Thanks to a full week of steady, heavy rain here in Virginia, my HPDE at Summit Point last weekend was postponed. Typically, an HPDE will run in the rain, but this was some serious weather and, given this picture from NASA’s Hyperfest at VIR, I’m kind of glad we didn’t. Instead of driving, I took to daydreaming about one of my favorite topics – how to choose a tow vehicle.
Now, the Miata is street legal so there isn’t technically a need to tow it. I currently drive it to and from Summit Point, which is about a 1-hour drive. However, 1 hour is about all I can take before I need to get out of the car to stretch and regain circulation in my legs. There are a lot of great tracks within driving distance of me – New Jersey Motorsports Park, Virginia International Raceway, Pocono Raceway, Lime Rock, and Mid-Ohio are all between 4-6 hours away – but it would be a prohibitively long and uncomfortable ride in the Miata. Not to mention, if something were to go wrong I’d be stranded far from home. And that’s the argument I’ve been subtly hinting to my wife for why I need a tow vehicle. She sees right through it.
As my wife and I discussed the idea of a tow vehicle, three options became apparent:
- Buy a pickup truck (e.g., Ford F-150, Toyota Tacoma, etc.)
- Buy a mid-size SUV (e.g., Ford Explorer, VW Atlas, etc.)
- Buy a smaller diesel SUV (e.g., VW Touareg or…VW Touareg)
Before I get to those, let me give you some background on the situation: we live in a townhouse with a 2-car garage and a 2-car driveway, and each of us needs our own car. The Miata only weighs about 2,300 lbs. and, for the near future, I would just rent an open trailer from U-Haul, which weighs about 2,200 lbs. The combined trailering load would then be ~4,500 lbs. Because I’m not super advanced in the sport yet, that’s pretty much it. As I progress, I would likely need extra tires, spare parts, tools, etc., but I just need the basics now. Still, I need a vehicle capable of towing at least 5,000 lbs. and even that doesn’t leave a large cushion between trailering load and towing capacity. The closer together those numbers are, the more strain you will put on the tow vehicle, which can greatly impact the life of its engine and powertrain as well as the ability to drive safely while towing. This is all based on research I’ve done as I’ve never towed a single thing in my life.
With those parameters in mind, let’s evaluate the options.
Tow vehicle option 1: A pickup truck
This is the easy answer. Even a sparsely equipped F-150 can tow 8,000 lbs. so there’s no worry of straining it with a Miata on a small open trailer. It’s also a futureproof answer. With a pickup truck, I can grow into its capabilities as I possibly move up to a larger car and/or larger trailer down the road. The major drawback is the size. Our driveway is not that big, and there’s just not a lot of physical space to keep a large truck. More importantly, this would have to be one of our daily drivers and the idea of DD’ing a pickup truck all year just to tow a couple times during DE season doesn’t seem reasonable.
I was hoping that getting a mid-size pickup, like a Toyota Tacoma, would alleviate the size issue. In the configuration I would get for the F-150 (SuperCab or SuperCrew), the length is 232 inches. For the Tacoma (Double Cab), it would be 212 inches. Being 20 inches shorter would help the Tacoma fit much better in the driveway (and it tows a respectable 6,400 lbs.), but it’s still a foot longer than the longest SUV I would consider.
Two vehicle option 2: A mid-size SUV
This is the sensible answer. SUVs in this segment can tow up to 5,000 lbs. when properly equipped. They are also reasonably sized at around 200 inches, so they would not be unwieldy as a daily driver. Furthermore, having a covered cargo area keeps thing secure and gives me possibilities for camping overnight at track events.
One downside to this option is the fact that towing is a secondary capability for these vehicles. While towing 5,000 lbs. is possible, I would be pushing the car’s limits even with the Miata. Since I would probably only tow a couple times a year at first, this really isn’t an issue. However, if I upgrade the race car at some point, I could easily grow out of the SUV.
Tow vehicle option 3: A smaller diesel SUV
Before starting this section, a disclaimer: I currently work for Volkswagen. I say that because the only vehicle that fits this description is the VW Touareg TDI. At a stout 189 inches, the Touareg can tow up to 7,700 lbs. That’s impressive for its size and makes it a compelling choice. The diesel engine will also provide more effortless towing because it brings on much more torque much earlier compared to a traditional gas engine. Being a more premium offering, it will have a more luxurious interior than some of the other options, which will make for a nice drive home after a day at the track as well as a comfortable daily driver. On the other hand, the small size means I probably can’t bring along as many things as I could with the other SUVs or trucks, but I would be able to tow a heavier car if I upgrade.
I am planning pretty far ahead here, but that’s what I do best. At this point, I’m leaning toward the Touareg. It could tow the Miata reliably, would make a good daily driver, and is even somewhat futureproof. It’s always fun to daydream. Which setup would you choose? What criteria would you consider to choose a tow vehicle?
