towing with 4.6

You asked a specific question and it wasn't what to look for when buying a second hand p38. Hope you've done your research

tide said:

You asked a specific question and it wasn't what to look for when buying a second hand p38. Hope you've done your research

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Yep thanks I know what you mean , I think I've done too much research to be honest , I know the p38 has a lot of possible problems to go wrong , just trying to reassure myself Iam making the right decision with this car , probebly soon as I've picked it up ill have no regrets and just get on with owning it .

Grrrrrr said:

Because the head gaskets keep popping and the liners drop.

The 4.6 on LPG does seem to be about the same to run as the diesel but WAY more refined. It does seem to suffer from more niggles though.

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+1000 to that

I towed my series 2A SWB on a trailer total 2.6 tonne (GTW 4.9 tonne) behind my old p38 Diesel and now behind the 4.0 v8 I recon the old diesel was only giving about 5 mpg more than the v8. The Diesel did struggle more with the weight, hills were a challenge even with a 5 speed. The V8 feels like it has a lot more torque and smoother with the Auto box. After owing both diesel and V8 I wouldn't go back to the 2.5 Diesel p38 for towing.
But when my Disco 2 was alive it towed better then the Diesel but again not as refined as the V8

farmershort said:

Zil 131 or 133 perhaps?

I think they average 4 - 6 mpg.

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And they will run on virtually anything flammable (like vodka for example) so long as at least 50% of the mix is petrol

Morning all,
I've towed with my 4.6HSE for over 9 years-caravan is about 1400kg. It does around 16/17 which isn't much less than a 3.0 Omega I had.
You don't buy these cars for economy.

Steve

Hi Steve thanks for reply 16 ,17 us what I thought ,my vans about the same just wanted a rough idea how far on a gallon , I intend to get lpg fitted soon so that will improve , mick .

Hi Mick, I've towed with a few petrols and never managed to beat 20mpg. The Range Rover seems to drop less mpg when towing than the others. It seems to tow best around 60mph-I've also got two kayaks on the roof and the car is so full we take the wifes car as well!
Was going to change it for a newer supercharged version-but don't see the point at the moment. Had it over 9 years and it has not let me down - had a few issues with the air suspension driver getting too hot but fixed that.
May have to put a new battery on next year-the one on it is over 10 years old.

Stve

Steve

philip pickard said:

ask if you need a gel pack with the system. mine has one its better for it. as petrol lubricates the engine LPG doesnt so it does damage to the valves in some cases. so the gel pack puts lub back in. you top it up once every 3 months well i do

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No need to fit valve lubrication to a Rover V8. Flashlube (and the other valve lubrication decvices) are designed for engines not fitted with hardened valve seats. The Rover V8 has them, so it's an unecessary complication and expense. In fact most engines desined to run on unleaded fuel do not need a Flashlube device.

stevebrookman said:

Hi Mick, I've towed with a few petrols and never managed to beat 20mpg. The Range Rover seems to drop less mpg when towing than the others. It seems to tow best around 60mph-I've also got two kayaks on the roof and the car is so full we take the wifes car as well!
Was going to change it for a newer supercharged version-but don't see the point at the moment. Had it over 9 years and it has not let me down - had a few issues with the air suspension driver getting too hot but fixed that.
May have to put a new battery on next year-the one on it is over 10 years old.

Stve

Steve

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Thanks Steve, this is my first range rover , only just bought it its a 1997 really nice condition with good engine, I read all the horror stories about these cars how they are unreliable etc, so to here your history of 9 years trouble free is great, I don't have the worry of gas air suspension it's already been converted to springs the only main thing to do is convert it to lpg , the only thing I've found a worry at the moment is the heater seams to be lacking in heat , I've asked on forum told it could be those motors in the heater so need to investigate further with that , but must say I love the car what a beast it is , can'twait to tow with it in couple of weeks to Bridlington , don't think I'll have any problems with snaking lol, mick.

Glad you like it. Do your sums before converting to LPG. As said the rover v8 has no need for flashlube, but gems engines prefer gas injectors rather than a venturi so it's not so cheap to convert. Think prins gets the thumbs up from most on here, but Peter (listerdiesel) uses another brand and likes it. Take into account the fact that you will get about a 10-15% drop in fuel economy using LPG when you do your sums. You'll also spend more time filling up. The current code of practice probably dictates filler hose diameter, but the earliest car I ran on LPG filled up much quicker than subsequent vehicles, it became a pita spending 15minutes a week with my hand pressing the LPG button

If you want to fill up quickly, you need to stipulate a 4 hole tank, and use JIC hose for the filler. 4 hole tanks have larger diameter valves, and JIC hoses have larger diameter pipe than multivalves found on single hole tanks.

