Volvo XC40 Tow Vehicle

jbajor

I am waiting on delivery of my camper..  In the meantime I just had the OEM hitch, control electronics and wiring installed.  It is only a 4-banger (turbo charged and all-wheel drive) but is rated at 3500 lbs max tow weight.  Has anyone had experience with this car and their TAB 320?  Limitations?

CharlieRN

I don't have any experience with the XC-40, but as a long-time Volvo owner, I can safely say that they are conservative in their ratings. My XC-90 was an older model with a V-8 and rated for just under 5,000 lbs. My 320 was child's play for it, but I had a friend who regularly towed his 6,500 lb boat with his. No ill effects on his car, other than somewhat increased brake pad wear (the surge brakes on his trailer were crap).

The 320 with water tank topped and a full propane tank should be in the 2,300 lb range. Filling the fridge, adding gear and a cooler could bring that up a couple of hundred or so pounds. Either way, I think you will be fine with the XC-40 at a 3,500 lb rating and perhaps a 1,000 lb margin.

The one drawback to towing with the XC-40 is it's wheelbase; at just over 106 inches, it's a tad undersized. Our Telluride's wheelbase is only 8 inches more (just over 114 inches) though, and tows our 320 beautifully, with no need for any sway control devices. My thought is that you should be a little concerned about possible sway, but relatively unconcerned about tow weight.

I'm far from an expert in this however, so perhaps others with more experience can chime in.

jbajor

Thank you so much for the great experience!  With the OEM tow package, the electronics supposedly monitor for sway and compensate with individual wheel braking on the TV.  I am really curious in finding out if this is real or a gimmick.  Fingers crossed!  Thank again!

CharlieRN

Europeans in general, and Swedes in particular, are very fond of "caravans" like the T@B. You may already know this but since so many Swedes tow, nearly every Volvo has towing capability, though the capacity varies by model. I'm not surprised that newer models like the XC-40 have electronics built-in to assist with safe towing and am sure that they work as designed.

By the way, I should have mentioned that the 4-cylinder Volvo turbo is a great engine and should be sufficiently powerful to easily tow something like a 320. Volvo uses the same 4-cylinder in all their ICE vehicles, including the large 90 series, though in those models, the engine has both turbo and super chargers. We had a late-model V60 with the turbo 4, and I was always impressed by the engine. I was also very fond of the Volvo V-8 engine (a twin-cam designed and built by Yamaha) but my favorite was the 5-cylnder turbo that powered our S60. Volvo has relegated all its ICE's to the dustbin however, and in a few years will be all-electric.

jbajor

I have loved my Volvos over the years and, in particular, loved the 5 cylinder!

Flybone89

@jbajorWe tow our new T@B 320S with a 2020 Volvo XC60 which is also rated at 3500 pounds. We had the Volvo hideaway hitch and electronics installed which also included reprogramming the system. So it has like you said a whole bunch of great little tow features like electronic sway and brakes as well as trailer light check.

We just took our first long trip with our Volvo and the trailer. We are at Myrtle Beach right now and drove down here from Ohio through the Smoky Mountains including an overnight stop in Asheville. It towed fantastic! Perfect combination, no issues on the mountain grades, and best yet it got 18 mpg (albeit requiring premium fuel)! That said, the XC60 is also the exact same length and width as the 320, so we don’t have a tail wagging the dog scenario. You may have more sway from time to time in the smaller XC40, but I think the system is more than capable of handling it. Honesty after 30 minutes I forgot I was pulling a trailer and it wasn’t any more fatigued than just driving the car.

We love the combo so much that when we move up to the 400 in retirement :-) we will get a XC90 to tow it! (That sweet new plug in hybrid :-) Yeah, Volvos and teardrops are perfect companions!

Kevin

jbajor

That is fabulous!  Thank you!