Hi all. I'm new to towing. I bought a Swift Charisma 545, hitched it up to my 03 plate Freelander TD4 expecting it to pull it well. To my surprise it struggled. I stopped to make sure I'd taken hand brake off...it felt as if the brakes were on. Can anyone offer any advice ? Thanks
Hi
Should tow ok good match of outfit only problem i can find is it may
On most motorways inclines (1:20) driving is easily possible in the 3th gear with 50 mph and even full throttle with 55 mph. Hill starts are possible on steep slopes up to 17%. While driving the engine has enough power to drive on every normal road.
Are the caravan brakes binding?
Check if brakes are binding, coast to a stop on a flat road without applying brakes, window open you will hear the noise if they are. 03reg TD4 is 110bhp, not a huge amount of power for that weight so probably ok. Use gears & don't let engine labour.
It's probably quite a heavy van. Yes it's a 4x4 so should tow it, but the engine is pulling a heavy van and a heavy car.
I always feel the most effective outfit is a well matched one where the tow car is not heavier than it needs to be.
You may also find there is a lot of wind resistance with caravans. This really slows them down. If you aren't used to it, it will feel sluggish. Wind resistance is the by far the biggest factor requiring power on level ground restricting the speed.
The freelander td4 doesn't have much grunt. It will tow but I would expect it to struggle somewhat. Worth checking the caravan brakes aren't binding though as this will make progress and fuel consumption challenging.
Tow the same van with a Skoda superb 1.9tdi with 105 bhp NP at all, don't be afraid to put your foot down a bit more, give it more revs, after you have checked the breaks are ok on the van, easy way to check van if its on a level let hand break off and try to move it yourself a few feet, it should move easily
Quote: Originally posted by Ray Clayton on 05/3/2016
Hi Should tow ok good match of outfit only problem i can find is it may
On most motorways inclines (1:20) driving is easily possible in the 3th gear with 50 mph and even full throttle with 55 mph. Hill starts are possible on steep slopes up to 17%. While driving the engine has enough power to drive on every normal road.
Are the caravan brakes binding?
That sounds gruesomely underpowered to me! Not my idea of a good match of towcar to caravan. My 1.8 ASX would tow my 1300kg caravan all day on a motorway in 6th gear at a steady 56mph, yet if needed I could drop down to 3rd and still achieve 56mph.
Quote: Originally posted by freeatlast on 06/3/2016
Quote: Originally posted by Ray Clayton on 05/3/2016HiShould tow ok good match of outfit only problem i can find is it may
On most motorways inclines (1:20) driving is easily possible in the 3th gear with 50 mph and even full throttle with 55 mph. Hill starts are possible on steep slopes up to 17%. While driving the engine has enough power to drive on every normal road.
Are the caravan brakes binding?
That sounds gruesomely underpowered to me! Not my idea of a good match of towcar to caravan. My 1.8 ASX would tow my 1300kg caravan all day on a motorway in 6th gear at a steady 56mph, yet if needed I could drop down to 3rd and still achieve 56mph.
Yes but this is the problem. Great match on paper & within the recomendation of 85% but still under powered. You got to drive it at full revs to gain anything, i know someone with this model of freelander and they tow, but with a lighter van ok.
As for 6th gear whats that, to get into 6th, when towing, i have to use manaul shift command , or go over the speed limit of 60mph.
Just a thought does the Freelander have a selectable high and low range gearbox??????????? like a Landrover, can you change from 4 wheel to 2 wheel drive.
If any of the above, select high, and 2 wheel drive , might make a big diference