Looking for a tow vehicle for a 21" caravan

Why go backwards, forward to a 105 turbo, or av8 70 3 wagon.
Ray

Depends on how you define value. Considering how many 3.0 Nissans blow up I would not take the risk. Other than a 7.3L, F Series Ford, second choice would be a LC100TD.

Shane

ben_gv3
Jeep with the common rail Diesel

Hi ben_gv3

What weight is the caravan? Work it out, allow for full load, including water, gas and spare tyres, then compare with species of the vehicles you are considering. Allow a good 'margin for error'. Consider the ball weight for the vehicle as well.

We towed an 18' Bushtracker with a TARE of 2.2 t (i hate to think what the laden weight was) with a 3 ltr td auto Patrol. Mostly no problems at all and it went well, but a couple of times from a standing start on a very steep hill, it really didn't want to hurry, which may have been due to the auto not coping. We were way over the 2.5 t legal limit for the auto. We did not risk anywhere with loose sand or deep water. Should we have lost our caravan breaks descending a steep winding road, we would have been in big strife.

We have now purchased a 7.3 ltr td auto F250 so will have loads of power and breaking power, won't be out-weighed by the caravan, a huge tray to sleep on when we go off without the caravan, and confidence we have plenty of power to spare. There is not much out there bigger than the Landcruisers; F250s being the most common, Suburbans when you can find them, and a few imported from USA vehicles. They are expensive, but so are the latest Cruisers.

I thought the GU3 and GU4 Patrols solved the "bang" problem?

I still don't hear good things about Nissan warranty service though.

What's Jeep service like in the country? The main reason behind Toyota/Nissan is the service network out in the sticks.

The tare weight of the 21" is a fraction over 2T, so plus water etc, I'm probably looking at approx 2.3T. The 3L 4WDs (Terracan, Patrol 3L, Prado) is rated to 2.5T. Is this cutting it a bit too fine? The Cruiser 100-series is rated to 3.5T which is ample.

How about the Disco 2? For some reason I have a soft spot for the Disco's. The interiors should be pretty comfy too.

I've been looking over van specs (18' 2000kg) for awhile too and considering tow vehicles. In my view, if vans load up a tow vehicle to its limit, it can't perform anywhere like it should - consider passing on highways for example. Probably better to have a tow vehicle that can relax a little and then have get up and go when required. I don't want to get really close to any of those mass / ball limits when I'm vanning. Apart from the exotics (Jeep / Merc etc) the common rail 3.0 diesels have around 125kw tops - the new Toyota V8 and the superceded 6 (1HDFTE I think) both have 150 odd kw. That will be my minimum I reckon - the 118kw Jack (now towing a camper railer) will have to go ! I too was looking toward auto trans - I seem to have been pushed right into the LC100 GXL as result - 3 year old unuits fetch mid 50's at gov.t auctions heres in SA - always more in yards (often heaps more - but then, the auction units can be quite scruffy). As for Nissan - when are the going to fill the gap in their motor lineup ?

ben_qv3

Some posters are spot on in drawing your attention to the gross loaded weight of the van and you should also consider the mass going on to the towbar.

Be very careful about the consequences for your vehicle and van insurances if you choose to exceed the vehicle manufacturer's rated towbar weight and gross loaded weight. Expect too that with the burgeoning number of vans on the road, the Transport Depts and police are likely to pay more attention with spot checks of vans and trailers if not now then in the future.

We went through the same exercise to tow a bigger van and a heavy glass boat and the 5 speed auto Landcruiser 4.2TD came out tops.

EV700

ben_gv3, i should have also mentioned consider the weight you will carry in the tow vehicle when loaded for the big trip. The overall gross mass of vehicle and caravan with loads needs to be considered. So many people on the road will be over the legal limit for their vehicle without realising.

Thanks all for the replies.

Yes, I'm leaning towards the the LC100 since they have the 3500kg towing capacity and it appears to be the only vehicle that will SAFELY tow a caravan with a 2T tare weight.

Pity Nissan won't fill the void with a more powerful auto/diesel :-(

I do have a soft spot for the Disco but it doesn't have a good track record and the 2.5l diesel appears at first glance to be a little weak to tow a 2.4T caravan.

Even the LC100 wagon only has a load capacity of 710kg Max.
Add the weights of the tow bar , bull bar, roof rack, fuel load plus 2 healthy adults and a bit of gear plus any tow ball weight and your 710kg soon gets eaten up.
Have a look at the Modern Duel cab variants and you will find that the vehicle load limits are much higher. These new CRD variable type turbo Diesels can push out a goodly bit of torque as well.

Just another thought in the equation.