SUVs let's hear it!

[nola911]

I'm coming from a 2007 tundra, a 2002 tundra, a 1996 range rover, a 1996 land rover, and a 1995 z71. I know the benefits of the large truck, but I have danced it enough to know I can get by with much less.

I estimate the boat 6k, if that, fully loaded with fuel, ice, offshore rods/tackle, ect. If the little SUVs cannot handle it, I have the option of making someone else drive. Anyone who would be coming with me has capable cars/trucks, but I think I will be fine with either of those two options.

Burg, you are right, the RX is out because of towing, and the GX is out because of size. The 4 runner feels old to me already, and I am not overly impressed with the driving experience. The new highlander cannot tow for me.

Triumph- same problem with the seqouia, my dad has one, fantastic truck and it tows my boat with ease, but, too large.

John, have you driven any of them, the cayenne makes great daily driver, and with child on the way, it beats the hell out of a minivan.

Let's do this, since I may not get the best of both worlds, towing aside, do you have any hesitations with either of the cars, or any suggestions with anything else in the size range.

[jmatta]

My friend has a large, enclosed trailer that they tow the GT3 around in. Has a Cayenne Turbo, but prefers to tow with their Ford F250 "BFT" (i.e. Big F*****g Truck). I think you are way on the limit with that kind of weight, towing with a Cayenne.

[drburton]

I have a V8 Touareg and love it. The Touareg is based on the same platform as the Cayenne and is in my opinion much better looking. You would also save big money by going with the Touareg. In addition, you can get a V10 Diesel Touareg that is stacked with torque, so you could pretty much tow a house.

Some of the Touareg benefits:

- Great engines 355HP V8 or V10 Diesel
- Good pricing
- Beautiful interior
- Comfortable
- Lots of towing grunt
- More space than an X5

Let me know if you have any additional questions specific to the Touareg.

[porsche986spyder]

I've always wanted a Porsche Cayenne with the TechArt Body Kit and Hood. Check out this bad boy!

[70Sixter]

Just bought a new for 07 X5 3.0 for Mrs Sixter. I can only guess the one with 70k miles was clapped out, cuz this one handles great with all the sport options. Also got to track (and off-road) similar one at Spartenburg, SC, as part of factory delivery. (Highly recommended. Woo hoo.

We have no heavy trailer requirement, and it is her daily driver. She loves it. We just put 6k miles on it during trip to NorCal for T-day, and it is a wunnerful road car.

Cayenne not a good option as dealer is 2.5 hours away, and one car going there is enough. New Jeep not option cuz she came to hate hers. Considered VW, Acura/Honda, Mercedes, Mazda, Volvo, and even Suzuki.

The new X5 is bigger'n we realized. Tried to park in the garage spot behind my 914 previously occupied by 99 Jeep Grand Cherokee. Wouldn't fit!

Don't rule out the X5 until after driving a new one. Our dealer's test drive was best & most exhilerating ever and really sold her on the car after driving the Benz.

[nola911]

[QUOTE=drburton] V10 Diesel Touareg QUOTE]

I never knew such a thing existed.

I completely left out the Toaureg, didnt even think about it. I have an appointment for a test drive tonight! I like the looks of it, the size is perfect, the dealership is 2 minutes from my house (45 for porsche, BMW, Mercedes, and lexus) We will see about this.

Topless, you are speaking my language. As long as the car can pull the boat up the ramp and over 2 bridges, I am fine. No hills, no speed, no dangers.

Spyder, truly beautiful cayenne. The techart kit probably cost half of my whole car budget.

[nola911]

70, great review, I appreciate it and hope to make the hike to test drive a new one this weekend.

[drburton]

Let me know how the Touareg test drive goes. I'll attach a picture of my beast. Love it.

[pompous]

I have a limited grand cherokee and thought a very long time before buying this. It was between it and a range rover, but w/it being close to half the price the jeep seemed the way to go. Big engine, capable 4wd, interior has every comfort option of all other suvs. I like to drive to the mtns to ski alot as well as pull my boat and jet skis w/it. I love the truck personally...its my daily driver. Plus there is a great internet forum for jeep owners.

[Topless]

Max,

A little perspective from an old river rat.

My big boat is about 4500 lbs dry and though I have pulled it with a v6 4Runner I prefer to pull it with a BFT Tahoe, Silverado etc. We have mountains... big ones. I need plenty of pulling power, super cooling and tons of stopping power.

You are in Louisiana. No mountains. You could probably get your boat to the ramp and back in a Rav4 but the tail would want to wag the dog. The Cayenne or X5 should be ok on flat ground. The only thing I don't like about the X5 is the small cargo area in back. A tradeoff for a smaller SUV. Good hunting.

[John V]

Originally Posted by maxferran

Triumph- same problem with the seqouia, my dad has one, fantastic truck and it tows my boat with ease, but, too large.

