Is the 1.8i Xantia a decent tow car?

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martyhopkirk

Is the 1.8i Xantia a decent tow car?

Post by martyhopkirk »

<b></b>Ok i know lots of people dont like caravans, but for me and the kids its a (frequent) cheap holliday and gives Mrs. Hopkirk some deserved time out from the saucepan lids.
Presently i tow with a Laguna 1.8 8v Sport (that is Renault having a laugh) and its like a tub of lard... it struggles with a 12CWT van on all but the flat. Im still in the process of sorting the electrics on the ZX diesel i have so havent managed to tow with that yet.
I was looking for a Xantia anyway, but either a TD or 2.0 petrol, however i have been offered 2 examples in my price range both the 1.8 16v petrol engines ( a hatch and estate). and was wondering if anyone had any towing experience with these? and what their general opinion is. Im also quite keen with the Hydraulic suspension which i think would suit towing better.
appreciate any help or opinions at all.
Many Many Thanks.
Marty.
JMRMCR@_NOSPAM_HOTMAIL.COM
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Post by RichardW »

Marty,
My Dad tows a 1000kg van with a 1.8 8v Xantia. He reckons it is OK, but you have to work it hard (eg over 4k rpm) to keep it on the boil. Economy suffers of course - he managed to get it down to 18mpg [}:)] when he towed the van from Portsmouth to the Lake district in <6 hours when they moved house! He says it is very stable - has had it up to 85 mph on the M1 still accelerating and still stable - but with the self levelling suspension, easy to overload / get the nose weight wrong. The 1.9 TD would be a bit underpowered for towing a heavy van (but probably OK once you get it rolling), but the 2.1 TD or HDi 110 would be ideal. 2.0 petrol probably the best availability / cost compromise at the moment though. Try and get one with a bar already fitted as it is quite a big job to fit one (rear bumper has to come off, which was OK on a 1 year old car, but I don't fancy it much on a 7/8 year old!).
David W
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Post by David W »

Richard is right that a HDi would be perfect, but my experience says a 1.9TD would be far better than a 1.8.
I've towed horse trailers for decades with every vehicle you can imagine. The Xantia 1.9TD has a combination of abilities that gives it a very well rounded ability.
It seems fine from a standing start and cruises well at legal towing speeds. Frankly I find good sense limits performance rather than any restrictions imposed by the (lack of) power.
I definately would avoid a 1.8i estate as you're already adding extra load for the heavier body.
David
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Post by Homer »

The 2.0 turbo would probably give better economy while towing than the 1.8 and not that much worse when unladen. It has bags of torque from very low down, almost deisel like to drive. Being a petrol prices are rock bottom, even for the estate.
Personally, I would go for one of these. [:D]
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Post by IanR »

Xantias and XMs are popular with the gliding / sport aviation fraternity, as they are good for towing big trailers (e.g. 27ft length for a K21 trailer)
The diesel tows these sorts of trailers with ease. Haven't used my petrol 1.8 16v to tow one, but I suspect that while it would tow on-road OK, it might struggle a bit at low speeds on grass, as the gearing is rather too high, especially reverse gear.
The hydraulic suspension is a real bonus, especially as it means you can access fields where anything less offroad-capable than a Range Rover would ground itself. Just make sure the rear spheres are good though, or you'll have a kangaroo on the back.[:0]
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Post by ZXturbo_Aura »

the 1.9TD will be fine, even better would be the 2.1 ;) no matter what though, the diesel regardless of model will be far better for towing than a 1.8 petrol for example obviously beace they have bags of torque :) i have a ZX TD and my dad has a Xantia 1.9 TD, they have both pulled a trailer carrying a car in excess of 70mph (shhh), the xantia's suspension makes it a winner though!
Dan
ps, go for diesel!!! join the cool club! ;)
martyhopkirk

Post by martyhopkirk »

Thanks to all, im still in the process of trying to wire up the eectrics on my zx (1.9d -non turbo) to see how well that tows, but i think i will leep looking for a diesel xantia then.
once again, many thanks for your help -hope i can be of service one day.
marty.[:)]
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