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CARS £20,000 – £25,000
CARAVAN CLUB TOWCAR OF THE YEAR
our typical load, but a faulty electric
Mitsubishi L200
socket, combined with long rear
Walkinshaw overhang affecting attitude when
performance pick Up hitched and a near-bottom finish in
Selectable 4WD
class in terms of operating costs lost
the Legacy marks.
Ford Kuga Titanium
2.0 TDCi
Price as tested £23,409
There were divided
opinions about the Kuga,
especially with regard to
the hill start. Later drivers
complained of clutch slip. No
problems with stability on the
high-speed track, though, and
praise was heaped on both the
service brakes and the
have any say in the matter. A five- ‘sport’ is presumably stiffer than
speed manual gearbox, selectable ‘normal’ and the logical choice. None
Subaru Legacy Sports
2WD or 4WD and a high/low-ratio of the judges commented that they
Tourer 2.0D SEn
transfer gearbox taking power from a found this unsuitable – one of them
Balanced performance
2.5-litre diesel engine means there called it ‘superlative’. No pitching,
has to be enough grunt to get you then, and no instability even at
out of a sticky situation, but once you speeds of 70mph or more. Handling
are on the move the L200 is noisy and was great and progress brisk, right
you have to keep stirring the truck- up through the six (manually-
BAILEY CARAVANS
like gearshift. Steering precision is – changed) ratios. Emergency stops
well, it isn’t. However, there was no showed no problems and the
hint of instability on the test track and electronic parking brake worked a 10 years of support!
the brakes always inspired treat. Finally, Citroën’s boast of
confidence. That includes the achieving German levels of build
handbrake, which held firmly on the quality seem well founded. The C5 Bailey is proud of its 10-year
17% hill though it was right at the end put in an impressive performance. association with The Caravan Club’s
of its travel. In caravanability terms, Faultless in terms of storage space Towcar of the Year competition.
the L200 impressed our judges. Bags and sits firm and level when hitched As the UK’s premier event of this
of storage, easy access to the spare up to a caravan. Not particularly type, the competition not only supplies
wheel and tools with all load on helpful handbook information on caravan owners with important
board, excellent access to the towing, though. information on the choice of a potential
electrical socket for easy hitching and new tow vehicle but also provides a
an impressive 115kg noseweight. In Subaru Legacy Sports practical examination of our product
comparison to its rivals though, it Tourer 2.0D SEn chassis and permanent four-wheel conventional-style handbrake. Four- performance.
promises to be expensive to run. Price as tested £24,750 drive are as impressive as ever and wheel drive adds stability, and Ford’s In addition to supplying the
There were high hopes all this is a great driver’s car with silky system distributes the power front/ caravans used in the competition we
Citroën C5 Exclusive round for the new diesel- gearbox (five-speed manual), great rear as needed. A disappointing load also field a technical support team,
2.2HDi engined Subaru Legacy handling and a good driving position. carrier, the Kuga nonetheless which also includes representatives
TOP: Jason Plato looks on an as
another Bailey caravan is prepared to
Price as tested £22,777 estate, and it has to be said that the On our tough hill start, judges found impressed our caravanability judges from our chassis manufacturer,
go out on the test track
No advice in Citroën’s judges were a tad disappointed. The they had to give the Legacy plenty of in terms of noseweight (100kg). A Al-Ko Kober, to work at the event. LEFT: a caravan for all sizes – Bailey
handbook about which of engine, in this car a least, was not as revs, resulting in some clutch slip. well-positioned socket makes for During the week-long test the
supplied 10 tourers for the event
the Hydractive suspension refined as expected, especially at low Caravanability judges found the easy hitching/unhitching, and it sat caravans are taken on over 250 circuits
ABOVE: at the end of the day,
another one heads back to HQ
settings to use when towing, but speed. Subaru’s nicely-balanced estate car design would take all of level and firm when hooked-up. of the Millbrook Proving Ground
featuring a lap of the high-speed Working at Millbrook, we get first- ownership is tested rigorously to arrive what takes place during competition
circular track and a demanding hill hand experience of the lengths The at the final result. week, including video footage of a full
route (equating to over 1000 test Caravan Club goes to to ensure each To give Club members greater test circuit.
miles). Throughout this period it is our entry is examined thoroughly and fairly. insight into what it takes to find the You’ll find the website at
role to ensure that all the caravans From the initial scrutineering through Towcar of the Year, we have produced a towcarcompetition.co.uk, where we
remain in a road safe condition and the outfit preparation stages, website on the competition. The site will be updating the information with
that each unit is correctly matched to assessment of caravanability and on includes a full listing of the winners as the 2009 competition results during
the relevant tow vehicle. to the driving itself, every aspect of well as a behind-the-scenes look at the week beginning 6 October 2008.
Citroën C5 Exclusive
Ford Kuga Titanium For more details see bailey-caravans.co.uk
2.2HDi
2.0 TDCi
Stable and pitch-free
AWD aids stability
14 THE CARAVAN CLUB MAGAZINE OCTOBER 2008 THE CARAVAN CLUB MAGAZINE
15
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