Thread: Towing with a Defender

I can't comment on the short wheel base question. But I use a 110 PUMA for towing horse floats and it's really very good. With horse on board you tend to drive a bit more sedately anyway - but really the PUMA 2.2 tows a horse float pretty well. (After all it's only around 1000kg for a float , and 400-600k for your average nag.)

I used to tow with a 100inch wheel base Range Rover, and that was also very good. The key issue with towing is how far the tow ball is from the rear axle, this governs how much the float will push the rear end of the car around. On a 90, the distance is very close - so I would expect it to tow pretty well.

Originally Posted by cruisey

I am currently deciding whether or not to get a new defender 90 .

I am wondering what people think of it as a tow vehicle? I mainly tow horse floats, i know its rated to 3500kg but wondering how it copes with the the heavy loads being a short wheel base.

In the UK Defender 90's are the main choice of weapon for the uppity horsey crowd

If its not a Range Rover it will be a 90, so one has to assume they're perfectly suited for the job.

I tow a 6.2m wakeboard boat (stern drive) at around 2.2 ton all up (boat and trailer) and while fuel consumption goes up, there is certainly no lack of power, needing to stay in a low gear or any of the associated perceived issues. Add to that low range anti-stall when you recover it from the water and the Defender is made for it.

Cheers,

Lou

Try to get hold of DEBRUISER,he has a newish ninety and towed my old 88" and xtra motor and other stuff back to mackay,about 5 hours or so i think,so he should be able to tell you how they tow.

I have a 90 which I picked up in November and was wondering the same thing until we hooked up the 2 tonne camper trailer and it towed beautifully. Felt like that's what it was built to do.

Originally Posted by Pocket Rocket

I have a 90 which I picked up in November and was wondering the same thing until we hooked up the 2 tonne camper trailer and it towed beautifully. Felt like that's what it was built to do.

2 tonne camper trailer. That aside, the wheel base is the main issue regarding towing stability. My D2a is quite a stable towing platform but it can be mildly upset by x winds and overtaking trucks, but my camper is a 23 ft duel axle 2381kg van. It depends on the physical dimensions of the trailer. Towing experience is the key.
Regards
Robbo

Do a search as there is another thread on this topic. I have a 90 and a 110 and tow with both. Loaded car trailers, etc probably up to around 3 tonnes. 90 tows perfectly well but the 110 is definitely more stable. It's not that the 90 is unstable but rather that it tends to wander round a bit more in the same way that it does when you compare driving both without a trailer.

However I would be quite happy to tow anything anywhere with the 90. The short wheelbase definitely makes reversing and tuning in tight spaces much easier.

The Defender 'sales brochure' gives the 90 series '3 stars' for long distance towing suitability, whereas it gives the 110 series '5 stars'! I guess the longer wheelbase will give more directional stability to the whole rig. :>)

Originally Posted by robbotd5

2 tonne camper trailer. That aside, the wheel base is the main issue regarding towing stability. My D2a is quite a stable towing platform but it can be mildly upset by x winds and overtaking trucks, but my camper is a 23 ft duel axle 2381kg van. It depends on the physical dimensions of the trailer. Towing experience is the key.

Upon reflection, the trailer is rated to 2 tonne but with the 2 x 4.7m fishing kayaks, plus boat loader and folding bulldog trailer probably comes to about 1.5 tonne.

Didn't find cross winds an issue however that's probably because of the trailer dimensions and construction. I guess cross winds would be more of an issue when there are horses in the trailer especially because of the height of the trailer with not much weight at the top.

The short wheel base makes it easier to manoeuvre around small spaces but the 110 is more stable.