Birty Dastards Jeep Club
Tech Forum => Workshop => Topic started by: ferretjuggler on August 04, 2011, 12:10:02 PM
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OK I need to find a 4x4 as a DD which will tow the legal maximum 3500Kg
Diesel would be highly desireable, and my budget is gonna be extremely tight, like 3-4K max.
Suitable options so far seem to be only Lardie Discos/Defenders and Nissan Patrol :011: :011: :078: :078: :078:
I don't wanna buy a vehicle that TBH I would rather set fire to than work on :banghead: :banghead:
Anything Jeep likely to fit the bill :017:
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Its petrol..........but cheap.........GC 4.0 mid to late 90's Nosebolt and I have em as tow rigs and sometime DDs
cost you £800 ish use it burst it buy another :icon_twisted: or you said it Nissan LWB 4.2........ last a lifetime.......
Or my fave......... Ford F250 with 7.3 Diesel turbo ........ 500lbs torque........and frugal....... well over 20 :icon_twisted:
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WJ Grand 4l on LPG, will tow 3500kgs, average around 20mpg so cost same as a 40mpg'er. Decent LPG ones can be had from £2000 upwards.
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I been looking on eBlag for a week or two now.
WJ with pre fitted sequential LPG a definate possibility, that 190BHP would be vey useful for towing.
Anything VM powered is out. Sorry but I aint got time to learn how to keep a VM healthly.
WJ 2.7 CRD seem to be going cheap, 2005 on 3.0 is out of my price range.
What will the 2.7 tow? Fuel milage on these is pretty good from what I've read.
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2.7 will tow 3500kgs too
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Hmmmm............In my price range and 161BHP of Merc power with an auto box :017:
I suppose if anything goes wrong it will cost a Kings Ransom to put right though :011:
I suppose that is just the price of progress :017:
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look for a ZJ around the £800 mark and budget £200 for axle parts for worst case, as for economy on the 4lt with carful driving I'm getting 20's around town and almost 30 on runs (not towing) and you def get a lot of comfort for your money
you could go for devil gas, but for my milage I'll never get the cost back so just adjust my driving for economy
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I can get 25-30 mpg from my zj when not froading
they seam to have better mpg then an xj ?
think it's to do with a better overdrive.
You could go for ford ranger they can pull 3000 kg and 1000kg of stuff in the bed. ??
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Thing is WJs are not much more, and with an LPG kit cheaper to run, and they take big miles, just stick with a 4l though
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not wishing to piss on the proverbial but i dont think they are tough enough for prolonged towing duty
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ML500 is a mean tow machine!!!
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Cheers Peter but I don't think I'll get much of a ML500 for my £4K budget.
not wishing to piss on the proverbial but i dont think they are tough enough for prolonged towing duty
I take it they look like a HD 4x4, but bits have been downgraded since the FSJ era :017:
What is likely to give out and how many $$$$$$$ to fix :017:
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Cheers Peter but I don't think I'll get much of a ML500 for my £4K budget.
I only paid £5k for mine, the problem is I then spent another £3k on parts manning it up!!!
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I would say rear axle and electrics are your biggest worry
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:icon_eek:
Sounds expensive :icon_eek:
I might just add that I'm not looking for something to tow a mini digger about every day, like a Pikey.
I just want something that is capable of shifting the odd FSJ about on a trailer.
A Cherokee V8 is about 1900-2000Kg plus about 800Kg for the HD trailer I can hire.
So I might as well go for something that will pull the full 3500 'cos my licence covers it.
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get one of your fsj's on the road then. :banghead:
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12MPG
TBH I don't know what they were rated to tow by Jeep UK when they were new.
Anybody know what a FSJ Cherokee 4 door is rated at, or even a 2 door W/T :017:
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4 litre gc either zg or wg get 22-26 on road bollix to Satan fuel
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4 litre fitted with multi point LPG is something I gotta consider.
