There are always plenty of members looking for advice on cars and caravans here. I thought it may be of help to others if members could give their views in a little detail of their current or previous outfits showing weights, power, fuel type, transmission type, performance etc and likes and dislikes of your outfit. I have listed mine in a separate post.
------------- its our imperfections that makes us perfect
The car tows our van very well it maintains 60mph in 6th gear even up most hills, it is very economical around 66mpg on a run solo and 30 towing, also only £30 road tax. It is great fun to drive and has the dyno mode system which allows a sports mode for even more fun or a snow mode which has been usual when towing off a soggy pitch. We have owned the car for 5 years it has been totally reliable in this time only ever needing to be serviced.
The caravan is a small 4 berth fixed bed and has everything we need in it. This also has been very reliable in our 4 years of ownership.
Likes and dislikes, we love the cars looks and there is nothing to dislike except the lack of cup holders.
The caravan we love the ease of use and lightweight, but dislike the combined shower/toilet and the upholstery colour.
------------- its our imperfections that makes us perfect
Caravan: 2002 Avondale Dart 515-4, overall length 6.5m. From memory the weights are MIRO 1030kg, MTPLM 1250kg.
I wrote a more detailed review of the car about a year ago (link below) but in summary. Despite the rakish coupe-esque looks it's not sporty in any way, so if you fancy yourself as Lewis Hamilton you should buy something else. And the traction is rubbish in snow, or mud, so if you get stuck on a soggy pitch you should be prepared to ask a favour from someone with a 4x4 on a nearby pitch and buy them a drink.
That's OK though, because it's brilliant everywhere else. It's the most comfortable car I've ever sat in, it's as roomy inside as a limo and has a bigger boot than many estate cars, and it's more than good looking enough for a middle-aged man (such as myself) to quietly indulge his midlife crisis moment without his family or employers noticing. We get 50-55mpg solo and 30-ish towing - and that's not necessarily driving for economy. We love it.
Likes: everything really
Dislikes: needs a rear wiper and more than one USB port
Caravan: well considering it's our first one, that I bought on the internet whilst drinking red wine nearly 5 years ago, it's done us proud. It's had damp repairs at some time in the past, but the technician that services it says that they seem to have worked and that the condition hasn't got appreciably worse since we've had it.
It's a 4 berth with a side dining area and an end bathroom. On our first trip away we found that the cushions were fine to sit on but a bit hard to sleep on, but a £100 mattress topper solved that problem and I often sleep better on that than I do at home. We've had wonderful holidays in Cornwall, Edinburgh, Yorkshire, Wales, Ireland, France and Switzerland to name but a few.
Likes: again, everything really
Dislikes: when the time finally does come to replace her, we'll probably look for a slightly bigger shower cubicle.
Land Rover Defender 130 Crewcab V8. Max power 205bhp at 4500rpm. Max torque 360Nm at 3000rpm. Kerb weight approx 2350kg, max gross weight 3500kg, max train weight 7500kg. Max trailer noseweight 150kg. Average MPG 18-20.
Pros.
Will pull anything you can hitch to it, across pretty much any terrain all
day.
Huge 1000kg useable load capacity.
Virtually indestructible, will go anywhere.
Very easy to fix and maintain.
Vesatility, it will do anything you could want a vehicle to do, except go
fast.
One of the coolest vehicles around.
Cons.
Lack of comfort and gadgets, prison cells are more luxurious.
Fuel economy, mine runs on LPG so running costs are acceptable, running it on
petrol is very expensive.
Size, with winch, tow hitch, suspension lift and roof rack it is over 17ft
long and almost 8ft tall. It is too big for many car parks and I can rarely
find an on-road parking space long enough.
Lack of maneuverability, oil tankers turn tighter and have more direct
steering.
Gearbox, rather agricultural and takes a bit of getting used to, but with 10
forward gears and 2 reverse gears, you have great low speed torque and
control. The clutch is extremely heavy. Unless you have driven a Land Rover
Defender or Series, you cannot imagine what it is like. Same for the
steering.
Heating, the only time the heater actually provides any heat is in the middle
of summer.
I don't pull a caravan with it, but tow everything from a 750kg box trailer to a 4000kg agri tipper trailer on a daily basis. Closest thing to a caravan I tow is a twin axle livestock trailer with an unladen weight of 1600kg and a max weight of 3500kg. It will pull this fully laden at 50-60 mph without any difficulty at all. When empty you hardly notice it is attached. The long wheelbase and heavy kerbweight of the 130 makes it extremely stable when towing, even when the trailer is heavier than the Land Rover. Fuel economy doesn't drop that much when towing, but then it doesn't do many mpg to start with.
As a tow car, unless you want to be comfortable when driving, there is little that can match it. It can pull anything and is always totally stable. As an everyday car, unless you need all of it's capabilities as I do, use something else, although personally, I wouldn't have anything else. I love my Land Rover.
Amazing family weekend with old steam engines, classic car displays, market stalls, and full catering and bar. And camping on site - Save £25 by booking in advance.
Topic: towcar and caravan owner review
