CLK Towing

[Laurie]

Is anyone able to give advice on towing with a CLK ?

I have found 1500kg listed as a max towing weight for the 320 but nothing for the less powerful cars. As my caravan is around this weight (as is the car) I realise that I would be towing at 100% but I'm used to that.

Power would seem to be adequate but does anyone have any experience to relate ? Certainly don't see many with towbars.

By the way the reason for thinking along these lines is that we are tired of keeping a 4x4 just for towing the van (not to mention the cost) and the SLK and W124 coupe are not up to the job.

 

[Apial]

Have you tried the W124? The Handbook lists the max towing weight braked as 1900KG and a vehicle weight of 1480KG .

 

[Laurie]

Well, I was going to use the W124 which would have been ok, as you say.

Trouble is it is "Sportline" spec and the lower ride height presents problems. So Mercedes do not recommend for towing - or so I am told. I would be MOST intersrted to hear from anyone who tows with this model as it would be the cost effective way to go. Especially as I did not want to sell the W124.

 

[A210AMG]

Hello

I used to tow with an M sport BMW with 19" alloys I doubt your W124 is lower than that? Fully removable towbar also.

Now the ML tows a treat, yes power wise the bm was fine (a 330) but just didn't feel right...

Silversaloon on here tows his van with a W124 (not s sportline though)

 

[219]

I towed an Abbey GT418T with my W124 300TE - I think , from memory , the caravan weighed about 1300Kg loaded against the estate car's kerbweight of about 1400Kg - it was never a problem .

Power is not an issue with any modern car to tow at legal speeds , you really just need enough weight so the car keeps the caravan under control .

In days gone by , people used to tow quite large caravans with cars having less power than even small hatchbacks of today - here's a picture of my dad's 190 (only 80 bhp) hitched up to one of his caravans in the early 1960's - not to say that you would get away with such a combination nowadays , but people used to pull vans like that with even less capable cars back then !

 

[Laurie]

Excellent picture.

I used to tow the van (Vanroyce 520 ) with a W124 200 estate with no problem so I know the power of a 3 litre will be OK

I think that the problem with the Sportline is that the towbar extends forward under the boot. As it is around two inch box section steel (plus an inch gap from the boot) it reduces the already small air gap. Put the weight of the caravan into the equation and you will see where I am coming from.
Speed bumps will be the issue - Ithink.

But I'm hoping someone can tell me a way around.

 

[x332race]

Is anyone able to give advice on towing with a CLK ?

I have found 1500kg listed as a max towing weight for the 320 but nothing for the less powerful cars. As my caravan is around this weight (as is the car) I realise that I would be towing at 100% but I'm used to that.

Power would seem to be adequate but does anyone have any experience to relate ? Certainly don't see many with towbars.

By the way the reason for thinking along these lines is that we are tired of keeping a 4x4 just for towing the van (not to mention the cost) and the SLK and W124 coupe are not up to the job.

For the W209 CLK (and the W203 c-class) I believe that the max permitted braked trailer weight is 1,500kg for all engine sizes regardless. You probably don't see towbars as any MB fitted towbar will be of the removable type...with the towball removed, it is virtually impossible to tell that a towbar is fitted to these cars....

 

[Apial]

Well, I was going to use the W124 which would have been ok, as you say.

Trouble is it is "Sportline" spec and the lower ride height presents problems. So Mercedes do not recommend for towing - or so I am told. I would be MOST intersrted to hear from anyone who tows with this model as it would be the cost effective way to go. Especially as I did not want to sell the W124.

I was going to fit a towbar to my C124 Sportline but I needed 4wd. Watling engineers said they could custom make me one for circa £500 if I remember correctly. Thats custom towbar, not custom 4wd, unfortunately.

 

[Druk]

I think the problem with a towbar on a sportline is lack of useful suspension travel. Too much noseweight and a bad pothole or two and you could have the bumpstops working overtime. This is probably the reason Merc don't sanction it. Imagine the stushie if you had an accident with a sportline car whilst towing and the insurance company found out it was verbotten by Merc?
BTW, I used to tow a Van Royce 450 with my old W124 230TE. Great.

Getting back to your original question. Do Merc sanction the CLK as a tow vehicle? If so then go ahead. So what if you're at 100%? you're still within the law. Imagine the looks from some of the old CC farts turning up at a site with that combo. ACE. :bannana:

 

[219]

Laurie , yes every towbar I've seen on 124's has a part of the bracket that extends forward towards the diff .

Although Sportline models ride lower , saloons and coupes have the fuel tank mounted vertically behind the back seat as opposed to estates which have it lying flat under the load area floor - I don't know if this means saloons and coupes might have a little more ground clearance at the back or if the bracket can be designed to be further from the ground ?

Don't suppose your car has sls ? Otherwise you could adjust it to ride a little higher when towing and back afterwards - just a matter of adjusting the drop link between the level control valve and the anti roll bar .

 

[Laurie]

Thanks for the replies. I've put buying a CLK on hold for now and will get the towbar onto the 300 CE and see where that gets me.

 

[Laurie]

Towbar fitted.
Now to have a quiet test tow with the caravan before having the electrics done (I know, I know)