Modern Wagons That Can Tow?

So the station wagon thread got me thinking; are there modern wagons that can tow your race car.

I've known several people who used American V8 wagons but those really don't exist anymore.

I saw some information that said some if the BMW wagons can tow 5000lbs?

Tom1200 said:

So the station wagon thread got me thinking; are there modern wagons that can do your race car.

Open wheel/sports racer on an open trailer probably, but something like a Miata on an open trailer with a tire rack (pretty much required if you're racing) is going to be 4K pounds minimum.  I don't really care what the offcial tow rating is, doing that with a unibody car for any kind of distance is just a bad idea, IMHO.

In reply to Tom1200 :

I recall seeing some towing info on some of the spec sheets I was looking at while working on the article. Let me see what info I can track down.

I think the current best are the Volvo V90 (4850), MB E450 All-Terrain (4630), and Panamera Sport Turismo (4400).

codrus (Forum Supporter) said:

Tom1200 said:

So the station wagon thread got me thinking; are there modern wagons that can do your race car.

Open wheel/sports racer on an open trailer probably, but something like a Miata on an open trailer with a tire rack (pretty much required if you're racing) is going to be 4K pounds minimum.  I don't really care what the offcial tow rating is, doing that with a unibody car for any kind of distance is just a bad idea, IMHO.

 

I'm not sure I agree with this...  The Jeep Grand Cherokee is a unibody and can easily tow a race car, so can the Cayenne, X5, and GLE.  All of those have tow ratings of 7200+ so towing a 5k car & trailer has been done safely countless times.  (Jeep was lowered to 6200 since they don't have the v8)

I think the reality is while wagons are the great compromise between sedan like driving dynamics and SUV like cargo capacity but given the popularity of SUV's in America, if you want to tow in something that is still small enough to drive to the grocery store; a mid sized SUV is going to be your best bet.  The X5 for example is 1" shorter than a v70, it's a 5" wider, and 7" taller...   

I would also think it matters  if you have a single axle trailer or tandem axle , 

Just because it can pull 4000-5000lbs and hopefully stop  does not make it good for a stable ride , 

Be Safe

Edit , also matters if you have trailer brakes !

In reply to codrus (Forum Supporter) :

Before I went all bougie with my 20yr old enclosed trailer I was only towing 2600lbs (Datsun and single axle trailer). 

My Outback works so well for me; so I've come to like wagons.

The reality is we are planning to upgrade the RV so that will likely be the new tow rig....................but man I'd love a wagon that could do it for local events.

One thing I don't get about towing is in Europe they rate lots of cars with a pretty high towing rating. Eg. Some Fiestas have 2200lbs tow capacity (presumably with a low tongue weight). I am under the impression tow ratings in North America are based on a SAE test pulling a load up/down a long mountain run.

I wonder if there should be a middle ground. Ie. You can infrequently tow X if you don't exceed speed Y and don't anticipate big grades.  I'm not certain of the legal implications of following a European rating vs US.

I don't have a lot of towing experience, but whenever these kinds of conversations come up people say "you don't want to do that." The compromise is driving a terrible vehicle (Crossover, truck, SUV) the rest of the time. Eg. I towed say 4500lbs in a Pathfinder with a 5000lbs rating. Seemed perfectly fine. Back when, it was common to tow small-medium sized boats with normalish vehicles.

In reply to californiamilleghia :

What makes for a "good stable ride" though?... These "cars" have similar weight, wheelbase, brakes, etc to the 5k-7k rated unibody C/SUV's, of which I've only seen and heard complimentary things from those who have actually towed with them.

Yes, unbraked ratings are always substantially lower than the braked (advertised) ratings.

In reply to Snrub :

I think the Euro tow ratings are at something like 50-55mph

Tom1200 said:

In reply to Snrub :

I think the Euro tow ratings are at something like 50-55mph

On the German autobahn you tow at 50 MPH , 80 KPH  same as the big trucks , so that might be where the ratings come from .

Here is a link with some info 

https://www.caravantalk.co.uk/community/topic/146281-towing-speed-limit-in-germany/

Back in the day, I towed my Sprite racecar on an open single axle trailer  with a tire rack behind a Volvo 240 wagon, 4 speed.....then I slept in the wagon all weekend.

I now tow my classic Mini Cooper behind my 2017 Audi Allroad with its 7 speed dual clutch. A/C and cruise control are such nice things to have! 

There are tons of pics on the net of high end formula, dragsters and sport racers being towed behind American wagons back in the late 60's and 70's before custom built semi trailers became a thing.

Even things like the TSX which you would think could tow are limited to 1000lbs. I think the E450 wagon has the highest rating in the USA at around 4500lbs .