From those that tow ... info pls

hello,

My vehicle is a 011 Golf Tdi (6 spd manual) ... suspension and brakes stock, stage 2 malone & rawteck . currently pull a Trailmaster (motorcycle) camper Aspen Classic.Loaded weighs 500 lbs loaded. always avg low 40's at 70 mph. pretty great in my book.

I'm going to be pulling a Sylvan Sport Go ... about 1.1k lbs loaded and maybe 100 lbs tongue weight.

Current mileage is 85k and I am in need of brakes ... so i'm doing all 4 with slotted / drilled rotors and ceramic pads. also adding the Tyrol front caliper stiffeners and braided stainless lines.

My question is would I gain any stability (especially in mtn. travel) by adding a better rear sway bar and improved rear shocks ? or would I be throwing money away ?

Please chime in with experience and products used ... or thoughts from the peanut gallery ! And no ... i'm not dumping my TDI Golf ....

cheers / tks Bryan

I run a better rear sway bar and towing springs, 1000 lbs w/ 100 tongue is well within the capacity of the car. the big thing to look out for is overloading the rear of the car, Ie try to have it be level when loaded.

The more weight on the rear the stronger the rear sway bar needs to be.
If nothing else is in the back of the car I think you would easily be within the normal range for the car.
If you are carrying stuff in the back and adding the tongue weight then an upgraded bar will help.

Mostly make sure you are loaded slightly to the front. Kind of a balance issue, really. To far aft or forward can cause problems.

Drilled and slotted rotors are a complete waste of money. The Tyrol stiffeners look to be a great upgrade, the SS brake lines not so much. The SS brake lines are just a stock hose with a decorative SS outer jacket. No actual improvement there.

My best guess is that the sway bar has absolutely nothing to do with towing capability. Just have some weight but not to much weight on the ball.

The sway bar prevents body roll. Other than that it has nothing to do with toeing.

We are also going to be towing a Sylvansport GO with our 2013 Golf TDI with DSG.
The GO will be delivered at the end of this month. Our camping season is over for the year so no real towing until next spring.

I am not planning any suspension changes before towing but will take a good look at the brakes.
Cross drilled rotors are not a good idea. They crack prematurely at the drilled holes. Slots are ok but not really needed.
A good set of brake pads and fresh brake fluid will be sufficient.

A sway bar controls side to side body roll. I can't see how it would have much affect towing a trailer.
100 pound tongue weight is not going to drop the rear ride height very much. If you are concerned about it, put stiffer springs in the back. Keep in mind, the stiffer springs will affect the handling when not towing the GO. Stiffer rear springs will increase oversteer.

Keep us posted on the GO.

Sctdi123 said:

hello,

My vehicle is a 011 Golf Tdi (6 spd manual) ... suspension and brakes stock, stage 2 malone & rawteck . currently pull a Trailmaster (motorcycle) camper Aspen Classic.Loaded weighs 500 lbs loaded. always avg low 40's at 70 mph. pretty great in my book.

I'm going to be pulling a Sylvan Sport Go ... about 1.1k lbs loaded and maybe 100 lbs tongue weight.

Current mileage is 85k and I am in need of brakes ... so i'm doing all 4 with slotted / drilled rotors and ceramic pads. also adding the Tyrol front caliper stiffeners and braided stainless lines.

My question is would I gain any stability (especially in mtn. travel) by adding a better rear sway bar and improved rear shocks ? or would I be throwing money away ?

Click to expand...

I tow my 1300# boat/trailer with my JSW. My tongue weight is around 150#'s. The rear of my car didn't seem to sag much at all and it seemed to handle fine. A little sluggish at highway speeds. My mpg went down the tubes, though. I averaged 30mpg almost all highway on a route that I would normally average 50mpg.

I would just do new pads and fluid. If the rotors are warped, I would replace them. I know someone who regularly autocrosses, his lap times didn't improve with the slotted/drill rotors. The rotors only lasted a couple races before cracking.

I have done braided ss hose before and it made the brake pedal harder and more responsive. I think their is some placebo affect of having the harder brake pedal, I don't know their was any significant drop in braking distance, besides the initial responsiveness.

tks for the responses folks ....

this is the motorcycle camper I was towing ... Aspen classic ... affected mileage by about 10% . Nice little camper with a queen size bed and light.

http://www.trailmasterinc.com/aspclassic/alphotos.html


This will be the next camper ... I expect more windage but its low in tow mode ... will be pulling aprox. twice the weight ... hopefully at 68mph I can realize 35 - 38 mpg range
http://www.sylvansport.com/camper/tow-behind-camper/

anyone else has more towing experience please chime in

B.

http://forums.tdiclub.com/showthread.php?t=378712

It's been a long time since i've towed over 1000lbs, but you're going to be fine as long as you remember that you can't slow down as fast, take turns as fast, or accelerate as fast.

Think of the car as delicate when towing and keep an eye out for others and you will be golden. I've towed 1500 plus with my car and probably with a tongue weight of 150+.

This is my old blue car in the thread provided, my new red tdi which was lowered when i got it has stiffer suspension and actually tows better, no sway bar mods.

tanner ,

nice KTM ... I used to have a couple different 640s

iceracer ...

I've visited the factory up in Brevard NC ... great little mtn town about 3 hrs from here. Hope you have the chance to pick yours up there ... terrific area to camp, bike, hike what have you.

cheers , B.

We were planning to pick up the trailer last week but it wasn't finished. Wife and I were really looking forward to camping in the Brevard area and I was very interested in going to the BBC, Brevard Brewing Company.
Although, with all the rain and flooding, maybe the camping would have been a wash out.

Please let me know how well towing the Coolest Camper works with the Golf.

Jay

I see that other members have suggested stiffer springs, even better are air bags. Ive installed them on mine and they work perfect for keeping the car level

Sent from my VS986 using Tapatalk

sylvan go / Brevard

iceracer,

There is a Camp ground called Davidson River only a few miles from the factory, it is on the river so check flooding ... up the road from there up rt276 right on the Bue ridge pkwy is Pisgah campground ... great place a little more desolate (terrific star gazing) ... right at the pisgah Inn and Pisgah mtn hiking. They close it in October so check website for dte ... Davidson River campground is open all year .... some have plug ins and others are dry camping ... water and hot showers are available there.

Enjoy ... great area ... prost / cheers , Bryan


also for beer in Brevard is Oscar Blues, Sierra Nevada , and Brevard Brewery .... half hr away is Asheville ... lots of breweries there also


ping me on your Sylvan Go towing experience ... im 3 weeks out on mine