Touareg v6 tdi diesel rated 7700 pounds, can it tow a g23

[CradGen2]

Oh how I have come to love this thread and the jeep one.

I'm going to finally ask. Why does a person that just spent 140k on a boat care about about spending 1k more on fuel a year. Don't get me wrong, I'm all for the environment, but also for my family's safety.

I have a 2012 armada and I'm not sure I would tow a g23 very far with it. 3/4 ton for sure. Jeff from here as said many times and he has a g. I state this because I had a situation where I towed a boat with a car that said it was rated to tow, but clearly couldn't stop it. Very bad things could have happened that night.

Jeff I think you should make a towing section.

[SkiTower]

Touareg v6 tdi diesel rated 7700 pounds, can it tow a g23

I'm going to finally ask. Why does a person that just spent 140k on a boat care about about spending 1k more on fuel a year. Don't get me wrong, I'm all for the environment, but also for my family's safety.

That about sums it up.

I just got back from Europe and frequently have car discussions with people I work with over there. Gas mileage is important, especially when prices are around $9 per gallon. But comfort, capacity, and safety do factor in. So I will continue to drive a vehicle that gets < 15 mpg until either I get smaller toys or a viable alternative fuel is developed.

And Crad's other point is valid too...this is a repeat discussion of the Jeep GC.

2007 SV211 SE

[Zach@n3]

The G23 weighs 5400lbs dry. If you fill it with fuel and account for a pimped out G trailer about 1800lbs I guess that puts you at 7600lbs. So if you are a man you weigh 180 ish you will reduce the towing capacity by 180 lbs being in the vehicle and account for fuel in the vehicle. If you ran with just you no gear and no fuel in the boat its do able judging by the listed capacity's in the owners manual. If they say it can tow it safely then you can because if the manufacturer put out a vehicle and over rated the towing capacity here come the lawyers. Chrysler over rated the R/T Dakota in 1998-1999 and bought back a bunch of vehicles. They downgraded the rating to 2000 lbs from 6000 lbs. I regularly towed my boat +gear+fuel so around 4000lbs just fine for many years.

[wakeskier]

So if you are a man you weigh 180 ish you will reduce the towing capacity by 180 lbs being in the vehicle and account for fuel in the vehicle.

That's not entirely true... This would affect the GVWR, not necessarily the towing capacity. Each vehicle is different, but for example my vehicle has a 500lb buffer between it's curb weight + max towing capacity and GVWR. So once there's >500lbs in my vehicle then the towing capacity starts to be reduced. (full tank of fuel is already included in the curb weight)

[bsurfin]

maybe folks can educate me...isn't the weight of the tow vehicle a factor at some point?

weight is important but wheelbase is almost as important....but suspension design/stiffness can have as big of factor.

My 2012 GC weighs 5100lbs and can tow 7200lbs

My Neighbors 2013 Silverado 4x4 extended cab weighs 5200lbs and can tow 9500lbs

With that being said we have towed our Tige with both vehicle many times and our GC will out tow the Silverado 1500...The braking is stronger, the sway is less in the wind/highway, and it has better acceleration.

[Zach@n3]

Too bad you can't do a test tow instead of a regular test drive

[jbach]

I'm going to finally ask. Why does a person that just spent 140k on a boat care about about spending 1k more on fuel a year. Don't get me wrong, I'm all for the environment, but also for my family's safety.

^^ i was thinking the same thing. i'd own a daily driver car and find an old diesel excursion for the G. my wife liked the looks of the toureg and went and drove one. it was an 09 i believe, maybe the heavier ones. it felt like driving a wet noodle down the road. made my tundra feel like a sports car. we ended up with a sequoia, which i would also never tow a G with. pulling power is almost never the issue, stopping is.

[Zach@n3]

My truck travels 4 miles one way to work and back so it really wouldn't serve me to have a separate tow vehicle. I agree with you guys in that I would get something older that had the towing abilities and leave it parked until I needed to take the big bruiser to the lake and enjoy the fuel economy of a smaller car or SUV during normal driving.

