BMW X3
BMW X3 xDrive M40d and Burstner(510 TK highlight: increased inner height for tall people).
510 TK is a very comfortable place to have holidays in with kids. It has two living spaces with two tables and the garage is huge. Also, this is one of the few caravans available for tall people because of its increased overall height!
It is even possible to fit two adult + two kids bikes in the garage (with the upper bunk bed lifted), assuming you loosen the bikes' steering handles and put them in parallel to the bike. But it is time consuming to do and difficult to tie down (as there are no hooks), hence it's a lot easier to put the bikes on the car's roof rack.
510 TK doesn't feel heavy while towing, but its dimensions are considerable, so you have to be mindful of objects on the inner side of sharp turns, think of how the rear end will swing out and be mindful of the height near trees. Though if you're travelling with bikes on the car's roof, you have to be mindful of the height either way.
BMW X3 xDrive 20d aut. and SwiftBMW x3 20d is great for towing my caravan. Feels sure footed and never struggled for power even on Highland roads. It is solid under braking and never feels like it's running away from you. Fine on motorway roads and you can overtake slower vehicles with ease with power to.spare at the top end. Gearbox works well and seems to find the correct gear easily without overrevving
BMW X3 xDrive 20d and CompassBrilliant combination, never feels underpowered even on the steepest hills and always extremely stable. Fuel consumption at legal motorway speeds averages 25mpg. Been a 8 feet wide caravan I have only found EMUK mirrors give adequate view to the rear.
I would highly recommend this combination and would definitely choose the same again.
BMW X3 xDrive 30d aut. and SwiftThe BMW 3.0d makes light work of towing being a good mix of economy, power and stability. The engine never sounds stressed and the automatic gearbox behaves impeccably. I towed my caravan to Spain last year in hot conditions and left all the motorhomes behind on the mountain climbs with no fuss whatever.
BMW X3 xDrive 20d aut. and SwiftWhile I don't challenge the data experience of towing this combination has been very stable across all conditions. Sensible driving and towing are obvious requirements for all towing regardless of combination. I have been towing for over 25 years and the only episode I've had is with a Landrover towing a much lighter Ellis's Whirlwind which demonstrates that the matching is important but not everything.
Every "tower" should heed good advice and if the advice says be extraordinary careful then please do to keep us all safe on the roads
BMW X3 2.0d aut. and Baileywe have been very pleased with our car and we have only had it 2 years and it tows our Rimini with no problem but I must say that when we brought the car it had already had a new Turbo fitted at 43,000 miles so that was a bonus as far as we could see, but after 20,000 miles later the Turbo has gone again and at our expense I might add!
so we now have been told to let the car tick over for about a minute after towing to let the Turbo cool down and not be starved of oil.
just wondering if anyone else has had this problem?
BMW X3 xDrive 20i and SterlingI have had the BMW X3 auto 184 bh for 3 years now and find it tows my Stirling Continental 580 very well. On a day with no wind I can get 30/35 mpg. On hills the auto box handles well, never hunting for gears. This combination works well.
BMW X3 xDrive 20d and CaravanThe X3 2LD is great at towing the Sterling Continental 580. On a day with no wind I can get 30 mpg but into a wind it's down to 25 mpg. I have the 8speed gear box that works great. It's an easy tow.
BMW X3 3.0d aut. and FleetwoodThe BMW x3 3litre auto tows a fleet wood heritage 560/4 weighing 1500kgs with no trouble. Easy to control and has plenty of pulling power for easy towing.
