Just wanted to share my towing experience with my 2022 110 p300 after buying my new to me 2016 Yamaha 242 limited SE boat long"ish" distance from Atlanta to MS gulf coast. Trip was about 450 miles and should have taken about 7.5 hours while towing but thanks to tractor trailer fire went to about 10 hour drive. Weather was great, wind minimal. Boat with gear and trailer was probably around 6000 pounds, maybe more as it was loaded with full tank of 50 gallons of gas, bunch of water sport stuff and all gear.

I was a bit nervous how it would perform with the 4 cylinder but it did not disappoint as it never has or left me wishing I had the more complicated p400 since the day I test drove both. I have been impressed with this engine and how it can move this big truck and is really quite quick; faster than the 0-60 claim from LR of 7 seconds and even sub 6.5 on my phone app. If I could afford the V8 of course would love it but between the 4 and the 6, if they were the same price I would go with the 6 but is not that far away and just a less complicated set up. Plus the almost 10 grand difference I decided on the p300. The 4 cylinder also sounds a lot better IMO on the 6 cylinders I have driven at dealers (just test drove p400 130) and at cold start sounds like a beast.

Anyway, to the point of the thread.....I was nervous how it would handle a long haul with a bigger load (have pulled similar 230 series Yamahas locally and was great). Long story short (I wont get into the details of the flat tire, trailer fire, 5 oclock traffic DT atlanta) it was amazing. Atlanta is relatively hilly and engine did not struggle at all and very few downshifts to keep up. Tracked true and straight and gas mileage was not as bad as I thought it would be as my experience with towing these size boats at highway speeds is usually about almost half the MPG. I was seeing right at 11 MPG and compared to EPA of 20 MPG on hwy without trailer, so it was about on par. I kept it right at 70 mph and would have fealt 100% comfortable going faster except I had the storage cover on and was really getting sucked tightly with the vacu seals and did not want to tear my $800 cover.....

Case in point, the p300 is a really good engine and can handle towing what it says it can and have confidence it will do so. On a side note, I do notice on my eco mode setting I do see up to 24 mpg gallon on certain trips.....those trips I may only being going 55 mph on our local highway but seems mpg and performance are



better than advertised for my 2022

 

Good to hear. I haven’t towed anything, but my wife and I have thought about getting a small-ish camper. We would likely face more hills/passes, so need to stick to a lighter load. But with the P300, everything I’ve read indicates it is possible.

And I agree 100% on the engine overall. It’s not particularly fast, but for a big boxy SUV, is just fine for highway driving. And my MPG has been very similar. 20ish at freeway speeds, and in the low/mid 20s if I’m on county roads (45-55 speeds).

 

Nice!
6000 lb load is cool, but there's very little wind resistance on these boats.
Would interesting to hear real experience from boxy trailer owner.

 

TeddyG:

Some thoughts are here:

https://landroverforums.com/forum/20...y-mind-109333/

 

We've towed a small caravan with our 90 D250 Commercial and it absolutely walked it.

The caravan weighs around 1,000kg which is not that much, but it's still quite a large trailer and l was expecting some difference in the performance, but there was hardly any.

MPG in the city driving was low 20's rather than the high 20's l normally get, and on the motorway (freeway) it was low 30's rather than high 30's

UK gallons are a little larger than USA but l still was pleased with the mileage.

 

Thanks for the post and input here....super helpful. I have a 2022 110 SE with the 6 cyl. Just purchased a 21 ft Sea Ray (pick up late next month), dry weight with the trailer is around 4200 lbs. Not worried about power etc. but am a little nervous I don't have the right towing set up. Have the factory tow package, picked up a hitch that tows up to 7500 lbs. I remember seeing past posts of people towing, a few had added an aftermarket break controller. Did you do the same with yours or it was plug and play? I know the plugs are there just not sure if you or others had issues connecting the boat trailer with the Defender. Appreciate any thoughts here, thank you!

 

P400 here. Nice boat btw.

My towing has been effortless. But NOISY . So I bought a hitch anti rattle device, an d all has been restored to peace and quiet, effortless towing. Let's Go Aero (SHP2040) Keyless Press-on Locking Silent Hitch Pin for 2in Hitches // . Highly recommend if anyone having this issue.

 

So the trailer is setup with surge brakes and 5 prong harness (I ran 4 prongs) with the 5 prong being I assume the reverse light hookup to shut of the surge brake actuator so I can back up without locking brakes. It stopped well but the trailer brakes were doing the work for the trailer for the most part. I tow enough and some crazy weird stuff over the years and other than your nerves for the first 1/2 hour, you don't even notice it is there and kept my cruiser control on. That was done too rush hour, school zones etc through outer Atlanta metro area.

That being said, around town you would not need the surge brakes and in fact I have a magnetic clip that locks the surge brakes (amazon).