Caravan

Avnt

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Does anyone tow a caravan with an s204 c class? C350cdi so power wont be a problem. More interested in autobox reliability for towing.



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Craiglxviii

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I tow a carsvan in a W211 E320. Big German van. Auto box is fine. I get 21mpg all day long with it, which is almost exactly a 33% reduction on motorway mileage.
 
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I tow a carsvan in a W211 E320. Big German van. Auto box is fine. I get 21mpg all day long with it, which is almost exactly a 33% reduction on motorway mileage.

Is yours the 7 speed auto as well?


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EmilysDad

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Does anyone tow a caravan with an s204 c class? C350cdi so power wont be a problem. More interested in autobox reliability for towing.



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What size/weight of caravan. It makes a huge difference. :rolleyes:
 
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What size/weight of caravan. It makes a huge difference. :rolleyes:
Id say no more than 1380kg fully loaded.


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EmilysDad

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Id say no more than 1380kg fully loaded.


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I would say that your C Class then would be more than capable. My R320 also has the 7 speed box & I tow our 1865kg Coachman with ease & no over heating problems. :)
 
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I would say that your C Class then would be more than capable. My R320 also has the 7 speed box & I tow our 1865kg Coachman with ease & no over heating problems. :)

That was my main concern. Also passing my test after 97 means i have to have no more than 3500kg total weight. Looking now to see if bumper has to be cut for detachable tow bar. Hopefully not


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EmilysDad

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...... Also passing my test after 97 means i have to have no more than 3500kg total weight.
Ah. A major consideration

Looking now to see if bumper has to be cut for detachable tow bar. Hopefully not
My towbar was already on the car when I bought it. There is a small cut out on mine, but not too obvious.
 
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Ah. A major consideration

Yeah thatsthe penalty for been younger

My towbar was already on the car when I bought it. There is a small cut out on mine, but not too obvious.

Its trying to find a reliable answer of the towbar companies some say yes some say no



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Craiglxviii

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I would say that your C Class then would be more than capable. My R320 also has the 7 speed box & I tow our 1865kg Coachman with ease & no over heating problems. :)
I have a 1600kg Dethleffs 5 berth also with no problems. Plenty of power for pulling away/ overtaking and cruising at 60 is effortless.
 
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Is the 13pin plug for caravan and charging leasure battery? Its showing 13pin plug or 7 pin or twin 7


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Craiglxviii

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Is the 13pin plug for caravan and charging leasure battery? Its showing 13pin plug or 7 pin or twin 7


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My van has twin 7 pin. Leisure battery is charged when connected.
 

EmilysDad

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Is the 13pin plug for caravan and charging leasure battery? Its showing 13pin plug or 7 pin or twin 7


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New caravans have been fitted with a 13 pin plug for the past few years .... far better connection than the old 12N & 12S plugs. I'd chose a 13 pin socket for the car & have the caravan altered to match if needed. Yes, the 13 pin will do both charging, fridge & road lighting.
 

grayb

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Our detachable tow bar is a Tow-Trust - no cutting required, and it has been very easy to use (better than the Witter on the previous car). The car has a 13-pin socket and we use an adaptor as our van is an old one with two 7-pin plugs.
 

V6Matty

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Bit of a thread hijack here, sorry Avnt.
We're considering a Caravan (need to work out where to store it as well) and I've no idea what we should be looking for re size, weight, berth ect. Anyone got any tips on what I should be looking at and where a good place for advise is? Just thinking we have a number of large caravan places around us (Brownhills, leisure world), are they a good place to speak to people in the know?
 

grayb

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Bit of a thread hijack here, sorry Avnt.
We're considering a Caravan (need to work out where to store it as well) and I've no idea what we should be looking for re size, weight, berth ect. Anyone got any tips on what I should be looking at and where a good place for advise is? Just thinking we have a number of large caravan places around us (Brownhills, leisure world), are they a good place to speak to people in the know?
Well, that's a huge conversation right there! Depends whether you travel light or want to take your whole home with you...
 

keefysher

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Bit of a thread hijack here, sorry Avnt.
We're considering a Caravan (need to work out where to store it as well) and I've no idea what we should be looking for re size, weight, berth ect. Anyone got any tips on what I should be looking at and where a good place for advise is? Just thinking we have a number of large caravan places around us (Brownhills, leisure world), are they a good place to speak to people in the know?

Good lad :)

How many of you are there? That will determine berths ie 1 each!!

Do you want a fixed bed for 2 of you? Or make up beds each night from the seating?

We have a fixed French Bed in our Sterling Continental 570 https://www.practicalcaravan.com/reviews/caravan/31792-sterling-continental-570 which gives us separate washing, sleeping and living areas. The lounge area can be 2 single beds, ideal for kids, or a massive double bed. There is an end washroom with loo, wash basin and shower cubicle that means we are self sufficient and don't need to use sites with facilities.

The current trend is for mid van loo/shower that we don't like as the kitchen is next to the loo/shower.

Will you use it year round? We do and ours is winterised with full wet central heating. You can get blown air heating that makes the air dryer.

If you want a big van, twin axle are available, but are heavy and need a big SUV type tug due to their kerb weight. There is an advisory 85% limit of caravan to tug ie the caravan mass in running order shouldn't be more than 85% of the kerb weight of the car. Twin axles are the target of the travelling community for being nicked.

The payload is something else to consider. Generally not much payload. When you subtract the leisure battery, motor mover, water and waste containers, hook up cable there is little left for personal items.

Spend days going to a dealer to look at layouts to see what suits, perhaps hire a caravan for a trip.

Generally quality is mixed. A well looked after second hand is a safer bet than new. Damp is the biggest thing to check out. Our caravan has non timber construction, so shouldn't be susceptible to damp. It has its 3rd service later this week where a damp test is done.

Warranties are transferable at some point. But not everything is warranteed.

In respect of storage we have ours on the drive at home. Kind of obvious if its been nicked.

Are you looking at long term use? We intend to run ours into the ground. Mostly due to the poor quality of new caravans. We've had issues, all resolved, but wouldn't buy another new caravan again.

Then there are the accessories. We have an inflatable awning, not full length. Also a sun canopy. We tend to use the awning for 4 nights or more. Outdoor chairs. The indoor table is used outside to remove another item from the payload.

A motor mover is almost a given as manoeuvring becomes so easy.

There are other vanners on here who will contribute, Craig, EmilysDad, grayb.

We have tented, then motorhome for 9 years and now the caravan, since we had our daughter arrived. It gives us lots of breaks away. I also use it for working away as I hate hotels.
 

keefysher

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Does anyone tow a caravan with an s204 c class? C350cdi so power wont be a problem. More interested in autobox reliability for towing.



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I towed our Sterling Continental 570 for 2 years with my previous S350L with the 7g+ gearbox. As I had the towbar fitted after market, the same retractable one as off the line, it had the uprated cooling fan/pump as the car wasn't built initially for towing. Worth checking.

The engine/gearbox combination made it an effortless tow.

My current GLE350 has the 9g gearbox with other driving aids like distance pilot that make towing even more effortless. Also have the electrically deployed towbar.

13 pin on the car and caravan. Did have a hired Discovery that had the twin 12N&S sockets that an adaptor is available for. The 13 pin also powers the caravan stability system so the brakes/wheels are registered by the car. Blind spot assist switches off on connecting the caravan.
 
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