# Tow trailer with my Cruze Diesel



## money_man (Feb 25, 2014)

How'd it work? How bad did your mpg go?


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## money_man (Feb 25, 2014)

2880lbs for anyone who doesn't want to add.


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## pacolino (Aug 1, 2015)

superyan711 said:


> Hi guys!
> 
> I try to tow trailer with my cruze and i said WOW!!
> I
> ...


Wow...that's awesome. 

Sent from my LGMS631 using Tapatalk


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## chevrasaki (May 1, 2015)

superyan711 said:


> Hi guys!
> 
> I try to tow trailer with my cruze and i said WOW!!
> I
> ...


Nice! But just so that you're aware, the Cruze diesel isn't recommended for towing.


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## money_man (Feb 25, 2014)

There's been a couple guys on here who have towed 3000lbs with their Cruze no problem. I think the holdens says 3000lbs in their manual.


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## chevrasaki (May 1, 2015)

money_man said:


> There's been a couple guys on here who have towed 3000lbs with their Cruze no problem. I think the holdens says 3000lbs in their manual.


I fully believe that car is capable of doing it. But GM does NOT recommend the USA Diesel to tow. 

Also I can not find anywhere online where it says the Holden Diesel can tow 3,000 lbs. I don't believe that. They may have be able to tow some amount but I speculate that's because they offer a manual transmission. There might be other subtle differences. All I know is, GM says the ECO and the Diesel USA models ARE NOT RECOMMENDED for towing. But you can just ignore that and do it anyway.


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## money_man (Feb 25, 2014)

Hopefully one of the guys from overseas joins in with their diesel. I specifically recall being amazed at how high the tow rating was for the ctd.


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## chevrasaki (May 1, 2015)

money_man said:


> Hopefully one of the guys from overseas joins in with their diesel. I specifically recall being amazed at how high the tow rating was for the ctd.


I was sort of mistaken. The Holden's towing ratings are in kg so, it means their Cruze's are rated for 1600 lbs without trailer brakes and 2600 lbs with trailer brakes. Still investigating why/how the North American models are different.

Side note: Found this thread of an a person who is unhappy the CTD isn't rated.
http://www.cruzetalk.com/forum/64-c...an-cruze-diesel-really-has-no-tow-rating.html


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## money_man (Feb 25, 2014)

I was going from memory so 2600lbs is close enough for me


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## money_man (Feb 25, 2014)

I know we have a different transmission, they use a gm built one and they all say they work flawlessly. However I have no problems with my aisin transmission and was actually the deciding factor in getting the ctd over a v6 honda accord. Man I'm glad I didn't go to honda, I couldn't live with myself and would probably be pushing up daisies by now.


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## NickD (Dec 10, 2011)

Ha, want more towing capacity? Skip the Chevy, get a Buick or a Cadillac. Well it use to be that way back when, today its still 1,000 pounds!

Ha, with pickup trucks, read this:

GM Sued Over Truck Towing Capacities | GM Authority


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## pandrad61 (Jul 8, 2015)

I plan on towing with my cruze. not a big trailer just one small enough to carry my cbr1000 and a second bike with a front toolbox. ill install a trailer brake and re enforce the trailer to make it stronger but not be crazy heavy. i wish GM would have maned up and released a real towing rating for the CTD. look i get its made for fuel economy but it is the strongest cruze in the whole line up ; further more it is heavier and has bigger brakes. why is it official numbers get released for the lil 1.4 but not the 2.0 diesel.


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## chevrasaki (May 1, 2015)

If you really want a vehicle that is towing capable, I think I found it.


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## Robby (Mar 1, 2013)

More often than not capacity is determined by the actual weight of the towing vehicle (to avoid the tail wagging the dog) and braking capability.

And in the U.S., a healthy regard for the potential of creating liability lawsuits.

In most cases, the driveline is capable of actually pulling rather high loads......but that has little to do with the overall picture.

Rob


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## diesel (Jun 8, 2013)

Superyan, where are you located?


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## pandrad61 (Jul 8, 2015)

if i have a way of monitoring the vehicle vitals like tranny temps, engine oil pressures then i would have no isse towing with my CTD but until i have a means then im not doing so.


