V70: General V70 2.5 Towing

[billmckinstry]

Hi All,

We are thinking of buying a Caravan in the new year and like to be able to Tow this with our V70 2.5l Turbo Petrol.

I understand we should be good up to 1,800kg

Appreciate advice on this issue.

Kind regards,
Bill

[Tannaton]

They are good tow cars, usual checks apply - tyre pressures etc.

However the greater influence as to how well it tows is how you load the caravan.... if you have a single axle van. I would aim to get the nose weight at least 80% of maximum (which I think is 85-90kg but you should check your specific model) and any additional weight you carry as near to over the axle as you can without disturbing the nose weight.

Good luck!

[apersson850]

Better a bit too much on the hitch than the opposite. But it works best if the car has automatic levelling.

[billmckinstry]

How do you know if car has automatic levelling ?

[Tannaton]

Originally Posted by billmckinstry

How do you know if car has automatic levelling ?

That will be the Nivomat rear suspension. You can tell if the rear shock absorbers have a rubber bellow like arrangement as a dust cover. If you have that set up, it's great for towing, a very effective system.

[100K+]

I have towed a 1200 kilo Compass 510/5 caravan for many years.with V70 Tdi, T5, AWD R, and D5. All but R had nivomats and all knocked the R into a tin cup for handling. Rather have nivomat than AWD. ALL would tow securely at 60mph just AWD did not feel as totally secure if you tried that on A roads.
Cheers Bob.

[Tannaton]

I always tow nose heavy, I think it makes for stable handling.

I once towed a V50 I bought as a project car on a trailer with a 2003 XC90 from Edinburgh to East Yorkshire - I'd loaded the car too far forward and the rear suspension was well down, but I'd lashed it down so I left it. 4 miles up the road I stopped to check it before I joined the A1 and the Nivomats (on a 160k car) had done the job and levelled the suspension perfectly. I think there was circa 150Kg on the nose. Had an eventless, perfectly stable drive home.

FYI in some states of Australia (where towing heavy loads long distances is very normal) the nose weight has to be a minimum of 7% of the trailer weight - in that market the Mk 1 XC90 is rated as a maximum 225Kg nose weight.

[billmckinstry]

Thanks for advice.
Old 760 had Nivomat's and yes, drove very smoothly.
Will check under our V70 but suspect not Nivomat.

We didn't pay OTT for the car and feel better to Learn on the car we have before getting a bigger vehicle, if required.

We also have a Hyundai Granduer 3.3ltr V6 which should be able to tow well.

Caravans being looked at are under 1,800kg fully loaded - most around 1,300kg.