Does anyone own / tow with a Land Rover Range Rover?

[minimex2]

Looking for a new car with towing capabilities. Hubby wants a Defender - but I want a bit of luxury! and looking at the Ranger Rover 2.7 sport.

On paper both do the job but seems a lot of electrics with the Range Rovers so thinking more can go wrong, whereas the Defenders are a lot more basic.

thanks in advance

 

[landyandy]

you won't go wrong with a defender, but I think they are like marmite, you either love them ,or hate them,

 

[Damnation]

Let me tell you a story.

My dad loves Defenders - for the reasons you have stated. Less to go wrong electrically. Good simple car, good engine etc.

My dad bought a Land Rover Defender 90 (Short wheel base). Noticed that the headlights were on even though he hadn't switched them on. To the garage! Came back and it was still hapenning. Dad was about to book it back in as it was a fault with an Electrical Loom(?).

Dad went out one day to do the shopping, came back, went into the house. It was June/July time and very warm, I was out in the yard with the dogs sunbathing when I opened my eyes thinking "Gosh thats alot of smoke, a neighbour must be burning stuff". I then came to my senses, we have no neighbours for about a mile.

The Defender was on fire. Smoke pouring from the bonnet. If the wind had been blowing in a different direction a building and the other car would have gone up too.

After the firebrigade came out and dealt with the fire all that was left was the Chassis, a back tyre and half the rear reg plate.

There are no guarentees.

It was uncomfortable but practical. Towed like a train but in the winter of 2010 at -25oC at night, the heater was little to be desired

Oh and you have to yell to talk to eachother. We called it "The Deafener" for a reason

 

[Dry Rot]

Get the Defender but replace the seats. They are back killers!

 

[Damnation]

Get the Defender but replace the seats. They are back killers!

The whole car is a back killer!

 

[turnbuckle]

Foul to drive but a superb tow car.

 

[PorkChop]

We have two Defenders, a 90 and a 110.

Both excellent, both are top spec, I personally don't think you can beat them for an all round towing/family vehicle.

Just wish they would redesign the windcreen wipers!

 

[Roasted Chestnuts]

Definitely the defender

 

[View]

Let me tell you another story

We currently have a 2003 Defender 100 Td5, and 2003 Discovery 2 Td5 sitting outside the house. I agree, Defenders are like Marmite, but fortunately, we both like them. The Defender is serviced once a year, has fluids and tyres checked weekly.

The Discovery - sure, it's more comfortable than the Defender, and it's thirstier (we put that down to the auto box that is on it). Because we needed the 7 seats, it has air suspension on the back. Doesn't bother us (we both trained as mechanics on what are now PCVs), but it does put a lot of people off. But it has some serious design flaws. Wiring to the gearbox positioned so that it will chafe - and when it does, and gets wet, your gearbox goes into limp mode. All the crud from the road gets thrown up into the lock on the back door. Oh, and it is WAY more expensive than the Defender to insure, despite being much cheaper to replace like for like. The Discovery in addition to weekly fluid/tyre checks also has the lock on the back door cleaned out once a month, and is prone to the air bag connection under the driver's seat becoming disconnected.

The only reason that the Discovery is being used as much as it is at the moment is because it has more room for the front passenger, which is useful while I am still sporting the storm trooper air boot.

My advice? Find a local independent 4x4 mechanic. Ask his advice as to what is best for the job that you want, but from what you have said, I would have an older Defender for towing, and another car for everyday.

 

[case895]

Get a Discovery. Defenders are vile - uncomfortable, controls in the worst possible places and the turning circle of an oil tanker. Discos have a ladder chassis, plenty of torque and are comfortable.

 

[JDH01]

Defender every time - hold their value P reg in moderate condition and high mileage sold for £6k. If you bump the Disco the plastic cracks, Defender the dents look honourable!

 

[McFluff]

I'm another defender fan. We have a 90. Highest spec available (heated seats are a godsend!) - but luxury is relative
Agree that they are marmite - and they definitely have 'character'. I'm really lucky as husband has it as his car and I borrow it to tow. So I have a nice commuter car for the 20k miles I do a year!
It is so easy to tow with - barely feels the two tonnes I tow. It is easy to drive - country or city - and is the sort of car you can take anywhere.
Ours runs well (she's 11 and we keep her with full dealer service history) and has now started to appreciate in value!

