Jump to content

300 tdi power upgrades and towing


Stroppy Cow

Recommended Posts

Hello their.........have just sold my 300tdi 90 with a view to upgrading to a toyota landcruiser or nissan patrol :o ........But to be honest i am struggling to sway away from landrover.........(300tdi van back)

Before making up my mind i just need to know a few things...........

I am thinking off spending more time in a place i love over in the alps.....and as most know their are lots of steep hills.......I intend to be taking some walkers to specific places to walk(funnily enough) and will be needing something to take all the gear leaving space in the vehicle for passengers...so a trailers in order(sankey or rapier).......

Wanting to get something with some more comfort and power to take all this i thought of the toyota and nissan......which are very powerful trucks.....able to tow and carry just about anything......

now i am aware that the towing power in a landrovers about the same..but pulling that weight up very steep hills all day the landy may struggle??????????By the way i am thinking of the 300tdi as the td5 seems to have issues with cracking manifolds and the 300tdi seems to be bullet proof......

So can anyone tell me that i am wrong for a start......

next if i am wrong and you think that a defender 300 tdi would be able to cope.......what safe power upgrades can you do to a 300tdi without compromising the reliability to much.....

thanks :D

Link to comment
Share on other sites

go for a 110 station wa\gon, there's no reason why it shoud not cope with a trailer & full load on hilly routes. you can always drop into low range on a steep climb.

I just not long ago sold a 200tdi camel 110.....which obviously had a few extras on it weight wise....and i fitted a disco tranfer box too....but it had no headroom in the back and you looked out of the alpine lights which wouldnt be nice on a long drive...and it just felt wheezy on the hills.....and especially when you got to any altitude......imagining that with a trailer and passengers......its gona be a struggle....and that was spending most time in low box.....

The 90 300tdi van back being lighter was very nice and didnt struggle....

SO was thinking of soft topping a 110 300tdi putting some comfy forward facing seats in the back so youd have a nice view out the sides going up those tracks and roads and it would be a lot lighter... ??

Link to comment
Share on other sites

i would seriously consider a TD5. They are more powerful in stock form and can be easily chipped for more. 110 station wagon also seems like a more sensible buy to me, its going to be more comfortable sitting in the middle row of seats in a 110, than wedged in the back of a 90.

bear in mind the roof and sides are alloy. They dont really weigh all that much...

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Cracked manifolds???? The odd one warps, but not all, or even a large percentage by any means.

The only sensible option is either a 110 TD5 SW or a 110 TD5 DC, plenty of power, easy to tune, good economy, comfortable etc etc.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Cracked manifolds???? The odd one warps, but not all, or even a large percentage by any means.

The only sensible option is either a 110 TD5 SW or a 110 TD5 DC, plenty of power, easy to tune, good economy, comfortable etc etc.

was just talking to a landrover mechanic once who said that because of the extra cylinder im asuming it gets hotter on the manifold which causes them to crack...he said hes changed a lot??????

i suppose i could just go to a scrap yard and get some spare.......are they the same on the disco td5??

was thinking of a 110 with four comfy forward facing seats...or six if theyll fit.....like theyve got in the new defenders....

Whats most likely to give you problems on a td5????was reading a while ago that if you take a few sensors and things with you that are likely to fail while your out in the middle off nowhere youll be fine????cant for the life remember where i read it....Maybe on an overland forum or something.......

Someone i knew once took a td5 to italy and it failed half way up a 10,000ft track.....they had to turn it round and tow it down.....when getting it eventually to a garage they were told that the fuel pump had failed by the diagnostics...

a lot of money later with a new pump it went again.....when they rang a landrover helpline they were told to do something with the ignition....like switch it on and off a number off times??????on further diagnosis they found that a switch or connecter was loose or dusty.....bloody electrics....

Also the diagnostic gear is cheaper to buy now i beleive?????

Link to comment
Share on other sites

The stuff about the turbo sounds like carp to me, the extra cylinder has nothing to do with it. Plenty other 5 pot engines around and even 6 cyls which are prefectly fine. Its also not going to stop you driving it, it would just blow a bit until you got it changed if it did warp/crack.

Any new truck, be it a TD5 engined landrover or a similar vintage toyota/nissan will have just as many electronics and things, the emissions regulations are such that they simply cant do without them.

The management systems are pretty resiliant, and even with dead sensors they will usually keep going in a limp mode to get you out the ****.

The important sensors that it wont run without are the ones you'd want to chuck in the spares bag.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Hello their.........have just sold my 300tdi 90 with a view to upgrading to a toyota landcruiser or nissan patrol :o ........But to be honest i am struggling to sway away from landrover.........(300tdi van back)

Before making up my mind i just need to know a few things...........

