D2 V8 Tow range?

[Bentz]

Hi all.

Looking at a 2002 D2 V8 to tow a 2500kg boat, does anyone know the fuel consumption figures for such a setup?

Also, any idea on the costs of a larger tank fitted?

Thanks for your help.

[Pedro_The_Swift]

taking it easy,, maybe 400 kays,,

there are no other options with 2.5t

[Grumndriva]

Based on my experience with a 2.5 tonne dirt road caravan, which may have more drag than your boat, you should expect a fuel consumption of 24 to 28 litres per 100 km, depending on speed and wind conditions. Safe range will probably be around 350 km, maximum around 400.

New long range tanks (by Long Ranger) will set you back around $1,400, but you can sometimes pick them up used for around half of that. They are relatively simple to fit, and give you 160 litres usable. They make a huge difference when towing.

I have a tutorial on fitting them. PM me if you would like a copy. (It is a pdf file and I haven't figured out how to put it on the site.)

The 4.0 is adequate for towing 2.5 tonnes, but works very hard on hills. The 4.6 is a much better option in my experience.

Hope this helps.
Terry

[Bentz]

Thanks for the great info.


there are no other options with 2.5t

Are you saying the TD5 would be underpowered to tow a 2.5 ton boat?
Not sure what you mean.


The 4.6 is a much better option in my experience.

Thx....I never knew there was a 4.6:o

[Pedro_The_Swift]

Bentz
Thanks for the great info.



Are you saying the TD5 would be underpowered to tow a 2.5 ton boat?

once mobile a chipped TD5 may be the better vehicle---

Not sure what you mean.

with 2.5T,, no other option but to take it easy-----;)





Thx....I never knew there was a 4.6:o


only in Range Rovers,, easy transplant or build-up.:cool:

[grumpybastard]

It really depends on your driving style and how much of a hurry you are in to get there, if you set cruise control at 100km/h be prepared for a much shorter range.

Head winds and hilly terrain also play a big factor in the amount fuel you use.

To give an example the 600km trip from Melb to Robe SA (which i have done twice) i had a fuel consumption variation from best to worse of 150lts!

I tow a 2.5t caravan and generally just set a spot on the "go pedal" and leave my foot there for the duration of the trip, if we drop from 100 to 90-80-70-60 km/h going up a hill then so be it.

http://www.weaselsnout.net/web/pics.nsf/pictures/MARR-7C5FB7/$File/MARR-7C5FB7.jpg

[Bentz]

Thanks Grumpy.

Great setup mate!:thumbsup:

[Bentz]

To give an example the 600km trip from Melb to Robe SA (which i have done twice) i had a fuel consumption variation from best to worse of 150lts!


Grumpy.....out of interest how many litres did each trip consume?

Cheers mate.

[Rayngie]

I've towed my mates Wakeboard boat, 2.5t +/- Manly to the Hawesbury and back a couple of times, so a good mix of Hills, Motorways etc, with my old V8 D2 Manual, and would avoid it like the plague, o.k on the flat, not fast, and struggled on the hills, in fairness, between those two points there are steep hills, so i did'nt expect a lot, and it used an awfull lot of fuel.
two mates had both a 5l V8 Cherokee, and a 4.8 Patrol and they towed it like it was'nt there.
I needed low range to get it out of the water, they just stuck it in Drive and went.

hope that helps a bit?

Ray.

[grumpybastard]

Grumpy.....out of interest how many litres did each trip consume?

Cheers mate.

Sorry mate, I cant give you exact figures i generally try and avoid working out fuel consumption as they are always so scarey :eek:

Generally i would expect around the 30ltrs/100km, so around the 300kms mark range for 90ltrs. On the few occasions i have set the trip distance and checked how many litres it has taken to fill the tank again i have found wild variations.

Best i ever got was 16l/100km (which i triple checked) which was with a gale force tail wind. (And i still don't believe this figure)
Worst i have got recently was 38l/100km which was when my MAF sensor was faulty.

These days im running LPG so i'll be interested what i get at Xmas towing the van.

I haven't encountered the issues Rayngie has, if i want i can pretty much maintain 100km/h whilst towing but it will be screaming along in 2nd gear with my foot flat to the boards on a big hill.... I swear you watch the fuel gauge drop whilst doing this :o

On the flats freeway/Hwy driving i'll easily manage 110km/h and you'll spot me overtaking slow vehicles regularly. It takes a while to get up to a speed but seems to maintain it okay once you are up there.

You have to remember tho it might be a V8 but its only a little 4 litre motor pulling a hell of weight and combined with the aerodynamics of a brick.