 

[cowgirl16]

Well I'm going against the flow here - given the choice it would be Range Rover all the way. I've towed with these - effortless, easy, comfortable. It's easy to forget you're actually towing. They can do all the things a Defender can do, but in COMFORT.

 

[only_me]

Having towed with both Range Rover & the discovery I'd go for the discovery (not the new ones that look like freelanders).
They both are similar to drive but I found the Range Rover (was the evoque) a bit jerky whereas the discovery was smoother. The evoque was smaller and had less space for all the tack etc. Compared to the discovery, whose boot I have to climb into sometimes to get at the saddles lol.
Plus the evoque has a tiny back window which makes reversing a lot more difficult. The discovery has a huge back window & is excellent to reverse and apart from the regular service every year we've had no issues with it as others have found. I managed to get the disco (don't tell dad) into the hay shed to pull the big bales down with very limited room to manoeuvre lol.

I've never towed with a defender but have travelled in many, they aren't the most comfortable of jeeps (I'd sit on a shock absorber on top of the seats lol) and the gear stick can be heavy to move. The whole car is a beast though, a proper workhorse. But that ability means comfort is compromised

 

[Goldenstar]

I have both a Defenders and range rover ,my range rover is the v8 supercharges it's a lovely car and tows well and if I am going a long journey it's the clear winner .
But the defenders are excellent towing vehicles but very agricultural .

 

[Annagain]

I've had both although the Range rover was old, it was the OH's toy and I towed with it too. I've also had Discoveries and Freelanders (yes, plural!) so the whole range as my OH is a land rover nut!

I have a Defender 90 (also had 110s in the past) now and I LOVE it. I've never felt so confident and safe towing as I do with the Defender. I only do 4 miles to work and back and about 8000 miles a year in total though so I can deal with a slightly less comfortable ride and a not very high top speed for day to day. I have the XS which has the more comfortable seats and more 'luxuries' (which are standard on normal cars!) although you can get another seat upgrade again (I didn't like them, found them a bit too buckety). My OH has also put mud rails on ours which allows you put the seat back further if you're tall to get a bit more legroom.

If towing is your main purpose, get the Defender. If you need to use it as a day to day vehicle too and do lots of miles, I'd consider the Range Rover or the Discovery.

The added benefit of the Defender (if you can find one) is they're hold their value really well as they've gone out of production. Mine's 3 years old and I've had 2 dealers offer me more than I paid for it already!

 

[Dry Rot]

My one big criticism of the D90 is that you need to be a contortionist if you drive long distances and want to take a nap. Which is why I sold mine and got a 110! There's also more room for saddles and passengers in the 110....

 

[spacefaer]

If your priority with the new vehicle is towing, and you aren't doing long distances, then the Defender.
The Discoverys have had electronic issues which are VERY expensive to fix - they're very complicated for no apparent reason
If you can afford to run a Range Rover, get a Sport rather than an Evoque (which are hideous and pointless - they don't fulfil many purposes!)

If you want a car that will genuinely go anywhere and be extremely comfortable (and I speak as a current owner of a Defender and past owner of many 110s and Range Rovers of all models), get a Toyota Landcruiser. Astonishingly good car - we have a 2000 model which we are about to upgrade and it is faultless - does everything you would want and more!

 

[EBHouse]

We have had them all over the years. Started out with a defender - it could do everything but like you say is not very comfortable! However good if you are worried about depreciation as they do hold their value better than the others.

The discovery is probably a good halfway house. We have everything in ours that my dad's range rover V8 has and was cheaper. Haven't towed with the new one but our old beaten up farm car (discovery 1) is sturdy and happy to tow. It is slow and steady whether it is towing or not so don't really notice a difference with a trailer on, haha!