John, have you driven any of them, the cayenne makes great daily driver, and with child on the way, it beats the hell out of a minivan.

I could never deal with the image of owning a Cayenne (it's the ultimate yuppie poseurmobile) but they're definitely nice vehicles.

It sounds like you don't have to tow very far, so I suppose either would work out OK. I would certainly prefer the V10 TDI Toureg if you can deal with the VW unreliability.

cayenne hands down the best suv

[racer_d]

Why are you hauling a 6K lb boat every weekend instead of leaving it docked somewhere? Would it be "cheaper" to pay a marina fee and just drive a regular car down to the boat?

What about passengers? How are they getting there? In the tow vehicle? 4-5 people can be another 1,000lbs to take into consideration in addition to the 6000lb "trailer" rig.

Touregg Diesels are hard to come by. Taken off the market last year do to lack of low sulfer diesel. Plus, they run about $60K new. Then again, 550 or so FT-LB of torque can pull a heck of a lot.

To me, "can" you make a T-Egg or Cayenne work? yes. It might be on the more marginal side of things though.

What is the "dock" like where the boat goes in. I'd be concerned about the short wheelbase of the T-EGG/Cayanne and the front wheels getting air trying to pull 6-7K lbs (wet) on a lippery boat ramp, with water lapping up on your $2k muffler and do it every weekend? Or even every other weekend?

Get the right tool for the job.. You want to pull a boat, YOU get to drive it.. F350 Dually, Diesel if you want Load up the trailer bed with a jet ski, wet gear, etc as well.


In another unpopular vote, SUV's and kids are hard too.. Climbing up on step rails, in the wet, to reach a middle infant seat is miserable. even more so if the rear door openings are narrow. Then, as the kids get older, worrying about them opening the door into other cars (whether your Porsche in the garage, or a ******************** box at the mall). I never wanted a minivan, but a minivan is the perfect tool for the job. Simple to maintain. easy to drive. Get some power sliders and hatch and it makes life SOO much easier. Leaving room for a sliding door is a lot easier than for a full size "conventional" door. .. Besides, "one on the way" usually means even more to come

Good luck with the decisions.. Who knows, once the kid is "out" maybe the boat will be gone.

Max, what about an Explorer with the V8? Can't it handle the weight?

How about the Tahoe with the hybrid engine?

[Burg Boxster]

Explorer w/ a V8 absolutely cannot handle that much weight.

Sure the hitch can.......... it's just the minor things like tranny, brakes, suspension and torque converter that cannot but who needs those anyways

I used to drive a '04 V8 Explorer - in fact it was the 5th Explorer in a row I'd had so I really used to like them. They were very predictable........ buy 'em cheap, put 75K on 'em and then dump 'em quick before you have to drop in a new tranny. I digress, sorry....

In all reality (w/ a full tank of gas and 0 passengers) it's truly only rated to haul like 1800#s w/ the factory class III/IV hitch. Trust me, when you have 1800#s attached to an Explorer, you know it too. I got t-boned by a horsefly one day when pulling my enclosed trailer..... damn thing almost put me in the ditch

Originally Posted by Burg Boxster

Explorer w/ a V8 absolutely cannot handle that much weight.

Sure the hitch can.......... it's just the minor things like tranny, brakes, suspension and torque converter that cannot but who needs those anyways

I used to drive a '04 V8 Explorer - in fact it was the 5th Explorer in a row I'd had so I really used to like them. They were very predictable........ buy 'em cheap, put 75K on 'em and then dump 'em quick before you have to drop in a new tranny. I digress, sorry....

In all reality (w/ a full tank of gas and 0 passengers) it's truly only rated to haul like 1800#s w/ the factory class III/IV hitch. Trust me, when you have 1800#s attached to an Explorer, you know it too. I got t-boned by a horsefly one day when pulling my enclosed trailer..... damn thing almost put me in the ditch

Burg, I just quickly looked at the owners manual for my 2007 Eddie Bauer with the V8 and it says 12,000 pounds gross towing weight and just over 7,100 pounds for the actual trailer weight.

This is my 3rd Explorer. All driven hard. First two both did over 70K miles. No issues other than standard maintenance (oil and fluid changes- never a brake service, all highway driving). But, my 2003 did have a rear diff go out after warranty, and Ford did give the leasing company (GE Fleet) a $1,500 refund because my company fleet manager complained.

[Burg Boxster]

bmussatti-
That's interesting...... Apparently, tow rating b/w '04 and '07 changed. Not sure how since they are basically the same (IIRC). But I do see the '07 dry is about 240# more. So maybe they beefed up the frame. Who knows? Anyhow,

'04 shows max tow capacity of 5380 #
'07 shows max tow capacity of 7120 #

However, the common mistake people make when calculating true towing capacity is those #s are bone dry, w/ nobody in the vehicle, and usually w/out the vehicle's (actual) installed options (i.e weight distributing hitch, sunroof, 3rd row seats, 3.73 axle needed to tow, etc.). Now, assume a full tank of gas (22.5 gal), some cargo (cooler, backpacks/briefcase, tool box, etc.) and 4 people (driver plus 3) in the SUV....

