Towing Capabilities

[rambler]

hi again folks

just what will a rav4 tow,i know its not a full blown 4x4.

i was asked last week if my rav4 could tow a 'vauxhall movano' company van off someones muddy drive .

it still had stock in back of it,baths,boilers,radiators etc.....

i didnt dare try...just in case i broke it (rav)

what is the heaviest load / biggest vehicle anyone has towed / pulled here?

[anchorman]

Its the lack of a low ratio box that makes towing prohibitive on a RAV. There have been many reports of "stinking" clutches as a result of reversing a caravan up a modest bank. I don't tow with mine but I would say that they are fine for most caravans and sensible trailers and whether you can tow a loaded van off a muddy drive depends very much on how you do it. The secret is not too much revs and try and fully engage the clutch while laying the power on rather than loads of clutch slip. As long as the drive isn't too steep and too muddy it probably wouldn't take a lot to shift it.

Muddy drives and heavy towing is proper 4WD stuff and we have to accept for the most part our RAVs are merely soft roaders. There is no way I am going to say the LR words as there is no doubt they are the most capable off roaders in the world but they are the most notoriously unreliable nails in the universe.

[jonddd]

Its the lack of a low ratio box that makes towing prohibitive on a RAV. There have been many reports of "stinking" clutches as a result of reversing a caravan up a modest bank. I don't tow with mine but I would say that they are fine for most caravans and sensible trailers and whether you can tow a loaded van off a muddy drive depends very much on how you do it. The secret is not too much revs and try and fully engage the clutch while laying the power on rather than loads of clutch slip. As long as the drive isn't too steep and too muddy it probably wouldn't take a lot to shift it.

Muddy drives and heavy towing is proper 4WD stuff and we have to accept for the most part our RAVs are merely soft roaders. There is no way I am going to say the LR words as there is no doubt they are the most capable off roaders in the world but they are the most notoriously unreliable nails in the universe.

[pmb]

2002 models are listed as 1500kgs so should be the same for yours. If it was a caravan then 85% of kerbweight is recommended but that is on the open road.

[bothwell_buyer]

done 3 tons with it

[Bezzer]

Diesel 4.2 and 4.3 have a manufacturers towing limit of 2000kg, petrols are 1500kg. In reality you wouldn't go there that's just what it's capable of for a short distance up a fixed gradient, I'd pass on a loaded up Movano but happily tow a 1500kg caravan with no problems, a quick flat reverse is no problem but if it's going to be a maul reversing I use the motor mover :)

[pmb]

Diesel 4.2 and 4.3 have a manufacturers towing limit of 2000kg, petrols are 1500kg. In reality you wouldn't go there that's just what it's capable of for a short distance up a fixed gradient, I'd pass on a loaded up Movano but happily tow a 1500kg caravan with no problems, a quick flat reverse is no problem but if it's going to be a maul reversing I use the motor mover :)

Where do you get that from Bezzer. I have a 4.2 brochure in front of me from when I bought mine in 2002 and it says 1500kg for all models. Got to agree about motor movers they are excellent.

[rambler]

done 3 tons with it

done 3 tons.......seriously what was it?

blimey i assume the ground was level ??

rambler

[IanXT4]

A friend on mine took this 3 door 4.1 combination to Germany with no problems, the trailer's about 10 - 11 Meters long.

I don't think we should speak about the weight :-)

Ravs tow these long trailers no problem, my current 5 door 4.2 is more stable with a 8 meter long load than a Grand Jeep Cherokee.

[NMaria]

I do quite a lot of towing with my RAV. We have a small caravan which weighs around 900kgs when fully laden. No problem at all, including muddy or wet fields etc. We also do a bit of logging and have dragged a 1.25 tonne trailer through fields and woods, and again, the RAV coped extremely well. Towing the same sort of weight on the motorway at a steady 60mph is absolutely fine.

We used to have an even smaller caravan; it was about 650kgs fully laden and I used to forget it was there. 80mph on the motorway and Alpine passes held no fear for us.

Two things to watch out for, though:

1. Brakes on the RAV are pretty feeble at the best of times, so make sure you tow braked trailers only and that the brakes are working well.

2. Caravans are especially prone to snaking. This is caused in part by their height because at speed the wind hits the top of the front and reduces the noseweight. It is therefore recommended that a noseweight of at least 7% of the caravn's weight be maintained. The maximum towbar pressure of the RAV is 75kgs which means you should not tow a caravan of more than 1 tonne. No doubt there will now be howls of protest from people who happily tow the most colossal caravans, but these are the limits I personally prefer to stick to.

[Davrav]

We used to have an even smaller caravan; it was about 650kgs fully laden and I used to forget it was there. 80mph on the motorway and Alpine passes held no fear for us.

I think if I was towing an Alpine at 80mph and it passed me I would be well scared...................

[mrbilly]

i have towed a broken down land rover discovery from manchester to chapel en le frith using a towing bar

[NMaria]

We used to have an even smaller caravan; it was about 650kgs fully laden and I used to forget it was there. 80mph on the motorway and Alpine passes held no fear for us.

I think if I was towing an Alpine at 80mph and it passed me I would be well scared...................

Sorry, I think I did not make myself very clear. What I was trying to say is that we have towed our little caravan over some of the highest passes in the Alps. Not at 80mph, though...

[jonddd]

I do quite a lot of towing with my RAV. We have a small caravan which weighs around 900kgs when fully laden. No problem at all, including muddy or wet fields etc. We also do a bit of logging and have dragged a 1.25 tonne trailer through fields and woods, and again, the RAV coped extremely well. Towing the same sort of weight on the motorway at a steady 60mph is absolutely fine.

We used to have an even smaller caravan; it was about 650kgs fully laden and I used to forget it was there. 80mph on the motorway and Alpine passes held no fear for us.

Two things to watch out for, though:

1. Brakes on the RAV are pretty feeble at the best of times, so make sure you tow braked trailers only and that the brakes are working well.

2. Caravans are especially prone to snaking. This is caused in part by their height because at speed the wind hits the top of the front and reduces the noseweight. It is therefore recommended that a noseweight of at least 7% of the caravn's weight be maintained. The maximum towbar pressure of the RAV is 75kgs which means you should not tow a caravan of more than 1 tonne. No doubt there will now be howls of protest from people who happily tow the most colossal caravans, but these are the limits I personally prefer to stick to.

We tow an Eriba Familia with a maximum weight of 850 kilos. On a motorway or up quite steep hills it will pull beautifully.

What worries me a bit is that the 2 litre petrol engine only really develops any useful power at relatively high revs, and this means that the clutch gets quite a hard time on hill starts. Reversing up a slope is especially hard needing a fair amount of slipping.The 4.2 has only done 43000 miles but I worry that the clutch life doing a lot of towing might be drastically reduced. How expensive is it to have a new clutch fitted?(We have to keep the car, my wife gets upset at even the suggestion of changing, she loves it so much).

[anchorman]

i have towed a broken down land rover discovery from manchester to chapel en le frith using a towing bar

Uggghh! I hope you didn't leave it near me!

[mrbilly]

I was towing it to high peak 4x4 for repair as the water pump shaft snapped in two. so if anyone had seen a disco tailgaiting. it was probably me just towing it. so anchorman i wouldnt want to stain your rav4 car parking space with rust marks whilst the disco was getting repaired.

[Bezzer]

Where do you get that from Bezzer. I have a 4.2 brochure in front of me from when I bought mine in 2002 and it says 1500kg for all models. Got to agree about motor movers they are excellent.

Oops sorry, got it in my head 4.2. diesels were the same as 4.3