I am thinking off spending more time in a place i love over in the alps.....and as most know their are lots of steep hills.......I intend to be taking some walkers to specific places to walk(funnily enough) and will be needing something to take all the gear leaving space in the vehicle for passengers...so a trailers in order(sankey or rapier).......

Wanting to get something with some more comfort and power to take all this i thought of the toyota and nissan......which are very powerful trucks.....able to tow and carry just about anything......

now i am aware that the towing power in a landrovers about the same..but pulling that weight up very steep hills all day the landy may struggle??????????By the way i am thinking of the 300tdi as the td5 seems to have issues with cracking manifolds and the 300tdi seems to be bullet proof......

So can anyone tell me that i am wrong for a start......

next if i am wrong and you think that a defender 300 tdi would be able to cope.......what safe power upgrades can you do to a 300tdi without compromising the reliability to much.....

thanks :D

I frequently tow a 3.5 ton twin axle trailer fully loaded across europe to Bosnia with a 300 tdi Disco, never had a problem, fitted a larger intercooler (Allisport) and tweaked the fuel pump which made a difference. Yes some of the long hills are a bit of a drag, but i will stick with the 300tdi, nothing computerised to foul up.

Regards

Keith

Link to comment
Share on other sites

if i was up in high altitudes and had to seat several people and pull a heavy trailer about - landrovers probably wouldnt get a look in - especially defenders. In fact ignore the altitude bit, i jsut wouldnt use a defender day to day to carry folks about in and tow. Just not comfortable or powerful enough.

A very sensible option would be a landcruiser.

Mate has just bought an R reg 3.0td lwb cruiser for a couple of £K and its mint. Engine happily pulls his fully loaded twin axle trailer with mini digger on it all day long around the peak district and he reckons its got much more power than he could ever need. Lots more room and comfy than a disco and probably a damn sight more reliable too.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I would have to agree with Nick. Much as I like Defenders, the Landcrusier is more powerful in standard form and more comfortable.

I've done a lot of towing in Defenders and they all had uprated power to make them more usable. Surely something that comes with that power as standard is better?

I would also not use a Defender if it meant regularly loading up with adult passengers. Have you seen the leg and foot space in the back row of a 110 CSW?

Fine for a family with children in the back but not really ideal for adults.

I went and bought a RR for the cabin space and comfort, but a Landcrusier would probably be cheaper and more reliable for the same amount of money if you are going to use it for hard work.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

The 1KZ-TE makes 130 or 145hp, the D2 TD5 makes 136hp, so its not exactly a huge amount of difference.

On paper maybe but sadly reality is a bit different. I don't know if the Toymota engines are under-rated or Land Rover are over-rated but if you've driven both types you see a difference! The same is true comparing other vehicles - here there is a popular vehicle called a Ford Everest (estate version of the Ranger pickup, more or less) and that has a 2.5TD engine developing 110bhp which on paper is the same as a 300Tdi Discovery ... there's rather a lot of difference in the performance when you are in a hurry though!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Been looking at nissan safari 4.2s but the one i really liked was 24volt and for some reason im a little put off...id imagine parts wouldbe hard to come by ..not to mention pricey........the toyota cruiser seems the choice at the mo....but i still prefer the landy....why ohh why didnt they build a standard bigger engine....

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Stroppy,

I think it depends on what part of the Alps you'll be driving.

On some of the longer steep motorways, I found my 200tdi struggled a bit. This was 2 up, loads of kit and no trailer. Granted, at the time, the injector pump was not increasing the fuelling as the boost increased, bit still.

Par contre, on the smaller really steep roads, I never found that I wanted to go much faster than the truck could manage. This would be more emphasised if pulling a trailer.

Cooling wise, I never had any issues, even with a dead viscous fan. Proof that the 200tdi is over cooled.

I could agree about the 2nd row seats in a CSW. 2 or 3 people are not going to be happy there for a long trip, especially if you don't have head-rests. They would however have a good view out the Alpine Lights. :D

That said, you can fit gear for 5 people in the back of a CSW with room to spare, which would negate the need for a trailer.

So, in summary, I reckon it would cope, but you could probably find something a bit more confortable for your passengers that would cruse more easily on the hillier motorways. (A TD5 and move the 2nd row back 3" :i-m_so_happy: )

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

×
×
  • Create New...

Important Information

We use cookies to ensure you get the best experience. By using our website you agree to our Cookie Policy