Advice on the best tyres to fit my Range Rover please.

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R

RR

Guest
I have a 3.5 EFi Range Rover, and live at the bottom of a steep
winding hill, at a guess i would say the hill is about 1 in 4. I also
have a large heavy trailer (maybe 2 ton) that i have to pull up this
hill once or twice a week.
At the bottom of the hill there is a cattle grid, in order to get the
trailer across the cattle grid i have to drive the range rover over,
stop, place wooden boards across the grid and then pull away. If i
dont do this the back of the trailer scrapes along the road, once
across the grid there is no scraping, it is just as i cross the grid.
In other words there is no way i can take any sort of a run at the
hill.

Problem is even in wet weather the RR has problems getting a grip (we
have wagons dumping soil most days, they tend to leave a muddy
residue), so with winter coming along i am getting concerned, and i
MUST be able to climb the hill at 6 AM, my livelehood depends on it.
When icy (the road will not get gritted) i think i am going to have
huge problems, can anyone suggest a better tyre to fit ?, will studded
tyres work, what about chains?.

Once up the hill, i join the main road, and am able to hook the
trailer up to a different vehicle, so i dont actually have to drive on
the main road with the Range Rover.


All ideas and suggestions gratefully recieved.
 
On or around 16 Oct 2004 07:01:53 -0700, [email protected] (RR)
enlightened us thusly:

>I have a 3.5 EFi Range Rover, and live at the bottom of a steep
>winding hill, at a guess i would say the hill is about 1 in 4. I also
>have a large heavy trailer (maybe 2 ton) that i have to pull up this
>hill once or twice a week.
>At the bottom of the hill there is a cattle grid, in order to get the
>trailer across the cattle grid i have to drive the range rover over,
>stop, place wooden boards across the grid and then pull away. If i
>dont do this the back of the trailer scrapes along the road, once
>across the grid there is no scraping, it is just as i cross the grid.
>In other words there is no way i can take any sort of a run at the
>hill.
>
>Problem is even in wet weather the RR has problems getting a grip (we
>have wagons dumping soil most days, they tend to leave a muddy
>residue), so with winter coming along i am getting concerned, and i
>MUST be able to climb the hill at 6 AM, my livelehood depends on it.
>When icy (the road will not get gritted) i think i am going to have
>huge problems, can anyone suggest a better tyre to fit ?, will studded
>tyres work, what about chains?.
>
>Once up the hill, i join the main road, and am able to hook the
>trailer up to a different vehicle, so i dont actually have to drive on
>the main road with the Range Rover.
>

I assume that you're using the centre diff lock to make sure the front
wheels aren't wasting your power. assuming it has such - if it's got the
Borg Warner type Transfer box (which it could have) then there's no centre
diff, instead there's a viscous coupling. This can, however, not be
working.

as to tyres... hmmm. I'm assuming the road is tarmac, in some form. In
those circumstances, not much odds which tyre - an aggressive mud terrain
sort of pattern isn't going to be better, might even be worse, on wet
tarmac. I'd try something like the Nankang wide conqueror, whjich is a
50-50 on-off road tyre, and seems to grip fairly well on wet tarmac. If
it's gonna get icy, you're not gonna get the trailer up there anyway - you'd
have to either park it at the top or arrange your own salt supply, I reckon.

Studs would maybe work in icy conditions, but you'll get into trouble using
them normally, if anyone notices. and it'd not guarantee results anyway -
you're talking about 2.5-3 tons, I expect, depending on how much the trailer
weighs.

 

"RR" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
>I have a 3.5 EFi Range Rover, and live at the bottom of a steep
> winding hill, at a guess i would say the hill is about 1 in 4. I also
> have a large heavy trailer (maybe 2 ton) that i have to pull up this
> hill once or twice a week.
> At the bottom of the hill there is a cattle grid, in order to get the
> trailer across the cattle grid i have to drive the range rover over,
> stop, place wooden boards across the grid and then pull away. If i
> dont do this the back of the trailer scrapes along the road, once
> across the grid there is no scraping, it is just as i cross the grid.
> In other words there is no way i can take any sort of a run at the
> hill.
>
> Problem is even in wet weather the RR has problems getting a grip (we
> have wagons dumping soil most days, they tend to leave a muddy
> residue), so with winter coming along i am getting concerned, and i
> MUST be able to climb the hill at 6 AM, my livelehood depends on it.
> When icy (the road will not get gritted) i think i am going to have
> huge problems, can anyone suggest a better tyre to fit ?, will studded
> tyres work, what about chains?.
>
> Once up the hill, i join the main road, and am able to hook the
> trailer up to a different vehicle, so i dont actually have to drive on
> the main road with the Range Rover.
>
>
> All ideas and suggestions gratefully recieved.

