Tiguan for towing

[mrezekiel]

Hi, I've been trying to get as much info off the forums as I can, but i have come to a point where i just cannot decide what to do.

So I have a Tiguan 09 TDI with a bunch of extras and we love the car, but i find myself towing a boat a lot with my XR6 falcon. I've decided that it is not practical to keep doing this in the sedan but it's only worth about $8,000 and is not worth selling as i wont get a 4x4 worth buying for that price. So my option is to put the tow pack on the Tiguan for $1250 and tow with that, i was also thinking of getting a chip to give it a bit more go when needed, when i upgrade the boat which is hopefully soon (getting close to 2 tonne) I can get some air bags for the rear end if needed.

The other option is I sell the Tiguan and get $22,000 or maybe more for it, i owe $16,000 on the loan and almost starting from scratch again get something like a Mitsubishi challenger (or similar) for near $30,000. Then i'll have the 4x4 capability and the towing capability, but it'll be a bigger car and use more fuel for every day driving....

I also plan to get a camper trailer later and take the car on trips (or take the small tinny for fishing trips), so getting some old car to tow the boat would be of no use because Long trips in an old $8,000 4x4 wouldn't be to comfortable.

Anyway, I joined now and i can participate, I hope some people can give me some advice on what they would do or what they think i should do and if needed i'll repost/move the question in the Tiguan section later.

[tigger73]

Firstly welcome to the forum - I hope you find the answers you're looking for.

Secondly can you let us know what transmission you have in your TDI. I'm guessing it's the 6 speed auto but could be wrong.

Third I'll move this thread to the Tig general area so that (hopefully) you get the answers you're looking for

[mrezekiel]

Thanks for moving the thread, it is the 103kw TDI non DSG auto, from 08/09. I have only got around 80,000 on the clock and I was planning on keeping the car forever and later putting in the sat nav, and it doesn't have off road mode. But after 2.5 years I find myself water skiing and wakeboarding a lot during the warmer months (friends boat that I tow in the XR6 but we plan on getting a bigger one) and I have a small fishing boat and thinking about a smallish camper trailer.

So I just need to decide if I stick with the Tiguan and improve its offroad/tow ability or sell my baby and get something that does everything already. The 2010ish Mitsubishi challenger really does look like a good package for the price, all the normal 4x4 things you would get from a land cruiser etc. with 3 tonne towing for near $30k....

Decisions decisions.

[NZTiguan]

The TDi Tig won tow car of the year in GB back at about your model !! It's really a great tow car up to its 2200 Kg limit and I see no reason to chip it for that, you'll just end up stressing the rest of the car and using more fuel. Have you driven a Challenger ??? certainly the current model here wouldn't pull a greasy sausage off a hot plate and it handles like a truck, I certainly wouldn't want one for a DD after the Tiguan !! Obviously if you're exceeding 2200 Kg then you have to look elsewhere though but you'll get a shock after VW quality. The proper tow kit is a must for the job as it ties into all the electronic aids such as ABS and ESP and makes the towing a lot safer.

Cheers

[mrezekiel]

Well that's the kind of confirmation I want to hear, the biggest boat I would get would be on the 2 tonne limit but I don't know how the ball weight will go, has anyone put air bags in the Tiguan before? Also I only live 15k's away from the lake, so it doesn't have to tow it far or for very long.

As for the challenger, no I have not driven one, the only real 4x4 I've driven is a 2002 disco2 and I find it ok around town but obviously nothing like the Tiguan.

The idea is to maybe get the nudge bar and side steps if I find I'm going off-road more, but till then I just want the tow pack and see how it goes, a chip will make towing easier and more fuel efficient so possibly that as well depending on how it handle the boat.

[tigger73]

I personally haven't fitted a towbar but there are certainly others that have. I think the combination of TDI and standard auto make it perfect for towing. If I was to choose a Tig for towing this would be it.

I know what you're saying about the Challenger. Bang for buck they are right up there. It's just strange how relatively few are on the road though.

