2.2 Avensis Tow Car

[The Cav]

I have recently returned to the world of touring caravaning

Having purchased. A Lunar Quasar 524 .. I had a tow bar fitted to my 126000 miles 2.2 Avensis Hatchback

The max towing capacity of the Avensis according to Mr Toyota is 1300kg

Which is low in comparison to similar size cars ( Vectra 1.9 - 1500kg)

Why the weight limit is so low baffles me

Any way all I can say is that my van is 1300 kg max weight so bang on The Avensis limit

The Avensis is a superb tow car... On a recent trip to North Wales I was impressed so with that in mind We decided to take the caravan down south obviously taking in various motoways

Yet again the car performed effortlessly swallowing up the miles even when we had to negotiate some steep hills around Bristol ( We were heading to Shepton Mallet) despite the mileage the car has turned out to be a real star

But i am totally baffled where the 1300kg tow weight max comes from because I feel the car is more thancapable of matching the Vectra and similar cars that can tow around 1500kg

[AlysAvensis]

I have the same car as you and I'm thinking of getting into caravanning.

I work in the motor trade and drive a lot of cars in a working week and my Avensis takes a bit of time to pick up from low revs compared to other Ford or Vag diesels, once it does kick in it's great but I can imagine towing up hills and changing gear waiting for the turbo to spool could be tricky, plus for a 2.2 diesel they don't have a lot of torque 220lb/ft these days isn't a lot.

My dads alfa romeo brera broke down recently (predictably) and I had to tow him and I thought it would be a piece of cake but my Avensis actually struggled to keep him above 40mph the car does weigh 1600kg though

[jenshusband]

I tow with a 2008 2.00l Avensis and like you I have a limit of 1300kg. I have travelled up and down the country, towing my van which is 1300mptlm and have had no problem.

I, like you, wonder why it is such a low tow weight and someone made the comment on another forum saying he thought it may have something to do with the dual mass flywheel arrangement.

I did check with Toyota in case it was a mistake on the V5 form, but they confirmed it was right.