Towing question

grimkiller

Veteran Member
Joined
Jun 6, 2006
Location
Sparwood BC
TDI
2001 jetta
I've been towing my new 2011 bmw k1300s on my aluminum trailer i built. the trailer weights about 250lbs and the bike is about 515lbs and with ramp and spare tire i'd say im pulling between 800 to 850 lbs. i normally average between 1000 and 1100km on a tank and not being gentle on the throttle. pulling the trailer and bike im getting between 750 and 800 km a tank. the car is chipped with several support mods. would increasing the hp help with the mileage at all or would having the tune changed for towing have better results?
 

coalminer16

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Dec 11, 2008
Location
Central Wisconsin
TDI
Golf 2004
If you already have tuning and mods what more are you asking. I would say if you want the next improvement for towing since you already have the exhaust would be the intercooler, maybe a turbo. Towwing gets your intake air much warmer as the engine is under load more. I have seen both the intake temps (through scan gauge) and the EGT get really high towwing (in winter with a head wind). Bottom line though is towwing will alway take more fuel as the trailer is dirty air (wind resistance with little good flow) and you have the extra weight as well. That and you should be riding the bike not towing it ;)
 

grimkiller

Veteran Member
Joined
Jun 6, 2006
Location
Sparwood BC
TDI
2001 jetta
i would be riding the bike but its not broke in yet they dont recomment cruising they want you to be varying the throttle on hills and windy roads. so thats what i do. i am chipped but its only a stage 1 or 2. so im guessing increasing the HP will only make it an easier pull but not help with mileage much correct?
 

coalminer16

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Dec 11, 2008
Location
Central Wisconsin
TDI
Golf 2004
Depends. Cooling the air will give you more oxygen in the cylinders making the fuel burn more effeciently with less wast giving you both more HP and MPG. If you just dump more fuel in there you may have more HP but you are needing air in this case.
 

coalminer16

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Dec 11, 2008
Location
Central Wisconsin
TDI
Golf 2004
Also, the Harleys advise the same thing. But sometimes you can't find hilly winding roads. That is when you use different gears and speeds. Same with your VW when it was new. Just do with what you can. I was just giving you crap about trailering it though. I know sometimes you have to.
 

traxterXT

Veteran Member
Joined
Mar 30, 2004
Location
Ottawa On, Canada
TDI
jetta 2005
FYI in the owners manual it says the TDI should not be pulling any trailers. and tow capacity is N/A. I've replace a turbo on a jetta that the VNT vanes twisted and melted and half the turbine wheel melted from pulling a trailer. Granted you have a larger turbo. If you want to pull a trailer Dodge GM and Ford their yard full of diesel trucks
 

grimkiller

Veteran Member
Joined
Jun 6, 2006
Location
Sparwood BC
TDI
2001 jetta
better check again i just looked it says "if you plan to tow a trailer, please remember that your car will be preforming a service it was not intended for" and if you look a little farther in the technical data it gives you the allowable weights for trailers of the different engines. ya and im not dishing out 25k+ for a truck
 

GoFaster

Moderator at Large
Joined
Jun 16, 1999
Location
Brampton, Ontario, Canada
TDI
2006 Jetta TDI
FYI in the owners manual it says the TDI should not be pulling any trailers. and tow capacity is N/A.
Depending on exact model and year, this is not necessarily true. My particular car has a 1000 lb towing rating.

The European version of the SAME CAR is rated 600 kg without trailer brakes and 1200 kg with trailer brakes. Same engine, same transmission!

I've towed far more than the original poster did, and have done so for years, and have never had a problem. Of course, I take it easy when towing. Foot to the floor continously, particular on a chipped car, could be trouble.
 

Milage King

Veteran Member
Joined
Jun 21, 2008
Location
Spring Grove, IL
TDI
03 Jetta TD tuned
This is the result of pulling 2 Harley's on a trailer.

Cheers BTW This is the 3rd meltdown after 350 000 Km






Was the Jetta stock or chipped? Hard to believe that after melting one turbo, that someone wouldn't gauge the car to see what it is doing if they are pulling that kind of weight. The big boy diesels still melt too if you tow with them and aren't gauged to see what the engine & trans are doing.

