[Deli Llama]

Loved towing a similar van with my Treg, but could never get the weights legal. Wondering what your towball weight is?

And also the rear axle weight. That seems to be the first tolerance exceeded when towing a caravan in my experience.

 

[Elb91]

Hello thought as we sit in one of few rainy days during our trip here in Exmouth I’d share my experiences over the last 5 months towing our van which is 3.4t and 3.2m high.
2020 CR Premium with sound and innovation packs. 255/55R19 Cooper Discover ATT 95% of our travels has been on the black stuff and some off-road, through water .5m crossings.
Issues, other than both number plates almost being lost there has been nothing go wrong. Unfortunately the last 2,000km we have had 3 days in a row where we were hit with rocks from on coming trucks and our widescreen has several long cracks all changing length and direction each day. This brings me to our biggest gripe and that is one of service locations as the only options we have is Darwin or Perth. This also has caused somewhat of an issue with getting the car serviced (I have a service plan) as we can’t get to anywhere within our scheduled km allocations. Let’s hope going 3,000km over won’t effect our warranty. (I do mid service/every 7,500km oil and oil filter changes so I’m not worried about the car just my warranty).
The car drives well, quiet, comfortable and with plenty of power and with an amazing fuel consumption of 15.2L per 100km which is about 7L better than our Toyota L C friends.
One observation I have noticed doing many hours sitting around 95km/h is the correlation between oil temp/rpm/fuel economy. If I leave the car in Auto economy sits around 16.5L and oil temp (OT) around 127c however when I shift it into manual (gear knob to the left) we obtain the following;
6th 1800rpm 119c OT and 16L/100km
7th 1500rpm 122c OT and 15L/100km
8th 1200rpm 128c OT and 17L/100km
I had assumed that the lower the rpm the lower the oil temp and the least amount of fuel used however this is not the case. So I find sitting on 7th flat, 6th going up and 8th downhill the best to manage manually as is automatic it will do all this too often in and inconsistent manner (needs a towing mode for ATM which the CR Premium doesn’t have).
So when we get to Perth I’ll be getting a new VW windscreen if I win my argument with AAMI and getting my car serviced. Can any locals recommend a good dealer??
Cheers and hope you have liked the review.
View attachment 251165 View attachment 251164
View attachment 251166 View attachment 251166 View attachment 251167 View attachment 251167

View attachment 251167 View attachment 251165
View attachment 251164

Great review thank you. Just wondering if I may pick your brains a little?

Are you able to give some info and stats below would be much appreciated?

1. Tow ball weight?
2. Car rear axle weight when towing?
3. What hitch do you have on the car?
4. How big is the van? ( I'm looking at a Zone Rv 21f van )
5. Do you carry full tanks of water in the van or how do you distribute the weight to meet the 3.5t limit for the van?
6. What is the make and model of the van you're towing?
7. What rims are you using?

I'm just working out my weights at the moment and it's very close to 6500kg GCM. Also, car rear axle is close to the 1510kg limit with a tank of fuel and nothing loaded in the rear. Went over a weighbridge and here are my stats for the 2021 CR V8 Wolfsburg. The Towball limit is 240kg on the V8 Wolfsburg.

1. Gross Mass: 02.54t ( GVM = 3t )
2. Front Axle: 01.42t
3. Rear Axle: 01.12t ( rear axil limit is 1.510t )

Looking at a 21f van with a tare weight of 3030kg and that's with a 4t rated chassis. Not that I want to upgrade to another vehicle. Would prefer to tow with my CR over anything else at this point. The numbers are close though.

Thanks in advance.
Cheers Elenor.