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## money_man (Feb 25, 2014)

Won't the tq app do that?


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## chevrasaki (May 1, 2015)

pandrad61 said:


> if i have a way of monitoring the vehicle vitals like tranny temps, engine oil pressures then i would have no isse towing with my CTD but until i have a means then im not doing so.


Ultra-gauge or Scan Gauge II could help you with monitoring the car's vitals. Though I'm not sure if there are sensors in the car for things like oil pressure. 









UltraGauge OBDII Scan tool & Information Center

ScanGaugeII : Linear Logic - Home of the ScanGauge


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## pandrad61 (Jul 8, 2015)

chevrasaki said:


> Ultra-gauge or Scan Gauge II could help you with monitoring the car's vitals. Though I'm not sure if there are sensors in the car for things like oil pressure.
> 
> 
> 
> ...


i was thinking of this one http://www.amazon.com/Edge-Products...=1&vehicleType=automotive&tag=viglink20709-20

but its quite more then the scan everyone else uses. but i really like having trans pressure, oil pressure and boost on one window


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## chevrasaki (May 1, 2015)

pandrad61 said:


> i was thinking of this one http://www.amazon.com/Edge-Products...=1&vehicleType=automotive&tag=viglink20709-20
> 
> but its quite more then the scan everyone else uses. but i really like having trans pressure, oil pressure and boost on one window


I have the Ultra-gauge and you can completely customize it. You can get up to 8 parameters per page and there like 12 pages.


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## pandrad61 (Jul 8, 2015)

I think ill seriously look into the ultragauge MX 1.3. for 79. it does tranny temps, boost and other nice features to have
[h=1][/h]


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## Louis (Dec 28, 2015)

Just received my Scanguage II today, won't sleep thinking of playing with it  (Giffordautomotive.com for the Canadians here...)


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## DECruzer (Jul 19, 2015)

Geezus, according to my Scangauge the Aisin trans runs at a hot temp already (usually around 200) and you guys want to drag a ton of crap around on a trailer. Yur nuts. At least put a cooler on it. Has anyone done this?


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## chevrasaki (May 1, 2015)

DECruzer said:


> Geezus, according to my Scangauge the Aisin trans runs at a hot temp already (usually around 200) and you guys want to drag a ton of crap around on a trailer. Yur nuts. At least put a cooler on it. Has anyone done this?


I'd also like to point out again, the North American Diesel Cruze (And ECO), are NOT recommended to tow anything. But you can still choose to disregard their recommendations and do it anyway.


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## money_man (Feb 25, 2014)

DECruzer said:


> Geezus, according to my Scangauge the Aisin trans runs at a hot temp already (usually around 200) and you guys want to drag a ton of crap around on a trailer. Yur nuts. At least put a cooler on it. Has anyone done this?


It has a transmission cooler from factory


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## pandrad61 (Jul 8, 2015)

^ what he said.


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## Aussie (Sep 16, 2012)

I have a Holden Cruze and the petrol Cruze also has a 1200kg tow rating for a trailer with brakes, but is rated at 100kg less for a trailer without brakes at 650kg. It doesn't give any difference between manual or auto, it just says you must use a Holden hitch or similar.

View attachment 180505


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## KpaxFAQ (Sep 1, 2013)

I tow under 2000lbs a few times a month. It tows great. The hitch and 5x8 utility trailer have already paid for themselves in a year. 

I've moved all kinds of construction equipment and other types of loads for years at work so I'm not an amateur when it comes to loading/driving the trailer properly. I can see the viewpoint of the worry warts but with some experience and common sense tow away! 

It sure is nice to be able to hook up to my trailer in 30 seconds and go pickup a new fridge, furniture, etc. All the benefits of what 97% of people use pickups for without the high cost and fuel penalty for everyday driving. This is what the USA automakers don't want people doing. You NEED a truck or SUV to do anything right?


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## money_man (Feb 25, 2014)

Truck yeah!