I've towed 25 sheets of 1/2" plywood (1250 lbs) on a 600 lbs 4x8 trailer with my 99.5. If you are towing lots of weight, you need to be gauged to see the egt's. I had no problems towing the load and the car was asking for more:)
 

coalminer16

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Dec 11, 2008
Location
Central Wisconsin
TDI
Golf 2004
Father had a 2500 JD stationary engine on his trailer that likely weighed 400 lbs or so from IA to MN. Car took it just fine and it was an 09 sportwagon with an auto even. I don't know how others drive but every my father, brother and myself have CDL's and have driven a lot with trailers. You can go around flooring it all over the place and expect to stop in a second. Also all being motorcycle drivers we also us that much more caution (crashing on a bike is deadly-think ahead). I have towed 4-wheelers, snowmobiles, bikes, L&G tractors all over (uship.com helped me visit family) and no issues. And had a car top carrier on. I have to say after the first turbo I would have installed a boost/egt gauge. I also have a scan gauge. All of that is cheaper then one turbo. I see that you are tuned as well which is all the more reason for gauges. I am not saying overload the crap out of these cars but if you are smart you can tow with them or any other vehicle. And I won't dish out the money for a truck either as I have no space for one, the insurance to cover it, the license for it, maintenance (batteries, oils, filter, tires) and the MPG to tow what I need towwed. I will rent (and have-Uhaul) if needed).
 

milehighassassin

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Mar 18, 2005
Location
Fort Collins, CO
TDI
2005 Golf TDi PD, Reflex Silver
I've towed trailers ranging in weight up to 2,000 lbs. You do have to watch your EGT and intake temps but the car pulls them great. I am in Colorado, mountain passes as well.
 

McBrew

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Oct 30, 2002
Location
Annapolis, MD
TDI
2003 Golf GLS TDI, 5 speed, Silver/Grey
I've been towing my new 2011 bmw k1300s on my aluminum trailer i built. the trailer weights about 250lbs and the bike is about 515lbs and with ramp and spare tire i'd say im pulling between 800 to 850 lbs. i normally average between 1000 and 1100km on a tank and not being gentle on the throttle. pulling the trailer and bike im getting between 750 and 800 km a tank. the car is chipped with several support mods. would increasing the hp help with the mileage at all or would having the tune changed for towing have better results?
FYI in the owners manual it says the TDI should not be pulling any trailers. and tow capacity is N/A. I've replace a turbo on a jetta that the VNT vanes twisted and melted and half the turbine wheel melted from pulling a trailer. Granted you have a larger turbo. If you want to pull a trailer Dodge GM and Ford their yard full of diesel trucks
Something is wrong here. The VW Golf TDI was recently rated as the best tow vehicle for campers up to 3,300 pounds by Caravan magazine in the UK. I towed trailers with my 2004 Golf TDI, and I tow regularly with my current car, a Scion xD. I tow a cargo trailer and a small camper (scamp). Both cars have dumbed down tow ratings for the US, but the actual manufacturers (VW and Toyota, respectively) give much higher tow ratings. You'd be wrong if you think they don't actually test the cars with trailers in tow.

If you toasted your turbo, there was either something wrong with the turbo, the programming, or you were driving like a mad man.

My Sprinter van can haul 5,000 pounds of cargo and tow 6,000 pounds, all with a 2.7 liter CDI engine that is boosted even higher than my TDI. It uses a VNT 20 turbo. It is designed Tom do this without fail for hundreds of thousands of miles. A 1.9 liter TDI engine shouldn't suffer the damage you have experienced.
 

coalminer16

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Dec 11, 2008
Location
Central Wisconsin
TDI
Golf 2004
For the record. My VW stamped trailer hitch on my 81 rabbit is rated at 100 tongue 1000 tow. That is more then the rating that others seem to come up with on the newer cars. And two of the bolts goes into the aluminum bumper and the other two are in thin metal. Not to mention the rabbit is almost half the weight of my Golf and only has drum brakes in the back and an OEM 52 HP engine.
 

milehighassassin

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Mar 18, 2005
Location
Fort Collins, CO
TDI
2005 Golf TDi PD, Reflex Silver
I've never seen any vehicle rated less than 100 tongue weight. Most are 150-200 for cars in the U.S.


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