Buy a trailer (instead of a pickup truck)

[freebeard]

110-page thread! I like the TDI posed in front of the plow. There existed Beetle tractors in the 1940s (reduction gears, short wheelbase and gas engine) but I think they were used for towing artillery.

If you start a club I suggest "Die kleinen Abschleppwagen", after Der Kleiner Panzers.

[euromodder]

Originally Posted by skyking

I won't exactly be a pioneer in TDI MK IV towing.
Show what you tow! - TDIClub Forums

In Europe, they're rated for towing more than 2000 lbs with a braked trailer.
No issues

[mechman600]

I stumbled across this article today:
Cars with Unexpected Tow Ratings - Automobile Magazine

Precisely the reason I was swayed towards the Toyota Matrix - one of the only small cars with a towing rating at all (1500 lbs).

[freebeard]

^^
I always liked the Volvo C30, and it's said to be rated at 2000lb.

[euromodder]

Originally Posted by freebeard

^^
I always liked the Volvo C30, and it's said to be rated at 2000lb.

In Europe, the C30 is rated for 1200 to 1500 kg - that's 2645 to 3300 lbs - depending on the engine.

(Drive versions are rated for 800 kg, or some 1700 lbs)

[techieguy]

I think keep my truck than trying to haul a trailer behind my Metro. Last load of firewood I picked up was over 6.5K lbs! If my Metro could haul 1K lbs gross that would be over six trips and and would save any fuel what so ever. Even with a full load of firewood I still manage 18-20 mpg in my 1 ton Dodge with a diesel...then there is my value of my time. Now if you are moving light but bulky items from time to time then maybe a trailer is viable.

[Xringer]

I put a hitch on my Ford Escape, because I wanted a bicycle carrier rack..

Sure nuff, some fool tossed out a nice one, just up the street..

When I looked in to light wiring, it didn't look doable.. Ford cheaped out on relays etc.
So, my family got me one of those little plug-in racks..
Looks like this one..



Have not used it yet.. Actually we have never used the bike carrier either!!
(We live three miles from the Lexington bikeway.. Best bike path in the state).

If I wasn't so forgetful, I'd put using this stuff on my bucket list..

[DKaz]

Very informative thread. I recently bought a 99 Toyota Sienna, runs great and has a hitch too. I hope previous owners didn't try to tow too much for too long for the sake of the transmission.

I wonder if say Home Depot rents utility trailers.

[flying kurmaster]

Originally Posted by cRiPpLe_rOoStEr

I wouldn't use a trailer in a motorcycle, but the ones I saw in my most recent trip to Pelotas (a city halfway from my hometown to the Uruguayan border) had 2 wheels.

I must have said it in a confusing way. It was a one wheel trailer to haul a motorcycle on behind a car.

[windsurferLA]

Trailer shown in photograph was originally a Coleman utility trailer. It has been used to haul windsurfing gear for many years. It has a long tongue so it can hold 15 foot long one-piece masts. This is yet another request for ideas on where to find a fairing or skirt to reduce its drag. The drag is not too bad at 55 mph; Subaru wagon gas mileage drops from 30 mpg to about 25 mpg as long as the top rack is empty, but if I'm traveling 70 mpg to make it to the lake in a hurry, mileage drops to very low 20's.

The problem with the fairings made for truck trailers is that they are way too wide.

Ideas?

Michael