mumblezzz Posted November 7, 2004 Report Posted November 7, 2004 I was considering purchasing a tow car as the sprinter is becoming more and more painful to drive on the street. Plus I was after something a bit more comfortable to drive around daily. requirements are Decent towing capacity fairly new ie late 80s early 90's pwr steer, A/C etc preferably a toyota i assume auto would be better for towing but I would prefer manual as it wouldnt really see that much towing. RWD obviously as far <10k as possible <5k would be better All I can think of that fits that description is a MX83 cressida. Tidy examples can be picked up for around 5k and they come with all the options I want but I'm open to suggestions if you think theres something more suitable. Also what would just a basic car trailer be worth? New or second hand? Are some better than others? Discuss. Quote
Teddy Posted November 7, 2004 Report Posted November 7, 2004 Yeah, Cressidas's are about the 5/6 mark. If you feel a bit sporty, you could get a mid / late 80's Soarer for about 6/7 lol i like the idea of a cressida tho :thumbsup: Quote
demuire Posted November 7, 2004 Report Posted November 7, 2004 What about an older sort of Hilux? They tend to go for not too much. Quote
trdcamrypride Posted November 7, 2004 Report Posted November 7, 2004 what about the v6 camry or a older swb(short wheel base) or lwb(long wheel base) land cruiser. i don't want to sugest this but mabe a hiace. Quote
mumblezzz Posted November 7, 2004 Author Report Posted November 7, 2004 Yeah I considered a hilux but i was after something that was still comfortable to drive around in normally. FWD isnt really good for towing and if I picked up a soarer I would just spend money modding that. I guess what I'm after is a car that I can use normally with towing ability. Quote
trdcamrypride Posted November 7, 2004 Report Posted November 7, 2004 a older swb(short wheel base) or lwb(long wheel base) land cruiser. Quote
Teddy Posted November 7, 2004 Report Posted November 7, 2004 http://cgi.ebay.com.au/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?Vi...4501987752&rd=1 Its in NSW tho.. but it would suit you ! Quote
Ruts Posted November 7, 2004 Report Posted November 7, 2004 http://cgi.ebay.com.au/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?Vi...4501987752&rd=1 Its in NSW tho.. but it would suit you ! and the towball is already fitted Quote
Teddy Posted November 7, 2004 Report Posted November 7, 2004 its even got SOME bling happening on those hub caps :thumbsup: Quote
Medicine_Man Posted November 7, 2004 Report Posted November 7, 2004 Need to have a look around some dealerships and see what interests you i suppose / whats in your price range.. Quote
Redwarf Posted November 7, 2004 Report Posted November 7, 2004 (edited) Right. The main thing you have to consider is towing capacity. Your Sprinter would weigh around the 1000 kg mark, and a car trailer will weigh anywhere between 550 kg and 800 kg, perhaps more. Hire trailers are at the top end of this scale. Effectively you need something that will happily tow 1600 kg. You have now discounted most of the Toyota fleet. Cressida has IRS which wouldn't tow real well with out mods. Hilux would come close to fitting the bill, factory towing capacity of 1500kg, ordinary on fuel and have kidney belts that fall from the roof when you go over bumps. Forget about a 'Cruiser for that price range, you don't want a petrol tanker following you wherever you go. I would consider for that price range, and I know I'm about to swear, a Commodore of Falcon. Why? Okay, I had two Commodores as towing cars, and they're not a bad unit. Put a trannie cooler on them and some Polyairs in the back springs, rated towing capacity of 1650kgs, and I think more with load riders, and you're in business. Pity you weren't looking 12 months ago, as you could have had my VSII for a good price. Good stable towing platform that will get you to your destination on the same day you left. May I suggest a wagon? Harder to find but for motorsport support services, far superior to a sedan. Try to look for one with no towbar, and then fit a good Hayman Reese to it. Not all tow packs are rated to 1650 kg. You should be able to pick a a good VS or VSII for about $8K. Falcon are the same deal, but with I think a slightly higher towing capacity. Leaf rear end in the wagons are horse and cart technology, but hey, it works. A nice EL wagon with reasonable K's are achievable with your budget. Both these things, although as boring as bat shit, will work very well as daily drivers, and not attract police attention. 4x4's are good, but thirsty and with older ones, you have to book holidays if you want to tow up hills. At the top end of your budget you could get something like Mel's Jackeroo. It does the job fairly well, but even she will agree that lacks a bit in the going uphill department. My Pajero is awesome, but slightly out of your price range. Food for thought! :thumbsup: *Click for polyair desciption.....* Edited November 7, 2004 by Redwarf Quote
Teddy Posted November 7, 2004 Report Posted November 7, 2004 Ahh reading your posts are always very education rob. As long as the letters "EA" do not come into this thread / forum, I'm a happy chappy. :thumbsup: . i can see the next tech night is going to be awesome :D Quote
86seca Posted November 7, 2004 Report Posted November 7, 2004 we had a xe falcon s/wagon that we towed a xf falcon short circuit car with and after 2 years of towing it had stretch the car so bad we had to adjust the doors twice in 2 months we now own a 1988 landcruiser 62 series lwb petrol and it chews about the same amount of fuel as the falcon but it has a full chassis and it will cruise at 120km all day with the a/c on without any problems s i would recomend anything with a full chassis over a normal car as far a a hilux goes it will perform the same on a flat surface until u go up cunninghams gap or the range good for short trips just as long as u got electric brakes on the trailer so you can stop happy towing Quote
Redwarf Posted November 7, 2004 Report Posted November 7, 2004 (edited) Comma button broken?? I disagree. I've towed rally cars for years with Commodore's and, like with everything, set them up properly and you will have no problems. Start hauling cars around in a 'Dore without the correct tow pack, and yes, you will end up with a LWB version fairly quickly. If you do things properly you should have no problems. If Mumblezz were to be towing a Falcon, yes I would probably agree with you and say 4WD, but I don't think it's required in this case. An EL should get far better fuel economy than an XE. An XE motor is basically 70's technology. Ditto with a Cruirser. Commodore fuel economy on a trip was about 15l per hundred loaded, 10l per hundred without trailer. Mumblezz: Trailer, anywhere from about $1200 (second hand and needing work) to $3500 (flash new one!). Edited November 7, 2004 by Redwarf Quote
irokin Posted November 7, 2004 Report Posted November 7, 2004 Towed a couple of cars with Dads VR BT1 (come stock with a tranny cooler I believe...its got one none the less). Corolla was a breeze. 110 on the M1 with the aircon going. Celica was a bit more tricky (caws it was quite a bit heavier) but we had no problems. Even got on and off the moggil ferry no sweat. Quote
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