4WD options for towing

I forgot to mention i am going to buy a diesal...is your vehivle petrol or diesal?

diesel

With no disrespect intended Gary & Kerry, I just don't believe it when people say they tow such-and-such and "don't know it's there".

This implies that there seems to be no difference to the driver with or without the van.

That's just not plausible.

I tow a 2500kg full height van with a TDV8 Cruiser trayback. I definitely know it's there.

It's fair enough to say that you are pleased with your Terracan but I bet there IS a difference between towing and not towing.

Fair comment Gone Bush. I probably used the wrong wording.
Just meant it tows and tracks very well.

yes will be travelling with family of 5...thanks

Well said Bro. There are many that will pull the vans, but how many will control it and that is the effect you really need. I have towed our two tonne, low frontal van with a Triton 4x4 ute.

It was uncomfortable I must say as it had an effect on the driving characteristics. I don't think I could say I had effective control though it pulled OK.

If the suspension is too soft or likely to be pushed sideways because of a poor braking arrangement, lives could be threatened. I know of trailers that have overturned vehicles that towed them and killed drivers. One case, I won't cite in detail, the trailer was pulled well, but it couldn't be stopped as it was shot off the road jack-knifed.

Willem and john

Set up is everything...!!! The pic to follow shows my old Triton V6 with an excavator on trailer in tow (2.25t)... Although the V6 was not ideal for such a load, the constant load rear leafs combined with a well balanced and adequately braked trailer meant when Farmer Brown pulled out of a lane in front of me, in a 100 zone, I was able to maneuver and brake safely to avoid a potentially fatal accident...

Bigger isn't better if the vehicle and or trailer are not set up correctly...

DCT, The balance of the 10% on the draw bar doesn't give the control that you will have with a balance of your load applied forward of the rear axle. It was a Triton similar to what you have that had my Karavan behind and I didn't have confidence in it

The V6 may have the power to pull it, but as said above, not the capacity to CONTROL it. Just try it on a slippery track rather than a solid road or in soft sand. Just try to accelerate if a bit boggy or keep it straight on a stack off camber or where the trailer slips sideways. It could pull you foff the track and over the slope.

It is quite different to PULL against CONTROL, hard surfaced against the off-road. For people setting out to control their load, to suggest your rig would be rediculous.

The original post is "mainly driving on sealed roads"... The original post seems to get lost a lot in this place - seems "sealed roads" is being replaced more and more often by "high country" and "soft sand"

Not knocking you John, just noticed that people are thinking possibly a little too far beyond the original posters intentions... A 1.8t van is most likely gonna find itself in a Big4 van park long before the tow vehicle hits the tracks, in which case the initial vehicle choices are more than adequate...

It was almost strictly sealed roads we towed with the Triton too DCT but never again.

This site wether you like it or not, the readers often take the intention far beyond the original post with their intention and decisions to go just that little bit further down the track. Just like you have brought "high contry" into the post.

If you re-read the post "1.8 tonne loaded caravan" isn't distinct as to the eventual load and the "Mainly driving on sealed roads" means more than 50%. What happens for the rest of the time? My off-road van is on sealed roads most of the time too and a 1.8t caravan can easily be over 2.5 with a tank of water and all the stuff people take.

You say you have "just noticed that people are thinking possibly a little too far beyond the original posters intentions", but the original poster left the post very open. You are trying to excuse your towing a 2.25 tonne load on a trailer that is really under controlled in anything other optimal conditions.

I take 1.8t LOADED as being the final mass of the van... All I'm saying is people have a habit here of leading others to believe they need to spend potentially $10k - $20k more than they have to to get the job done safely...

I make no excuses for the load I towed, the vehicle handled sensationally even though the V6 was not the best choice in terms of power delivery... I WAS put into an emergency situation and the vehicle responded accurately and predictably and never once left me wondering what the hell I was thinking...

Something else to consider, was the Triton you drove on standard suspension or after market...??? Mine is after market, set up for bigger loads and heavy towing...Suspension should be a consideration and budgeted for in everyone's initial set up when mating a tow vehicle to a van...

DCT, you take too much for granted as it wasn't stated and still isn't. A bit like the stable conditions you were driving over. You have clarified your statement on suspensions. Good, about time. When is your membership going to be paid?

I take nothing for granted, I take "1.8t loaded" as NOT meaning 1.8t + load...

My membership?, I played that game for a few years but some of the ego's and attitudes on here dissuaded me from from paying again...

Pay up or shut up. Your opinion is worthless otherwise. Bwahahahahaha.

So in WA it would be acceptable to tow my 2 tonne van with a Suzuki Sierra!! How stupid/dangerous is that!!!
Ian

Dennis

I think you are talking ancient history. Since the adoption of the unified road rules by all states things have changed. All states have the same towing limits. There are very few vehicles these days that do not have maximum limits set by the manufacturer, You will probably find most built after 1990 have manufacturers limits that are the legal limit.

These days the maximum weight you can tow is the lesser of the vehicle manufacturer's towing limit or the limits set by the tow bar manufacturer.

PeterD