What will it tow?

I'm looking at purchasing a 1976 series 3, 2.2 petrol, I need to know if it will tow a trailer of app. 2 tons? It travels about 25 miles there, then back about every two weeks on average. Feel free to assume I know nothing, you wont be far wrong, many thanks

Yes, subject to chassis being siund etc. However, you may, no, will, find a Discovery would be far less nerve wracking as a tow vehicle in modern traffic. And much the same cost to buy, far far cheaper to run.

2 tons behind a landrover, a 109 station wagon might just be 2 tons but i'd suggest your trailer had better be in tip top condition with really good brakes or it'll push you pretty easily

i have towed up to 2.5 ton behind my 88", towing dolly has excellent brakes, my 88" has excellent brakes and i have a 200tdi under the bonnet, so i do have the power to get that weight moving pretty easily and the dolly controls the stopping of the towed weight, i prefer towing that sort of weight behind my 109 now i have it on the road when i have to

i've also towed discos behind that 88" on a straight bar, damned scarey if the guy steering the disco isn't doing as told and braking when signalled to, yes he did almost spin me

an 88" truck cab is only 1.4 tons so you really need to think about this, i don't consider them to be the best tow vehicle, i've a mate that had his 88" and a loaded trailer jack knife when he hit a bump on the road and the trailer then snaked and took control of where he was going, that has wrecked his 88" to the extent he now needs a new chassis

your choice and your risk as 2 tons is really a bit much in my opinion on a trailer (waggy waggy waggy)

SteveRover said:

Yes, subject to chassis being siund etc. However, you may, no, will, find a Discovery would be far less nerve wracking as a tow vehicle in modern traffic. And much the same cost to buy, far far cheaper to run.

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i had never towed before and took a 2.5tonne trailer behind my disco, found it pretty good to drive only thing i really noticed was a boat in rear view mirror and have to step on brakes earlier, towed far better than what i was expecting and i think would be cheaper to fuel than a series

Aren't series only rated for towing 1 ton? Apart from the 1-ton models and very late series 3s?

Plate on my '72 88" says 'recommended towing capacity two tons'.

I thought the general towing safety rule was that the trailor should ideally not be more than 85% of the vehicles kerb weight but definitely not over 100%. This is to avoid the tail wagging the dog!

Gaylanders will tow that mucb

Land Raver said:

I thought the general towing safety rule was that the trailor should not be more than 85% of the vehicles kerb weight. This is to avoid the tail wagging the dog!

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i think you'll find this is a caravan club recommendation, unfortunately there's not too much known accurate information about the Series landrovers towing abilities and even the 2 ton as shown on some S3 plates gets argued over

i'd still be very cautious of towing 2 ton on a trailer behind an 88" and to be honest i'd consider 1.25-1.5ton to be the sensible safe limit

a mile or two with 2-2.5 ton at very low speeds and lots of care yes but 25 miles trying not to hold traffic up i think is pushing your luck, especially if it's to be done regularly

sorry those sorts of weight on a trailer in todays traffic aren't for me, at least not behind either of my Series

goonarmy said:

Gaylanders will tow that mucb

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Indeed a 'gaylander' will tow two tons. But braking, handling and power had all come a long way by 1998!

NiteMare said:

i'd still be very cautious of towing 2 ton on a trailer behind an 88" and to be honest i'd consider 1.25-1.5ton to be the sensible safe limit

a mile or two with 2-2.5 ton at very low speeds and lots of care yes but 25 miles trying not to hold traffic up i think is pushing your luck, especially if it's to be done regularly

sorry those sorts of weight on a trailer in todays traffic aren't for me, at least not behind either of my Series

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I wouldn't drag two tons behind my 88" for any distance either, not on today's roads as you say. Not to say it couldn't do it, but there are more suited vehicles to the task these days that will do it quicker and safer.

I just wanted to point out that the manufacturer's recommended towing capacity was two tons as above and therefore if you wanted to you could do so

Hey,

The max towing capacity is about 2000 kg for an 88" 2.25 petrol.
However, you need a perfect working cooling for this.
My horsetrailer has a max capacity of 2000 kg, and the old lady has no problems towing that at 80 km/h -on a flat road-

maXcomX said:

Hey,

The max towing capacity is about 2000 kg for an 88" 2.25 petrol.
However, you need a perfect working cooling for this.
My horsetrailer has a max capacity of 2000 kg, and the old lady has no problems towing that at 80 km/h -on a flat road-

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Your old lady must be very fit....but what about the land rover?

I think it depends what approval is given. That depends per country.
Over here the max is 3500 kg, but only approved towinghooks (2000 kg) are available.

We used to tow a cattle trailer with upto 4 cows in it with our series 3 109 petrol,

Series land rovers take a lot to get moving and once moving take a lot to stop again


Take care out there lol

I consider 1 ton the max for my 88" 2.25 diesel. Even with a good rebuilt engine it is very slow off the mark and gets frustrating for following traffic who then try some marginal passing moves. The resultant heavy braking the result of being passed without enough room makes driving interesting.

Our 1 ton boat package was easily pulled by our 300tdi disco. A 109 2.25 petrol struggled with it just in terms of getting it going. 2 tons is dangerous i would suggest!

Land Raver said:

I thought the general towing safety rule was that the trailor should ideally not be more than 85% of the vehicles kerb weight but definitely not over 100%. This is to avoid the tail wagging the dog!

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The P38 weighs 2.25 tonnes and is rated to tow 3.5 tonnes so I don't think your figures are accurate.

Lwb are better as they have larger brakes, 11" Front and rear with twin leading shoe on the front.

I have towed a 110 on a transporter behind my old 109 years ago up Nd down the dales happily. But that had 6cyl brakes and a perkins 4203 engine. I seem to recall that that officially had a 2.5tonne limit

KillaJoules said:

Lwb are better as they have larger brakes, 11" Front and rear with twin leading shoe on the front.

I have towed a 110 on a transporter behind my old 109 years ago up Nd down the dales happily. But that had 6cyl brakes and a perkins 4203 engine. I seem to recall that that officially had a 2.5tonne limit

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6 pots have 11'' x 3'' twin leaders at the front....awesome brakes....they'll stop continental drift

i think this thread is wandering a bit, discos, rangies, 90s and 110s will all pull and control his towing needs better than a standard 2.25 petrol or diesel 88 or 109 in this day and age

the risk of brakes being unbalanced on a modern motor are far slimmer than the old drum brakes and need less frequent maintenance

the modern engines produce more power enabling standing starts easier and not quite so slow hill climbs

30 years ago the traffic levels were no where near as heavy as now and forty to fifty years ago we could all happily play football in the street, this meant that a slow moving Series towing a heavy trailer wasn't too much of a problem, my dad used to tow heavy trailers and stuff behind his '52 Series 1 in the late 60s, 11" brakes and a 3litre sixpot under the bonnet so he had the power and emptyish roads (he did get stuck on a humpback bridge though, 'twas 7 ton of military trailer wouldn't follow him over )

nowadays it would be risking dodgy overtakes, no allowances for your poor stopping distances and road rage in most of the UK, who doesn't get miffed stuck behind a caravan ??

unless the guy lives way out in the sticks up the north of Scotland i really don't see a standard 88" Series as sensible, plus he better like performing maintenance