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Volkswagen Passat Estate 2.0 TDI 4Motion is Tops for Towing
26 Jun 2007
The Volkswagen Passat Estate 2.0 TDI 4Motion has beaten tough competition to be awarded Overall Winner in the inaugural Towcar Awards 2007, as voted and judged by experts from What Car?, Practical Caravan and The Camping and Caravanning Club.
The 50 cars tested in this year’s awards, the UK’s largest and most rigorous towcar testing programme, were put through their paces for their towing ability and a host of other qualities: driving performance when not towing, practicality, value for money and safety all formed part of the judging process.
To help buyers choose the right match for their caravan or trailer, the cars were judged in five categories by kerbweight*. The category winners are:
Category – Model - Retail Price - What Car? - Target Price
Up to 1425 kg - Volkswagen Golf 1.9 TDI Match - £16,067 - £15,168
1425-1574 kg - Volvo V70 D5 SE - £28,815 - £25,931
1575-1724 kg - Volkswagen Passat 2.0 TDI Sport 4Motion Estate - £22,337 - £21,256
1725-1900 kg - Audi Allroad 3.0 TDI Quattro Tiptronic - £36,925 - £34,448
Over 1900 kg - Land Rover Discovery TDV6 HSE Auto - £43,812 - £40,890
The following cars were Highly Recommended within their categories: Kia Rio 1.5 CRDi LS (Best Budget Buy), Land Rover Freelander 2.2 TD4 HSE (Best Compact 4x4), Ford Galaxy 2.0 TDCi Ghia (Best Large MPV), and the Range Rover TDV8 HSE (Money-no-object), while the Kia Cee’d 1.6 CRDi LS took the Green Award.
What Car?’s Editor, Steve Fowler, said: “After five days of intensive testing, the Volkswagen Passat Estate emerged as a clear winner. It makes great sense whatever you’re towing, but just as crucial are its abilities in everyday driving and the fact that it’s a sound ownership proposition.”
Carl Rodgerson, Editor of Practical Caravan, said: “Choosing the right towcar is a tricky business as a car dealer is hardly going to pop a towball on the back so that you can go for a spin with your caravan or trailer. These Awards are designed to remove that uncertainty by putting all the leading models through Britain’s most comprehensive towcar test programme.
An excellent car doesn’t automatically make a great towcar but you can be confident that the winners of the Towcar Awards are brilliant all-rounders that offer value, practicality and economy as well as superb towing ability.”
Only cars which received the thumbs up from What Car?’s expert road testers as having true towing promise were selected for the week-long test programme – they also had to be good to drive solo and to live with.
Vehicles were put through a series of specially devised tests for stability, hill starts, acceleration and braking, manoeuvrability and practicality. These took place at the Motor Industry Research Centre (MIRA) in Warwickshire.
Matthew Eastlake, Director of Marketing and Communications for The Camping and Caravanning Club said: “It is essential that consumers have all the relevant information at their fingertips in order to make an informed decision about the purchase of a new vehicle, especially when a considerable amount of money is at stake. This awards programme is the largest of its kind and is instrumental in opening up the minefield of information about not only the best cars for towing but also the best all round vehicles. The Club welcomes the results and is thrilled to be part of these awards.”
*The kerbweight of a car is the unladen weight with allowances for a driver and fuel.
The 50 cars tested in this year’s awards, the UK’s largest and most rigorous towcar testing programme, were put through their paces for their towing ability and a host of other qualities: driving performance when not towing, practicality, value for money and safety all formed part of the judging process.
To help buyers choose the right match for their caravan or trailer, the cars were judged in five categories by kerbweight*. The category winners are:
Category – Model - Retail Price - What Car? - Target Price
Up to 1425 kg - Volkswagen Golf 1.9 TDI Match - £16,067 - £15,168
1425-1574 kg - Volvo V70 D5 SE - £28,815 - £25,931
1575-1724 kg - Volkswagen Passat 2.0 TDI Sport 4Motion Estate - £22,337 - £21,256
1725-1900 kg - Audi Allroad 3.0 TDI Quattro Tiptronic - £36,925 - £34,448
Over 1900 kg - Land Rover Discovery TDV6 HSE Auto - £43,812 - £40,890
The following cars were Highly Recommended within their categories: Kia Rio 1.5 CRDi LS (Best Budget Buy), Land Rover Freelander 2.2 TD4 HSE (Best Compact 4x4), Ford Galaxy 2.0 TDCi Ghia (Best Large MPV), and the Range Rover TDV8 HSE (Money-no-object), while the Kia Cee’d 1.6 CRDi LS took the Green Award.
What Car?’s Editor, Steve Fowler, said: “After five days of intensive testing, the Volkswagen Passat Estate emerged as a clear winner. It makes great sense whatever you’re towing, but just as crucial are its abilities in everyday driving and the fact that it’s a sound ownership proposition.”
Carl Rodgerson, Editor of Practical Caravan, said: “Choosing the right towcar is a tricky business as a car dealer is hardly going to pop a towball on the back so that you can go for a spin with your caravan or trailer. These Awards are designed to remove that uncertainty by putting all the leading models through Britain’s most comprehensive towcar test programme.
An excellent car doesn’t automatically make a great towcar but you can be confident that the winners of the Towcar Awards are brilliant all-rounders that offer value, practicality and economy as well as superb towing ability.”
Only cars which received the thumbs up from What Car?’s expert road testers as having true towing promise were selected for the week-long test programme – they also had to be good to drive solo and to live with.
Vehicles were put through a series of specially devised tests for stability, hill starts, acceleration and braking, manoeuvrability and practicality. These took place at the Motor Industry Research Centre (MIRA) in Warwickshire.
Matthew Eastlake, Director of Marketing and Communications for The Camping and Caravanning Club said: “It is essential that consumers have all the relevant information at their fingertips in order to make an informed decision about the purchase of a new vehicle, especially when a considerable amount of money is at stake. This awards programme is the largest of its kind and is instrumental in opening up the minefield of information about not only the best cars for towing but also the best all round vehicles. The Club welcomes the results and is thrilled to be part of these awards.”
*The kerbweight of a car is the unladen weight with allowances for a driver and fuel.
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