I fitted a BiGas multipoint system to mine (did it myself with a kit from Tinley Tech) and there's no difference in performance that I can detect. Multipoint systems are said to be more reliable and better performing than the single point ones, but I've driven P38s with both types fitted and they all ran perfectly, so I don't know how true that is. Probably make a difference on modern engines, but I'm n ot sure it makes any on a Rover V8!

40mm diameter venturi in front of a 65mm throttle does make a noticeable difference to both fuels. You get used to it but quite an improvement if you remove it and test back to back

Regarding snaking.
When I first towed with mine the caravan never felt "right". It was a little jiggly-felt it sway a couple of times. Changed the tyres on the RR and from then on perfect. Tyres must have been old.
Make sure your noseweight is close to 100kg,

Steve

stevebrookman said:

Regarding snaking.
When I first towed with mine the caravan never felt "right". It was a little jiggly-felt it sway a couple of times. Changed the tyres on the RR and from then on perfect. Tyres must have been old.
Make sure your noseweight is close to 100kg,

Steve

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Thanks for all your replies guys ,I intend to do my sums regarding lpg, I roughly do about 5 k a year and I've had a quote of £1200 for lpg so so the difference in cost and mpg , I'll have to work out , I intend to keep the car as long as possible so it would pay for itself in the long run I guess especially if the fuel prices rise again as no doubt they will in the future, mick .

My rough numbers come out at:
5k miles @ 15mpg on average on petrol - £1513
5k miles @ 13mpg on average on gas - £960

So you save £553 so its two years before you break even, not including the petrol you will need to use for it to start and the odd times you won't have gas etc.

Also need to consider the additional servicing costs of the gas system a year.

quavey said:

My rough numbers come out at:
5k miles @ 15mpg on average on petrol - £1513
5k miles @ 13mpg on average on gas - £960

So you save £553 so its two years before you break even, not including the petrol you will need to use for it to start and the odd times you won't have gas etc.

Also need to consider the additional servicing costs of the gas system a year.

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Thanks for that mate, then theirs the environment to think about with lpg also don't it run cleaner for the engine , oil lasting longer etc , the yearly service is about £80 been told so not bad really, I intend to keep it well over two years , so I would reap the benefits then I reckon, thanks for advice , mick.

It will make the engine run hotter and you'll tend to loose the lubricating qualities of petrol. I'm not saying its gospel and there will be a million people who disagree, but all these slipped liners and HG issues on rover V8's, more often than not there's some gas been involved at some point.

A mechanic friend of mine advised me never to buy anything on gas

I would have thought my numbers would have shown that its just not worth it for two or even three years motoring. Plus you have the inconvenience of finding a place the put the conversion, insurance probably going up and you will have to inform any ferry companies you use, your also banned from the channel tunnel.

quavey said:

It will make the engine run hotter and you'll tend to loose the lubricating qualities of petrol. I'm not saying its gospel and there will be a million people who disagree, but all these slipped liners and HG issues on rover V8's, more often than not there's some gas been involved at some point.

A mechanic friend of mine advised me never to buy anything on gas

I would have thought my numbers would have shown that its just not worth it for two or even three years motoring. Plus you have the inconvenience of finding a place the put the conversion, insurance probably going up and you will have to inform any ferry companies you use, your also banned from the channel tunnel.

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Yep I see your point , Iam not too concerned about the engine problems it had a new engine fitted at 65 k so hopefully that won't happen again?I was told that lpg runs no hotter than petrol but not sure if he was correct ,This subject certainly opens up a can of worms , thanks very much for your input ,I like to hear members opinions who have more experience with these cars than myself , may be a case of when I have the money then decide whether spend it on lpg or not, thanks, mick.

I have had 2 disco 1s and 1 classic on lpg. Now have a P38 4.6 on petrol. I found that the lpg was much cheaper once upon a time but then started climbing relative to petrol.. I think mainly because they could rather than the actual cost. Now I don't reckon there is an awful big difference between petrol and lpg as I was forever looking for lpg stations and I have a much bigger boot than before.