Mondeo diesel estate as a tow car

dylanwinter

dylanwinter

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www.keepturningleft.co.uk
sorry to do this again

hopefully the last time

when I sell Harmony I am going to buy a Mondeo to tow the Hunter

they can tow 1800kg - some can tow 2000KG

http://carleasingmadesimple.com/business-car-leasing/ford/mondeo/towing-weight-limit/

the minstrel weighs 1045kg

that should give me headroom for the trailer and boat related gubbins and keep the police off my case

has anyone on here towed heavy boats with one?

I am looking to get one with between 130,000 and 190,000 on the clock

hoping to pay around £600

the charts suggest 50 mpg - is this true?

D

PS _ I am very happy to read posts about Volvos, subarus and old jeeps but I also need a car that Jill will be prepared to drive - she can hack a mondeo but will kick up a fuss if she is expected to drive anything bigger
 
Check the gearing. I used an old Ford Sierra to tow a boat and the first gear was so high that I had to tow the boat up the slip in reverse, roping the trailer to the front towing eye.
 
Barleycorn said:
Check the gearing. I used an old Ford Sierra to tow a boat and the first gear was so high that I had to tow the boat up the slip in reverse, roping the trailer to the front towing eye.
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not too worried

I have a winch for the slopes

I towed an eboat behind a sierra for four seasons

it was the big ends that went rather than the gears or the clutch

D
 
I tow my caravan which weighs 1350kg plus clothes, equipment etc. with my '09 reg diesel Mondeo with no trouble. Be aware that there the same size engine can have several different horse powers. I get over 50 mpg on a long journey and about 47 around the town, country lanes etc. Of course it is nothing like that when towing.
 
dylanwinter said:
I also need a car that Jill will be prepared to drive - she can hack a mondeo but will kick up a fuss if she is expected to drive anything bigger
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Mondeo estate is pretty good size though isn't it ?

Do the decent thing man get her one of those new Range rovers with a lowered roof ( Evoke ? or something like that )
 
The good news is that being Ford, parts will be cheap.

The bad news is that even though the engine should be good with all those miles (if cambelt has been changed at correct intervals and if turbo is not on its last legs), then you may find lots of niggley things going wrong at about those miles - that are easy-ish to fix with time but still a pain if you DIY car repairs - wheel bearings (front being the worst), corroded brake pipes, ball joints, drive shaft gaiters etc. But if £600 maybe you will pay someone to repair those bits?

My cars have always been of that ilk and I dread long journeys because I know there are so many little things that can fail on my way to destination, and getting a replacement HEGO sensor at the side of the road is a pita.
 
I towed my mirror offshore (1.25T) from Norfolk to shropshire easily with my audi A4 estate (similar power to mondeo). I also tow a heavy caravan with no trouble although mpg drops from 50 to 30. Previously towed leisure 17 with a 1.9l golf. No problem except on wet slipway when grip with front wheel drive required commodore and harbourmaster to sit on bonnet. You don't need a 4wd to tow and the mondeo is as good as any especially as you have a winch for launching and retrieval.
 
We towed a Snapdragon 21 from Burton to Conwy several times with a Sierra 2.3 non turbo diesel. Boat weighed 2200lbs plus all our sailing gear and domestics for a family of four. I think that we may have been a tad overloaded but I took it steady and we managed. I remember having to put the outboard in the forepeak to get the balance right. We did this at the start and end of each season, I wouldn't have wanted to do it every week though.
 
I suggest the pre 05 2.0l rated at 136bhp. There is a 115 version but it is weedy. There is also a 155BHP ST TDCI, but that is a fair bit juicier.
They do push black smoke out of the back when accelerating hard, but that is normal, only lasts a second or two.

The air con will probably not work, as they do leak a fair bit. Do make sure you check out all electric functions......