BMW X3 2.0d aut. and LunarBMW X3 M sport 2ltr D towing 2013 Lunar Clubman S
Have had the BMW 21/2 years Excellent tow car. Auto box is ideal for job, very smooth and effortless. Beware! Turbo failed at 38500 miles. Replaced under BMW warranty. Garage said to let car idle for several minutes before switching off engine to allow turbo to cool down. Confirmed by BMW
BMW X3 2.0d and LunarTowing 2013 Lunar Clubman SI with 2 ltr diesel 6 speed auto X3 M Sport. The cars somewhat stiff suspension comes into its own when towing. Stability is tremendous. Towed on A30 in full gale yet outfit hardly moved. The performance is very good and on long trips 250 plus miles I regularly return 30 to 32 mpg. Solo this can increase to 46 to 48 mpg on motorway. One thing to watch is premature turbo failure. Mine went at 38000 miles. Luckily still under bmw warranty otherwise £2500.00 bill. In all a veryimpressive car. For best value by late second hand with full BMW service history. I also find costs to be very reasonable using local BMW dealer
BMW X3 xDrive 20d aut. and SwiftI found that towing a Swift Challenger 540 with a 2012 BMW X3 2.0d auto perfectly acceptable at speeds up to 58mph. After this speed I always felt the caravan a little unsteady, not that I would describe it as unsafe but having towed the same caravan and loaded in the same way with a Kia Sorento 2.5d auto the Kia was considerably more sure footed whilst towing. On the plus side the BMW X3 2.0d auto would return 30mpg whilst towing the Swift Challenger 540 along the motorway whilst the Kia Sorento 2.5d auto would only return 21mpg whilst towing. In fact the Kia would not return 30mpg without a caravan in tow. I have recently upgraded the caravan to a slightly lighter 2013 Bailey Pegasus Rimni and intend to continue towing with the 2012 BMW X3 2.0d auto, we will see how that outfit performs.
BMW X3 3.0d and Standaard CaravanThe BMW X3 is an excellent tow car for caravans up to 1500k
I have been using a X3 3 litre se for 6 years throughout Europe and as far as the Arctic Circle. Reliable and excellent performance.
BMW X3 2.0i and SwiftI have a BMW X3 2.0I and tow a Swift challenger 480. The beemer has no problem getting up to 6th gear on the flat but doe,s tend to die off on the Hilly Roads. While not a Diesel it still return,s a reasonable 28MPG on motorways and decent A roads when in 6th gear
BMW X3 xDrive 30d aut. and BaileyExcellent all round performance. The automatic 8 speed means effortless driving. Acceleration very good, stability good. Still manage between 26 and 28mpg when towing.
BMW X3 2.0i and Standaard CaravanI have a 2004 BMW X3 and the x3 shuts off after driving several hours on a uphill grade while towing a 2200 lbs boat
it shuts off with no warning , then you can restart it in 30 minutes and continue
I have received no help from BMW even though when we bought it they said it was no problem towing 3500 lbs
BMW X3 xDrive 30d aut. and BaileyThe new X3 3.0D is a great towing car, the 8 speed auto is the best I have ever driven even with the caravan on the back, I highly recommend this combernation of car & van
BMW X3 xDrive 20d aut. and BaileyI had some intial concerns about our BMW X3 SE 2.0d auto's ability to cope with a caravan at 87% of the car's weight but these concerns have been proved unfounded as the BMW copes smoothly and easily with the Bailey Unicorn Valencia's 1560 kg maximum weight. By far the best tow car that I've had (previous cars have included Honda CRV, Jeep Cherokee and Audi A4s.)
BMW X3 2.0d aut. and SwiftThe BMW X3 that we have is the M Sport version with 177 bhp and it tows the caravan with ease - no problems up to maximum if 70 mph. Totally stable and easy to pull up inclines with power to spare.
BMW X3 2.0d aut. and LunarHave had the X3 just over two years and towed to france each year covering total of 4000 miles. Car brilliant in every respect, Comfortable, stable and always on top of the job. Towing economy 28 to 36mpg depending on conditions. Av.33mpg.Solo 46mpg.
BMW X3 2.0d and BaileyHow does any Pegasus 534 owner achieve a noseweight of 80kgs. I struggle to get below 95kgs and that is with 1 small gas bottle, empty front lockers and emplty chest of drawers.
BMW X3 2.0d and LunarI have now towed for over 18 months and ~3000 miles with the X3 and it is an extremely stable and effective towcar. MPG towing has varied between 23 mpg, into a howling gale of a head wind whilst maintaining 60 mph in 5th gear, to 30 mpg with a slight following wind. (It is possible to get 42 mpg solo on motoway runs). A big advantage is being able to tow most of the time at 60 mph on the motorway in 6th gear. Also, it is possible to see through the caravan from the car interior mirror which helps at times. Traction on wet grass is excellent. Overall very pleased with this large comfortable car.