140#....... for 22.5 gal x 6.2#/gal
700#....... 4 People (175# ea on avg)
500#....... Misc cargo/stuff
25#......... drawbar
50#......... weight dist. hitch
1415#..... Sub Total

The 1415 # (basically the "cargo capacity") must be deducted from the max towing capacity to get the true weight for what can be towed. In this cases, it would be:

'04 - 3965# theoretically "can" be towed
'07 - 5705# theoretically "can" be towed

So back to the original proposition.... Can a V8 Explorer handle a 6000# boat/trailer (even if the 6000# is loaded w/ gas, stuff in boat, etc.). Answer is still no.

I'm not knocking the Explorer. They are very practical vehicles and I've owned one since they first came out in 1990 (1991MY, 1995, 1999, 2002, and 2004) and my daughter now drives my old '04. As I stated, they are 'predictable'. I know what they cost new and I know what I'll get on trade when I dump them in a few years after putting 75K on the clock. 1-2 set of tires, a bunch of oil changes, 2 sets of pads/rotors, and a couple air filters are all that's needed to run 'em.

That being said, I also know they are not the best tow vehicles for anything other than small toys like sea-doos, dirt bikes and snowmobiles. Aside from the theoretical weight ratings, throw in some hills/mountains (like we have in western PA) and you quickly find out the brakes are way undersized for the vehicle - especially towing something.

I don't have exact specs, but IIRC, the rotors on my '99 Boxster are the same diam. (about 12") if not bigger, and almost 2xs as thick as than those on the Explorer. Pads are almost double and braking area on the rotors is approx 50%+ more. The Boxster hits the scales at 2800#.... Explorer at 4500#. It's one thing to get something moving, but just as, if not more, important to make it stop.

[mts]

I have a 2004 Cayenne and used it to tow a track car and open car trailer (5,000lbs total load) and it worked brilliantly with the tiptronic. I honestly didn't think the V6 would have enough grunt and I was only going to use it as a stop-gap until I got a diesel truck, but the ability to tip down a gear on hills made it work really well as a tow vehicle. The V8 would likely handle your open boat trailer and 6,500lbs with no issues at all, especially with no hills. When I go to Road Atlanta and VIR I have to go through the mountains and that's a bit more of a challenge, but it handles it just fine.

I still have the Cayenne, but retired in from tow duty. I now pull an open 2 car trailer to events and use an F250 turbo diesel for the task (about 10,000 lbs tow weight), but if I do tow a single open trailer and don't have too much junk I prefer to use the Cayenne......such a nice ride.

One thing people neglect to consider sometimes is what you are towing. A 6,500 open boat trailer is a heck of a lot less taxing to tow than say a 5,000lb enclosed car trailer for example. It's the wind resistance. For example, my F250 has to work harder towing a big square single enclosed car trailer (about 6,000lbs) than my 10,000lb open 2 car trailer. The point being the V8 Cayenne will handle your boat on flat land no problem.

Good luck,
Mike

[Cloudsurfer]

I would go for the V10 Diesel VW. Having spent a lot of time towing boats and big car trailers, I would only want a diesel- both for the torque and the fuel economy (especially now). In an ideal world we'd all have Diesel Duallys in our garages for the times we need to tow things, but unless you have a good chunk of extra cash laying around (or want to drive a dually for a daily) its just not practical. When you break it all down, I think for a daily that has decent towing capability and is fuel efficient, I think you can't beat the VW.

One thing to keep in mind, however, if you wind up doing a lot of towing with any of these: they are not real trucks. Yes they'll tow the weight (some more happily than others), but the added wear and tear is wear and tear to very expensive components. Its not bad when you have to finally do brakes on your F-350, its quite another on an X5. Same goes for diff service, gearbox service and possible failure, etc.

Just my $.02.

Patrick

[nola911]

Originally Posted by John V

I could never deal with the image of owning a Cayenne (it's the ultimate yuppie poseurmobile)

haha, I thought I just read a thread that said the boxster was... written by a nissan guy.

I don't think my wife would mind the looks of angry people wondering who the "poseur" is driving the cayenne. What the hell is a poser anyway??

Once again, I am not worried about the tow rating. The v6 caynne base has the same tow capacity as the v8 s, the turbo, and the turbo s. I am not going far and not getting enough speed pull myself off the road.

As far as I am concerened the ratings are based on vehicle size and length more than their actual abilities. You cannot tell me a turbo s with more power than an h1 hummer cannot pull an 8k lb boat up a gentle boat ramp slope.

If my range rover that weighed 4401 with a 7700 lb tow capacity could handle it with ease, the 4950 lbs cayenne with the same tow capacity can do the same. Thats enough tow talk.