No matter what tyres you fit, you won't make a blind bit of difference on
ice really. Especially not on that kind of gradient. Chains are the only way
if it's not gritted. Why not get Austin to make you an automatic gritting
type device on the actual vehicle.He's a dab hand with a spanner! (that's
not actually a daft idea either)

Nige


 

"RR" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> I have a 3.5 EFi Range Rover, and live at the bottom of a steep
> winding hill, at a guess i would say the hill is about 1 in 4. I also
> have a large heavy trailer (maybe 2 ton) that i have to pull up this
> hill once or twice a week.
> At the bottom of the hill there is a cattle grid, in order to get the
> trailer across the cattle grid i have to drive the range rover over,
> stop, place wooden boards across the grid and then pull away. If i
> dont do this the back of the trailer scrapes along the road, once
> across the grid there is no scraping, it is just as i cross the grid.
> In other words there is no way i can take any sort of a run at the
> hill.
>
> Problem is even in wet weather the RR has problems getting a grip (we
> have wagons dumping soil most days, they tend to leave a muddy
> residue), so with winter coming along i am getting concerned, and i
> MUST be able to climb the hill at 6 AM, my livelehood depends on it.
> When icy (the road will not get gritted) i think i am going to have
> huge problems, can anyone suggest a better tyre to fit ?, will studded
> tyres work, what about chains?.
>
> Once up the hill, i join the main road, and am able to hook the
> trailer up to a different vehicle, so i dont actually have to drive on
> the main road with the Range Rover.
>
>
> All ideas and suggestions gratefully recieved.

BFG Mud Terain all round.

Bolocks to the road, go accross the field. Much more fun, and probably more
grip in icy conditions!!


 

Agree with the sentiment but I think you will find that the grip on ice is
appalling whatever you try. 4x4's are great to start off with in bad
conditions but try to stop one. Great mass, relatively small friction area.



> Bolocks to the road, go accross the field. Much more fun, and probably
more
> grip in icy conditions!!
>
>


 
"Hirsty's" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
>
> Agree with the sentiment but I think you will find that the grip on ice is
> appalling whatever you try. 4x4's are great to start off with in bad
> conditions but try to stop one. Great mass, relatively small friction
> area.

I can still se the look on the faces of a couple in a fiesta as I slid
broadside across a main road in front of them in the Rangie.

It felt like being on a raft going down stream with only a twig for
steering.

Lee D


 
I remember chasing after a little s..t after he snowballed me through the
window on an icy road, had some interesting effects. schould have seen his
face !!


"Lee_D" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> "Hirsty's" <[email protected]> wrote in message
> news:[email protected]...
> >
> > Agree with the sentiment but I think you will find that the grip on ice
is
> > appalling whatever you try. 4x4's are great to start off with in bad
> > conditions but try to stop one. Great mass, relatively small friction
> > area.
>
> I can still se the look on the faces of a couple in a fiesta as I slid
> broadside across a main road in front of them in the Rangie.
>
> It felt like being on a raft going down stream with only a twig for
> steering.
>
> Lee D
>
>


 


Lee_D wrote:

>I can still se the look on the faces of a couple in a fiesta as I slid
>broadside across a main road in front of them in the Rangie.
>
>It felt like being on a raft going down stream with only a twig for
>steering.
>
>Lee D
>
>
>
>

Ditto when I spun my RRC through 360 deg whilst travelling round a right
hand bend with traffic coming towards me.

Richard
 
On or around Sat, 16 Oct 2004 19:39:52 GMT, "Lee_D" <[email protected]>
enlightened us thusly:

>"RR" <[email protected]> wrote in message
>news:[email protected]...
>
>> All ideas and suggestions gratefully recieved.
>
>Could be simpler to move house ;-)
>
>Lee D

or install a sod-off winch at the top of the hill?

actually, I reckon gritting it yerself is the best option, together with
making sure any difflocks are in place and working (and maybe a rear LSD,
preferably viscous, would be a useful addition, if there are serious corners
to contend with) together with not-too-agressive tyres.

If it's a council road you may persuade them to supply grit-salt for the
purpose.
 
On Sun, 17 Oct 2004 08:31:26 +0100, Austin Shackles
<[email protected]> wrote:

>On or around Sat, 16 Oct 2004 19:39:52 GMT, "Lee_D" <[email protected]>
>enlightened us thusly:
>
>>"RR" <[email protected]> wrote in message
>>news:[email protected]...
>>
>>> All ideas and suggestions gratefully recieved.
>>
>>Could be simpler to move house ;-)
>>
>>Lee D
>
>or install a sod-off winch at the top of the hill?
>
>actually, I reckon gritting it yerself is the best option, together with
>making sure any difflocks are in place and working (and maybe a rear LSD,
>preferably viscous, would be a useful addition, if there are serious corners
>to contend with) together with not-too-agressive tyres.
>
>If it's a council road you may persuade them to supply grit-salt for the
>purpose.

And if they won't, this is where the councils all buy it from...

http://www.saltunion.com/index.htm


--

Tim Hobbs

'58 Series 2 88" aka "Stig"
'77 101FC Ambulance aka "Burrt"
'03 Volvo V70

My Landies? http://www.seriesii.co.uk
Barcoding? http://www.bartec-systems.com
Tony Luckwill web archive at http://www.luckwill.com
 
you need a pair of ARB air locker diffs fitting for starters , 4 wheels
gripping the tarmac with drive to all wheels .
that will do you more good than anything else .