To be honest there's probably better tow vehicles out there, the rear overhang from the rear wheels is less than ideal for towing, but i wouldn't change my D2 ....except for maybe a D3 :)

There are a few different options for additional tanks, sill tank, larger existing fuel tank and wheel arch tanks. Brown Davis and Long Range manufacture them but they are all $$$

Why the question about range? If you ar towing a boat im guessing you will be sticking to the coast and shouldn't have issues with fuel stops?

[Bentz]

Thanks for more great info:BigThumb:


two mates had both a 5l V8 Cherokee, and a 4.8 Patrol and they towed it like it was'nt there.
I needed low range to get it out of the water, they just stuck it in Drive and went.


I am really having second thoughts about a disco now. I thought the v8's were very good for towing big boats. :(


To be honest there's probably better tow vehicles out there
There actually isn't, as far as I know options are very limited as most have a 2500kg tow limit. The disco and the landcruiser are the only viable choices.


Why the question about range? If you ar towing a boat im guessing you will be sticking to the coast and shouldn't have issues with fuel stops? I plan on towing the boat out to the west of SA a bit, there is a long way between stops out there.

[grumpybastard]

I really cant answer this for you, as is often the case a compromise is going to need to be made, but what you willing to compromise can only be decided by you.

The Disco 2 V8 will pull 2.5t but you are going to know you are doing it, stick with an auto, its going to move off the mark easier than a manual will.

Horse power is a funny thing really, i've owned big cars with big motors with 5 litre, 5.2 litre, 5.9 litre, 6.2 litre V8's over the years and i used to think that anything less than 10kg/1kw was a joke. My Disco with all the options comes in at a weighty 16kg/1kw but we travel more kms, more often than we did in any of these other vehicles.

To give you an example we left from Robe one day with no destination planned and headed west, we stopped along the way, went for walks etc but we still managed to drive to Adelaide before turning around and heading back to Robe for a 700km round trip. The Disco for me easy easy to drive for long stretches even with my bad back, i don't know why because on paper it shouldn't be, but it is.

Maybe i got old somewhere along the way but I like my Disco, maybe the handling and big bonnet remind of my old American cars i used to own, without the performance or the fact they are constantly trying to kill you with there drum brakes etc.

The disco is really quite small (shorter than a Commodore or Falcon) but we all fit in fine and can throw the dog in the back, my 2 young girls have called our Disco "Sally" and often make jokes that they sit in Sally's stomach whilst the dog has to sit in Sally's bottom where smelly things go :)

All i can say is i haven't had any issues towing 2.5t and i would expect the aerodynamics of a boat to better than a caravan.

But at the end of the day, buy what ever your heart says to buy and you will be happy.

[Grumndriva]

Bentz,


You asked for some fuel figures.

Our last trip was from Canberra to Hay, McLaren Vale (South of Adelaide), Tantanoola (near Mt Gambier), Port Fairy, Appollo Bay, Rockbank (Melbourne) and back to Canberra. We towed our 20 ft dirt road van which sits up higher than normal and weighs in at around 2550 kg fully loaded.

Tow vehicle is a 99 Disco 2 Auto, fitted with a factory new 4.6 litre V8.

The period we went (26 Aug to 13 Sep this year) was characterised by very strong winds and lots of rain over pretty much all of the trip.

We cruised on good roads and where we did not have strong headwinds at around 95 kph in top (you need to be above 95 to develop enough power to stay in top) and the rest of the time at around 90 locked in third.

The vehicle handled all of the hills reasonably well, and was never flat to the floor for the whole trip. We spent much of the GOR at around 30-40 km, which was not much slower than the cars and other vehicles not towing.

We did a fair amount of sight seeing without the van on the back, including some very slow mountain roads in southern Victoria.

Total fuel used from leaving Canberra (topped up) until the next top up on return was 1,086.24 litres.

Total distance travelled was 4,920 km. Fuel consumption for the whole trip was therefore 22.08 litres per 100km.

The only accurate figures I have for caravan alone are for the leg from Canberra to McLaren Vale. Total distance 1,230 km. Total fuel used 338.77 litres. Fuel consumption 27.54 litres per 100 km.

One other thing to consider is that that was all on 95 octane fuel (Vortex, V Power etc. Cost ranged from 144.9 at Appollo Bay, to 128.7 at McLaren Vale.

We find the Disco to be excellent at long distance touring with (or without) the van, although quite thirsty as you can see. This makes the use of long range tanks almost essential.

Hope this is what you were after.

Cheers,

Terry