Will an L400 tow a 4500lbs trailer?

[dragnet]

I've done quite a bit of searching and always come up with answers related to a guy who knew a guy once who may of at one point possibly towed a travel trailer with a L400 Spacegear. Or a number of searches related to the tow weight of the vehicle and the maximum tow weight of a trailer based on that. I've also come across some crazy photos out of the UK showing Spacegears towing pretty large trailers. But I have yet to find an actual example of a Delica towing a 5000lbs'ish travel trailer on a regular basis.

What I am looking for is someone who has actually installed a Class 3 hitch and used their SWB L400 to tow a trailer regularly for recreational camping. Will the L400 Delica excel at this task as well as it does everything else? The trailer in question is a dual axle fully braked 19ft, 4500lbs travel trailer. The Delica I am looking at purchasing is a 3L V6 SWB Super Exceed.

E&H Hitch seems to do a number of installs. I've contacted them as well. Is anyone running an E&H hitch?

TIA....

[nxski]

I tow about 3000lbs regularly with my L300 in the city, I wouldn't even attempt a hill at freeway speeds though. My guess is that your engine would get quite hot. Get yourself a pyro and you'll be fine in the city and could get an idea of wether or not you want to risk it on a trip.

[jessef]

Get yourself a pyro

The Delica I am looking at purchasing is a 3L V6 SWB

He's buying a gas, not diesel model.

You can tow up to a rated 5,000lbs with the 3.0L V6.

http://www.theautochannel.com/vehicles/ ... k9725.html

PERFORMANCE

EPA Fuel Economy - miles per gallon
city / highway / observed not available
Towing Capacity 5,000 lbs.
Coefficient of Drag (cd) 0.51

[dragnet]

Thanks guys.

Jesse, is the running gear, sub frame and unibody structure underneath the Deli identical to the Montero?

[jessef]

Running gear and sub frame yes (not identical but close)
L400 - unibody
Montero - box frame

I would have no issues towing 4.5k with the 3L but I would make absolute certain all the brakes are not in good working order, but in excellent shape. That and invest in a good brake controller for the trailer brakes.

[Manitoba deli]

With my lwb l400, I regularly tow 5-6000lbs, but I live in a relatively flat area. I have also towed l300's with my l400. One from Calgary, one from Saskatoon, and one from Foam Lake Sk, all to Dauphin Mb. When towing, I keep overdrive off, and let the engine rev. About 3500rpm at 100km/hr. Can't speak for the gas, as mine is a diesel, and these diesels don't like being lugged, they are made to rev.

Jason

[nxski]

Whoops! With the 3L gas you should be fine, I had the same engine in my Mighty Max and I could load the truck with 2500lbs and barely notice a change in acceleration. Just check that the crank shaft pulley bolt has been replaced when they had the recall.

[dragnet]

Thanks Jesse, I have a really good brake controller and use equalization bars as well. I guess my main concern is not that the Deli will have the power, as I currently drive a pretty gutless Land Rover Disco 2 with a real short wheelbase, but will the unibody handle the tongue weight of the trailer without issue. I have visions of the Class 3 hitch tearing out of the rear end at highway speeds and watching my trailer pass me by at the next traffic light.

Jason, thanks for the reply. You're the first confirmed 5000lbs tow I've read about. I'm sure there are others as well but I've yet to find the posts. If I may ask a question, where did you purchase your hitch?

Thanks again. This has been quite helpful in my decision process.

[dragnet]

Thanks nxski.

I'm favoring the V6 for this reason. That and the fact that I've found a pretty reasonably priced supercharger for the 6G72 motor. It's meant for a mid 90's 3000GT. I'm hoping with enough elbow grease (and custom fitting/cutting/bending) that we can make it fit in the Deli. Who knows it may not go. If it does I can steal a diesel hood and mount the intercooler as well. Thereby keeping the hood scoop look I love so much.

At that point I'm thinking of going propane and installing a LPG conversion kit. A friend of mine has done a few LPG installs on fleet trucks back in the day. I'm not sure how available LPG is these days, but he has recommended it as a clean alternative to gas that force inducted engines love. I hear it is 104 octane. Guys over the pond seem quite fond of 3L V6's on LPG as well.

It's all wishful thinking for now. First I need to prove to the wife that towing our trailer is not going to be an issue.

[whatthejeez]

While on the subject of towing with an L400...

I have a tent trailer with a 325 lb. tongue load. GVW is around 1500 lbs. I hope to tow it with my Jasper (2.8l diesel).

Comments?

[nxski]

While on the subject of towing with an L400...

I have a tent trailer with a 325 lb. tongue load. GVW is around 1500 lbs. I hope to tow it with my Jasper (2.8l diesel).

Comments?

Absoloutely no problem, if you're driving a lot of hills at speed make sure you have a pyro and keep the rpm's up.

[Manitoba deli]

Hey dragnet, my hitch was a universal fit Princess Auto hitch slightly modified by my local welding shop.

Jason

[Mr. Flibble]

With my lwb l400, I regularly tow 5-6000lbs, but I live in a relatively flat area. I have also towed l300's with my l400. One from Calgary, one from Saskatoon, and one from Foam Lake Sk, all to Dauphin Mb. When towing, I keep overdrive off, and let the engine rev. About 3500rpm at 100km/hr. Can't speak for the gas, as mine is a diesel, and these diesels don't like being lugged, they are made to rev.

Jason

Isn't the power band/peak torque on the 4M40 around 2200 RPM? I notice when I do highway speeds that put me in the 3000 and up range my mileage drops signifigantly.

[nxski]

With my lwb l400, I regularly tow 5-6000lbs, but I live in a relatively flat area. I have also towed l300's with my l400. One from Calgary, one from Saskatoon, and one from Foam Lake Sk, all to Dauphin Mb. When towing, I keep overdrive off, and let the engine rev. About 3500rpm at 100km/hr. Can't speak for the gas, as mine is a diesel, and these diesels don't like being lugged, they are made to rev.

Jason

Isn't the power band/peak torque on the 4M40 around 2200 RPM? I notice when I do highway speeds that put me in the 3000 and up range my mileage drops signifigantly.

You get more power, but you can overheat more easily because the higher RPM's keep the coolant flowing better. If you drive up a steep hill around 2000rpm you'll be able to accelerate but your EGT's will spike, if you go up at 3000-3500rpm you will only be able to maintain speed but your EGT's remain constant as well for the most part.

My water temperatures were getting very high just due to headwinds on the prairies so I had to keep the revs up above 3000 even while just cruising on a flat with the load of the van being pulled.

[BV1]

I tow a 21ft trailer, Rvision 21e, ~4000 lbs fully loaded with a 4m40 delica (94), no issue at all. Keep OD off and speed to 80km/hr or less.

Steve