 

[RichardStudham]

Hello thought as we sit in one of few rainy days during our trip here in Exmouth I’d share my experiences over the last 5 months towing our van which is 3.4t and 3.2m high.
2020 CR Premium with sound and innovation packs. 255/55R19 Cooper Discover ATT 95% of our travels has been on the black stuff and some off-road, through water .5m crossings.
Issues, other than both number plates almost being lost there has been nothing go wrong. Unfortunately the last 2,000km we have had 3 days in a row where we were hit with rocks from on coming trucks and our widescreen has several long cracks all changing length and direction each day. This brings me to our biggest gripe and that is one of service locations as the only options we have is Darwin or Perth. This also has caused somewhat of an issue with getting the car serviced (I have a service plan) as we can’t get to anywhere within our scheduled km allocations. Let’s hope going 3,000km over won’t effect our warranty. (I do mid service/every 7,500km oil and oil filter changes so I’m not worried about the car just my warranty).
The car drives well, quiet, comfortable and with plenty of power and with an amazing fuel consumption of 15.2L per 100km which is about 7L better than our Toyota L C friends.
One observation I have noticed doing many hours sitting around 95km/h is the correlation between oil temp/rpm/fuel economy. If I leave the car in Auto economy sits around 16.5L and oil temp (OT) around 127c however when I shift it into manual (gear knob to the left) we obtain the following;
6th 1800rpm 119c OT and 16L/100km
7th 1500rpm 122c OT and 15L/100km
8th 1200rpm 128c OT and 17L/100km
I had assumed that the lower the rpm the lower the oil temp and the least amount of fuel used however this is not the case. So I find sitting on 7th flat, 6th going up and 8th downhill the best to manage manually as is automatic it will do all this too often in and inconsistent manner (needs a towing mode for ATM which the CR Premium doesn’t have).
So when we get to Perth I’ll be getting a new VW windscreen if I win my argument with AAMI and getting my car serviced. Can any locals recommend a good dealer??
Cheers and hope you have liked the review.
View attachment 251165 View attachment 251164
View attachment 251166 View attachment 251166 View attachment 251167 View attachment 251167

View attachment 251167 View attachment 251165
View attachment 251164

Great review , thanks. Richard

 

[Matt fly’s]

Good luck with that...

AAMI use O'Brien's who have done 2 screens for me now (Bayswater, Melbourne) and happy with their service and outcome. Getting one a year means the slightly lower quality of non genuine is not such an issue imo. Apparently they use the VIN to sort out any recalibration if needed (mine doesn't)

You could always get a log book service done at a reputable mechanic (I used Repco in Katherine), but I'm sure there's others. You'll have to fork out, but cheaper than risking a warranty, and good to put some money in outback communities. Just make sure they use the right sump plug washer 😉

Enjoy Exmouth. Take a drive up Shothole Canyon if you haven't already (and the water's not too deep). Totally different landscape to what lies beyond.

Yep you are correct. AAMI have forced me to Obrien and will not budge. Go directly to OBrien do not pass go, do not collect and original windscreen. Lol. Gets fitted tomorrow at Obrien Osborne Park. Service is getting done next week at VW Osborne Park, 4,000km over due.

 

[Matt fly’s]

Great review thank you. Just wondering if I may pick your brains a little?

Are you able to give some info and stats below would be much appreciated?

1. Tow ball weight? 240kg
2. Car rear axle weight when towing? Not sure
3. What hitch do you have on the car? DO35 I also have a raised tow bar from the car of 150mm.
4. How big is the van? ( I'm looking at a Zone Rv 21f van ) 21,6 and its 3.1m high. Zone are a very sexy looking van. We opted for Network RV as it is our first van so we opted for the the cheapest brand. Touch wood no issues. Yet.
5. Do you carry full tanks of water in the van or how do you distribute the weight to meet the 3.5t limit for the van? I try and tow with 2 full water tanks (grey water empty). I’m lucky with my van I have 800kg of load allowance (600kg if two water tanks are full and grey water tank empty).
6. What is the make and model of the van you're towing? Network RV 21’6 terrain tuff rear club lounge.
7. What rims are you using? Van 16 inch and car 19 inch.

I'm just working out my weights at the moment and it's very close to 6500kg GCM. Also, car rear axle is close to the 1510kg limit with a tank of fuel and nothing loaded in the rear. Went over a weighbridge and here are my stats for the 2021 CR V8 Wolfsburg. The Towball limit is 240kg on the V8 Wolfsburg.

