Volvo XC 40

Hi.

Not sure how helpful this will be but I am just in the process of changing my tow car and have a new XC40 Hybrid T4 on order (9 month wait!).

I have looked into this extensively and not seen one bad report on the XC40, and in most cases it comes out as the top small SUV.

In this years tow car awards it came our really well which is a relief!

What is slightly annoying is that any tow match uses weights to establish the percentage ratio, and certainly with the PHEV this is good thanks to the extra weight of the batteries, but it would be far more helpful if they also took into consideration the available torque. The C&MC have a general rule of 40HP per tonne (car & van) but this, in my opinion, should by torque and not HP as HP is a factor of torque and engine rpm - so slightly irrelevant.

I don't expect the batteries to last more than 10 miles, so the 1.5 petrol engine will be hauling my 1600Kg Coachman! Car's limit is 1800Kg.

Unfortunately for me, I have a company car and was loosing over £700 per month of salary in tax on my 5 Series, and going the Hybrid route will save me around £370 per month in tax - so a no brainer.

It's fair to say I am nervous of the new cars ability, but just not seen anything negative to base that fear on, so here's hoping!

Mark

I don't expect the batteries to last more than 10 miles, so the 1.5 petrol engine will be hauling my 1600Kg Coachman! Car's limit is 1800Kg.

When you do get the new company car,can you return to this forum and let us know how you get on.Towing that weight,with just a 1.5 l petrol engine,just makes my eyes water.

Hi Fozzie

Yep, sure will, but not expecting to see it till September, and so just need memory to work!

I didn't do this lightly. I spoke to both Volvo and C&MC technical and all gave assurance the car should be fine. To clarify, I understand you can change the power settings so that you hold the electric power for when you need it (hills etc), and of course there will be a very small amount of re-generation to aid the battery. With the batteries there is more than enough power available with over 400Nm of torque!

On my 5 Series I tow with ease in 'eco' setting, particularly on motorways, and whilst I cannot determine what the cars settings are, they are certainly de-rated in terms of power/torque - to get the fuel economy.

If you are travelling along a motorway at a constant speed (perhaps laughable in the UK) how much torque do you need - probably not much?

The Volvo engine is turbo charged and puts out a similar power and torque to older 2 litre petrol engines.

To quote the C&MC tow car test review: "Delicious kerbweight, delicious economy, and pulls like a train. What’s not to like?"

We will see.

Thanks for your replies,

I've ordered the T4 Recharge PHEV too (Fjord Blue) and also slightly nervous as the Towing reviews all seem to be for the T5.  We're motorhome at the moment, but just future proofing incase we change back to a caravan.  We wouldn't go over 1500kg van though. I'm sure it'll be a lovely car, but just nervous having not seen it yet and not having seen a review for towing with this model.

It's encouraging to hear that you've spoken to Volvo and CMC, who have given you encouraging advice.

Thanks for your replies.

We tow our 1,472kg single-axle with a XC40 T4 AWD - it copes perfectly well in terms of pulling and stability.  There’s a dent in fuel economy but that’s to be expected.  I find it easy to manoeuvre too.  We have the electrically-deployed towbar which is a nice touch.