Diesel engines to tow an Avan Cruiseliner

Hi Richard,

Towing 1220 kgs - you could tow that with a lawn mower -lol.

All jokes aside, provided weight of the van you wish to tow is below the towing capacity rating of your vehicle ie manufacturers specs - you shouldn't have any problems.

There's always a however though - if you're travelling around Aust for say 6 months with 2 kids on board you'll have trouble fitting everything in and keeping below the spec weight. If this is what you are contemplating them maybe a bigger vehicle may suit up front and save you from a frustrating trip.

cheers

hi Richard
find out at what revs the i35 develops max kw's and nm or its engine torque if the turbo comes on early then it will handle that load ok
but if the turbo has lag or doesn't come in until higher up in the rev band then it may well struggle as soon as you encounter a few hills
my daughter drives an i35 diesel supplied by her work company
it goes like the clappers on its own
but may be a different kettle of fish with that weight and a family on board
do your home work first
so you dont find out when its too late look at this site
www.carsadvice.com.au
and
www.caravanworld.com.au
sure to be some imfo in their archives
cheers

I have a 2.2 Ltr diesel Outlander that pulls 16Ft Golf at 11-12 Ltrs /100 Ks ..... We travelled through the Adeliade hills both ways with ease...

It will do it with ease, unless you are looking at breaking some speed record.

Jump on some of the caravan forums and have a look, the most popular tow vehicles are the dual cab utes...... they all produce around the figure you have quoted (give or take a bit).

Most of these utes are pulling vans weighing over 1800kg.

All new diesels are much a muchness these days with power and torque figure and where they develop their power and torque in the RPM.

Most new diesels are rocket ships and offer more punch than their petrol stablemates..... non are slugs.

Hi Richard

With trepidation from all the Land Rover detractors, another option is the Land Rover Freelander 2 SD4 this is a vastly improved model to the first series of Freelander basically a chalk and cheese comparison. This model is sometimes called a LR2. The SD4 version is 140kw and 440Nm torque 2.2 litre turbo diesel, rated at 2000kg up to a max of 2100kg provided you don't exceed 100kph at the max tow weight. Does not have a low range box but an electronic all terrain system similar to a Disco, reasonable ground clearance. 6 speed auto. However more expensive than the other options.

The Pajero is only what I call a medium size 4wd, and it would do that with ease haveing about 147kw, and 441nm. Won't even know its there.

My question is...why a diesel.
I own a diesel and a lot of my family are die hard diesel drivers.

However.......the advantages of diesel are not what they where.

Diesel is no longer considerably cheaper than petrol per fuel value like it once was.

The current crop of common rail diesels may go pretty well, but the technology is not as well proven and developed as the paralel petrol engines.

The diesel option in most vehicles will cost you a couple of grand

If ya talking old injector pump diesels.....even turbo...the same model car with the petrol motor will make more power

Then you have the issue of fuel quality and the consequences with common rail diesel......if you have contaminated fuel with a common rail diesel.....ya stuck and unless ya insurer or the fuel company coughs up.....you have a very large bill.


People may look at the suposed economy advantage of common rail diesel......but "ya cana change the laws of physics Jim", it takes the same amount of energy to shift the same amount of weight......the diesel vehicle may look better running on it own..but as soon as you are pulling weight.....the economy advantage deminishes.

Then ya get a dose of bad fuel and the $4000 to $10000 repair bill and far from home and the economy just flew out the window.........Yep a bloke in the next street just sold his D4D and gone back to petrol.....he copped a dose last year and if he was not on a fuel card and had the cuel company bang to rights he would have had an $8000 bill.

In small vehicles, if you want to make power and get economy...petrol is still hard to beat.

Any of the medium SUVs like the RAV, Xtrail or whatever should pull 1200KG.

NOW..one thing to remember is all too frequently people think that can pull the published towing capacity....well..maybe you can but staying well within the towing capacity like 2/3 of it is much wiser and you will have a far more comfortable time...I'd be looking for a 1800KG towing capacity at least.

Remember if your rig is not comfortable and capable of doing the speed limit on smooth open road under good conditions it should not be on the road.

If you are doing 80KMH on a 100KMH highway you are a danger to ya self and everybody else.

My hiluxes are rated at 1800Kg braked towing capacity..would I highway tow 1200+KG....maybe for a couple of hours, but not long distances.


cheers

Thanks for all your comments.

My thinking with a diesel (over the petrol engine versions) is the substantially higher torque developed at lower revs. I’ve always understood that torque at lower revs is the key factor for towing. The petrol versions of the medium sized SUVs typically have two thirds the torque at double the revs.

I currently tow the Cruiseliner with a 10 year old Magna that does the job very easily (it has 140kW of power and 255 Nm of torque)

You won't regret a diesel, I prefer the new diesels over petrol engines in the way they drive and their lazy nature.

Have a friend who has an Xtrail and on country driving they get 5.5lts per 100 driving normal.

The price difference between diesel and petrol models are getting narrower all the time and I think in the future diesel will be the way many people will go.

Richard H12
I woukd seriously also look at the Hyundai Santa Fe and the Kia Sorento.
Both will pull or A-van with ease.
Ozjohn.

Once again, thanks for the comments.

I'm happy with the Magna for short van trips around Victoria but it has done over 200 kms and we want to do some longer trips up north and I'm looking for something with more clearance and AWD capbility/stability. (I think the 6 cylinder Magnas are great cars - this is my fifth one - had them provided with my work before I retired.)

I had been looking at a Santa Fe but to save a few dollars thought the i35 might be an option, has 1500kg towing capacity and ball weight is just ok. And they now have a European sourced model for $35k that is quite a bit cheaper than the Korean cars.