Volkswagen Towing Capacity by Model

On this page you can browse the 747 Volkswagen cars, trucks, and SUVs across 9 unique Volkswagen models that we have towing capacity and payload information for.

Use the links below to see more details in the Volkswagen model you're interested in - sorted by year of production and then by trim.

• Volkswagen Golf GTI
• Volkswagen Beetle
• Volkswagen Golf R
• Volkswagen CC
• Volkswagen Tiguan
• Volkswagen Touareg
• Volkswagen GTI
• Volkswagen Jetta
• Volkswagen Passat

How Good are Volkswagen Vehicles for Towing?

An iconic German automaker Volkswagen is known for producing cars, vans, trucks and buses. Headquartered in Wolfsburg, Lower Saxony, Germany it is a brand with a somewhat infamous origin which it has more than made up for since.

The Volkswagen company was founded in 1937 by the German Labour Front which was under the control of the Nazi party. German cars of the 1930s were luxury items so most Germans could not afford to own and operate one. In fact only one in 50 Germans owned a car.

In a bid to reach a bigger consumer base Volkswagen was one of several companies that endeavored to create affordable cars for the everyday person. The name Volkswagen in fact translates to “people's car.” Using a car designed by Porsche which resembled a Beetle Adolph Hitler sponsored the new state owned factory.

People could buy a new car in installments of five Marks per week and 360,000 people joined the scheme. However, it proved to be a poor plan so the government had to subsidize it. The outbreak of World War II then meant that no one ever received their car. A 1950 lawsuit determined that those who paid into the scheme could get 12% off the list price of a new Volkswagen car.

The Kraft durch Freude Wagen was the first prototype and it appeared in 1938 already looking like what would become the VW Beetle. This was one of the first cars tested in a wind tunnel, a process usually reserved for German aircraft.

In April of 1945 the town and area around it that the Volkswagen factory was located was captured by U.S. forces. This area was handed over to the British under the command of Major Ivan Hirst. The factory was taken over and was initially meant to be used as a maintenance facility for military vehicles.

Plans changed and Hirst eventually started to put the plant back together and began the process of turning it into a commercial concern once again. It took a while but the Volkswagen company started to grow.

The question we have now is do Volkswagen cars have anything to offer those looking to tow? The answer is a definite yes, there have been plenty of models with more than adequate tow ratings. During the early 1990s most Volkswagen models were suitable for at least 2,000 lbs. of towing capacity.

A model known as the Eurovan could over double that with up to 4,400 lbs. of towing capacity which is not bad at all. In the early 2000s the Volkswagen Touareg arrived on the scene, it was an SUV and it had some serious pulling power. Offering up to 7,716 lbs. of towing depending on engine and model year this to date was the strongest VW available.