What do you tow your boat with

[maxi]

Just wondering what people are useing to tow their boats and how they perform. I curently tow a Fisher 6mtr center cab with a Landrover Defender, I am more than happy with the towing performance but am considering a more luxurious vehicle for long trips. I would love to here your thoughts.

Cheers, Greg.

[Black_Jack]

maxi

i tow my allison 195 vision (2.2 tonnes) with a 2006 pajero DID. Tow the boat without any effort.

i use to tow it with a 1996 prado petrel. Towed it well but went through the fuel when towing.

geoff

[Fishing_Freddy]

I tow my 5.3half cab haines hunter with a 2.7petrol hilux tows well a little bit thirsty but is comfortable when driving for a couple of hours
Ken :D ;D :D

[blaze]

rangie, 6m glass
cheers
blaze

[stevedemon]

Hi maxi

i tow a 5.3mtr Stebercraft 1/2 cab an 115hp yammy on the back with a 4.2ltr Desiel Ford Maverick 4x4 with no problems

Cheers ;D ;D
Steve 8-) 8-)

[impulse492f]

5m Glass with a commodore with no probs.

[Geoff_Atkinson]

5.8M Quinnie Cuddy Cab

Tow with 2006 Toyota Landcruiser Turbo Diesel Sahara. Cant even tell if the boat is there.

[ozscott]

Keep the LR badge mate and change to a Disco - I tow with my 95 v8 auto on LPG and my 02 V8 Manual on LPG.

Cheers

[Blackened]

G'day

Not a massive combination but an '01 td rodeo 4x4 towes a 12' tinny and associated gear, no drama's.

Just towed a 500km round trip in 2 days wich was the longest tow by far for me and performed very well.

Dave

[23-sharkcat]

7.1m sharkcat with 5.5t Hino. cant legally tow it with anything else.............

Are you readding this Grand Marlin

[Roughasguts]

5.0 metre glass with a 3.0 litre Man, NJ Paj.

What can I say the Paj stops the boat well, Nice brakes on them Mitsubishis.

[seatime]

I tow a Stabi 589SC with a 98' 2.8lt Patrol T/D, I definately know the boat's there around town, although on the highway she pulls at a 100k/h on 2600rpm whether the boat's behind or not.

sea raider, can I have your's :D

regards

[honda900]

I tow my Yalta 555 (glass) with a Jeep Grand Cherokee V8 - 01 model, no problems what so ever with the weight.

Regards
Honda

[capt]

Hey MAXI, If you want the grunt and economy, plus the comfort, you can't go past the direct injection Turbo Diesel Landcruiser
Cheers Jimmy

[nicko233]

gday all,5.2 glass ,xd falcon, man have i got to get a new car.


nicko

[Mr__Bean]

Have to agree Capt.

I tow an 8 metre plate ally and the Turbo Diesel Landcruiser does it easily and economically.

My wife also tows the boat for me when on open roads if we are on a long trip, she will take it to 110 Kmh #if the highway is good while I sleep in the passenger seat.

That's a fair indication to me.

- Darren

[harlequin]

5m. centre console ally 750kg. with 1990 toyota 4runner v6 petrol without boat on hyway 460km @ 100 km/h to 65l tank with boat 320-340 km @ 80km/h bit thirsty slow.

[Willdoe]

At least once a year I tow my 146 Haines 1000k (13 hrs) up the coast with a 1989 #HJ60 diesel cruiser wagon. #Does the job Ok but have to pack a lunch, boil the billy and roll a cigarette when it comes to overtaking - its not turbo'ed. #

The leaf springs are a bit rough and for comfort I am thinking of upgrading to something with coils , perhaps a Pajero.