 
On or around 17 Oct 2004 18:22:10 GMT, [email protected] (M0bcg) enlightened us
thusly:

>you need a pair of ARB air locker diffs fitting for starters , 4 wheels
>gripping the tarmac with drive to all wheels .
> that will do you more good than anything else .
>

mind, going up steep hills with a big trailer on the rear wheels are by far
the most important. You'll not have a lot of weight on the fronts anyway,
and if the centre diff is doing it's job, the fronts won't stop the rears
driving. However, a locker in the rear (or better, auto-locking device such
as a viscous LSD) would stop the "inside wheel spinning" tendency on steep
turns where the inside rear can get partly unloaded by camber changes.

not much of a fan of locking diffs on hard surfaces, cross-axle, as the
differing speeds/loads can be quite high - I reckon you'd have trouble with
half-shafts. some sort of load-balancing diff (quaife or viscous coupling)
would be better, IMHO.
 
Austin Shackles <[email protected]> wrote in message news:<[email protected]>...
> On or around Sat, 16 Oct 2004 19:39:52 GMT, "Lee_D" <[email protected]>
> enlightened us thusly:
>
> >"RR" <[email protected]> wrote in message
> >news:[email protected]...
> >
> >> All ideas and suggestions gratefully recieved.
> >
> >Could be simpler to move house ;-)
> >
> >Lee D
>
> or install a sod-off winch at the top of the hill?

It is a long and winding road, not an option especially with the
trailer on, i dont have the sizes of the trailer to hand, but doubt
you will see much longer, or higher on the road being pulled by a van.

>
> actually, I reckon gritting it yerself is the best option, together with
> making sure any difflocks are in place and working (and maybe a rear LSD,
> preferably viscous, would be a useful addition, if there are serious corners
> to contend with) together with not-too-agressive tyres.

After reading these posts i think this is by far the best option, can
anyone suggest how to make, or where to purchase a spreader for road
salt ?.

As for the difflocks i haven't used those yet.


>
> If it's a council road you may persuade them to supply grit-salt for the
> purpose.
 
Tim Hobbs <[email protected]> wrote in message news:<[email protected]>...
> On Sun, 17 Oct 2004 08:31:26 +0100, Austin Shackles
> <[email protected]> wrote:
>
> >On or around Sat, 16 Oct 2004 19:39:52 GMT, "Lee_D" <[email protected]>
> >enlightened us thusly:
> >
> >>"RR" <[email protected]> wrote in message
> >>news:[email protected]...
> >>
> >>> All ideas and suggestions gratefully recieved.
> >>
> >>Could be simpler to move house ;-)
> >>
> >>Lee D
> >
> >or install a sod-off winch at the top of the hill?
> >
> >actually, I reckon gritting it yerself is the best option, together with
> >making sure any difflocks are in place and working (and maybe a rear LSD,
> >preferably viscous, would be a useful addition, if there are serious corners
> >to contend with) together with not-too-agressive tyres.
> >
> >If it's a council road you may persuade them to supply grit-salt for the
> >purpose.
>
> And if they won't, this is where the councils all buy it from...
>
> http://www.saltunion.com/index.htm


Thanks for the link, an excellent resource.



>
>
> --
>
> Tim Hobbs
>
> '58 Series 2 88" aka "Stig"
> '77 101FC Ambulance aka "Burrt"
> '03 Volvo V70
>
> My Landies? http://www.seriesii.co.uk
> Barcoding? http://www.bartec-systems.com
> Tony Luckwill web archive at http://www.luckwill.com
 
Austin Shackles <[email protected]> wrote in message news:<[email protected]>...
> On or around 17 Oct 2004 18:22:10 GMT, [email protected] (M0bcg) enlightened us
> thusly:
>
> >you need a pair of ARB air locker diffs fitting for starters , 4 wheels
> >gripping the tarmac with drive to all wheels .
> > that will do you more good than anything else .
> >
>
> mind, going up steep hills with a big trailer on the rear wheels are by far
> the most important. You'll not have a lot of weight on the fronts anyway,
> and if the centre diff is doing it's job, the fronts won't stop the rears
> driving. However, a locker in the rear (or better, auto-locking device such
> as a viscous LSD) would stop the "inside wheel spinning" tendency on steep
> turns where the inside rear can get partly unloaded by camber changes.
>
> not much of a fan of locking diffs on hard surfaces, cross-axle, as the
> differing speeds/loads can be quite high - I reckon you'd have trouble with
> half-shafts. some sort of load-balancing diff (quaife or viscous coupling)
> would be better, IMHO.



All sounds very expensive, and quite technical, not sure if it is
worth going to great expense like this on an 88 range rover.
 
On or around 18 Oct 2004 01:14:15 -0700, [email protected] (RR)
enlightened us thusly:

>
>As for the difflocks i haven't used those yet.
>
you should I reckon use the centre one. if you lose grip on one front
wheel, then it'll stop going. locking the centre diff will make sure the
back wheels, which have most of the load, keep turning.


impressed, sort of on the subject, with the performance of the Pirelli
Scorpion ST on firm slippery mud and a very wet grass field the other day;
very successful, much more so than I'd expect for an 80% on-road tyre.
 
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