hotcakes! in the Far East). And they are phasing out the traditional defender and replacing  it with more glits,) "well I suppose they know their own market". :sad
 
I think you have hit the nail on the head there.

It's not towing per se that is the problem, it's what and how it's done.

I had a Def 90 300tdi for many years, and towed a 2.5 tonne Ifor Williams weekly, with at least 1.5-2tonnes in it, and barring wear and tear parts (brakes etc) I never had a problem.

I towed a caravan with my last car, a Freelander2 2.2d Auto, for 3 years with no issues, other than wear & tear and their known issues.

Saying that I had 3x Discovery 3's in a 12months, and they all stranded me before LR gave me a full refund :surrender again though it wasn't the towing that caused it, just the air suspension failing all the time :censor
 
We used to tow 3 tonne drilling rigs with 110s (300TDi then Td5s) - clutches used to last about 8k miles, gearboxes were shot after about 20k. But no other vehicle could tow so much and still go anywhere (Geotech Engineering)! I had a 300TDI blow a hole in the engine block in deep mid Wales - was a bit of a tricky one!

I do like LRs a lot and the reliability thing is often unfair as they are compared to lightly used SUVs (when they've actually been worked very hard) but if I ever get one again, it will be new. I learned that it's not the mileage that matters, it's what it's been used for. 50k road miles - fine. 10k hard working miles - bad.

Anyway a bit off topic! If we need to tow our boat (only twice a year to take it to the pontoon mooring about 250 yards from us) we just borrow wife's granddads Defender 90; perfect for the job.
 
Thanks to everyone for their responses, I need to make a decision on what we do, I originally wanted a vw Brazilian type 2 bay window but discounted it because of the towing aspect, and so decided to look at the Cali, my second dream vehicle. 

However it would appear that it may put too much stress on the Cali and don't want to risk damaging such an expensive piece of kit. Can I live without the caravan, probably not for the longer stays, it makes a good base camp to leave our belongings securely and I prefer the cl sites as they are in great locations but need a decent shower. What I may do is downsize the caravan, the newer lightweight freedom jetstreams only weight 750kgs and have a shower and toilet so may be an option however if the Brazilian bus can tow one of these lightweight caravans then do I choose the Cali or the bay! Decisions decisions!! Thanks again!
 
I would not go down the Brazilian Bay route personally and I have been around classic Vw buses for many years. And I just cant get used to that weird front radiator in what should be an air cooled bus.
having said that they are seeming to be favoured by "celebs" and lots of owners love them but you could get a proper classic (oops) one fully done as new for less ;)
resale value not inspiring either....
The bay will tow it for sure but it will be very sluggish under load.
 
I tow a 6m RIB (around 800kg) with a 180 DSG and you wouldnt even know it was on behind the Cali once you are on the open road - its a fantastic towing vehicle and its substantial weight certainly helps keep the trailer in check. I tow it all over New Zealand on a mixture of flat, hilly and twisty roads and it does not miss a beat. Fuel consumption goes up a bit but thats to be expected. Cant understand why VW would rate its towing capacity so highly if it could not manage it....
 
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