Practical Caravan tow test - petrol vs diesel

[@Haze1434]

Towing anything at all... Diesel. One word, torque.

[@joaosl1980]

for sure... in this case HP doens´t matter

[@joaosl1980]

yes... I agree

[@bosse641]

That blue Tiguan is so nice. And I sure would go for the TDI, for all the reasons you mentioned.

[@leesmith9299]

I look forward to a video like this about electric cars once affordable ones with towing capability exist. I also wonder how sites will or wont let us charge them from the hook up.

[@martincole188]

Diesel is still the optimum when you need to haul loads, how many petrol trucks are there? Inappropriate choice of diesel vehicles for mostly city use has led to unfair stigmatising. All internal combustion engines are not good for air quality in urban environments. But diesels emit far less CO2 per kilo hauled. Anyway the future is electric, which will lead to its own set of problems.

[@alltechthings9506]

the gasoline with dsg had an advantage in the 30-60

[@robinwells8879]

I wonder how long these DSG boxes will last as caravan lugging beasts. I suspect big problems ahead.

[@michaeldooley231]

I've heard the dq 200 is a dry clutch and crap but the dq500 is a wet clutch and good if not abused

[@richarddickson3211]

Its a pity you did not try the new 1.5 tsi 150bhp engine. Think it might have done better in the mpg figures.

[@Mr330d]

Richard Dickson And then broken down

[@richarddickson3211]

@@Mr330d ive had a 1.5 tsi karoq for 9 months and no probs so far. Sadly skoda wont build a 4wd 1.5tsi manual. A dsg clutch costs £ 1500.00 to £2000.00 and if 4wd even more, as the whole engine ect has to be dropped out.

[@laddie-1479]

Top spec petrol compared against mid tier diesel

[@davidmbell]

Dubious as to the estimated future value of the diesel... can only get worse the way they're being stigmatised. People would have to weigh up the amount they actually tow, if commuting is primary, and towing every so often, I think as a drivers car, petrol would clinch it.

[@stuarthall2523]

My thoughts exactly. Sale of diesels dropped by 25% in January.

[@HarlekinN57]

Stuart Hall let me say, I have a 2012 jsw tdi, I towed a 2016 Toyota Corolla today without an issue, my csr is the 6speed US version and has a RaceChip S on, the car handled it like a boss, the Corolla can weight anywhere from 2800lbs to 3000lbs, and that 2.0TDi torque was the only reason it got the job done, so still, diesel can be a considerable option for many out there.

[@volt8684]

In the 60s they towed heavy vans with 48 bhp

[@colintindale9647]

Can not understand why they did not use the 190 diesel which is a closer matched power wise to the petrol and the engine most people would choose to tow a caravan. Most people who i know that have bought a Tiguan including myself have bought the 190 diesel.

[@practicalcaravan]

Hi Colin and Peter. We had to tow with the cars we could get with towbars fitted, so choice was limited.

[@sparkmeister4706]

Can we have a fair test next time. 185bhp diesel against the petrol, both with a DSG.

[@OwnerOP]

Well Diesel is best. No matter what they say.

[@jimjam8149]

Not Amazed Yet ? Great argument 🙄

[@slava_trushkin]

Petrol engines have been improving by becoming smaller and getting more out of those small engines. They are not suitable for towing because they are not powerful enough. Big engines needed for towing are not economical at all, I wouldn't buy one even without towing. 1.5 times difference in fuel consumption is not going to get better.

[@JimMadden]

I own a 2018 Tiguan here in Canada and when I mentioned anything to do with towing, they said the max capacity is 1500lbs, which is roughly 680kg. Are they really that different overseas?!

[@d3adk964]

Different trailers. I tow my 2500lb boat with my 2018 Tiggy here in the US just fine. Tongue weight is not your friend with the Tiggy and unfortunately North American trailers are set up to have about 10% tongue weight. So that’s really the limiting factor. North American Tiguan has same transmission as VW atlas which can tow 5000lbs... so that’s not an issue either.

[@michaeldooley231]

2500kg braked 750kg unbraked

[@sarahtyler5487]

How much does that camper weight?

[@michaeldooley231]

Not a fair test. The diesel had you changing gear. The petrol had a dsg 7 selecting the most accurate rev to change. The dsg 7 is better and more efficient at selecting the right gear on the test

[@ulsterprodspb]

It sounded like you where flooring the petrol

[@tudorino66]

I tow a 1500kg food truck with a Rav 4 2.0 petrol. The torque is not the best... It suffers... It has only 198 nm with 158 hp. I need a diesel. The same rav 4 2.2 diesel has 348nm.

[@Mr330d]

2.2 D4Ds are shit though

[@tudorino66]

@@Mr330d i got a Glk now :)

[@Mr330d]

@@tudorino66 Good a 2.2 D4D RAV 4 is a bad choice they like to overheat and crack the head and aren’t protected underneath for our salty roads so they rot out

[@tudorino66]

@@Mr330d i live in Rome, Italia:)

[@eddieharris409]

This test is void should both be manual or auto, diesel engines are cleaner now than they have ever been just look up a diesel exhaust pipe squeaky clean.

[@context_required]

Petrol all day

[@Maxsdiscos]

I didn't think it was legal to TOW at 60MPH on a single carriageway road, unless it has been signed as 60 or higher.

[@practicalcaravan]

For our article on speed limits when towing a caravan in the UK, please see here: goo.gl/2uvDEf.

[@ukinfamous]

Correct 'On single-carriageway roads where cars are permitted to travel at 60mph, the limit for a car towing a caravan is 50mph.'

[@Maxsdiscos]

I wondered how they had filmed it.

[@dukenukem5768]

I'm pretty sure he is not on a public road. For one thing he is driving on the wrong side and for another there is no other traffic - when did you last see that in the UK after 4.30 AM?

[@martincollins7547]

He’s on a test track.

[@deltafoxtrot2]

Diesel engines have better longevity than a petrol engine.

[@jackjoyce1744]

They are both the same nowadays because they are both computer controlled. Diesels have more emissions reduction devices which add more complexity whereas petrols are simpler. Even though diesels are more efficient, petrol is cheaper in most countries so the difference won’t really matter.

[@novaworld1297]

And let's not forget the petrol engine will be bollicked after 100000 miles and the diesel will still be in its element the 0 to 60 petrol was screaming g like an old boy hovering on the clutch so quiet ? I think not I'll be sticking to my trusty diesel thanxs

[@bosse641]

Agreed.

[@context_required]

Cough cough your diesel is chocking me the tdi noooooo

[@theaccidentalcaravanner5404]

Any engine either petrol or diesel should do 200,000 miles without any serious problem, in fact a friend of mine has a petrol Skoda Octavia turbo (16 years old) just about to turn 200,000 and still sweet and reliable as the day it left the factory. I have seen petrol vehicles reach 700,000 without a rebuild, and the worlds highest mileage car (a Volvo with over 3 million miles) is petrol, and it's had far less mechanical work than you would think.

[@insertrandomusernamhere4209]

peter this is wrong diesels are fine if serviced properly my dad had a 2014 VW cc 2.0 tdi bluemotion technology with 128 k and it was fine so stop spreading lies

[@context_required]

Im suprised the front of a caravan wasnt black behind the diesel

[@volt8684]

Such flawed reviews

[@chakapitchou4458]

the king and the only, DIESEL

[@TheMrbeasely]

“Price wise...”? Where the hell did this guy learn to talk.

[@jimjam8149]

TFlorida1 what you on about?

[@stanagetia4689]

Diesel... Is the king