Off-road towing porn.....

[5thranger]

Here are three videos of us towing our Black Series HQ 15 up a fairly steep (12 degree) boulder strewn section. First video we get a bit of side slippage due to coming off of a boulder a bit fast - a bit slower might have worked better. Second video is us trying to mantle a shelf with the trailer wheels (locker is on) - this resulted in a broken drive-shaft, which you can hear at the end of the video. Third video is us coming back down that section as after removing the drive shaft and getting the trailer turned around (thank you McHitch!). Post-repair autopsy of the broken u-bolt revealed substantial wear over time from axle-wrap causing the u-bolt to bind against itself. Currently in the hunt for Calvert or similar traction bars that fit our Rangers - open to suggestions.

I have to say you have a set of testes made out of titanium, there is no way in hell I would do that.

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[Blmpkn]

Man.. it's shit like this that's ruining our backcountry access.

 

[Grandaccess]

Solitude is nice, I used to hike/pack up to alpine lakes in CO and fish, yrs back might not see anyone or just a few.

Yeah Ford rates the tow capacity higher but I'm thinking pulling a trailer over a steep dirt road puts just a wee bit o strain on da drive train.

I think it is a little over rated, I had to pull a buddies big truck out of a mud pit, him and what was in his truck must have weighed about the limit, it wasnt easy but it did it, I wasnt happy I had to put my truck in that situation and I have pulled some pretty big loads

 

[Cmar]

I think it is a little over rated, I had to pull a buddies big truck out of a mud pit, him and what was in his truck must have weighed about the limit, it wasnt easy but it did it, I wasnt happy I had to put my truck in that situation and I have pulled some pretty big loads

You sir have hit the nail on the head! Over here Rangers and most other similar utes (Toyota Hilux, Mitsubishi Triton, Colorado, Nissan Navara, etc) are all rated to tow 3500 kilos, or in your language 7716 Lb.
This has less to do with their real capability (they can't do it with a full load in the bed) than just a pissing contest between the manufacturers, and aided and abetted by dickhead motoring journalists who do reviews with - "Oh and its tow capacity is a bit down for the sector at only 3000 Kg" - which is probably where it should be.
Such journalists should go back to reviewing 900 CC 3 cylinder ecoboxes because that's about where their skills level tops out.
So the end result of this is manufacturers keep upping their tow limits to put their product to the fore front, without making any real engineering changes, and the end result of that, is, the rash of accidents, rollovers, and blown engines and transmissions we see in this country.
But they say - we were within the towing limit! (Just, maybe) Why is this happening!

I tow a 2.4 tonne off road caravan -5300 Lb ( have put pics of it on here before) and I really wouldn't want to tow much more on a regular basis. The ranger handles it easily without sway or pitching and although it practically doubles my fuel consumption, neither the engine or tranny ever feels overly stressed. If I wanted to tow a lot more regularly I would buy a RAM or F150.

If you want to see some real off road towing have a look at this video That's a good workout for a Hilux. The track they are on is an old gold mining coach road cut by hand back in the 1800's. I've driven up part of in in my old Bronco about 35 years ago. Looks like it hasn't changed a bit. No I would NOT take a trailer up it!

The Gall family actually owns the company which makes the "Kedron" caravans in the picture. They are named after the suburb in Brisbane where they used to be made for many years before they moved to a bigger factory. In fact my late father who used to own an engineering workshop used to make some fabricated parts for them back in the 1960's. I can remember as a kid meeting the old guy in the pics when he was a young man running the shop. Their caravans are heavy but extremely strong, even the road going models.

 

[Grandaccess]

You sir have hit the nail on the head! Over here Rangers and most other similar utes (Toyota Hilux, Mitsubishi Triton, Colorado, Nissan Navara, etc) are all rated to tow 3500 kilos, or in your language 7716 Lb.
This has less to do with their real capability (they can't do it with a full load in the bed) than just a pissing contest between the manufacturers, and aided and abetted by dickhead motoring journalists who do reviews with - "Oh and its tow capacity is a bit down for the sector at only 3000 Kg" - which is probably where it should be.
Such journalists should go back to reviewing 900 CC 3 cylinder ecoboxes because that's about where their skills level tops out.
So the end result of this is manufacturers keep upping their tow limits to put their product to the fore front, without making any real engineering changes, and the end result of that, is, the rash of accidents, rollovers, and blown engines and transmissions we see in this country.
But they say - we were within the towing limit! (Just, maybe) Why is this happening!

I tow a 2.4 tonne off road caravan -5300 Lb ( have put pics of it on here before) and I really wouldn't want to tow much more on a regular basis. The ranger handles it easily without sway or pitching and although it practically doubles my fuel consumption, neither the engine or tranny ever feels overly stressed.

If you want to see some real off road towing have a look at this video That's a good workout for a Hilux. The track they are on is an old gold mining coach road cut by hand back in the 1800's. I've driven up part of in in my old Bronco about 35 years ago. Looks like it hasn't changed a bit. No I would NOT take a trailer up it!

The Gall family actually owns the company which makes the "Kedron" caravans in the picture. They are named after the suburb in Brisbane where they used to be made for many years before they moved to a bigger factory. In fact my late father who used to own an engineering workshop used to make some fabricated parts for them back in the 1960's. I can remember as a kid meeting the old guy in the pics when he was a young man running the shop. Their caravans are heavy but extremely strong, even the road going models.