The Tig is probably going to be the cheaper car for general running around and likely a lot more refined. I think you'd find it a very capable tow vehicle.

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[mrezekiel]

There is probably a reason the Challenger is so cheap .

Another question, does the Hayman Reese tow pack wiring loom do what the VW one does? If not would it give me more options in terms of goose neck connections if I went with Hayman Reese bar with vw loom?


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[Lucas_R]

Im selling a genuine VW towbar for the Mk6 Golf - perhaps it will fit the Tiguan also? http://www.vwwatercooled.com/forums/...ml#post1025565

[tigger73]

Im selling a genuine VW towbar for the Mk6 Golf - perhaps it will fit the Tiguan also? http://www.vwwatercooled.com/forums/...ml#post1025565

You would have to check the parts are identical. The Tiguan has a higher towing capacity than Golf so the towbar is possibly beefier on the Tig.


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[mrezekiel]

The one they showed me at the shop looked different. I have a concern though, my fathers camper trailer is an offroad one and it has a connection which is like a rubber block with a pin and allows the trailer more up/down freedom.

Would the stock setup allow for a custom gooseneck like this?


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[mrezekiel]

If anyone is interested I found out from ARB that the Hayman Reese bar comes out the bumper like a normal tow pack square allowing the use of standard hitches.

The VW dealer is happy for me to supply it and they will install it with the oem wiring loom.


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[desvejk]

We've been towing with our 6 speed Tiguan 103 TDI for 4 years and it's brilliant!!!
As you can see from the photo we have an off-road camper trailer and carry a roof box and kayak.
I've installed air bag suspension from The Air Bag Man and a Hayman Reese tow bar.
My approach to towing is to completely comply with VW specifications and not exceed the towing limits.
Our camper trailer has configured to be under the 100kg tow ball weight. It was 72kg unloaded and fully loaded as in the photograph it's 92kg.
The weight of the trailer is about 1000kg and is about 1350kg fully loaded.

[mrezekiel]

Thanks for the picture, that looks pretty much spot on what I want to do. I can use my fathers camper which is a Kimberly off road at about 1400kg, not sure on the ball weight, but I might one day soon get my own.

Can you confirm that the Hayman Reese bar comes out the bumper giving you a standard square hitch receiver? I am pretty sure now that I am going to find one of those and get VW to install that with the VW wiring loom.


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[desvejk]

Glad you liked our Tig and set up.
Check the ball weight on the Kimberly Camper.
We found that most off road campers and nearly all caravans exceed the 100kg ball weight limit set by VW.
You can modify you camper ball weight by load balancing, but you'd need some advice from the camper manufacturer.
Our hitch is a standard square receiver. We did need to add a goose neck to lift the hight of the coupling point to match the trailer.
You may find that your auto electrician can install the wiring cheaper than VW.
The Tiguan is a really great towing vehicle. We've travelled over 40,000km while towing and the Tig hasn't let us down.

[mrezekiel]

Thank you for all the information, ARB quoted 1200 to install the Hayman Reese setup, but from what I understand the VW wiring is the only option to tie everything into the stability control, and other fancy options. I'm not sure if the auto electrical places around here can do it but I will give them a call and check if they have the equipment and know how to do the computer work.

They do treat me pretty well at prestige VW here in Wodonga and are willing to bring down prices and match others.

VW quoted me $1250 all up with $450 for the tow pack part, so I'm hoping I can pick up the Hayman Reese one somewhere for about that.

After that I think I'll just get some bags installs and pick up a 12v compressor to manually pump them up.

Another two question, how does the car go for power up hills or steep hills, I could be towing a 1600-2000kg boat up a boat ramp. I'm thinking if/when I do upgrade to a bigger boat that I might chip it to help with the big stuff.

And lastly, tyres, my cooper cs4 that came on it are almost done, any suggestions on a set that has good economy but handles the mud ok? I'm not interested in handling corners etc, but wood love an economical set that can handle some offroad.


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