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## chevrasaki (May 1, 2015)

KpaxFAQ said:


> I tow under 2000lbs a few times a month. It tows great. The hitch and 5x8 utility trailer have already paid for themselves in a year.
> 
> I've moved all kinds of construction equipment and other types of loads for years at work so I'm not an amateur when it comes to loading/driving the trailer properly. I can see the viewpoint of the worry warts but with some experience and common sense tow away!
> 
> It sure is nice to be able to hook up to my trailer in 30 seconds and go pickup a new fridge, furniture, etc. All the benefits of what 97% of people use pickups for without the high cost and fuel penalty for everyday driving. This is what the USA automakers don't want people doing. You NEED a truck or SUV to do anything right?


I believe we have the correct answer here. Likely the same reason they won't bring over the Ute. If we could get a car with a pick-up bed, we would stop buying $50,000 trucks.


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## AWJustus22 (Feb 19, 2015)

It would be interesting to figure out GM's reasoning for the towing prohibition on the ECO and CTD, particularly on the CTD. 

Just thinking aloud here: the CTD has the strongest drivetrain, has the most capable braking hardware, and the same rear springs (or maybe heavier duty?) as the standard Cruze. 

The only thing I can think of on the ECO and CTD that may disqualify those models from towing could be the Goodyear Assurance-FuelMax low-rolling-resistance tires. Are those exclusive to the ECO and CTD, and do we know if they have a lower load rating than the standard Cruze tire options?


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## pandrad61 (Jul 8, 2015)

it may also be due to gearing. im also thinking if there is a real mechanical reason it may be gearing.. lower final drive gear to help keep rpm lower at cruze speeds may overwork the trans in trying to get up to speed vs having higher diff gear for acceleration and power vs speed and fuel


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## AWJustus22 (Feb 19, 2015)

That also sounds like a legit possibility, along with torque converter lockup/transmission programing.


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## NickD (Dec 10, 2011)

Can't even haul 4 by 8 foot sheets of drywall on a $50K pickup truck. But no problem with my home made trailer built on a boat trailer with a 3,600 pound capacity. Also tilts for driving up an ATV or a riding lawn mower.

Buying a Cruze was a downfall, was using my 92 DeVille for hauling that had a class II hitch on it. So broke down and put a hidden class II hitch on my 88 Supra. But due to the location of the gas tank on this thing, limited to 2000 pounds and know I will get into problem if some idiot pulls in front of me and have to slam on the brakes. But did cheat a couple of times with a slow moving vehicle sign on the rear and just drove 15 mph with quite a load. 

Cruze is just for fuel economy around here.


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## chevrasaki (May 1, 2015)

AWJustus22 said:


> It would be interesting to figure out GM's reasoning for the towing prohibition on the ECO and CTD, particularly on the CTD.
> 
> Just thinking aloud here: the CTD has the strongest drivetrain, has the most capable braking hardware, and the same rear springs (or maybe heavier duty?) as the standard Cruze.
> 
> The only thing I can think of on the ECO and CTD that may disqualify those models from towing could be the Goodyear Assurance-FuelMax low-rolling-resistance tires. Are those exclusive to the ECO and CTD, and do we know if they have a lower load rating than the standard Cruze tire options?


Not sure the reason for the diesel, but I heard the eco has thinner welds to save weight, not sure if that's true or not.


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## money_man (Feb 25, 2014)

imo if you want to tow get yourself a small suv since theyre pretty fuel efficient. If you only need to tow now and again, ask a friend with a truck to give you a hand, everyone knows a guy with a truck. Otherwise maybe get a hitch and tow a smaller trailer or buy one of those platforms that slide into the reciever that people use for luggage.


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## pandrad61 (Jul 8, 2015)

money_man said:


> imo if you want to tow get yourself a small suv since theyre pretty fuel efficient. If you only need to tow now and again, ask a friend with a truck to give you a hand, everyone knows a guy with a truck. Otherwise maybe get a hitch and tow a smaller trailer or buy one of those platforms that slide into the reciever that people use for luggage.


i have a 95 grand cherokee 5.2 v8 4x4. this tows most my heavy stuff but when i want to go to biketoberfest or sturges i want to tow my bike with the cruze. get great mpg going there and save miles on my vintage bikes. cant exactly trave that distance in my ZJ without considerable fuel usage


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## money_man (Feb 25, 2014)

there just seems no way to win. gm will just void your powertrain if they think youre towing anything, and who wants that headache


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## AWJustus22 (Feb 19, 2015)

chevrasaki said:


> Not sure the reason for the diesel, but I heard the eco has thinner welds to save weight, not sure if that's true or not.


