SmartBar Floriade Darwin International Film Festival Goodlife RV Resorts Celtic Fest
Members Login
Username 
 
Password 
    Remember Me  
Click here for the Grey Nomads website -> The Grey Nomads Forum -> The Grey Nomads - General -> Suitable cars
Post Info TOPIC: Suitable cars
Raels1


Member

Status: Offline
Posts: 11
Date:
Suitable cars
Permalink  

Well we ave been on the road for a week now! First 4 days were fabulous and we thought we will do this forever! Wrong!! On leaving Pambula to head to Tathra our automatic in the car blew up on a very dangerous bend 9ks out of Merimbula . The most frightening experience in my life. We have been caravaning for 30yrs and this was the first bad issue we have had!!

thankgod for Racv Extra Care they have been marvelous. They towed our car & van back to Pambula. We are now back at the park we left for maybe up to 6 wks!!! Racv pay for all accommodation and we have a hire car for as long as we need it!  We drive an X5 BMW. The weight issue is car 2700 and the van weighs at the most 2400.  Thinking we might upgrade the car when repaired although wasn't in our budget thats for sure! We have been told although an automatic we should be driving it manually when the van us on. We would prefer not to change cars but are reluctant and worried about the hills now.what do you all think? 



__________________
Raelene m Pritchard
Dougwe


Chief one feather

Status: Offline
Posts: 17447
Date:
Permalink  

Hi Raels1,

In my opinion and I am no expert but I have a 1998 Auto Prado and tow the den in my av around and find auto great. I have a power switch which I engage while towing as it changes gears for towing and drive with overdrive engaged at all times UNLESS going up hills then I just push the O/D button and turn off then on again when over the hill. Seems to work for me anyway.

I am aware the den is not a big van but I reckon the towing procedure would be very similar with any van. I have heard some people tow with O/D off at all times but with the big rigs.

__________________

Live Life On Your Terms

DOUG  Chief One Feather  (Losing feathers with age)

TUG.......2014 Holden LT Colorado Twin Cab Ute with Canopy

DEN....... 2014 "Chief" Arrow CV  (with some changes)

 
exa41


Guru

Status: Offline
Posts: 581
Date:
Permalink  

Hi Raels , they tell me that you should not tow at all in OD but we have a Coaster and towed a tandem all over the place and never seemed to have a problem until just before christmas when we blew the box . Not totally sure what caused the problem , could have been using 5th gear too much ( although i always down change on hills) When we were in tassy the clutch hydraulics failed and i had to start in gear which could have started the failure. A personal thought , A lot of load goes on 5th gear when towing a heavy load.

__________________

Dennis and Yvonne .

Have fun and keep safe on the roads.

Retired sparky of 50 years.

JUST COASTIN`
deverall11


Guru

Status: Offline
Posts: 1306
Date:
Permalink  

Hi Raels,
We tow with a 200 series Landcruiser. 100% of the posts on the Lancruiser Owners Online forum (LCOOL.ORG) will tell you to put the auto in manual/sports mode and keep an eye on the temperature of the auto. Almost never in D.
Our experience has been that there is no measureable difference in terms of fuel consumption between 4th and 5th gear. The real difference is finding a gear that will keep the torque converter locked. In our case, this happens at 80kph and upwards in 4th. 5th will remain locked above 100kph when towing. We find 90kph to 95kph to be the best compromise between forward progress and fule consumption. Having the torque converter locked will all but limit the amount of slip in the auto and therefore keep the temp down and therefore save the gearbox.
Sometimes we will shift into 5th, on flat or downhill, only for variety. Our van is a full size variety and weighs in at 2.5t. Our average fuel consumption when towing in mid 16l/100 @ 90kph - 95 kph in 4th gear.
Hope this helps you.
Larry


__________________

Ex software engineer, now chef
Aus-Kiwi


Guru

Status: Offline
Posts: 7642
Date:
Permalink  

Yes the converter adds to the heat build up.. Adding an "extra" auto cooler helps..
The auto's in these vehicles IMO are softer than the older ..
You'll find light throttle with a few rpm has better MPG than low rpm with more throttle..

__________________
Whats out there
kesa32


Senior Member

Status: Offline
Posts: 259
Date:
Permalink  

Raels1 wrote:

Well we ave been on the road for a week now! First 4 days were fabulous and we thought we will do this forever! Wrong!! On leaving Pambula to head to Tathra our automatic in the car blew up on a very dangerous bend 9ks out of Merimbula . The most frightening experience in my life. We have been caravaning for 30yrs and this was the first bad issue we have had!!

thankgod for Racv Extra Care they have been marvelous. They towed our car & van back to Pambula. We are now back at the park we left for maybe up to 6 wks!!! Racv pay for all accommodation and we have a hire car for as long as we need it!  We drive an X5 BMW. The weight issue is car 2700 and the van weighs at the most 2400.  Thinking we might upgrade the car when repaired although wasn't in our budget thats for sure! We have been told although an automatic we should be driving it manually when the van us on. We would prefer not to change cars but are reluctant and worried about the hills now.what do you all think? 

