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Quote: Originally posted by listerdiesel on 29/6/2015

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Quote: Originally posted by Ray Clayton on 28/6/2015

One thing to bare in mind with the big 4x4s like land rover etc.

Solo

They do not drive like a normal car and the driver should remember this at all times.

Body roll can be a factor and cause the driver to take action when he dont need to.

Towing.

Dont get into thinking the 4x4 can pull anything, i dont know its on the back of me.

If you do you will end up with the back end in the air and the caravan wrecked !!!

Seen so many over the years on the motorways 4x4 in the air at the back end caravan on its side wrecked.

After 30 years of Driving every model of Land Rover (and other 4x4)  (and low loaders) you lean to respect the differance between a 4x4 and a normal cars.

i expect others will have a diiferant view.

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Most modern 4X4's drive like a big car, body roll hasn't been an issue since early Discovery 1 models, and with your Discovery 3 you should know that. I had ACE on my Discovery 2 but took it off and fitted solid anti-roll bars, no significant difference in body attitude that I could notice.

Towing any with ANY combination of towcar and trailer needs care and thoughtfulness when driving, more so with a heavy rig, but it doesn't prevent normal driving speeds and progress, just needs more input from the driver.

This Belgium-registered Discovery came past us like we were standing still, and we were running at 110kph at the time:



It looked stable enough, but the margin for error in an incident would have been very small at that speed.

Peter

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Quote: Originally posted by checkley1973 on 01/7/2015

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Quote: Originally posted by glittering-prize on 01/7/2015

Quote: Originally posted by checkley1973 on 30/6/2015What size engine is in your Chrysler ?

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its a 3 ltr v6 turbo diesel.i get around 24-28 towing,30 in general use and ive had 38 on a good run to skeggy.Good for a car ofthis size and weight,i has a musso 4x4 previous,nice car but 2.9 td and it struggled towing.It would pull a tree out the ground but had no real speed or torque.

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I do like the Chrysler but your mpg is no better than what we manage in a BMW X5 3.0d auto. That coupled with cheap servicing at £130 every other year at main dealer and £400 a year fully comp insurance. Not all 4x4's cost a fortune to run. The only expensive item is tyres which is a personal choice to have 20" wheels so tyres are £1,000 a set of 4.

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Quote: Originally posted by listerdiesel on 01/7/2015

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I think it boils down to need in the first place, and after that it's personal choice.

We have to have 3500kgs towing capacity, that's a given, and the number of vehicles that will do that is slowly reducing as Ray mentions above.

We chose the Discovery 2's as we do our own maintenance and overhauls, spares are very plentiful and very reasonably priced and we can hold a decent stock of new and used running spares, not that we have needed that many.

We have three Land Rovers in the family, two Discovery 2's and a Defender 200Tdi CSW.

We have never broken down in 80k miles and 6 years. MOT's have been passed with no issues, but they are getting on now, mine was built in November 1998 and the rear chassis is starting to rust. Body is good and the running gear is fine, so chassis out for repairs soon.

Not bad for 16-1/2 years and 158000 miles.

Peter

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Quote: Originally posted by Onewheelonmywagon on 01/7/2015

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But the towing limit in Belgium is 120kph, and if your speedo over reads by 5% .................

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Quote: Originally posted by 664DaveS on 04/7/2015

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Sorrento is a very good towcar,ours is rock solid on the road upto 70mph,before they changed the rules in France.
Ours did 24 mpg towing the other day with temperatures up to 37 on the A75 which has some big hills,speed around 60mph.
Trundling around solo 38 mpg aircon on obviously!
Well equipped cheaper than LR or Audi and still has 4 years warranty left.

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Quote: Originally posted by janus on 05/7/2015

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Quote: Originally posted by 664DaveS on 04/7/2015Sorrento is a very good towcar,ours is rock solid on the road upto 70mph,before they changed the rules in France.

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Ours did 24 mpg towing the other day with temperatures up to 37 on the A75 which has some big hills,speed around 60mph.
Trundling around solo 38 mpg aircon on obviously!
Well equipped cheaper than LR or Audi and still has 4 years warranty left.

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Just as a comparison I towed my 1450 kg Hymer across the A75 a couple of weeks ago with my Mondeo and got 33mpg each way into a 15mph headwind. Mondeo is a superb towcar at this sort of weight and very economical

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Quote: If 4X4 owners truly cannot feel the caravan behind them, then I an jealous: my 'van can certainly be felt from the drivers seat on very bumpy roads and when passing pantechnicon , though in the sense of being aware of the thing not feeling unsafe.

Quote: Originally posted by Baileyjake on 05/7/2015

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I think "not knowing a caravan is there" must be a figure of speech. I tow with a 4x4, all be it a "soft roader" but it still weighs 1780kg empty and has 175bhp at it's disposal. I tow at 71% and can definitely tell I have 1.2 tonnes dragging behind me. Whatever vehicle you have you will notice the additional weight and reduction in acceleration if anything. Laws of physics innit.

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