You'll have to find an autoworker to interrogate during the Lordstown meet to get to the bottom of that rumor.


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## money_man (Feb 25, 2014)

The eco has less spot welds, not sure about thinner


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## chevrasaki (May 1, 2015)

money_man said:


> The eco has less spot welds, not sure about thinner


Yeah, maybe that's what it was. Still can't figure out why the diesel isn't rated here but my 1LT is.


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## Aussie (Sep 16, 2012)

KpaxFAQ said:


> It sure is nice to be able to hook up to my trailer in 30 seconds and go pickup a new fridge, furniture, etc. All the benefits of what 97% of people use pickups for without the high cost and fuel penalty for everyday driving. This is what the USA automakers don't want people doing. You NEED a truck or SUV to do anything right?


We have been doing this in Australia since Adam was in short pants. The Cruze is the first car in many years I haven't put a tow bar on as I don't need it. Mt son has a Station wagon with a tow hitch, so If I need to I can borrow it.

View attachment 180641


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## NickD (Dec 10, 2011)

Four hundred bucks for this piece of metal so I could get a couple of two hooks to strap down my kayak on my Cruze. 04 Cavalier has tow hooks, but this piece would only take care of the front, no place to strap it down at the rear.

So when when go kayaking, 88 Supra does the job, has super size tow hooks on it, both front and rear. All plastic on the Cruze that would break off with a gust of wind.

Daughter's 13K buck Kia Base Soul can tow 2,000 pounds, and has bolt on roof racks, maybe time to start looking at other vehicles if you want to haul something. Oh, it cost me 55 bucks to add cruise to her vehicle. Just missing the switch plate.


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## superyan711 (Mar 17, 2013)

Hi All!

I do 11L/100 km.

Yan


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## superyan711 (Mar 17, 2013)

chevrasaki said:


> I fully believe that car is capable of doing it. But GM does NOT recommend the USA Diesel to tow.
> 
> Also I can not find anywhere online where it says the Holden Diesel can tow 3,000 lbs. I don't believe that. They may have be able to tow some amount but I speculate that's because they offer a manual transmission. There might be other subtle differences. All I know is, GM says the ECO and the Diesel USA models ARE NOT RECOMMENDED for towing. But you can just ignore that and do it anyway.


Maybe they said ARE NOT RECOMMENDED but this car is awesome for tow trailer!


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## superyan711 (Mar 17, 2013)

diesel said:


> Superyan, where are you located?


Québec, Canada.


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## superyan711 (Mar 17, 2013)

DECruzer said:


> Geezus, according to my Scangauge the Aisin trans runs at a hot temp already (usually around 200) and you guys want to drag a ton of crap around on a trailer. Yur nuts. At least put a cooler on it. Has anyone done this?


Yes, you are correct, 

For this summer i put a cooler on Aisin trans,

But in winter, this is not a problem,

And i have a scangauge too for monitor turbo, engine temp..


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## DECruzer (Jul 19, 2015)

I didn't know that they already had a trans cooler. Really hard to see through everything that is in the grille area. Still, a trans running in the 220 degree area creeps me out, even if it supposed to be "normal".


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## NickD (Dec 10, 2011)

Would say about 99% of our driving, maybe even more is just me, or my wife and me, and maybe a bag full of groceries. So our key interest in buying one was for fuel economy.

Is it really possible to purchase just one vehicle that would satisfy all of your needs? If so, haven't found one yet. Ha, use my motorhome more for a moving van than for camping.


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## pandrad61 (Jul 8, 2015)

NickD said:


> Would say about 99% of our driving, maybe even more is just me, or my wife and me, and maybe a bag full of groceries. So our key interest in buying one was for fuel economy.
> 
> Is it really possible to purchase just one vehicle that would satisfy all of your needs? If so, haven't found one yet. Ha, use my motorhome more for a moving van than for camping.