Adds about 30% more miles per £ without any power loss and the 4.0 is well known to stand up to it.
Not worth fitting to an old motor, but worth buying something pre-fitted with it, and preferably with auto transmission, 'cos I'm too lazy to change gear
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My money would be on an 80 series Landcruiser or Y60 Patrol 4.2
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Mechanically strong?
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Yes,which is why they always command good money even for old ones
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WJ 2.7 CRD if you can get one for the money.
Tank talks much sense but they sell for big money for their age, IMO
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Both can be had for 3-4K,though more likely to get a good Patrol than a good Toyota at that money because twats ask too much for a Yota,money they are unlikely to ever realise
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Cheers Peter but I don't think I'll get much of a ML500 for my £4K budget.
I only paid £5k for mine, the problem is I then spent another £3k on parts gheying it up to go to the blue oyster up!!!
Fixed it for you IOM
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My money would be on an 80 series Landcruiser or Y60 Patrol 4.2
Yeah I know what you are telling me makes good sense.
I had a diesel Patrol a few years back, the first MQ SWB and still quite solid.
Not a perfect design, but it gave me the feeling it would run on forever
TBH I wish I'd kept that, the joker who bought it was gonna cut it up and stick the engine in a Winnebago, as in coach sized :icon_eek:
The Twat :wsmile:
I'd still like to run a Jeep or something Jeep based, but I'm getting the impression that the newer they get, the less robust they are :011:
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i strongly feel the last good towing jeeps made are the old fullsize jeeps and must admit my old scrambler has towed flawlesly all over the uk
the later jeeps whilst vastly superior in amost every aspect septin rugged durability
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FSJ fitted with 4.0 HO, multi point LPG and a manual box or an auto box with a lock up top gear.
Might just about be cheap enough on fuel to make it as a DD :017:
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i admit i would like to fit my scrambler with the torque converter from a tj cos its a lockup
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My Grand just happily towed the XJ off to its death, would easily get to 60 (but cruised at 45). Total weight of the trailer, XJ and the Grand was 4500kgs (XJ was 1650kgs)
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According to the Doods on the IFSJA maximum towing weight for (I presume) a Wagoneer is just 2272Kg with the factory option tow pack.
No doubt monsterous old Gladiator trucks like J3000/J4000 with 1 ton axles will tow more, but I don't have one :011:
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Comparing US towing and weights to UK towing is asking for trouble.The Yanks tow with heavy nose weights, often no brakes on the trailer or electric brake setups. I've had disputes on US forums about tow vehicles - if you follow the US way too much you'll be lead to believe you need at least a 7.3 Powerstroke diesel dually pickup to tow 2.5 to 3 tonnes of Jeep and trailer.
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:iagree: 100 %
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Comparing US towing and weights to UK towing is asking for trouble.The Yanks tow with heavy nose weights, often no brakes on the trailer or electric brake setups. I've had disputes on US forums about tow vehicles - if you follow the US way too much you'll be lead to believe you need at least a 7.3 Powerstroke diesel dually pickup to tow 2.5 to 3 tonnes of Jeep and trailer.
Yeah I get that impression too.
I got no doubt that a J10 with a 360 will tow 3500Kg with gusto.
But have an accident of any consequence with such a trailer attached and the first thing plod and your insurers will do is find out the manufacturers maximum recomended towing weight.
If it turns out to be 2272Kg :011:
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http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/FORD-DT2417-RECOVERY-TRUCK-/320736794382?pt=UK_Commercial_Trucks&hash=item4aad67170e#ht_500wt_949 (http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/FORD-DT2417-RECOVERY-TRUCK-/320736794382?pt=UK_Commercial_Trucks&hash=item4aad67170e#ht_500wt_949)
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Within my budget :greggmo:
Maybe a little difficult to park at Aldis for my weekly shop, but then you can't have everything :jpshakehead:
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manufacturers recommended weights vary between us and uk too.
