Hi all, Opened a can of worms here!
Well I totally disagree with Steven below(He may have had a lemon), I had many Magna's, Fords and Commodores(Total of 12) as company cars. The Magna was FAR more reliable and cheaper to run/service in every case and much better built than either, and doesn't have such wonderful things occurring such as needing $500 in new suspension bushes at 70,000km, indicator stalks and door handles falling off, and stayed airtight ie no wind noise or dust, which was worse on the Fords and Holdens near new than the Magna at 200,000km. Currently I drive a Ford (Given to me)-but never again. The Commodore rear suspension is pathetic, needing the bush replacement at 70,00k mentioned above, and always having excessive vibrations in its drive train. My EB Falcon does tow very well however easily being stable at 120k+. As mentioned a Subaru Outback or Forrester is just about ideal, given the don't make Valiants any more! The 4wd Magna or Pajero would be a great option too. Terry is quite correct about the mass of the vehicle, in a strong crosswind this really helps. You can tow with lighter cars, but stability is definitely sacrificed. I would highly recommend an LPG powered car, I have used LPG for the last 10 years and it has saved me a fortune in fuel costs, with no detriment to reliability. Regards Dave -----Original Message----- From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] On Behalf Of swk Sent: Sunday, 9 September 2007 11:17 PM To: Discussion of issues relating to Soaring in Australia. Subject: Re: [Aus-soaring] Family Tow Car Further to what Mike said. The newer Holdens are not so good in the rear suspension area (from personal experience). I have a 1993 Magna wagon since new which I have used extensively. It seems to be a perfectly acceptable car for towing. Even though it only has the 2.6l 4 cyl it happily tows single seaters, and with care towed the PAGC Twin Astir. _However_ dont buy a Magna, they are junk cars. This one is the most unreliable piece of rubbish I have ever owned and I won't consider buying a Mitsubishi ever again! In 2004 I bought a Holden Wagon with the V6 3.8l engine. It was considerably more powerful than the Magna and I thought it would make a better tow car, but the first time I took my Boomerang out on the highway it scared the willies out of me. Almost uncontrollable once past about 90kph. Admittedly, the Boomerang trailer is a tad heavy for a single seater, but there was never any problem towing it with the Magna. Other Holden owners noted a similar behaviour with their cars on the larger ASC club trailers too. The use of torsion bars helped and I was able to get the Holden up to 110ish speeds, but really not too much more. Which is legal but a bit marginal when overtaking. (I don't have the Holden anymore). The Magna was an Ok towing car, but a heap of junk otherwise. The Commodore was a good car (the little I drove it) but a poor glider towing vehicle. Does this help? :-) Points to mention: As others indicated, all else being equal, a heavier car is better to stop the trailer taking over. A strong cross wind can turn a normally well behaved small towing car into a handful (the wind twists the trailer and compresses the trailer springs different amounts. The differing spring compression makes the axle go a tiny bit off square and the trailer swings, making the trailer twist more...). I remember a trip in a Toyota Corona (Corolla?) station wagon, where we couldn't get above 80 kph. Next week on the same road with the same car and same trailer, no problems getting to the speed limit at all. I have been thinking about a new tow vehicle and I am coming to the conclusion that one of the Subaru wagons would be better than most, but I haven't towed with one, so can't say for sure. Regards SWK ----- Original Message ----- From: "Mike Borgelt" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> To: "Discussion of issues relating to Soaring in Australia." <[email protected]> Sent: Saturday, September 08, 2007 10:44 AM Subject: Re: [Aus-soaring] Family Tow Car At 10:31 AM 8/09/2007, you wrote: >Hi, > >We are new to Oz and are about to purchase a >family car - which will need a tow bar suitable >to tow a single seat glider trailer (glider yet to be purchased). > >Any recommendations for good tow vehicles and gotchas to be aware of? > >What weight does the car need to be able to tow >all up for a single seater + trailer? > >What down force on the ball hitch should it be capable of taking? > >We don't necessarily want to buy a massive >vehicle as it will for the most part be a family >run around. We might purchase a large 4WD at >later date to tow a caravan or other larger trailers. > >I have read with interest the looooong trailer >debate so information from there does not need to be reprised. > >Thanks for any help, > >Regards Richard >_______________________________________________ >Aus-soaring mailing list >[email protected] >To check or change subscription details, visit: >http://lists.internode.on.net/mailman/listinfo/aus-soaring New, used? Price range? Depends on what glider trailer too. Most Aussie built are way overbuilt and far too heavy. Commodore/Falcon have plenty of power but soft rear suspension and tow ball is a long way aft of the rear wheels. My 93 Commodore didn't tow as well as my 81 Mazda 626 RWD. Current 2000 Honda Accord is great with stiff and well located rear end. Check out the max permissable towing weight of the VW Golf. Glider pilots in VW design I think. Golf TDI seems like a great car. Mike Borgelt Instruments - manufacturers of quality soaring instruments phone Int'l + 61 746 355784 fax Int'l + 61 746 358796 cellphone Int'l + 61 428 355784 Int'l + 61 429 355784 email: [EMAIL PROTECTED] website: www.borgeltinstruments.com _______________________________________________ Aus-soaring mailing list [email protected] To check or change subscription details, visit: http://lists.internode.on.net/mailman/listinfo/aus-soaring _______________________________________________ Aus-soaring mailing list [email protected] To check or change subscription details, visit: http://lists.internode.on.net/mailman/listinfo/aus-soaring _______________________________________________ Aus-soaring mailing list [email protected] To check or change subscription details, visit: http://lists.internode.on.net/mailman/listinfo/aus-soaring