My 54 plate C Max (same 136bhp engine)has 135000 on the clock and is on the button. No knocks or bangs in the powertrain, but take the car you are looking at down a bumpy road, as the rear suspension bushes get worn and make a knocking noise when agitated. Mine are due next service.

Overall, I have always highly rated the car.
 
FullCircle said:
I suggest the pre 05 2.0l rated at 136bhp. There is a 115 version but it is weedy. There is also a 155BHP ST TDCI, but that is a fair bit juicier.
They do push black smoke out of the back when accelerating hard, but that is normal, only lasts a second or two.

The air con will probably not work, as they do leak a fair bit. Do make sure you check out all electric functions......

My 54 plate C Max (same 136bhp engine)has 135000 on the clock and is on the button. No knocks or bangs in the powertrain, but take the car you are looking at down a bumpy road, as the rear suspension bushes get worn and make a knocking noise when agitated. Mine are due next service.

Overall, I have always highly rated the car.
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excellent advice

thank you

not really ready to move until Harmony goes... but in the meantime I will keep my eyes open

D
 
I suspect the fuel consumption you get towing may be way down on the 50mpg. We had a multipla that did 45mpg but towing it went down to 25. Mind you our deisel Bongo only dropped from 27 to 25 when towing.
 
maxi77 said:
I suspect the fuel consumption you get towing may be way down on the 50mpg. We had a multipla that did 45mpg but towing it went down to 25. Mind you our deisel Bongo only dropped from 27 to 25 when towing.
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I am ready for the hit when towing Katie L

it is the mileage sans trailer

I have a choice of keeping the micra and then just taxing and insuring the mondeo when I am boating

or flogging the micra and keeping the mondeo in commission all year and using it as the second car and for sailing stuff

SWMBO needs persuading that this is a good plan - her chief line of defense being that our fuel costs will go through the roof with the big car

however, I have time on my side

I am hoping to get something with a long MOT - not drive it much and hope to get through the second MOT without too much money being spent

at this level it does not require much of a problem to turn a viable old mileater into a scrapper

I would expect to do well shy of 5,000 miles a year in the estate

D
 
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I had several Mondeos, mostly mk2 & 3. Petrol do about 40 mpg & diesel just under the 50, but I have only towed trailers & light dinghies & not bothered to check fuel use over single journeys. Very pleased with all mine at high or low miles. The only reason I switched to a Primera this time was that the equivalent Mondeo was much dearer.

One comment on towing with an estate, is the towbar further from the axle/ suspension than the hatchback? That caused me some grief with a Mk3 Cortina estate & a small caravan in the 70's. Also, beware of lots of heavy kit in the boot plus the 25-50 kg load on the towball. TBH, the Mondeo is hatchback, why do you need an estate version anyway? It adds little to the load capability.
 
FullCircle said:
There are currently 43210 entries on Honestjohn, covering virtually every single vehicle model made. One swallow does not a summer make.
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I've had two, both are rattlers where the engine sounds like a London taxi.
Spent a lot of money on one getting stuff changed, to no avail.
Watch out for dual mass flywheel problems, quite common on Mondeo and also injectors needing replacing.
Apart from that they are nice cars with a good ride, we get about 40mpg but drive it quite hard.
If I bought another I'd get a petrol one.
 
BlueChip said:
I've had two, both are rattlers where the engine sounds like a London taxi.
Spent a lot of money on one getting stuff changed, to no avail.
Watch out for dual mass flywheel problems, quite common on Mondeo and also injectors needing replacing.
Apart from that they are nice cars with a good ride, we get about 40mpg but drive it quite hard.
If I bought another I'd get a petrol one.
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Drive hard - DMF needs changing well thats a surprise
 
FullCircle said:
There are currently 43210 entries on Honestjohn, covering virtually every single vehicle model made. One swallow does not a summer make.
Click to expand...



Very true.


The final comment on a very long thread:

".....I suggest you google this and many other sites and see the hundreds of mondeo,focus and Jaguar diesels that have stopped due to various problems.."
 
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