Thread: Weighed today

Originally Posted by rufusking

Curiosity got the better of me and I did a bit of browsing on GVM / GCM / Towing capacity. The following is from statewide4x4.com.au's FAQ's and highlights some vehicle limitations when it comes to true towing capacity. Fortunately the D3/4/sport have a true 3.5 tonne towing capacity, that is GVM + 3.5t = GCM

GVM Upgrade & GCM FAQ's / Have A Question About Your GVM Or GCM?

"How Much Can I Really Tow?
What a lot of vehicle manufacturers will not tell you is that towing up to your maximum towing capability can sometimes (but not always) affect the amount of weight you can carry in your vehicle.

For Example:

Ford PX Ranger: GVM 3,200kg / GCM 6,000kg

Ford advertises that the vehicle has the ability to tow 3.5T which it does, however if you take a closer look at the vehicles specifications you will see that the GCM cannot exceed 6000kg. If you take 3500kg max towing capacity from the GCM that leaves you a maximum allowable vehicle weight of only 2,500kg.

GCM: 6000kg - 3500kg (max towing) = 2,500kg

To be able to tow, 3.5T with the PX Ranger you need to take 700kg out of your maximum allowed GVM figure of 3,200kg. If you then look even further into the vehicle specifications it is even more of an eye-opener. Lets assume that you are still towing the maximum amount of 3.5T with the PX Ranger which we will say is a Dual Cab XLT.

GVM (with max towing): 2,500kg - Vehicle Tare Weight: 2,159kg = 341kg

So you are now left with a payload of 341kg. Lets take out a couple more essential items from that figure.

Payload: 341kg - Tow Ball Down Force Approx: 280kg - Fuel approx 70kg = - 9kg

So on a Ford PX Ranger XLT towing 3.5T with a full tank of fuel and approx 280kg of ball weight you are already over your GCM. Now try to add a driver, additional passengers, any luggage, a fridge, bull bar, winch etc and you will be well over your allowable limit. This makes your vehicle unroadworthy and in the case of an accident you risk voiding your insurance payout. As you can understand it is important information that the consumer really should be made aware of."

Disco 2, 3 and 4 are the same, the more you tow, the less you can carry in the car.

As far as I'm aware, the Amarok is the only ute that can carry it's maximum load and still tow at it's max tow capacity of 2.8t for the early model manual and 3.0t for the later models(2012 to 2014)

Baz.

Originally Posted by Redback

Disco 2, 3 and 4 are the same, the more you tow, the less you can carry in the car. As far as I'm aware, the Amarok is the only ute that can carry it's maximum load and still tow at it's max tow capacity of 2.8t for the early model manual and 3.0t for the later models(2012 to 2014) Baz.

Baz, you sure about that with the disco ?

I am sure I have read it's gvm plus 3.5 tonne....not a reduced gvm if max trailer weight is attached.

Brett...

This is from my manual.
It's GCM is GVM plus 3.5 tonne.

Brett...

Ahhh but the tow ball downforce still has to be considered as part of the gvm so in theory can you have 250 kg on the ball counted in the 3240 of the car then you get a further 3500 for the trailer (so weighed on the trailer wheels?) so in effect the total weight of the trailer could be more than 3.5t ?? Is my logic here on track or am I off on some tangent ?

My understanding is its not a maximum of 3.5 ton plus the tow ball weight. The trailer/caravan, what eve,r must be no more than 3.5 ton if towed by a Disco 3/4 etc, of course it can be more if the tug is certified for more like a Silverado, F250 etc.

Originally Posted by Meken

Ahhh but the tow ball downforce still has to be considered as part of the gvm so in theory can you have 250 kg on the ball counted in the 3240 of the car then you get a further 3500 for the trailer (so weighed on the trailer wheels?) so in effect the total weight of the trailer could be more than 3.5t ?? Is my logic here on track or am I off on some tangent ?

Trailer, 3.5 tonne total. The ball weight is a separate issue, and as already mentioned, becomes part of the vehicle GVM. It wouldn't matter if the ball weight was 50kg or the maximum of 350kg, the maximum trailer weight is 3.5 tonne, end of story. Also as already noted, if you went to the maximum ball weight of 350kg, it would compromise your load carrying ability within the vehicle. ( for off road touring anyway )

Is the trailer 3.5 t max stated elsewhere in the book? As the notes state gross train weight is the permissible combination of vehicle & trailer & each's load. Extending that theory if you lightly load the tug ( to say 3t for example) then gtm (6740) = tug (3000) + trailer (3740) - just trying to understand where the limits are specified

Going on the D2 manual, as the weight of the trailer increases, the load capacity decreases in the car, with the last statement being, towing at the max 3.5t, load capacity is 1 passenger and or 100kg of luggage, will need someone with a D2 to confirm that though, bad memory

Going on this I assumed the D3/D4 would be the same.

Baz.

PS, Brett, I can't read that, even with my glasses