What the heck is a "load balancing hitch"? Most Trooper type vehicles here are rated for 3 to 3.5 tonnes which is the legal maximum with over-run brakes.
My uncle has a Ford F-350 CrewCab with a 7.0L Turbo Diesel, that
you're
4 tonnes is the rated maximum for Land Rover and Land Cruiser here with linked brakes such as air brakes fitted. There may be other rules such as tachograph driving monitors which need to be fitted.
$18,000 US,
trailers
situation.
What I may do with my X5 with factory tow pack is not at all representative of what the majority do or that of the general trend. As it happens I have only towed once with the X5 in 6 months and that was just to deliver an empty trailer when all the other vehicles were in use. I have no intention of using it to tow at all if I can help it.
Just what it sounds like.. it is mounted to the towing vehicle in such a way that the load on the tongue of the trailer is properly balanced across all 4 tires. And as far as 3 tons on a Trooper? I've looked up specifications for the last year they made the Trooper. max towing is 4500 pounds, or 2.25 tons. NOT ANYWHERE CLOSE to 6000-7000 pounds.
7700lbs, 2004 Land Rover Range Rover with the biggest engine.. Retail price: $61,000 I can get 3 times that towing capacity for $20,000 - again.. economics?
You're better off trying to tow 3.5 tons with that BMW than you are with a Trooper. The X5 has a 6,000lb towing capacity. 3 tons. SO you'd only overweight it by 1000 lbs... and it appears that BMW gave both the I6 and the two V8 engines the same towing capacity, so my guess is they lowballed that figure and the V8s can possible tow slightly more.
But, at prices ranging from $39,500 - $66,800, You'd still have to be an idiot to think that's economical.
And for the record. 3/4ton is the payload capacity, NOT towing. Ford Fullsize trucks F-150 is a 1/4ton truck, the F-250 is a half-ton truck, and the F-350 is a 3/4 ton truck, and the F-450 is a 1ton truck.
My uncle has 3/4 ton F-350 with a 7.0L Turbo diesel.. 3/4 ton payload capacity.. or 750 pounds.. but thats just how much it can carry in the bed of the truck. It's also got a 15,000lb towing capacity..
Thats just not true at all. I have no idea where you get your info but it's just wrong. Large RV trailers are widespread. 25' to 35' trailers and fifthwheels are everywhere in the USA. Trailerparks and campgrounds are filled with 10,000lb to 16,000lb+ trailers. 3/4 and 1 ton trucks sell like crazy here. You are correct that most towing is for leisure but it is a HUGE business. Far exceeds anything in the UK. For work purposes companies use larger trucks. They don't buy personal vehicles for such work.
Same in the USA. Ranchers, farmers, construction contractors etc all have trailers here. If they do not need a large truck then they'll at least have a 3/4 or 1 ton. Those individuals do not use Troopers and other 1/2 ton personal vehicles for such use. They buy a vehicle designed for handling heavy loads and towing.
Thats my thinking as well. I can't imaging towing heavy loads with vehicles simply not designed for such loads. They must not have big hills there as well!! No way could a trooper pull 9,000lbs up a steep mountain grade.
Load balancing hitch is another name for weight distribution hitch where much of the trailers load is put to the front of the tow vehicle and tounge weight is greatly reduced. If you are towing 6,000lbs with a simple trailer tounge on the hitch ball and nothing more then you're begging for trouble. Do you have anti-sway devices? This is sounding more and more like towing is just decades behind in safety and capability in the UK. No way would people here dream of towing that kind of load with such a lightweight vehicle and without proper hitches.
Anything trailer over about 1 ton here has to have brakes irregardless of whats towing it.
I suspect the hitch is a bit stronger than you imagine. Officially, there should be about a 150kg nose weight on the tow ball but certainly in the case of livestock..... it moves...... and the weight can vary from negative to over half a ton. Why you stste that it is begging for touble, I cannot imagine. Certainly, as I said, it is very commonplace around here. Recreational towed caravans which typically weigh less than one ton bit have a large volume are certainly just as tricky to tow and tend to sway just as readily. My two trailers are both 16ft long by 6ft 6inches wide. One is a twin axle drop side and the other is a tri axle with demountable livestock container. Both have vehicle loading ramps. Search for "Ifor Williams trailers" and you will find them
Not needed on these combinations. The BMW apparently has an electronic anti-sway system where sway is senced and corrected through the ABS and engine management system. I do not intend to find out if it works.