I know right, pictures or it didnt happen, I do haul pretty good loads, and the Ranger is a little better than my last truck, I love it and I am going to keep it for a long time cause it serves me very well, so far I havent gotten to the point I stressed it but I was spinning when pulling my buddy buried upto his frame in a tundra with a ton of motorcycle engines in the bed LOL
to make it even worse he had debeeded his back tires! so I was dragging him as well!

 

[Ronbo]

I have to say you have a set of testes made out of titanium, there is no way in hell I would do that.

Yes, it could be “testes made of titanium”, but it could also be a case of “corn in the brain”. Either one causes these actions. When successful, one could indeed say “testes made of titanium”, but had that trailer tipped over and fell upon the the guy in the red shirt running along the camper, then the “corn in the brain” description would have applied. Could have gone either way. Just my observation.

 

[Cmar]

Yes, it could be “testes made of titanium”, but it could also be a case of “corn in the brain”. Either one causes these actions. When successful, one could indeed say “testes made of titanium”, but had that trailer tipped over and fell upon the the guy in the red shirt running along the camper, then the “corn in the brain” description would have applied. Could have gone either way. Just my observation.

Yeah he was surprisingly quick for an older guy. I would have been too, then again I probably wouldn't have stood there.

 

[JesseS]

The HQ 15 fully loaded is just under 6K - so yeah, kind of heavy, but still within the truck specs. We've got 47K now towing from the Arctic Ocean to the tip of Baja and lots of western states in between. The road in the video is on par with the toughest trails we've taken, but we've made it up there before, and would have this time but for the u-joint mishap. I'm going to head up in advance of our trip next Summer with a demo hammer and a rock chisel to slim down some of those knobs and fill in the crevices. There are a few sections like this, but it shouldn't take more than a weekend's work to make it much more passable. Here's what it looks like at the end.....

NICE VIEW!! two summers ago in Wyoming we camped here, liked it so much we spent a week. I love Boondocking!

 

[Cmar]

I know right, pictures or it didnt happen, I do haul pretty good loads, and the Ranger is a little better than my last truck, I love it and I am going to keep it for a long time cause it serves me very well, so far I havent gotten to the point I stressed it but I was spinning when pulling my buddy buried upto his frame in a tundra with a ton of motorcycle engines in the bed LOL
to make it even worse he had debeeded his back tires! so I was dragging him as well!

Yep that's a decent load. Probably Ok if it was properly balanced, I wouldn't want to do it on a regular basis though!
I do remember towing a heavy car on a trailer up to a friends parents farm about 3 hours from here, many years ago with my old Bronco. Although it was a pretty stable tow platform the old pushrod 4 litre petrol six they used to put in base model Bronco's and F100's here in the 1980's did struggle a bit, as to get there from the coast you have to cross the great dividing range, and some of the climbs are pretty steep if not too long. Basically I put it in second gear and kept my foot flat to the floor. ( 1st was too low in the old NP manual boxes) Having said that you could do that all day and you would never kill one of those engines.
Ironically one our favorite camping spots these days is in the same direction and last time I went I remarked to my wife how easily the Ranger (3.2 i5 turbodiesel) with one less litre capacity and one less cylinder, pulls our (heaver) caravan up the same road.

 

[Rp930]

You will just move the problem to the next weakest link.

 

[Rp930]

Man.. it's shit like this that's ruining our backcountry access.

Already happening In a big way.

https://www.hagerty.com/media/news/...n-moab-pit-environmentalists-against-drivers/

 

[Blmpkn]

Seriously.

First rule if entering the backcountry is to TREAD LIGHTLY.

Smashing a 6k lb camper through all that is NOT treading lightly. Just because it can physically be done... doesn't mean it SHOULD be done.

Saying " I'm going back next year with a demo hammer to do even more damage" is NOT treading lightly.

I sound Karen as a MF to some folks I'm sure... but for fucks sake... this is exactly the kind of shit that gets our back country access revoked.


You wanna camp up there? Do it like a normal person, in a tent... or In a little squaredrop... or In the back of your vehicle.

I genuinely hope the OP doesn't moan on about the younger generations and their 'sense of entitlement'... because his attitude here is nothing but.


Imagine the field day the local news outlet would have with a story headlined "man tips over camper accessing remote lake, killing one"

 

[MountainGoat]

Seriously.

First rule if entering the backcountry is to TREAD LIGHTLY.

Smashing a 6k lb camper through all that is NOT treading lightly. Just because it can physically be done... doesn't mean it SHOULD be done.

Saying " I'm going back next year with a demo hammer to do even more damage" is NOT treading lightly.

I sound Karen as a MF to some folks I'm sure... but for fucks sake... this is exactly the kind of shit that gets our back country access revoked.


You wanna camp up there? Do it like a normal person, in a tent... or In a little squaredrop... or In the back of your vehicle.

I genuinely hope the OP doesn't moan on about the younger generations and their 'sense of entitlement'... because his attitude here is nothing but.


Imagine the field day the local news outlet would have with a story headlined "man tips over camper accessing remote lake, killing one"

Yeah hauling your living room out to the woods is very boomerish. Almost crushing your friend with it is low-IQ boomer.

 

[DukeCanBuildit]

“…because the Ravers and Militia Member Wannabees either play electronica at full volume until the sun comes up…”

Maybe this thread should be re-titled Statler and Waldorf go Camping.

 

[pbethel]

This thread is rapidly turning into a cesspool.

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