Towing with a Range Rover?

Hello Mark,
I tow mine with a Discovery 3 TDV6 2.7 tows it far better than the 100 series I had before. I would gather that the V8 diesel would blitz the D3! The only thing you have to be aware of is; with the air suspension and self leveling technology you cannot use a weight distributing hitch as the computer and the WDH fight against each other and the loser has been the towbar (It snaps off!!) I have done about 10k without the WDH and had no ill affects.

Cheers
Paul

Hi Paul,
Thanks for the prompt response. I'll look into the WDH further, and thanks for the advice.
Can't wait for the caravan show when it hits Sydney!

Hi Mark

Just picked up BT 20' towing with Disco 3 TD6 2006 done 6000km both unit performed better than my original expectation.Also correct about WDH i did not run with one no problems.

Regards From Alf

Mark,
We would have maybe 10 Range Rover towing, and possibly 30 or so Discos.... Keep in mind only about 25% are active on this Forum, so a question like this is more productively answered by the home base at Bushtracker... I can give you the answer from the perspective of the 1000 instead of the few hundred..

Diesel is the best, Petrol is the worst, in terms of safety and fuel economy, and a half dozen other reasons... The Disco 3 has rave reviews. No one is happy with the Range Rover Petrol V-8, in terms of fuel economy... Vehicle yes, some love their Rangie, fuel economy in petrol no... Nobody is happy with petrol consumption and it is cut down to less than half when towing... Diesel is King for torque...

I would only go the proper Range Rover, if you have no money issues and just love the vehicle. It is not my own first choice, and it depends on the size of Bushtracker you end up with. The proper big American trucks, like the 4x4 Ford, Dodge, and Chevs, are more stable longer wheelbase vehicles with huge storage in canopies, and are the obvious first choice for a larger van say over 21'... Coming back to the city? Smaller van? Then the Range Rover or Disco 3 is definitely worth looking at... BUT....

But here, in the final analysis, let me give you some important perspectives...
1) You have heaps of time while your van is being built...
2) There is a new vehicle coming, twin Turbo V-8 Diesel Toyota, and if the fuel economy is good it might become a first choice for vans under the 21' or so...
3) Come for a visit to Bushtracker first and see what size van you are going to want...
4) And then in relation to the van, sit down with that crazy lone Ranger and talk horses for courses... Don't buy the vehicle first... SETTLE on the LIFESTYLE first....
5) Last comment, British vehicles are nightmares to work on... Lovely to drive, nightmares to service. They are designed to take the work out of the hands of the Bush Mechanic to Dealer Only, parts are way over priced, and rare... All in all a real pain if you break something...

Anyway, come for a visit and see just what vehicle you really need. Coming back to the City, smaller seasonal trips, requires a different horse than say retirement big travel vacation home to the top 50 favorite places you discover in your travels... OK?
And Thank you for your positive Feedback, I do try....

Other Newbies:
Medium sized van? On a bit of a budget? Here is my own first choice: Toyota still offers the Standard 100 Series with the standard diesel and no IFS. So here is another idea: There has been a great deal of success in turbo charging the Toyota standard diesel… I mean we know of hundreds.. ARB put Safari Turbo kits on them for ten years!!! The only ones we have heard of having problems were people problems in not feeding the engines enough oil and water!!! Everyone that said something bad about after market turbo on a 1HZ motor, which is really rare to hear something bad anyways; when questioned, really had to admit to not checking oil or water and that is not the turbos fault!!! The only problems seemed to be the Factory Turbo engines that had a fault in the lower ends in the mid 90's. Tracy, one of Bushtrackers Directors has had three 80 Series Toyotas with aftermarket turbos added on for him and his Wife… We hear of them going about 600,000 kms. He even took the turbo off one when he updated and ran it on the next one out to 340,000 before he sold that one!! After market turbo does not seem to be a problem at all…… And it is the same engine in the Standard 100 Series. The GXL, looks just like a Factory Turbo, but no engine electronics, no independent front suspension that some have had trouble with, same body style and all but very user friendly and easy to work on and the most common part available in the Bush... Which leads me to say I wonder if it is not a reliable vehicle in that it does not need a computer to fix it, and a GXL has the standard Monobeam front suspension.... To me maybe twice as reliable for half the money???

As to selection of a tow vehicle.... This is possibly another option to consider.... A secondhand vehicle like a late model GXL 100 Series, for half the money of new.... You should take a look at a magazine called the "4 x 4 Trader". There will be 500 vehicles in there for sale every month.. About once every three months for some reason there will be a half a dozen vehicles reduced to ridiculous prices all at once!! You have plenty of time while your Bushtracker is being built.....You can get the RACQ to have a look at it, send pictures over the internet, negotiate a price, and have them meet you at the Airport to pick you up... For half the money, I am not sure that it isn't another option, as I also do not like the trend in the new vehicles with computer run complex systems that cannot be rectified in the Bush.. For example-I know personally, I would like an early 2000 on GXL 100 Series for half the money, maybe even with extra equipment already on it; rather than all the fancy electronic run injectors and injection pumps of the new ones. The same goes for the other Brands. It seems as though the Company Engineers are designing the engines to take the maintenance out of the hands of the do it yourself people and make them dependent on the Dealerships for all service... Just a personal view, but maybe it is another option to consider for half the money... Especially if you are a handy sort of a person yourself.... It is what I did in getting a new Cruiser for my wife, I bought a 2000- 100 Series, aftermarket turbo and intercooler, and it was loaded with extras like long range tanks, diff locks, air compressor, and much more.. Again the motivating factor? It has no engine electronics to run the injection pump, injectors, and controls; and I think it is twice the vehicle as new, for half the money, AND also has the tried and true solid front monobeam axle housing...

Also: I would buy a second hand one for now if you were going Landcruiser to wait and see the new V-8 Twin Turbo coming… The new IFS prices will fall in a heap when the new Cruiser comes out if the Twin Turbo gets better fuel economy.. But a good second hand one bought at the right money, will always hold its value.

Myself? I like to see how something new runs in the Outback for a year or two or three, before buying a whole new style of vehicle...

Regards to all, LR