[A330Captain]

And personally, I would not buy a vehicle that would not be capable of stopping that boat/trailer on it's own.

You'd be best to check this out on you vehicle/boat. What is your towing capability without brakes on trailer? Ill say its about ¼ the towing ability. Check it out.

[jsta281]

What is the exact nature of the 500-1000 miles? Are we talking lots of short trips or one long trip? Are we talking lots of Highway speeds or mostly below 50 mph? I would not want to tow such a large heavy boat at 50+ mph over long highway trips without a longer wheel base and preferably a heaver vehicle. However, I think people on here over state what is necessary for towing, at least when it come to safety. Towing large boats also has negative effects on things like transmissions and suspension. With all that said, I am inclined to agree with those that have suggested 2 vehicles. I know I will likely never drop 100k on a boat that weighs 8000 pounds, but if did, I would spend 10-15k on a older diesel paint it to match your boat, and then drive whatever the **** you want every day. And if you must only have one vehicle the eco boost F150 is the way to go.

[Neverenough]

Use it for the daily or weekly trips and rent a heavy truck for the one or two times a year?

[perry386]

If they say it can tow it safely then you can because if the manufacturer put out a vehicle and over rated the towing capacity here come the lawyers.

I agree with Zach. The people who designed the car and have tested the cars know what it can do. And, you can normally do even a little more than the number because they usually play it safe so the lawyers don't come running. If it says it tows 7700lbs, then you can tow a 7600lb boat.

[Zach@n3]

Thank you Perry, I don't know why we are all debating towing to the capacity that the manufacturer has stated is safe to tow? They designed the brakes, frame, and tested the handling abilities of the vehicle with this much weight behind it. I would have no problem at all taking my truck up to its 10,350 lb rating. It seems as if everyone is questioning the validity of the manufacturers weight rating?

I'm sure you all run the ballast in the boats up to what Nautique states is safe and then some in most cases. Why do you exceed the rated weight capabilities that the manufacturer specified for the boat?

If the vehicle suits you buy it and tow with it but be careful with gear and all not to exceed the rated abilities.

On the other hand, if you planned to tow more than the vehicle is rated for then I would guarantee that a correctly equipped truck would handle the excess weight of the load better than this type of vehicle when overloaded.

Tons of guys are running around with older diesel rigs towing 3 car trailers which vastly exceeds the towing ratings of older 3/4 and 1 ton rigs. Heck my 96 Cummins Dodge was only rated to tow around 11k lbs... Comon.....


The statement above about being able to stop a trailer without the brakes is invalid because the only vehicles capable of that would be heavy duty over the road vehicles that nobody will ever own or buy. The newest iteration of 1 ton trucks by the big 3 would probably be a legit statement that they would be capable of stopping loads without brakes on the trailer but I can't say for sure. Nobody rates that because they assume you are going to travel with trailer brakes like any other sane person on the highway. Indiana's state law is trailer brakes required on anything over 2000 lbs.


Wakeskier, if you go over to Chrysler's website for towing capabilities it allows you to adjust between 1 and 4 passengers. This directly effects the available payload and trailer towing capacities. Its probably different between manufacturers but that is weight added to GVWR which effects towing and payload.

Basically, this rig will be pushing the chosen Touareg to the limits of its rated capabilities and not leaving room for passengers or boat gear/fuel. If you can have a tail car with you it will probably be safe but exceeding at the top end of the spectrum may cause unsafe operation of the vehicle. So if you can tow within the limits go for it all day long. If not, look elsewhere.

[A330Captain]

I don't see anywhere mentioned about max tongue weight. This is every bit as important as tow weight.

Manufacturers consider the loaded weight of
a trailer when specifying tongue weight—theamount of the trailer’s weight that presses downon the trailer hitch. Too little tongue weight cancause the trailer to sway. Too much tongue weightcan cause many problems, including not enoughweight on the front wheels of the tow vehicle.When this occurs, the tow vehicle will be lessresponsive to steering. A weight-distributing hitchcan remedy this problem by transferring weight tothe front axle of the tow vehicle.

Your mileage may vary

[jsta281]

I wonder what fatchance720 decided?