Towcar of the Year winner announced

They test the cars that manufacturers enter into the competition. If they ain't entered, they ain't tested. If manufacturers are having a sales drive on particular models, they enter them for the competition. It's all pretty meaningless.

As  I  understand  it,  the  tow  cars  have  to  have  had  a  modification or  up-date  from  the  last year  to  qualify  for  entry,  or  have  the  rules  been  changed  ?? {  As  a  motorvan  man  I  only  look  at  'em  so  I know  what  to  browse  round  if / when  I  win  the  Eurolottery  tonight   !  ( £166  million  or  something  to  night    )

with a 1800kg tow load. 4x4 188bhp auto skoda gives 92% match where my jeep with 167bhp auto gives 83%. wouldn't look twice at the skoda.

Have to say it seems silly, to say the least, awarding TCOY to a car that only has 75kg max noseweight.  What % of current larger 'vans (commensurate with its size) is it actually able to tow ?  Less than half I'd bet ...

You can acheive 75kg noseweight on virtually any van - just depends how you load it - and in any case as previously mentioned some Kodiaks have limit up to 100kg.

I haven't seen anywhere that the Kodiak can in some cases take 100kg - if that's the case I stand corrected.

As far as 'You can acheive 75kg noseweight on virtually any van' - well, that may be the case but in the real world it don't work that way, many vans 'natural' noseweight is > 75kg and taking stuff out or restowing it to achieve < 75kg is a hassle and if taken to extremes can be unsafe.

Moving a few KGs around is not extreme - anyway not necessary as the 4X4 5 seat versions as previously mentioned have a limit of 100kg which is more than many other cars

BB, you have clearly never come across an Eccles Moonstone..... I am not the only one who found that particular van impossible to get below 85kg, I can assure you theory and practice do not always quite match up. 

Now that I have realised you can get a Kodiak with a 100kg noseweight limit can any one tell me if the factory towbar has sensible clearance from the bumper for UK caravan towing (ie with a Alko stabilised head on the hitch) and if it rides level or nose up/down with the factory towbar. Why do the CC not mention such things, they are kind of important.

Many thanks in advance

I am looking for a new tow car and considered the Kodiak but straight away dismissed it I thought it had 75kg limit thanks to the CC car of the year test. Wonder how many car sales Skoda will lose because of this?

Why did the CC test that version?  Don't they know anything about caravanning and what is needed.

Now realised you cannot have a kodiak with 100kg noseweight and any kind of spare wheel. Totally useless then as a serious tow car.

Ridiculous that the CC made it  tow car of the year.