1. Gross Mass: 02.54t ( GVM = 3t )
2. Front Axle: 01.42t
3. Rear Axle: 01.12t ( rear axil limit is 1.510t )



Looking at a 21f van with a tare weight of 3030kg and that's with a 4t rated chassis. Not that I want to upgrade to another vehicle. Would prefer to tow with my CR over anything else at this point. The numbers are close though.

Thanks in advance.
Cheers Elenor.

I have answered your questions above.
I may get shot for mentioning this but I don’t get too carried away with axel weights. I just try and do the following two things.
1, keep the van under 3.5t
2, keep the tow ball weight under 280kg.
26,000kg traveled and this fur no issues.

 

[Elb91]

I have answered your questions above.
I may get shot for mentioning this but I don’t get too carried away with axel weights. I just try and do the following two things.
1, keep the van under 3.5t
2, keep the tow ball weight under 280kg.
26,000kg traveled and this fur no issues.

Thanks heaps for your reply. I'm so jealous you have a club lounge at the rear of your van. I wish zone had layout with a club lounge but no such luck. Oh well, can't have everything hahaha. You are very lucky with your payload for sure. I'll only be able to go down to 20inch wheels, unfortunately. I think you are right about keeping the weight down to 3.5t. I'll have a 4-tonne rated chassis fitted with DO45 hitch but still have to manage the weight within 3.5t of course. My towbar height will need to be at 5400mm from the ground for the Zone van. Hope to see you on the road sometime.

 

[Jaded62]

Yep you are correct. AAMI have forced me to Obrien and will not budge. Go directly to OBrien do not pass go, do not collect and original windscreen. Lol. Gets fitted tomorrow at Obrien Osborne Park. Service is getting done next week at VW Osborne Park, 4,000km over due.

Matt, my D5 will be replaced with a new CR next week. The D5 is a company car and I don't know who the insurer was but last year I got a crack in the OEM windscreen and O'Brien glass wanted to replace with a generic screen. I pointed out the existing was solar attenuated and I insisted they replace it with the $3.5k OEM screen, which they did with no drama.

 

[Singh]

Thanks heaps for your reply. I'm so jealous you have a club lounge at the rear of your van. I wish zone had layout with a club lounge but no such luck. Oh well, can't have everything hahaha. You are very lucky with your payload for sure. I'll only be able to go down to 20inch wheels, unfortunately. I think you are right about keeping the weight down to 3.5t. I'll have a 4-tonne rated chassis fitted with DO45 hitch but still have to manage the weight within 3.5t of course. My towbar height will need to be at 5400mm from the ground for the Zone van. Hope to see you on the road sometime.

You can do 19s

 

[Warren&Jo]

Hi Matt
it looks like you put on a mild set of all terrain tires . Could you tell me what brand and size you used . They would be pert of your good fuel economy equation
warren

 

[Singh]

Hi Matt
it looks like you put on a mild set of all terrain tires . Could you tell me what brand and size you used . They would be pert of your good fuel economy equation
warren

@Matt fly’s prefers Coopers 🙂

 

[Matt fly’s]

Where did your wheels come from or are they vw .I have been trying to get a set of 19 rims .

They are Audi rims with the same nut and offset as original (to spec) 19inch rims. They were second hand.

 

[Matt fly’s]

Hi Matt
it looks like you put on a mild set of all terrain tires . Could you tell me what brand and size you used . They would be pert of your good fuel economy equation
warren

Cooper discover ATT. Very happy with road noise and tread wear, 35,000km (26k towing) and only used 30%. Only tad dissatisfied with aqua plane and puddles.

 

[Matt fly’s]

@Matt fly’s prefers Coopers 🙂

@Singh prefers tractor Tyers

 

[Singh]

@Singh prefers tractor Tyers

You bet

 

[Steve_L]

@Singh
Matt needs tips on getting the red dust out.

 

[Singh]

@Singh
Matt needs tips on getting the red dust out.

Hand wash 5 times, book it in for a full prof detail and then hand wash and clean 5 times again 😃👍