Willdoe

[Stubbie_Holder]

6.8 Haines towed by an 04 V8 Petrol Cruiser!

[cliffo]

I pull my Yalta 535 with Navara STR Dual Cab 4x4 3ltr Turbo Diesel
No Drama's at all

[Dr_DRIFT]

haines signature 575f with 150 yamie 4str on tandem... towed with 92' cruiser, auto in petrol was not a problem. but recently just went LPG and it was a mistake >:(! Now she has trouble over taking and at the ramp sometime feels like she struggling :'(..... Need to get a towing only car???(Desiel turbo) :P

[ovakil]

Tow 22ft coxcraft pantera with 1996 landcruiser ute

[marlinqld]

5.1mt Ally CC towed with 2004 Falcon Ute, sweet as


Mike

[fishingrod]

Allison 189 Fisherman with a fairy heavy fit out and a dual axle trailer.

Tows with a 2005 Holden Commodore ute V6 manual. Tows OK. Clutch isnt real strong, but does the job.

http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c369/fishingbasket/allisonstormsmall.jpg

[ozscott]

21 Seafarer Vagabond - 4.0V8 LR Discovery - 5 speed manual trans running 265/70/16s. Good tow vehicle and economical on LPG.

[shane_wright]

tow my 5.9m seafarer with a 2002 cruiser diesel smooth as silk

[plat-a-puss]

tow a 4.5 c/c with a 03 paj 3ltr no speed demon but compfy stay clear of hills :-[

[DaMaGe]

BA Ford Falcom Xr6 Auto towing 14"ft Hartley (wood/gass)

On long trips, have had warning light indicating transmission temperature. But it has never sounded the few beeps it suppose to when it's over heated. (re; doesn't have the tow pack installed with the coolant radiator at the front of the vehicle) All in all it tows well from Ipswich to Coast and back on general fishing days etc.

[Roughasguts]

BA Ford Falcom Xr6 Auto towing 14"ft Hartley (wood/gass)

On long trips, have had warning light indicating transmission temperature. But it has never sounded the few beeps it suppose to when it's over heated. All in all it tows well from Ipswich to Coast and back on general fishing days etc.

Mate all I can say is change your tranny oil often then.
If it smells burnt it's to late. 2 Months ago I killed a tranny and it ain't cheap, and me V6 toyota never towed and had just been serviced. I nearly died when I heard the price of a reco, so bought a new car. But ah found a second hand tranny eventually, and now I have 3 good cars.

[DaMaGe]

Shiat!!!!!!

[Roughasguts]

Have you got a tranmission cooler, bit of preventative care there, also keep it locked in gear, no O/D. Stops the bands from slipping and burning up. My Reco just over 3 K. 2nd hand 1200 bucks, bloody thing has a cooler too.

Yeah no fun, no warning, just reved out at the lights, and went no where.

[ozscott]

I reckon that in terms of todays cars you are much better LONG term with a manual trans. If you like shifting gears dont be tempted to autos. The new electronic shift boxes are worth a kings ransom if they toast themselves.

[Reef_Ranger]

1750kg 18ft Fibreglass with a 2005 4.2TD Toyota LC Ute. #Does it easily 19L/100kms travelling at 110kph. #When using the family LC 4700 V8 Auto it does it easily but uses 24L/100kms travelling at 110kph. #I live 700kms from the water so keeping the speed up is a priority. #Dropping back to 90km/hr would improve fuel economy but it would take a further 1.5hrs to get fishing ;). #It only gets used about four times a year so whats an extra $40 in juice. :-?

[Argle]

16ft glass boat behind a 3.2l DiD Pajero 5 speed auto, Boat what boat?? Average 10l/100 without boat and around 12l/100 with boat on @ 100kmh.

Cheers and Beers
Scott

[1975fflh]

I tow a 5.2m glass rumrunner 1 and 90hp Johno with an EL Ford wagon you know its on there but it seems alright, got to watch the braking distances in the wet.

[GAD]

97 triton v6, tows the 5m Tabs and 115suzy no drama , up the gillies in 3rd , over the cardwell range no probs, plenty of grunt and comfortable enough

[Roo]

MY06 Subaru Forrester 2.5l manual. Struggles a bit with my 4.55 polycraft( about 750kg on trailer).