A suv will do that. it can tow, has 4x4 with lockers, lots of room, passenger capacity, comfortable, safe, can be very fast. only trade off is parking is a pain and fuel usage


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## NickD (Dec 10, 2011)

pandrad61 said:


> A suv will do that. it can tow, has 4x4 with lockers, lots of room, passenger capacity, comfortable, safe, can be very fast. only trade off is parking is a pain and fuel usage


Sure a bunch of people driving those big things in my neck of the woods. One ran into my then brand new Cavalier trying to park a 23 foot long Silverado in a conventional parking space. Ha, a 90 pound neighbor lady leaves her home every five minutes to get her nails trimmed or whatever driving a huge Ford Expedition. See a family of five trying to squeeze into a two seater pickup truck including the groceries. Wonder about child car seat laws.

On a two lane road, lots of these, where you can make a right turn with a red light after a stop, can't see anything with all these large things running around. Sure a problem with the Cruze, but not with my motorhome, can see above them.

Ha, actually fun driving this big thing, can scare the hail out of SUV drivers instead of them scaring the hail out of me when I am driving my Cruze. 

On icy roads, see more pickups in the ditch than anything else, would be better balanced if a one ton pickup carry a one ton load. But 99.9% of them are running empty. Hit the brakes and the rear end spins around, no weight on those wheels.

Fuel is sold strictly on supply and demand, these large vehicles are sure increasing the demand hurting the rest of us. And rare to see more than one passenger on the insides of these things.


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## Aussie (Sep 16, 2012)

pandrad61 said:


> it may also be due to gearing. im also thinking if there is a real mechanical reason it may be gearing.. lower final drive gear to help keep rpm lower at cruze speeds may overwork the trans in trying to get up to speed vs having higher diff gear for acceleration and power vs speed and fuel


My CTD has a 6T45 transmission and a 2.64 diff ratio, which is a taller gearing than the US CTD.

View attachment 180953


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## pandrad61 (Jul 8, 2015)

NickD said:


> Sure a bunch of people driving those big things in my neck of the woods. One ran into my then brand new Cavalier trying to park a 23 foot long Silverado in a conventional parking space. Ha, a 90 pound neighbor lady leaves her home every five minutes to get her nails trimmed or whatever driving a huge Ford Expedition. See a family of five trying to squeeze into a two seater pickup truck including the groceries. Wonder about child car seat laws.
> 
> On a two lane road, lots of these, where you can make a right turn with a red light after a stop, can't see anything with all these large things running around. Sure a problem with the Cruze, but not with my motorhome, can see above them.
> 
> ...


while yes they consume a lot of fuel its the best multi role vehicle but far from a specialist. my jeep zj will do just fine in snow or ice but i also drive accordingly. i with dad drove dump trucks so trust me i know the perils of a empty bed


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## pandrad61 (Jul 8, 2015)

Aussie said:


> My CTD has a 6T45 transmission and a 2.64 diff ratio, which is a taller gearing than the US CTD.


well if the cruze had a 3.23 gear im sure it would be easier to tow and get better acceleration at price of fuel usage and low cruising rpm


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## KpaxFAQ (Sep 1, 2013)

It seems like people are associating real towing (IE Boat) with the cruze. I'm talking about under 1,000 total pounds here almost every time. A few of my fat friends filling up the car goes over that easy! With 1,500lbs or less behind me I can't even tell the trailer is there starting or stopping except when i hit a bump and hear a rattle. I had it loaded up real good with some firewood once but balanced so tongue weight was appropriate and I could tell it was there but drove it across town 10 miles with sensibility. 

Also people mention the gearing....that's where common sense comes in. Going up a long grade on the highway it would lug 6th potentially but I usually kick it down to 5 in manual mode and it's not even sweating or over-revving at that point.

As far as warranty goes, if I have a powertrain problem, I'm going to take the hitch off from the 4 bolts that hold it on in about 15 minutes


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## money_man (Feb 25, 2014)

Leave it on and say it's for your bike rack.


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## dougc905 (May 24, 2015)

Don't know about that. I have hitch receiver on my Cruze and have had it in for service a few times now with no mention from the service people.



money_man said:


> there just seems no way to win. gm will just void your powertrain if they think youre towing anything, and who wants that headache


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## KpaxFAQ (Sep 1, 2013)

dougc905 said:


> Don't know about that. I have hitch receiver on my Cruze and have had it in for service a few times now with no mention from the service people.


Mine was in for faulty glow plug and no problems either


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