How much can I tow?

[Landrovernick]

I am considering purchasing a 1969 series IIA. Can anyone give me an idea as to the towing capacity (safely) of such a vehicle. I have seen numerous times in the mags the series rovers towing train cars etc. but what about normal everyday life. For instance I'm considering this for an everyday driver that may need to tow a boat or jet ski etc. any help would be greatly appreciated.

 

[Leslie]

Uh.......


Is it an 88 or is it a 109? Is it stock? Which engine? Has it had an engine swap? Is it in really great shape, or is it rough?

Just how big of a boat are you talking? Are you going from the garage, across the yard to your own dock? Are you going across town to the slip? Or, is it a two-hour road trip to get to the lake? (Meaning four-hour road trip in a Series....) Do you expect it to keep up with traffic? Do you have to tow over any hills?

What kind of drive for a commute? What kind of work do you do? Is it okay if you show up to work a half-hour late, covered in oil and smelling of gas fumes? If it's raining out, do you mind being wet inside the vehicle?

Are you a competent mechanic? Do you want to be?

I love Series Rovers, but seriously, I use a Subaru as a commuter, and I'd get something else to be a tow vehicle.... It MIGHT suit you fine, but, there's a lot of reasons to pick something else......


FWIW....


-L

 

[jsonova99]

I would be scared to death of braking with a series while towing. I'm not a series expert, though I hope to be a in a few years as I continue hunting for one, but I don't hink they have the best brakes in the world as is let alone with a few thousand pounds behind you.

 

[Dan Ratcliffe]

A petrol 88 can tow about 4000 lbs. Believe it or not, the 109 is rated about 500 lbs lower. This is NOT like towing with a modern vehicle. Braking is very different.

http://www.fourfold.org/LR_FAQ/Series/

This might help.

 

[Leslie]

A Series' towing ability is in gearing, not in power. A Series *can* pull a lot of weight, but it shouldn't do it at significant speed (braking as part of that equation).

A 109 weighs more than the 88, so with the same 2.25 engine, you don't have a lot of excess power, so it's rated for less. But, the 109 would be more stable and less likely to get whipped around by what it is towing.


If it's a dinghy or a single jetski, and you're just crossing town, it'll probably be okay. But I wouldn't want to tow a large powerboat from one town to the next.....


IMHO, FWIW.....



-L

 

[jsonova99]

A Series' towing ability is in gearing, not in power. A Series *can* pull a lot of weight, but it shouldn't do it at significant speed (braking as part of that equation).

A 109 weighs more than the 88, so with the same 2.25 engine, you don't have a lot of excess power, so it's rated for less. But, the 109 would be more stable and less likely to get whipped around by what it is towing.


If it's a dinghy or a single jetski, and you're just crossing town, it'll probably be okay. But I wouldn't want to tow a large powerboat from one town to the next.....


IMHO, FWIW.....



-L

towing a moderate sized powerboat with a Disco 2 can get hairy when you have to brake, I can't imagine how scary that would be with a series.

 

[Dan Ratcliffe]

I once towed a 109 from Greenville SC to Raleigh, behind an 88. It really whipped my butt. The biggest problem was the 109 steering, and the fact that the tow bar was jury-rigged and had a lot of loosness in it. A standard trailer, with 2000 lbs of boat, I don't think I would sweat too much. Remeber, these things used to pull a lot of horse trailers around in UK.

 

[Leslie]

But in the UK, you're on what would be the equivelent of narrow country backroads here, you're not at I-40 speeds.....

I'm not sayin' that I wouldn't do it myself, but IMHO, it's mostly up to the driver, working within the parameters of the situation.... there are a lot of folks out there used to dragging a huge boat behind a dualie, that if they jump in a Series and try the same thing expecting the same results.... you just can't approach it from the same perspective, you have to use your head.

The biggest thing is planning it out... pick a route w/o serious grades, or if that can't be avoided then make sure that folks can pass (visions of old 23 from JC to Asheville come to mind, before it was four-laned.... or like 19W from Erwin to Burnsville....) Don't outrun your brakes, and start braking long in advance.... etc etc etc.......

IMHO, FWIW.....


-L

 

[02Disco2]

towing a moderate sized powerboat with a Disco 2 can get hairy when you have to brake, I can't imagine how scary that would be with a series.

Are you serious? Looking at your sig I assume you have a mastercraft? Man, that can't weigh very much. Are you sure you have the trailer setup correctly? Are the surge brakes functioning?

I tow over 6500lbs every week (my boat) with a tandem axel with surge brakes with my D2. Round trip is roughly 80 miles to the marina. I even take it up to my lake home which is 460 miles round trip. I never have a problem and can cruise all day at 75MPH. The only time I white knuckle it is for the first 5 minutes of driving while the trailer brakes are still wet. Otherwise it actually stops quicker with the boat behind me, those trailer brakes could stop my entire vehicle without breaking a sweat. BTW, it took me about 40 hours of messing with the trailer to get it setup perfectly. It by no means came that way from the factory but was worth every minute of my time doing it.


Oh, sorry for the thread highjack. Carry on.

 

[ckuhtz]

towing a moderate sized powerboat with a Disco 2 can get hairy when you have to brake, I can't imagine how scary that would be with a series.

That's why you have trailer brakes.

 

[LR Max]

I've towed with my 109. Ex-MOD. I have tinkered with the engine and she does put out more hp than before. Also running 235/85/16 BFG MTs. Also have RM 3 leaf rears with OME shocks.

It tows fine. I've towed Honda CRXs (can't even tell its back there), RX-7s and Nissan 240sx. The Nissan made its presence known and it is a heafty one. All three vehicles towed fine on a trailer that was hefty to begin with. The BIGGEST THING is trailer brakes!!! I towed without em and I highly recommend them. If you can get brakes on your trailer then you are good. I didn't tow too far (~50 miles) but I wouldn't hesitate to tow farther. As long as I kept the speed around 50~65 and didn't try to go faster there wasn't any problems.

With the RM suspension and the trailer, the truck sat level . Later this evening when I have time I'll post up a pic.

For a jet ski, you've got it all day. I don't see any problems. Also my 109 is my daily driver. Its the only vehicle I've got. No problems for day-to-day driving. It just goes. It can be uncomfortable from time to time but overall you either get used to it or you get another truck. Make sure the vehicle you are buying has good seats and isn't too loud when you drive it. They do make a lot of noise going down the road.

If you have towed before, then you know what you need to do...