This is sounding
hitches.
You speak from a position of considerable ignorance Sir. Anyone who tows above a certain weight or drives a combination plated as capable of this weight and qualified for a driving licence after 1996 has to pass a seperate stringent towing test which costs nearly £200UKP. The whole vehicle is also subject to a yearly inspection where towing gear is inspected.
irregardless
You misunderstand. Brakes, which may be drawbar actuated over-run type, are compulsory above 1/2 ton but additional rules apply above
3.5 tonnes where powered brakes, such as air or vacuum brakes are compulsory.
I do know this and find it hard to believe that trucks of that size only carry as much as an old Subaru or Hyundai pick up. All Isuzu, Mazda, Toyota Hi-lux type pick-ups here have suspension and running gear rated for one ton though they may be rated to tow as little as
2.5 tons.
Ford
payload
Isn't that just ridiculous!
It's also got a 15,000lb towing capacity..
So it should with that Powerstroke engine as long as it can handle the load safely.
I live in a particularly undulating [though not hilly as in 'high altitude] part of Wales which is noted for steep hills. My Trooper can certainly handle that load with confidence although it is often the case that it has to start in low ratio. It is of course, diesel, as are all my vehicles including the X5. My Trooper is only plated for just 3 tons though later versions are up to 3.5 tons. High vertical tow ball weights mean that the rubber bump stops above the back axle are frequent casualties. 3 tons is about the average laden trailer load that this workhorse tows although it has towed some 5 tons over a ten mile route once and very slowly
Exactly. Towing behind the family SUV which is a group of vehicles generally weighing between 1.8 and 2.8 tons is not that common. Large trucks, not in the Trooper class are used for towing recreational trailers.
vehicles
Almost
This is what I am saying. However, it is only in your contention that Trooper sized vehicle are not built for towing, that we disagree. I have demonstrated that they are [built for towing] and certainly do very commonly but not in the US [as demonstrated by your gas engine and lack of standard fit tranny cooler]. It seems we agree except that you cannot imagine a territory where the use is different and the expectations higher of these vehicles.
Ignorance? You seem to have no knowledge of hitch systems including weight distribution or anti sway devices. Your beamers AWD anti-sway is not gonna cut it for a heavy trailer. It's the trailer/hitch that needs the anti-sway. A quick search on RV's and trailers in the UK suggests weight distribution or load equalizing hitches are wide spread in the UK just as they are in the USA. The fact you have no knowledge of them leads me to believe the ignorance is on your part. Your beamer can't replace anti-sway with sensors. It can help control your vehicle when the trailer does sway but does nothing to stop the trailer from swaying.
Drawbar brakes are known as surge brakes in the USA. They were popular about 10 to 20 years ago but are seldom used anymore. There are numerous problems with this type of brake. Sounds like the UK is behind the times. Actually, I dont think that because again, a quick search shows more typical electronic brake controllers and electric brakes are wide spread in the UK just like the USA with many of the same brands.
Isuzu, Mazda and Toyota do not make a mini sized truck capable of a 1 ton payload and they just barely come close to a 2.5 ton (5000 lbs) tow capacity. They only have small 4cyl or approx. 3 liter V6's.
People tow with troopers here. But not heavy loads. Typically they will tow less than 3 tons (6,000lbs). That is a small trailer in the USA. Anything over that is way overloaded and unsafe. I have seen people here tow 30's RV's with Ford Explorers. Idiots is all I can say. I pass the mangled remains of their flipped over vehicles at the bottom of long grades all the time.
You seem to have no knowledge of hitch systems including
There is no way to redistibute weight from the back wheels of a Trooper type vehicle to the front other than to alter the vertical load on the hitch. Fifth wheel type hitches which replace the load area of a pick up and places the vertical load between the front and back axle is not relevant here for this class of vehicle.
I have experience of several friction type anti sway devices and none are particularly effective with heavy loads. They are most effective on relitively light trailers which have a large surface area.
Your beamers AWD anti-sway is
Probably not but I do not intend to tow particularly heavy trailers with this vehicle. About 2 tonnes will be its limit I think, and then only very occasionally.
