Michael,
You will get the same response at the mercedes dealer. twenty years ago they
would sell a german produced tow hitch kit for any model and now they don't
want to talk about it.
If pressed they will refer you to a local hitch fabricator and only say that
they have other customers who have used them.
If you know about it to ask, there is a small shop handbook which covers all
of the production models worldwide and gives various specifications for
repair, alignment, and interchange parts, etc. You can find that widely
different wheels, springs, tires, shocks etc. are used in other countries
depending on installed equipment and intended use. It seems that the cars
shipped to OZ are the most ruggedized. The Aussie trailering springs I
ordered were in stock in a warehouse one day away and the dealer was happy
to sell the parts for an independent shop to install. You may find a similar
situation with the VW if you can find a guru.
Yes, the tort lawyers have screwed up things again IMNSHO.
Of course they may end up being the only ones around with enough money to
buy one of the new gliders coming out of europe.
Cheers!


"Michael McNulty" wrote in message
news:S6XMd.27890$mt.18900@fed1read03...

"Papa3" wrote in message
oups.com...
The Passat is a fantastic tow vehicle. With a curb weight of around
3800 lbs, all-wheel drive, stiff suspension, low CG, and a relatively
short coupling between hitch and rear axle, it's a great compromise
between tow vehicle and every day transportation. And with highway
mileage of about 25 (versus what - 16 for the Dodge?), I can still
afford to take a tow when I get to the airport! (and no, I don't really
tow at 75mph, but it is [was] no problem if I needed to for short
bursts with the old setup).

P3


A few years ago I too thought that the Passat wagon looked like a good
choice to tow a glider trailer. When I went to look into buying one I
found
out that "Volkswagon recommends that you don't use this vehicle for
towing".
I first thought that the dealer was full of it, so I called Volkswagon
myself and, after being handed off a few times, got the definitive answer
that "we (VW) do not recommend that the Passat (or Jetta) be used for
towing
and we do not publish any recomended trailer weight limit." Now, I
certainly won't argue with someone who says that he has had good results
using a Passat to tow, but I personally tend to believe the manufacture
when
they say that you should not use their automobile for towing.
(This is in the US; perhaps in Europe VW gives a different story.)

Does anyone have experience towing with a Subaru Outback (2005 model
especially)? It bests the Passat wagon in most of the specs that I care
about, including price, and it is rated to tow 2700 lbs (1225 kg).