Towing glider trailers with a VW Jetta Wagon?

Allan wrote:
Thanks for all the advice guys.

Now I just have to find a place to install a hitch at a decent price!

-Allan


Hi Allan,

Didn't see this thread until. I have a 2003 TDI Wagon and use it to tow
my LS1 very comfortably. There are at least two other TDI Jetta Wagons
around here towing gliders and all of us are very happy with the vehicle
as a commuter and for glider transport. You will only use a little more
fuel with the trailer attached. I think the TDI has the large VR6
radiator. The electric cooling fans in my car never operate unless the
air conditioning is activated. I installed a Hidden Hitch (the name
bugs me because the apparatus is so visible). It's necessary that the
installer put one bolt through the cargo area but the rear tow eye is
used to secure the other side. Ziebart was the installer, if you have
them in your area.

My club-mates recently retrieved me from a nearby field. Three of them
arrived in the car and four of us returned with the glider. Weight was
not an issue but it is flat country around here. I find the main
down-side to the Jetta is the low clearance. You will need to be careful
where you drive it off-road.

*Have 7% of the trailer's actual mass on the hitch. Measure with some
bathroom scales and a length of wood cut to the correct height to fit
between hitch and the scales. It's important to get this number right
- no more, no less. If the 7% value is more than the car's noseweight
limit, you'll just have to keep within that limit and accept a less
than optimum noseweight.

Keep the trailers inertia about the vertical axis low, this means never put
weight in the back to counterbalance too much weight in the front. Heavy
items should be near the center of gravity of the trailer, a drawer near the
axle is the best place if heavy items have to be in the trailer.

Michael

Dan G wrote:

*Have 7% of the trailer's actual mass on the hitch. Measure with some
bathroom scales and a length of wood cut to the correct height to fit
between hitch and the scales. It's important to get this number right
- no more, no less.

I'm curious about where this 7% number comes from. The number I
routinely see is 10%, and it's always stated as a *minimum*, not an optimum.

--
Eric Greenwell - Washington State, USA
* Change "netto" to "net" to email me directly
* "Transponders in Sailplanes" http://tinyurl.com/y739x4
* "A Guide to Self-launching Sailplane Operation" at www.motorglider.org

On Aug 23, 9:30 pm, Eric Greenwell wrote:
I'm curious about where this 7% number comes from. The number I
routinely see is 10%, and it's always stated as a *minimum*, not an optimum.

The Caravan Club of Great Britain. They contracted Bath University to
do some thorough research in the 1990s using a heavily instrumented
caravan and towcar. TBH, in all the advice above, I was just quoting
them :-).


Dan

Allan,

Go ahead and put your hitch on and start towing, there is no problem.
I drove the exact combination in Germany a few years ago after the
worlds in Bayreuth. My cousin leant me his VW Golf Combi TDI which is
essentially the same model as your Jetta. I was so impressed when I
returned to Toronto I was determined to buy one. As it turned out I
was a few years too early the Jetta station wagon TDI in North America
was still a thing of the future. In Germany I carried 5 passengers
towing a glider trailer and was only slowed down on the steepest
hills, even then it just kept pulling, just a little slower. Best part
of the story is that this was a driving school car complete with dual
controls and 280,000 km on the odometer.

Go for it!

On 2007-08-21, Allan wrote:
Which engine? I have the 1.9 TDI, which I think has plenty of power
for it...

Turbodiesels are EXCELLENT for towing. My Dad races F2 motorcycle
sidecar outfits. He used to have a 1.9l Peugeot turbodiesel, and would
tow a large caravan with the sidecar, tools, spare engines, full
sleeping accomodation (although a little ratty!) with no problems - that
caravan was a lot less aerodynamic and quite a bit heavier than a glider
trailer.

That engine did something like 300,000 miles before the headgasket
finally went, too.

--
Yes, the Reply-To email address is valid.
Oolite-Linux: an Elite tribute: http://oolite-linux.berlios.de

On Aug 22, 11:18 am, Dylan Smith wrote:
On 2007-08-21, Allan wrote:

Which engine? I have the 1.9 TDI, which I think has plenty of power
for it...

Turbodiesels are EXCELLENT for towing. My Dad races F2 motorcycle
sidecar outfits. He used to have a 1.9l Peugeot turbodiesel, and would
tow a large caravan with the sidecar, tools, spare engines, full
sleeping accomodation (although a little ratty!) with no problems - that
caravan was a lot less aerodynamic and quite a bit heavier than a glider
trailer.

That engine did something like 300,000 miles before the headgasket
finally went, too.

--
Yes, the Reply-To email address is valid.
Oolite-Linux: an Elite tribute:http://oolite-linux.berlios.de

Alan,

I responded last night, but looks like the post disappeared into the
electron cloud.

Others have pretty much covered it. What I was going to add:

- When I looked at the 2004 Jetta wagon, I researched hitches and
found several. Hidden Hitch had a nice, bolt-on unit IIRC. I ended
up with the much heavier Passat V6 with 4 Motion, which is a fantastic
tow vehicle.
- I towed for years with several VWs ranging from a 1982 Rabbit
Diesel (not so hot) to a couple of Jetta Sedans (okay).
- Make sure your trailer has good surge brakes and DON'T go with the
anti-sway bar which,at least with those I researched, disabled the
surge brake.
- Just be aware that panic stops and/or turning maneuvers are a
little riskier with smaller vehicles, but it is manageable if you are
a little conservative.

Erik Mann
LS8-18 (P3) towed by Passat V6 Wagon with 4 Motion

Ye Gods! No wonder we are getting climate change if
all US pilots run gas guzzlers like that! VW Jetta
sized cars routinely tow glider trailers in Europe
without any problems. My 1.6 litre turbo diesel will
tow heavy two-seaters up the steepest hills in the
UK.

Del C

At 23:00 21 August 2007, J A C K wrote:
Allan wrote:
I have one and I'm seriously thinking about putting
a hitch on it to
(among other things) tow glider trailers with.

Anyone out there doing it?

What hitch do you have?

Which engine? I have the 1.9 TDI, which I think has
plenty of power
for it...


Well, Canada has some impressive topography, Allan,
so it might depend
on where you are towing. I like my '99 5.0L V8 Ford
Explorer for the
eastern part of the USA. My Cobra trailer has a 2200
Max Gross Weight
which is WELL within the Ex's capabilities, but I prefer
not being
reminded constantly that I am moving something extra
down the highway.
And, don't forget, there certainly are heavier combinations
than my
DG-303/Cobra.

If you like the idea of operating under a significant
power limitation
_and_ you never leave the the table-flat areas of Canada,
then you may
be satisfied. You may find more apropos responses from
people who deal
with European autos and road conditions on an everyday
basis, but then
expectations in North America can be very different.
Not the least of
those is that you will be expected to keep up with
the rest of us who
ARE driving the 5.0 L models and who are relatively
unperturbed by
either stop-and-go traffic or rising terrain.


Jack