Tiguan

sugarloafer

Hey guys, we're almost ready to pick up our new s-max, and we are wondering about specific preparations
, considerations, pros and cons about our towing vehicle, which is a 2014 VW Tiguan. Is anyone else using one of these to tow their T@B? We'd love to hear your thoughts, and thanks!

Homebodyatheart

I have no clue, but for us I researched our TV tow weight and tongue weight, both very important. Good luck!

TabberJohn

Looks okay: http://www.autobytel.com/volkswagen/tiguan/2014/specifications/
2200 lbs tow capacity; 2.0L turbo I-4 cylinder, 200 HP; 207 lb.-ft. @ 1700RPM, 6 speed manual or automatic, front-wheel drive or AWD (aka 4Motion); which trim package do you have?
Should be fine towing. Just don't load things up.
Others with similar TVs should have better feedback.

Ramrod

Bigger is better.

wizard1880

The Tiguan will tow it effortlessly, even in the steep mountains as it is turbocharged.  But yes, keep an eye on your weight limits, especially the tongue.

sugarloafer

Thanks folks! If there's anyone out there actually towing with the Tig, we'd love to hear from ya! Just curious about what to expect when we roll in to the dealer and ask what we need to prepare this car to tow the t@b.....

pthomas745

I have a 2014 Touareg TDI with the towing package. The only "prep" my car needed was the nuts and bolts of the trailer hitch and the installation of the brake controller.  My dealer installed a Tekonsha P2.  The controller is about the size of a deck of cards, and when I drive along it sits under the dash just above my right knee, with plenty of room to spare.  The wiring harness for the brake controller runs from the back of the car and (on my car) is buried in the dash on the left side of the instrument panel.  If you have the towing package, the trailer's connector (the famous "7 pin plug") will be right next to the trailer's hitch. The install of the brake controller cost me 345 or so, including the controller, and it took a couple of hours to complete.  Some of the Touareg forums on the web claim the wiring connector in the dash is a tight squeeze to get to, but according to the dealership, it didn't appear to be much different than most other cars.

I've only had my T@B since October, and I could not have written the above paragraph in September!  I had no clue about any of this before I bought my T@B.  I had no idea how a trailer connected, even though I had towing packages on cars before.  Long story short:  if your car has a towing package, the only physical things you need are the hitch, ball, and brake controller install, and that is what you need to ask the dealer about.  (Disclaimer:  there may be something obvious I'm forgetting here!)

The ball and hitch were provided by the dealer, but apparently these are not expensive items. 

The only other prep was on the big nut that holds the steering wheel.  I had never towed anything until the day I drove it off the dealer's lot.  (I had some very experienced help in the passenger's seat).  If you have never towed anything, find a friend who has. Ask for help.  Find out what brake controller you will have and learn about how it works and how to adjust it.  The Tekonsha instructions are fairly straightforward.  If I could do this again, I would have paid much more attention to how the controller worked the very first day. 

 Dragging the trailer is the easy part.  Having a 16 foot, 1600 pound friend following you everywhere is a completely different driving and planning experience.  My Touareg handles towing just fine, and the nut holding the wheel is still being careful with all driving senses at maximum level.  I expect the Tiguan will also.

 

rfuss928

Remember the 2200# capacity includes everything you put in the vehicle and trailer including yourself and passenger.  The luggage, cooler, camping supplies in the TV and T@B all need to be added to the weight of the T@B and compared to the published towing capacity.  It will be challenging to to keep it all under the 2200# limit. 

Towing at or near the TV limit is manageable with some experience but a bit risky for a novice IMO.  Occasional trips to nearby destinations should be no problem.  As an enabler for high mileage touring, higher towing capacity would be prudent.

db_cooper

+1 for something with a higher towing capacity.   Gas mileage is going to suffer no matter what.  Just because my Xterra has a 5000 ft. tow capacity doesn't mean I'd like towing something that heavy for very far.  I have towed a utility trailer with 4000 lb of rock multiple times for short distances, and let me tell you it was scary in the rain, and hard on the vehicle. 

wizard1880

rfuss928 said:

Remember the 2200# capacity includes everything you put in the vehicle and trailer including yourself and passenger.  The luggage, cooler, camping supplies in the TV and T@B all need to be added to the weight of the T@B and compared to the published towing capacity.  It will be challenging to to keep it all under the 2200# limit. 

Towing at or near the TV limit is manageable with some experience but a bit risky for a novice IMO.  Occasional trips to nearby destinations should be no problem.  As an enabler for high mileage touring, higher towing capacity would be prudent.

Only the tongue weight is subtracted from your vehicle's weight.  As long as you keep the tongue at 200 or under, then just subtract 200 from your vehicle capacity.  The Tiguan's gross limit is between 800-1000 lbs depending on model and options, so that leaves you with at least 600 lbs for the car.  You can put cargo into the T@B to reduce your vehicles weight, as long as you keep it below 2200.

The Touareg is a completely different animal.  You've got a 7500 lbs towing limit and roughly 600 on the tongue.  Towing the T@B is nearly effortless, since the TDI's 406 ft/lbs of torque is twice the Tiguans.

sugarloafer

Thanks guys! That was really helpful, since, like pthomas, I had no idea what to expect at the dealer...

rfuss928

wizard1880 said:

Only the tongue weight is subtracted from your vehicle's weight.  As long as you keep the tongue at 200 or under, then just subtract 200 from your vehicle capacity.  The Tiguan's gross limit is between 800-1000 lbs depending on model and options, so that leaves you with at least 600 lbs for the car.  You can put cargo into the T@B to reduce your vehicles weight, as long as you keep it below 2200.