It's the trailer/hitch that needs
None of my combinations need it at all. Although it has to be said that the triple axle weighs well over a ton empty and when fully loaded the speed must be kept below 40mph.
A quick search on RV's and trailers in the UK suggests
can't
swaying.
Hitches in the UK and Europe are almost always of the rear 50mm ball type. The military may use a higher mounted pintle type but these are not common in civilian use. Fifth wheel turntable type hitches are very uncommon below 15 ton trucks although I do see the very occassional unit about every few months. [if I owned one, no doubt I would see it every day though :-)]
above
popular
search
brands.
Electronic brake controllers are not used at all in the UK as far as I know on this class of vehicle. Please show how widespread this type of brake is in the UK if you have some evidence.
Does it seem incomprehensible that elsewhere 4 cylinder pick up trucks in that class have running gear that officially enables them to carry a ton or more, consistently, legally quickly safely and with ease?
Yes.. because in order to do so, you'd need more than 4 cylinders. I managed to find a UK auto specifications website, and guess what... THEY HAVE THE EXACT SAME NUMBERS
Oh, and a friend of mine used to use his 4cylinder Ford Ranger to pull a
2500lb boat. His truck was only rated for 1800lbs towing. After doing so for a couple of months, his entire drive train needed to be rebuilt, the universal joint was warped, the gears in the rear-end gearbox had lost several teeth and made a hellacious racket, and the torque converter on his tranny had actually cracked. And he had replaced his factory-installed tranny cooler with an aftermarket one. The last time we launched his boat, he couldn't get back up the ramp with the boat.. he hit the gas, there was a loud whine, and the truck rolled BACKWARDS.. in 1st, he almost put it in the bayou.. luckily there were other boaters there with larger trucks.. some guy in an old Chevy 1500 Silverado had a winch on the front, and pulled him and the boat/trailer up out of the water...
I live in "The Deep South" and tranmission coolers are STANDARD on ALL domestic vehicles with automatics (and Air condition is standard on ALL vehicles.. no one wants to be stuck in traffic with no breeze, 99F, 100% humidity)
Use google to search "whatvan uk" and follow the links to 'van search' and look for ford ranger [it will be the Asian version] Mazda B2500 [same vehicle as Ford] ToyotaHiLux, MitsubishiL200 and Nissan. All these Asian pick-up trucks which are by far the most popular here along with Isuzu have a payload of more than 1 ton. Towing is not the best feature of this class, the maximum load varying from just above 1.5 tonnes to a maximum of 3.0 tons.
As far as the Trooper is concerned "whatcar.com" will confirm that the latest diesel version is certified to tow 3.5 tons which many certainly do consistently and safely. Very few accidents indeed result from this type of vehicle towing. By far the majority of towing accidents result from light but bulky caravans losing it on fast multi lane roads. These things benefit from friction stabilisers, no doubt about it because the damping action is not overwhelmed by the mass.
European Ranger is only rated to a light 1800kgs also, but note that this is twice what yours is rated for, that it is the Indonesian truck, that it carries a ton and that it is only available with a four cylinder diesel, though the Mazda version is also available with a petrol four. Three different cab sizes are available. It does not sell in huge numbers here, mainly due to the stupidly low towing limit. The Mitsubishi is number one though the fantastically capable new Nissan is gaining popularity fast. The new Isuzu may well improve on its current share. If it does not, then Isuzu will die in the UK.
Sigh....now you are really showing your ignorance. Please look up weight distribution or load equalizing hitches. You have no comprehension of how such a hitch works even though they are widely used both in the USA and UK and everywhere else in the world. Please read up on them before making such a statement.
Sigh. Small anti-sway devices like that are for smaller loads. Read up on proper hitch systems for heavy loads before saying there are no effective systems.
Well sure without a proper hitch system you gotta keep the speed down. Find out how people tow 30 to 35 foot long trailers weighing 15,000lbs at 65mph+ safely. No hitch can do this alone. They MUST use a weight distribution type hitch.
Drawbar or surge brakes in the USA have long been outdated and in many states no longer legal irregardless of the load. Old technology. Some people like them because of their simplicity but they are fast becoming phased out. Hydraulic trailer brakes that are tied to a tow vehicles hydraulic system have also been phased out.
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