towing safety

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thirlmere

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Am looking for vehicle to tow my 15 2 hh mare and very occasionally her 15 hh pal. Have access to Bateson Deauville 860 Kilos unladen. Am confused LandRover insist the Freelander 2 is capable of towing up to 2000 kg but according to my research I should not exceed 85% of it's kerb weight which would be 1500 kg max. Anyone know who is right??
 
I know that discoveries can tow more than 85%, not sure if freelanders are the same. Landrover should be right.
 
In theory of course, and according to the manufacturers handbook, the Freelander can tow more. I imagine they haven't considered that this load could actually be moving around though.

Personally I would never exceed the 85% - I want the towing car to be in charge of which direction we take - not the trailer!
 
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Personally I would never exceed the 85% - I want the towing car to be in charge of which direction we take - not the trailer
I know this is a serious post but your last comment above mad me laugh
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grin.gif
 
A few people on my yard tow with freelanders no prob, and I'm thinking of getting one to tow my horse, however, I would only be towing 1 horse (450kg), my friend will only tow her own horse (650kg), not sure I would risk it with the two.

Friend says she can definately 'feel' the trailer even with just her horse in the back (which she couldnt when she used to have a discovery).

its a bloomin pain - I would rather be able to tow 2, but I cant afford to run a bigger car to work and back each day.
 
with a freelander and 2 horses you will be over weight even with a light weight trailer if you count 500kg for each horse, your average trailer weighs about 1 ton, then you have to add hay, water and tack.

also freelanders are gutless, get to any hill when towing 2 and the car will die powerwise and you will be stuck at about 20mph. Ive seen it on the hills round here and it is sooooo dangerous when doing hills on a motorway.
 
Freelander is fine for 1 Horse, but definately not for 2. The 85% is a recommendation, 100% is sensible but many of the bigger 4X4's are legal to tow more than this. A freelander and 1 Horse is about the same weight and is under its max of 2000KG. Can't say I've ever had power or handing issues with mine (and that includes hills both up and down). I tow with it sometimes, also have a huge van to tow with and can't feel the trailer on it at all. Both are much more economical than a big 4X4. A lot of people say they are gutless....well mine sits at 50mph no problem at all, and pulls up hills OK as well. Braking has never been an issue. It's acceleration isn't great, but so what when towing a Horse, shouldn't be accelerating quickly anyway. For shorter distances it's absolutely fine.

The limit that the manufacturer states (ie 2000KG in this case) is the legal one. The 85% and 100% are recommendations I think set by the caravan club. They say 85%..raised to 100% if you are an experienced tower.
 
the freelander is not legal or safe to tow with. the old freelander has a kerb weight of 1.5tonnes (new one 1.7tonnes) - even if you go with the 100% rule this means only one horse, but forgetting that - the EU regs say that the towing vehicle must be capable of towing the MAM of the trailer. the MAM of the IW505 is 2.3tonnes and the max towing capacity of the freelander is 2 tonnes - therefore quite simply, illegal, regardless of what you put in the back.
 
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