BMW X3 3.0si aut. and Standaard CaravanWe bought my wifes X3 about 4 years ago and it has proved to be a great all-rounder. It’s a fantastic and stable tow car with tons of torque for pulling.
We have lugged our caravan, dog, children and adults, plus all our stuff up and down mountains in Wales, Scotland and all over the country in comfort without fuss.
We mainly visit CL sites, and although X3 is no tractor, we have never had any problems pulling through some very muddy and inclined CL sites.
On the motorway, you can simply program the satnav, set the cruse, then sit back and relax on the comfy leather seats wile the car worries about the gears and throttle.
My wife uses it every day for lugging the kids about, commuting to work and doing the shopping.
I occasionally use it for trips to the tip and general load lugging, and with a 7.1 second 0-60 time, the odd bit of ‘spirited driving’ is not unheard of.
It’s a shame the motoring press disregard the X3 as an overpriced offroader. In reality the X3 is a big sports estate car with 4x4. Admittedly the slick low-profile tyres and low ride height, mean it won’t perform very well in a disused quarry, but ON the road it massively outperforms the competition, and lets face it, unless you are a landowner, you cant legally take a 4x4 off-road without trespassing or voiding your insurance.
BMW X3 3.0sd aut. and CompassWe have a 2006 ('56) BMW X3 3.0sd. The brief was for my wife to get a 4x4 that could tow well, be fairly economical and safe, without being (or feeling) too large.
The X3 is often overlooked due to certain elements of the media giving it a bad press. This is a little unfair, as it is very good at doing lots of things.
When buying it we looked at the X5, however as we took deliveryy in December 2006, the new version was just around the corner and the X3 had just been facelifted. The boot is actually bigger than that in the old shape X5 believe it or not!
OK, so in M Sport spec and with a few extras (Sat Nav, Bluetooth, leather, xenons and factory towbar etc.), it isn't exactly a cheap car. We did delete the sports suspension and have found that it does everything we need it for and more.
It averages over 30 mpg, will hit 60 in 6 seconds and is only £200 a year to tax. It is incredibly stable when towing and has more torque than you would ever need.
Highly recommended.
BMW X3 2.0d and CompassThis does indeed seem to be a perfect match. Acceleration i snothing to be ashamed off with good pull away from standstill. Slow speed maneuverability is good with excellent views from the cockpit of the caravan behind. Never an issue pulling uphill and always being able to acheive the recommended speed limits with ease. Very limited use of 6th gear but fuel consumption is reasonable when driving along in 5th. Would consider another X3 when replacing my current one as they seem to cope admirably.
BMW X3 2.0d and CaravanTowed a 1500Kg Hymer for thousands of miles. Very stable towcar, good economy, worst ever was 28mpg in bad weather. Only question mark is that reverse gear is a very high ratio, anything other than a gentle slope puts a big strain on the clutch. Other than that highly recommended for anything up to this kind of weight, X drive system gives massive traction on wet/muddy surfaces, its comfortable, quiet and a big load carrier as well.
BMW X3 2.0i and CoachmanI have a 2005 X3 2.0 diesel SE, only problem with this set up is you will not be able to get into 6th gear on UK motorways due to undulating road surfaces, only using 5th as top gear still gives around 30-32 mpg if you keep to national speed limits, my outfit is fitted with ATC so cannot tell if it goes unstable at any time. otherwise it is a dream match.
BMW X3 2.0d and BaileyDone a few trips with the x3 and the bailey.X3 tows the van superbly.feels solid and pulls uphill like its not there. superb combination.
BMW X3 2.0d and AceI have now towed with this outfit a few times and I am over the moon it pulls up hills as though there is nothing on the back the stability is exalent and on my last run to york I got 28mpg on the way there and on the way back I got 26mpg so overall I am pleased
BMW X3 2.5si and ElddisThe most capable towcar I've everowned in over 20 years of towing. Even on undulating, twisty country roads it is capable of towing our van in 6th gear and economy is better than I expected. With a fullload (86%) there is no rolling or pitching and caravan follows very well.
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