The Touareg is a completely different animal.  You've got a 7500 lbs towing limit and roughly 600 on the tongue.  Towing the T@B is nearly effortless, since the TDI's 406 ft/lbs of torque is twice the Tiguans.

The towing capacity is a rating of the entire drivetrain and chassis's ability to manage the additional loads of acceleration and deceleration and not exceed any components design limits.  Many factors beyond the tongue weight and it's effects are are considered in determining towing capacity rating.

Any guidelines I have ever read explain the vehicles total capacity and towing capacity as I described.  Any weight added to the TV is subtracted from the towing capacity.

Moving weight from the TV to the trailer to manage capacity as you suggest is a risky move.  If the tongue weight is below 10-15% of the trailer weight, instability (sway) is easily initiated - probably on a TV that is running over capacity.

As I said before, a little experience makes a big difference.

My experience led me to a Touareg TDI from the beginning of our T@B travels.  After ~54k towing miles I am more convinced than ever that the excess towing capacity has made those miles, as you said, "nearly effortless".

Someone who plans on visiting their favorite spot a few hundred miles away from home a couple of times a year has substantially different requirements then someone towing 10k miles a year.

The most common recommendation on T@B forums over the years is a TV with 3000-3500# rating minimum.  I think that is sound advise.

wizard1880

It all boils down to the GVWR and GCWR (gross combined.)

GVWR is the limit of weight the vehicle's axles are rated to handle.  The trailers tongue weight is subtracted from it.

GCWR is the total weight, trailer and tow vehicle, and is limited by the chassis design, cooling system limitations, and brakes.

You'll find the GCWR for a given vehicle is often close to the sum of the vehicle GVWR and the tow rating, give or take.

https://rideapart.com/articles/ten-important-common-questions-about-towing-and-hauling

Ramrod

Comparing a diesel Touareg to a Tiguan's towing ability? As stated above horsepower, torque, towing capacity is much higher. I am going to weigh it one day but I bet I carry 200-300 lbs of "junk" along with my T@B

wizard1880

You may be surprised to know the net weight carrying limit (payload) of the Tiguan is nearly the same as the Touareg.  Heck, my Jetta has 1050 lbs payload even!

dsatwork

@rfuss928
Although when you posted your explanation of tow capacity, I immediately said that's not right and started searching and sure enough there are plenty of articles to support your definition and may be a prudent approach to towing. I believe the manufacturers believe their vehicle are indeed capable of towing a trailer with their published tow capacities. 

I think the information below is similar to your calculations but based on the CGWR

http://www.ehow.com/how_4815339_calculate-towing-capacity.html

How to Calculate Towing Capacity

To safely and legally tow a trailer of any type with a vehicle, you must first determine the towing capacity of the vehicle. This calculation can be made with information from the vehicle data tag on the driver's door post.

Locate the vehicle data tag on the driver's door post.

Note the CGWR. This is the combined gross weight rating. It is the maximum allowable weight your vehicle, with cargo and passengers, and a trailer can weigh.

Determine the loaded weight, with passengers and fuel, of your vehicle. This is most accurate by weighing the vehicle on a public scale. These can be found at truck stops and some moving companies. Check also at landscape supply companies and sand and gravel yards. If a scale cannot be found, estimate the weight by adding the curb weight of the vehicle and all passengers and cargo.

Subtract the loaded weight of your vehicle from the CGWR rating of your vehicle. The resulting number is your towing capacity. Keep the weight of your trailer under this number to be safe and legal. Weighing your trailer when fully loaded is most accurate

The gross combined weight rating or gross combination weight rating (GCWR), also referred to as the gross combination mass (GCM), gross train weight (GTW), or maximum authorised mass (MAM), is the maximum allowable combined mass of a road vehicle, the passengers and cargo in the tow vehicle, plus the mass of the trailer and cargo in the trailer.[1][2] This rating is set by the vehicle manufacturer.

rfuss928

wizard1880 and dsatwork   -  You are absolutely correct with the calculation you describe.  The problem is very few, if any of the small passenger vehicles in the typical T@B forum inquiry have GCWR specifications published or available.  It is usually only a consideration on HD trucks.

The approach I and others suggest may be a bit conservative but appropriate for the TVs and trailers we are discussing.

By no means is it safe to assume that these small vehicles, or any vehicle for that mater, can be loaded to the maximum GVWR and tow at the maximum rating simultaneously.  The GCWR never is the sum of both maximum ratings.

The long established (T@B forums) recommendation of 3000-3500# TV towing capacity take these things into consideration. It also takes into account the fact that the T@Bs added aerodynamic drag can easily increase the road load (required HP) to double or even quadruple at highway speeds compared to what these small TVs experience alone.  This can be very hard on the engine and transmission with extended operation.  This recommendation has verification from many members that have moved from marginal capacity TVs to TVs with ~3500# or higher ratings through the years.

The Tiguan in the OP falls in the marginal category.  A driver experienced with towing will manage with it OK.  A novice that suddenly gets hit with a strong crosswind, is required to make a panic stop or sudden maneuver may find themselves in way over their skill level and the TVs capabilities.   Someone with the appropriate experience would not have asked the question.

How far, how fast, how often and the drivers experience are big factors in the best choice for each individual.  Advising a novice that they can probably get by with a TV with marginal capacities is a disservice IMO.