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OK I just been wound up by some cretin who offered me an MOT failure Fourtrak for scrap money, then went silent on me :wsmile:
Next thing that has caught my attention is the Isuzu Trooper/Vauxhall Montery 3.1 TD.
These seem to be going for peanuts in good nick.
Manufacturers max recomended tow weight is 3300, so just under but close enough to the 3500 limit.
Fuel cons only 23mpg, 'cos Isuzu technologically stepped backwards to indirect injection with the 3.1, but you get auto trans on the options list.
LWB weighs half a ton more than a wagoneer :icon_eek:
Anything these are known for which is likely to cost a fortune in repairs :017:
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just check for rot, a few mates have them & they seem reliable. They do have a cam belt though so make sure it was done recently, and both have had to repair/replace the rear axle due to the rear diff housing rusting through.
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Cheers Steve
Just found out they are Insurance Group 27 :011:
Pikey mobiles are group 32 so it could be worse :017:
Looks like a false economy to buy something that will cost more to insure than what it's worth :banghead:
I been advised to avoid the faster and more economical 3 litre TD 'cos they are reconded to be a money pit.
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Back to a 110 then,cheap as chips to insure,well for some anyway
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Cheers Steve
Just found out they are Insurance Group 27 :011:
Pikey mobiles are group 32 so it could be worse :017:
Looks like a false economy to buy something that will cost more to insure than what it's worth :banghead:
I been advised to avoid the faster and more economical 3 litre TD 'cos they are reconded to be a money pit.
Keep away from the 3litre, they frequently suffer with failed injectors with although cover by Isuzu (even outside of warranty) it can mean your car is off the road at a dealer for 8-12weeks at a time. I know an isuzu mechanic and they cannot get the injectors fast enough.
One time I was at cotswolds Isuzu they had 15 3litre Troopers in with failed injectors.
The 3.1litre, stay away from an imported Bighorn, although they have an impressive spec (I had a LWB Irmischer Bighorn) they suffer with head failures. Then unless the correct Japanese gaskets are used not a uk gasket it opens a cap of worms and problems. (I know from experience, brought mine having had the head done but turned out incorrect gaskets were used).
Mine did it in Style in the middle of France a couple of yrs ago, gaskets blew but to be fair to the Trooper, it towed the caravan 350mile with a blown head gasket and the temp gauge running off the scale and it just kept going.
We still have a 3.1 SWB Trooper down at the folks for doing stuff around the fields, its now done 175k, you can leave it for weeks on end and it always starts.
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Back to a 110 then,cheap as chips to insure,well for some anyway
thats starting to change with the speed they get nicked
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Within my budget :greggmo:
Maybe a little difficult to park at Aldis for my weekly shop, but then you can't have everything :jpshakehead:
Get Aldi to deliver... :hysterical:
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Back to a 110 then,cheap as chips to insure,well for some anyway
thats starting to change with the speed they get nicked
Yeah I'm starting to sorta think 110 with a 200/300Tdi
I'm running scared from Troopers which recently had "a £900 service" :icon_eek:
FFS a service is gonna cost more than the damn thing is worth :banghead: :banghead:
At least with a Lardie you can get all the bits cheapish.
The downside of 28 years of continious production is that they are a ringers dream :011:
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I tow with an 03 GC 2.7 crd overland twin axle caravan weighing in at 1900 KGs plus what's in the back of the jeep, with the seats down probably another 300/400 kilos. 2.7 fine holds 55-60 on motorways gives 22/23 mpg doesn't sway when passed by arctics. Be wary of big petrols, BHP is one thing but torque more important. Also low gearing in lower gears.
You can get a decent 2.7 02/03 for well under 4k never had much bother with ours in 60000k plus miles
Good luck
Johnjo
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We used to tow with a disco 2. Fecking awfull. Unstable. Crap MPG. (16-18) broke down loads servicing very dear every 9 k parts astronomical would rather cut my c..k off than buy another.
Johnjo