[Rachafe9]

Hey guys,

I'm looking for some real world towing experience in regards to a 2014 Touareg TDI V6. Short of it, for a few years I had a 2008 Explorer Limited with the V8 in it towing a v-nose 5x8 enclosed cargo trailer - loaded weight 2200lbs. The specs on the truck were 292HP @ 5750 & 300lb/ft @ 3950. It would pull it ok at highway speeds (IE 60-65mph) but the occasional hill would cause it to either shift down pulling the rpm well over 2k or a significant lose of mph. So I "upgraded" to a 2011 Dodge Durango with the 5.7l Hemi a few years back - 360 hp @ 5150 rpm & 390 lb-ft @ 4250 rpm. Quite a bit quicker when not towing to get up to highway speeds or passing...noticeably but not astonishingly better for towing. And to this point, I have since upsized the trailer to a v-nose 6x10 loaded weight around 2500lbs and obviously a big surface area for wind resistance. Now with the Dodge Durango I am experiencing a similar issue as I had with the Explorer tied to the 5x8 trailer of it not being able to maintain mph/rpm during moderate inclines.

Question for those with some real world experience, I’m looking at a 2014 Touareg V6 TDI. I am intrigued abou the crazy high torque rating at such a low rpm - specs as advertised are 240hp @ 400rpm & 406lb/ft @ 2000 rpm.


Any real world experience / stories would be greatly appreciated. In particular fuel economy and being able to maintane speed during moderate inclines. Btw I’m currently averaging 12.5mpg with the Durango 5.7l tied to 2500lbs 6x10 60-65mph.
Thanks, Rob

 

[BenTDI]

2,500 lb trailer?, ha, that will be childs play for a V6 TDI/any T3 Touareg.

I don't care if it has a V-Nose or is a big box, the Treg will pull that trailer AND your Durango all over North, Central and South America.

I Yankee-Doodle this here, there and everywhere, 7,000 lbs and I have no problems at all:

 

[djhiltz]

2,500 lb trailer?, ha, that will be childs play for a V6 TDI/any T3 Touareg.

I don't care if it has a V-Nose or is a big box, the Treg will pull that trailer AND your Durango all over North, Central and South America.

I Yankee-Doodle this here, there and everywhere, 7,000 lbs and I have no problems at all:

Childs play for the TDI is right. You will hardly notice it's back there.

 

[noobytoogy]

Type Towing into the Search function on here.

Then settle down with a beer or two for an hour or two . . . !

 

[Rachafe9]

What kind of mpg are guys getting with what load behind it?

 

[BenTDI]

Towing that my boat gets me almost exactly 13.5 MPG.

I used to tow it with my 2004 Tundra 4.7L and would get right around 7.5 MPG. I've been thrilled with what I get for towing MPG with the TDI. I was lucky to get 17 MPG Hwy with the truck completely empty and doing 65 MPH down the highway, it was a truck after all and was not designed to get good MPG. The TDI is an incredible motor and the Treg an awesome tow vehicle.

I had bought the Treg without even knowing how it would tow my boat, but after seeing all pics of all the other guys/gals with Treg's on this site, and saw that they were towing similar things, I had a good feeling I made the right choice. I've been thrilled with the T3 TDI. It is still a 7 sec. 0-60 truck and handles well for a 5,000lb SUV, and still gets 29 MPH on the highway, even with my entire family and all our gear.

I know the boat is back there but have no problem accelerating, braking or with the Treg handling the boat at all. If you check out the "What do you tow" threads, you will see many that tow right up to the 7,700lb limit with big travel trailers up to 32' and while they know the trailer is back there-one would have to be a quadruplegic to not know-the whole rig is in control.

 

[cracknut]

Towing a 6x10 at 60-65 you I'm guessing the Treg would get in the high teens. At 60mph my 13 gets 15-16mpg towing a 5000 lb, 8x20 enclosed car hauler that's 76" tall inside. Giant air brake in other words.