The gearing is a bit wide between 4th and 5th gear, 1000 rpm drop to a cruising revs of 2600rpm @ 100kph The suby is a bit weak untill about 3200 rpm.. the normal driving economy gets smashed around with the boat on. 9L /100 stretches out to 13L/100 when towing. Otherwise it is well balanced on the road, a recent swerve and recover to avoid a Motorway hopping KangaRoo was a interesting experience @ 110kph. all good in the handling dept. just needs some more grunt. turbo model would be nice but company would'nt go for it. I got the manual for the low range option. I need it when pulling out at some ramps (see above comment on lack of low end grunt) Maybe the Auto would have been a better option, no low range but not needed with an auto really. as for offroad ability.....I'm not kidding myself, I'll stick to the well made dirt and bitumen thanks.

cheers, roo.

Ps. Company cars make the best tow vehicle/ offroad machine/ beach car/ paddock bashers. ;)

[Argle]

cheers, roo.

Ps. Company cars make the best tow vehicle/ offroad machine/ beach car/ paddock bashers. ;)

Ill take that one further and say the most capable vehicle off road is one that is fitted with a healthy dose of N-GAS which in laymans terms is "Not give a sh!t" ;D when your vehicle is equipped with N-Gas it will surprise you how far it will go and what it can do :o :o

Cheers and Beers
Scott

[Camo]

I tow my 5.7m Quinnie with an SS Crewman ute. #The Ute and boat together measure almost 12 metres long. #It towes it well though, can hardly notice there is a boat behind.

[DaMaGe]

I had it in O/D the particular time doing about 110k/h up to Tin Can Bay and about Noosa turn off the warning came on. It doesn't have the cooler at the front etc as its not the big tow pack option.

I have run it in selective mode since, or performance mode whatever you call it, so it doesn't go into overdrive.

Fuel is about 21L/100k in fuel, usually about 10L/100k.

[finga64]

I tow my tinny with Wally the Mazda wagon....no problems at all ;D
Actually I keep trying to convince myself that Wally is really a dual cab with a really close fitting canopy so I can do more ute type things with it ;D
Big boat with the series 3 Landy. Still no problems (except when the rust got too bad and the towbar stayed on the boat ramp oneday :-X. Time for a rebuild then)
Cheers Scott 8-)

[aussiefool]

I tow my S/box boat with my S/box ea falcon ::) the 17'er with the same S/box falcon

[madmackrel]

G day all she's a 1982 f100 351 780 four barrell auto no air and thirsty as. but she's a pleasure to drive. Boat is a 20 footer glass job on an ally trailer wieghs in just under 2000 kg

PS sold the efy and bought a rodeo 2004 no character but air con and fuel efficient.

Cheers MM

[IcemanII]

Tow my 6.4m glass behind the V8 sahara and bearly know its there, alo brought a 2003 V8 disco and its just not quite the same !! but at least I can still go fishing when the wife wants to take the kids shopping.

[ozscott]

Take the 2 off road mate and you will need the Disco to tow the Saraha out!

[Mr__Bean]

Take the 2 off road mate and you will need the Disco to tow the Saraha out!

PMSL here.....

You Landrover guys are soooooooooooo defensive........

- Darren

;) ;) ;)

[ozscott]

...no mate...we just like winding the toyo guys up!!

[IcemanII]

ozscott, sorry but the differance is so great its not worth debating, the v8 cruiser will run it into the ground in any situation and cruise on the hwy at 120 like a sports car........

[ozscott]

Clearly you have never taken them off road together - simple as that. The 100's independant front and weight take there toll very quickly when the going gets really tough - clearly Im not talking corrugated pot holed designated roads because that where the Cruiser excells.