 Hi , as your getting the auto reconditioned you might as well keep using it , IMO if you haven't already , get the biggest separate transmission cooler you can fit in it and manually pull it back a gear when hitting inclines and that'll help take the load off the box a bit .... The cooler is a must , as is servicing ( the sealed for life boxes is a load of xxxxxxxp ) especially in a tow ve chile 

Unless the rest of the bmw is worn out you may as well keep going as youll do a lot of money on it

how long have you been using it for towing this van ?

also see if there's any upgrade clutch parts available to instal while it's down

 



-- Edited by kesa32 on Saturday 3rd of May 2014 03:10:13 PM

__________________
deverall11


Guru

Status: Offline
Posts: 1306
Date:
Permalink  

Raels1,
We have a scangauge to display various bits of information. This device plugs into what is referred to as an OBDII interface. This where the dealers plug their diagnostic machines when servicing your car. One of the bits of information that is available is the auto temperature. By monitoring this you will know when your transmission is getting too hot and have an opportunity to do something eg: pull over and let it cool down.
If you go to : scangauge.com.au/vehicle-compatibility/ you will find a BMW X5 2005.
Larry

__________________

Ex software engineer, now chef
Raels1


Member

Status: Offline
Posts: 11
Date:
Permalink  

Thankyou all for the info. Not sure I understood it all but my husband will be reading it. Thanks again now might think about keeping and learn how to tow.

__________________
Raelene m Pritchard
kesa32


Senior Member

Status: Offline
Posts: 259
Date:
Permalink  

Hi , good idea keeping it , it'll cost a lot to fix the gearbox ( make sure it's not a patch up job ) so you might as well get your money's worth out of it as it won't add much , if any value to the bmw if you go to sell it straight away, it's just a bonus to the next owner 

Dont forget to add a transmission cooler if it hasn't already got one 

what motor is in it btw ?



-- Edited by kesa32 on Sunday 4th of May 2014 09:39:20 AM



-- Edited by kesa32 on Sunday 4th of May 2014 10:46:58 AM

__________________
Raels1


Member

Status: Offline
Posts: 11
Date:
Permalink  

3litre Diesel.

__________________
Raelene m Pritchard
kesa32


Senior Member

Status: Offline
Posts: 259
Date:
Permalink  

Hi , yeah the 3ltr diesel should be good for the job :) 

have you had any updates on the gearbox?



__________________
Raels1


Member

Status: Offline
Posts: 11
Date:
Permalink  

Yes they are transporting the bmw to Melbourne and fixing it. Hopefully not a patch up! We are heading home today to look into buying another tow vehicle. Any suggestions? Looking at Colardo! Seems good value for money! Tow 3500 so shouldn't have a problem!! We will keep the BMW for a while not really worth selling and is a lovely car perhaps we just won't tow with it!


__________________
Raelene m Pritchard
kesa32


Senior Member

Status: Offline
Posts: 259
Date:
Permalink  

Hi , yeah the Colardo or Ford Ranger are supposed to be good...... Depends on what you like driving etc, salesman will tell you anything of course lol , are you going new or used?
What year was the bmw ?

__________________
Raels1


Member

Status: Offline
Posts: 11
Date:
Permalink  

The BMW was 2003. Looking at Izuzi do you know anything about those. We met a couple in Pambula that had towed there 20ft Evan from WA and were very happy it hit. We would like new or demo!

__________________
Raelene m Pritchard
kesa32


Senior Member

Status: Offline
Posts: 259
Date:
Permalink  

Ok, the bmw isnt worth much being an older model, DON'T let bmw fix it for you , take your time and and get an idea who is a good auto transmission place and get some quotes :)
Isuzu is probably the same running gear as the Colardo ( only assuming here, may not be )
Don't bother with Nissan , heard too many bad stories lol , all the utes mentioned so far should do the job , whatever you get make sure you get a " tow pack " which should include extra auto cooling if it hasn't already got one



-- Edited by kesa32 on Thursday 8th of May 2014 06:05:40 AM

__________________
Raels1


Member

Status: Offline
Posts: 11
Date:
Permalink  

Thankyou Kesa great advice. Going to look at Izuzi today and bmw being fixed by auto transmission business. Here's hoping we get good deal with the statesman. We so want to be on the road again in a couple of weeks.

__________________
Raelene m Pritchard
kesa32


Senior Member

Status: Offline
Posts: 259
Date:
Permalink  

No worries , hope i was of some help ( hate seeing people getting bad deals etc , not that you are )

Remember to try several dealers for quotes on your future tug....we ended up getting the best deal in Geelong of all places for my wifes vw golf years ago ( saved a couple of thousand on other "best deals" and good service too )

Cheers Ken

__________________
Raels1


Member

Status: Offline
Posts: 11
Date:
Permalink  

Yesterday after test driving so many vehicles and trying to do a deal. We finally decided on a demo model Colardo 7. Tows 3500kgs so one would think we can't go wrong with this one. Really nice car and drives very smooth. Here's hoping it was the right decision.nwe have never had a lot of luck with cars but grant certainly did his homework on this one. Watsons holden dealership in Bundoora they were great. So on the road around the 22nd May as the caravan doesn't get back from Pambula Beach till the 20th.

I can't stress enough everybody on the road have the RACV Extra cover they were wonderful!


__________________
Raelene m Pritchard
kesa32


Senior Member

Status: Offline
Posts: 259
Date:
Permalink  

It should be fine for the job :)

remember to make sure its got an external oil cooler for the transmission 

Cheers ken



-- Edited by kesa32 on Monday 12th of May 2014 11:26:55 AM

__________________
Page 1 of 1  sorted by
 
Quick Reply

Please log in to post quick replies.
Click here for the Grey Nomads website -> The Grey Nomads Forum -> The Grey Nomads - General -> Suitable cars
Tweet this page Post to Digg Post to Del.icio.us
Purchase Grey Nomad bumper stickers Read our daily column, the Nomad News The Grey Nomad's Guidebook