after advice !!

im thinking of buying a rangie for towing not interested in takeing it off road , BUT i have no idea on which model is best it would have tobe a diesel ant to worried about all the bells and whistles as long as its capable of towing a disco and trailer any help and suggestions are muchly recieved
fanks all

Don`t be too fussy about which model, just make sure you check and RE-check everything! Pretty upholstery may keep you comfortable when waiting for the AA, but maybe with a lesser spec model than ain`t broke... Just get a good `un!
Especially check threads on EAS, EKA, brake accumulator and if towing check transmission thoroughly.

i'm not sure on the towing weights of one but an RRC 200 or 300 TDi would be my choice, more comfy than a disco, yet retaining the great engine

For regular towing it would have to be a manual DT. Low spec but seen a few going cheap as chips in recent months, didn't look too bad in the adverts could have been a different kettle of fish in real life!!

If you insit on having a diesel, the cooling system needs to be in tip top condition and by that I mean all components need to be recently changed. A better bet would be petrol LPG. You will get 15 mpg on LPG towing a big lump on a run which is the equiv of 30mpg. I doubt you will get 20 out of a diesel and you will scare yourself silly trying to pull out onto a busy roundabout. And for all the petrol haters who say slipped liners you will find 10 cooked diesels to every one v8 with a slipped liner.

I'll go along with Rewmer. I had a diesel manual a few years ago which I used for towing a large Hobby caravan. Ok when once up to speed on the motorway but you needed a crystal bowl at roundabouts. Absolutely bloody awful for setting off from rest unless you had loads of revs and liked slipping the clutch. Otherwise it just bogged down and trickled away. Having said that, since then, mods like PSI Powerboxes have come along but I don't know how much difference they make low down though. I don't think the R380 manual box is that brilliant either. I had one rebuild and then one exchange (probably due to a crap rebuild when I should have exchanged it in the first place) in three years.
You'd have to try an auto but I suspect they're not a lot better at setting off.
Reliability wise, you're now seeing many more problems on here with diesels than you used to with overheating and pump problems. I certainly get the impression they're no better than petrols. If you go for a petrol with LPG, just make sure it's a good (named) system that's been looked after. I agree with Rewmer as well re the economy. Towing the caravan I used to get around 18 - 20mpg (brim to brim) so it's not a lot better than a petrol and not as good as LPG. Of course there'll always be someone who gets 35mpg towing a two ton trailer uphill but pinch of salt and all that....

I tow regularly with my P38 diesel with a PSI Power box fitted. No problem with perfomance, averaged 24mpg with a 1.5tonne caravan last trip. I think the engine characteristics (not a lot of power low down) make it much more suited to auto as the torque converter allows the revs to rise to a point where the power is good when pulling away.
No plug leads or coil packs to go wrong, easier to work on than a V8 and I reckon that the incidence of engine failure is lower than the V8 particularly if LPG converted.

My 1992 RRC 3.9efi V8 SE Vogue was converted to run on lpg in 2000 with 63000 miles on the clock , by the second owner. He used it for towing a large twin wheeler caravan throughout the u.k. and europe. He px'ed it in 2008 , with 168,000 miles on the clock , then I took over its keep , and have towed a trailer tent and then a 16 ft. caravan for the past 18 months. It now has 180000 miles on the clock. It is still the original auto box , and apart from a cam shaft change a couple of years ago , and a cylinder head gasket this year, the engine is untouched ! What I can tell you though is that the oil and filter has been renewed every six months for the past 17 years , and it has a full service history which include regular auto box oil changes and axle oil and transfer box oil changes.The lpg system is italian (lovetto)and as far as I am aware has only had the stepper motor renewed in ten years , and two replacement torpedo tanks , as they only have a ten year serviceable life. The V8 is joy to tow with . I use the box manually sometimes to aid standing start acceleration , and switch back onto petrol on some steep hills as you get a little bit more "umph" ! So the moral is, get a well cared for vehicle , whichever you choose , but with LPG currently 54pence a litre in my locality , the v8/lpg engine has to be worth a look .

rewmer said:

If you insit on having a diesel, the cooling system needs to be in tip top condition and by that I mean all components need to be recently changed. A better bet would be petrol LPG. You will get 15 mpg on LPG towing a big lump on a run which is the equiv of 30mpg. I doubt you will get 20 out of a diesel and you will scare yourself silly trying to pull out onto a busy roundabout. And for all the petrol haters who say slipped liners you will find 10 cooked diesels to every one v8 with a slipped liner.

Click to expand...

my diesel ain't cooked yet,1995 122,000 miles on the clock,however it does have other issues,hot start,worn injection pump,fault with air suspension,needs a clutch,aside from that,not too bad,it is all age related.
nothing a few quid won't sort out,then hopefully it will be ok for a few years.

There's arguments for and against petrol,petrol/lpg and diesel. The best thing to do is drive all of them and see which you personally prefer. The RR is the same as any other car if the previous owner hasn't looked after it, it's gonna cost a fortune.Mileage isn't usually a problem IF it's been looked after.So the best thing to do is check everything atleast twice and make sure everything works,if not walk away because there's plenty about.Main things are EAS,transmission,chassis,starting properly,fuel pump,brake module,pipe corrosion in engine bay and vehicle electrics. And then when your happy with one check everything again.