Cheers

[TRD-70]

Navara TDI 3.0lt ST to tow a 6.1m Allycraft cuddy. PS to the people talking about the disco being great, I have towed one out everytime I have been on the beach. Last one i got out was towing a 4x3ft trailer and could not make it through a basic sandy hill track. I made the mistake due to laughing so much that i left the hand brake on the car and still towed it up the hill. Don't get me wrong I have had a landrover before and it proved to be a good old truck, but give me a Toyota or Patrol any day and I will take those car in 2wd more places than a Disco or Rangie would. ;)

[Kerry]

Landrovers were made as a 4W drive (yes even the 4cyl ones) not as some high speed highway machine. ,Speed does not make something a good 4WD. A hafflinger is like a snail on the road but will climb a power pole sideways without its diff locks, horses for courses "as usual"

Disco's are totally over rated when it comes to towing capacity, 4 tonne MA!

Regards, Kerry.

[ozscott]

He must have not locked the Centre diff - making it one wheel drive!!!

[Kerry]

The day a haffy has to lock all diffs will be somewhere never visited by :-?much else with wheels. As a tow vehicle :-? not worth a pinch!

[ozscott]

I towed my brothers 2.2 tonn DUAL axle van through very soft sand on Flinders with my Disco series II V8 Manual - piece of cake. I will do it again at Easter if you want to come and watch. I got through where my brothers 89 cruiser had trouble - he had 35s on it and a LSD rear, petrol manual - and my D2 does not even have centre diff lock - it relies on its traction control and torque - the LRs V8 gets huge torque just off idle.

My 95 Disco is better in the sand again - auto and centre diff locked. I have never had trouble with the D2 in the sand, but then again driving and making the best of traction control is a skill and used properly its not unlike lockers front and rear (but naturally not quite as good). Most people with Discovery's simply dont know how to drive them. As an example a mate of mine went with me to Noosa Nth Shore one year - badly cut up soft sand (I pulled a GQ out - but that does not make GQs crap; it was the crap driver) and he thought that he didnt need to lock the centre diff - rendering it a one wheel drive; I convinced him to lock it and of course he drove it all day including at high tide on the heavy soft with no probs at all.

The discovery's main strength is proper off road work - ie forestory trails and the like; big articulation and hard going. The 100 series simply cannot cope as well in those conditions with its weak and limited independant front end - no way to change that either; sorry guys.

Cheers

[ozscott]

By the way the tow capacity is probably related to the fact that the things are built on BOX chassis not angle fellas like all other 4 bees. As such they dont twist and break with 4 tonn. And they have the lowest first low gear ratio of any of the brands which not only helps with off road work, but means that if you wanted to tow that high you could easily start in low and change on the fly. I tow 2 tonn with both mine and its a doddle.

Cheers

[Stu]

99 Ford Explorer & FM175Allison. No probs towing at all (touch wood). #
;D
Be careful when on some ramps say for example at low tide and the rear wheels of a dual axle trailer are off the ramp and not touching anything. It will change the cantilever point forward to the front trailer axle and the leverage caused by the boat moving toward the rear of the trailer just before entering the water may take enough weight off the rear of the vehicle to let it slip slightly down the ramp. Always try and have all four trailer wheels touching the ramp. # :o
I always use the trailer brake as well as FWD when unloading or loading the boat. # ;)

Cheers
Stu

[TRD-70]

Landrovers were made as a 4W drive (yes even the 4cyl ones) not as some high speed highway machine. ,Speed does not make something a good 4WD. A hafflinger is like a snail on the road but will climb a power pole sideways without its diff locks, horses for courses "as usual"

Disco's are totally over rated when it comes to towing capacity, 4 tonne MA!

Regards, Kerry.


If that is true then Landrover is doomed as they have released the Ranger Rover Sports which is designed for high speed. There is one thing that landrover has over many is that it is running very quickly out of people to bail it out, maybe one day Toyoya and Nissan will take it over and like BMW it will change the powerplant to a more reliable V8 Toyota.