My dad's Range Rover is our main towing car - it is just so easy you have to be careful you don't forget there is a trailer on the back. Oodles of power and then some. A friend of ours got stuck going up a hill the other day in their SUV towing an ifor 506. Clutch went, on a 20% gradient single track road. Fortunately for them we were in front of them in the Range Rover and managed to tow the whole lot (car + trailer) all the way up this hill and the range rover didn't even break a sweat. We are so impressed with it and it is so luxurious and comfortable our family will keep buying them. If you have the means to keep them running! Wing mirror cost £500 odd quid to replace when it got broken :O

 

[Dry Rot]

Another plus for the Defender is that they are like Leggo -- if you are/have someone who is mechanically adept.

Hit a lorry with mine. Insurance paid the written down value - £3,500. I bought the salvage for £650. Parts cost £350. Sold it for £4,500. How many vehicles could you do that with?

 

[9tails]

I drove 80 miles on motorways and dual carriageways in a 2011 Defender towing two big horses. It coped admirably but by heck was I stiff and sore for days afterwards. They're so bally uncomfortable.

 

[9tails]

Having towed with both Range Rover & the discovery I'd go for the discovery (not the new ones that look like freelanders).
They both are similar to drive but I found the Range Rover (was the evoque) a bit jerky whereas the discovery was smoother. The evoque was smaller and had less space for all the tack etc. Compared to the discovery, whose boot I have to climb into sometimes to get at the saddles lol.
Plus the evoque has a tiny back window which makes reversing a lot more difficult. The discovery has a huge back window & is excellent to reverse and apart from the regular service every year we've had no issues with it as others have found. I managed to get the disco (don't tell dad) into the hay shed to pull the big bales down with very limited room to manoeuvre lol.

I've never towed with a defender but have travelled in many, they aren't the most comfortable of jeeps (I'd sit on a shock absorber on top of the seats lol) and the gear stick can be heavy to move. The whole car is a beast though, a proper workhorse. But that ability means comfort is compromised

The Evoque can't tow the skin off a rice pudding. It's a pinin version of the Range Rover.

 

[Buddy'sMum]

I drive a RR Sport 4.4L and as others have said, it tows so easily I can almost forget I'm towing! Never had any problems with the electrics and you can't kill a V8!

 

[eggs]

The Evoque can't tow the skin off a rice pudding. It's a pinin version of the Range Rover.

The Evoque doesn't having the towing capacity for two big horses

 

[McFluff]

If I've understood the figures correctly, the evoque tows 1500-2000kg depending on model and the new Discovery Sport 2000-2200kg. The 'proper' land rovers and Range Rover all are quoted at 3500kg.
So if (like me) you have a heavy trailer, or you are towing two large horses, best to stick to the originals.

 

[only_me]

The Evoque doesn't having the towing capacity for two big horses

It's good that I only own one horse then. The disco is the main jeep used, the evoque I use if the disco isn't available. Evoque tows well imo, we've got the 511 trailer. It's just not as good as the disco though

 

[tootsietoo]

I have a 2005 top spec petrol Range Rover vogue to tow a large Ifor Williams 610 with up to 3 horses in it. Hubby got it from auction for 7k, a huge amount of car for the money! It does cost £100 to fill the tank but it doesn't do high mileage so it's not too bad

It tows brilliantly. So easy, so comfortable, I can drive 2 hours to an event without noticing. And it has a heated steering wheel! I love my heated steering wheel! For ease of towing I can't imagine anything could beat it. Never been stuck in the mud out hunting either.

 

[dozzie]

My one big criticism of the D90 is that you need to be a contortionist if you drive long distances and want to take a nap. Which is why I sold mine and got a 110! There's also more room for saddles and passengers in the 110....

Agree. I have a 90 and it doesn't have enough room in the back if taking two horses and all their gear plus other stuff such as people! I would go for a 110.

 

[9tails]

The rear door on the defender is incredibly annoying. Too small to remove a saddle easily and won't open fully as it fouls the jockey wheel column on the trailer. The shogun door is also annoying, but the RR boot opens upwards so probably better. These things are important!

 

[Carlosmum]

We have just replaced our disco with an Isuzu D-Max....no complaints so far!