[Kerry]

As a 4WD, one does not require speed or power or any of the sh!t people think they have to fit to their vehicle to make it such. Really get a laugh with what is termed a 4WD these days :o

[The_Walrus]

Sea Jay 4M Bass N Barra behind my 4X2 Hilux.

Great combination, even with the ute loaded with camping gear.

Luc

[ozscott]

You dont get better reliability than a Rover V8 engine. Very good units. All the blokes that spruke about them being unreliable are those that have never had one. The toyo guys in particular in me experience have the King of the Road and believe the toyo adverts. Its sad, but there you go. Its easy to criticise things when you have 'heard' about them. I will be very outnumbered on this because most people own other brands, but even the Mitsubishi guys have to put up with it. The Pajero is a better vehicle than the Prado in my opinion and yet the Prado guys dont even give any credit to the Pajeros at all - if its not Toyo (or Nissan Patrol for that matter) its the highway! Anyway...I have said my bit and tomorrow I will hook up my boat to my 230,000 klm 95 Disco that gets oil changes and filter (and a recent radiator re-core!!) and get the equivalent on LPG to 14 litres per 100 k towing 2 tonn of boat and have a quiet chuckle.

Cheers

[ozscott]

..I was generalising of course because not all Toyota drivers are one-eyed, but a lot that I have met are.

[davo]

I no longer have brand loyalty. We have an 01' model Corolla which has been very ordinary but my Mitsubishi Triton has been great. I had a Rodeo and it was a great truck.

[Geoff_Atkinson]

..I was generalising of course because not all Toyota drivers are one-eyed, but a lot that I have met are.


I know I am!!!


Go the Toyotas

[TRD-70]

If you are looking toward the Nissans please be aware that the Turbo diesels are very good when towing and are not good at takeoffs or hill climbs. The turbo range is a little high and when starting as it takes a while before the turbo cuts in, so pulling a boat up a ramp will require, in some occations, the use of low range depending on the boat. After market chips etc can change this but at a $1500 expense. I have driving the new Rodeo, Falcon BA (Gas), Patrol, Triton, Discovery, Hilux, Cruiser and Parado and the diesels and petrols tow well, the Falcon on gas is a bit gutless but it will get you there. Previous Falcons utes I have driven have had a few overheating problems when towing larger loads. There is also an article in a 4wd mag which goes through each vehicle and explains their good and bad points. The winner of this was the new Disco TDi and V8. The only problem with this is that diesel these days is becoming a false economy and you will find that the newer day 4WD petrol will out perform in economy or $ per Km better than any diesel.

The Web site is - http://www.overlander.com.au/vehicle_tests/index/274/2006-Tow-Test:-Part-1---Large-Wagons

Good luck with your choice and keep on fishing. #:)

[BIG SUFF]

Haines Classic 650 with a Nissan STX Navara. No Sweat!!

[jtpython]

Cruisecraft explorer tow with 99 pajero wagon.

[chooky]

Fisher 730 with a 7.3l F250

[MyEscape]

Have a Series2 Discovery diesel but only tows a Seajay4.15m at present. But........................soon to be a Cruisecraft 500 Explorer .

Wooooooooohooooooooooo

Very excited about my new boat to be

not many sleeps to go on this but unfortunately will not be this weekend. Bummer, no boat and a long weekend and the weather might be ok too.!!

But not getting in to the disco/landcruiser bash. My Discovery could not be better on long trips (800k in a day or so) and I think it pulls like a bull in springtime and economical too

Car are like anything else. Outboard brands or beer. Some like some and some like another. If we were all the same we'd all be listening to the same band.

Steve
Hey, did I tell you about my new boat!!

[Haines_V17R]

currently tow with a 95 dual cab 4x4 rodeo, which struggles being a 2.6 petrol

soon to be replaced with a new 3.0 turbodiesel ute, either navara or rodeo id say 8-)