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The (world famous) Defender and Trailer Thread

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  #11  
Old 04-03-2022, 05:14 PM
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It seems like there is no way to stay within the LR guidelines/requirements for the distance from hitch pin to tow ball here in USA/Canada. (6.9" max)

The designs of trailers are geared toward pick-up truck tow vehicles and have a much shorter tongue than UK/Euro/Australian trailers.

Fitting a NAS trailer to a tow ball < 6.9" from the hitch pin will be very difficult on the Defender.

I picked up this ball mount. In it's longer setting the ball sits just below the outside edge of the spare.



WDH seems to be contra-indicated with the Defender. All that fancy air suspension electronics does its job there. Plenty of weight on the rear axle already. Sway is another issue perhaps.

Here is a video that covers a few things relevant to this thread.

I'm new to all of this. I've not towed anything ever. That will be changing soon.



 
  #12  
Old 04-03-2022, 05:29 PM
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Originally Posted by GavinC
It seems like there is no way to stay within the LR guidelines/requirements for the distance from hitch pin to tow ball here in USA/Canada. (6.9" max)

The designs of trailers are geared toward pick-up truck tow vehicles and have a much shorter tongue than UK/Euro/Australian trailers.

Fitting a NAS trailer to a tow ball < 6.9" from the hitch pin will be very difficult on the Defender.

I picked up this ball mount. In it's longer setting the ball sits just below the outside edge of the spare.



WDH seems to be contra-indicated with the Defender. All that fancy air suspension electronics does its job there. Plenty of weight on the rear axle already. Sway is another issue perhaps.

Here is a video that covers a few things relevant to this thread.

I'm new to all of this. I've not towed anything ever. That will be changing soon.

I have something similar for the lighter RV. I have a couple of calls in to a couple of RV dealers to see what they say and if i can bring the new RV in for them to install what I need.
 
  #13  
Old 07-02-2022, 12:46 PM
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Default 4500lbs or so. First time hauling



First time hauling anything with the Defender. Probably only about 4500lbs and ~25' trailer

The 12" length of the draw bar allowed the spare to be cleared.

Any shorter with this setup would mean removing it.







The safety chains fit in the hitch receiver. Only just.




Probably a case of the Indian blaming the arrow here, but the advanced tow assist feature was about as useful as **** on a bull.

Arm and head out the window did the job. At least I gave the other campers a chuckle, watching me struggle so.
 

Last edited by GavinC; 07-02-2022 at 12:50 PM.
  #14  
Old 07-03-2022, 10:38 AM
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Do they make a weight distribution hitch for the Defender yet? If not what has everyone else done that is pulling things that = GVWR
 
  #15  
Old 07-03-2022, 10:47 AM
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Originally Posted by jmoney05txst
Do they make a weight distribution hitch for the Defender yet? If not what has everyone else done that is pulling things that = GVWR

People do use weight distribution hitches, there are quite a few threads here in which folks talk about it.

just know that you are going against jlr’s strong recommendation. To my limited understanding, the monocoque frame is ill suited to the torque a weight distribution hitch can and will apply to it in some situations. So I guess you have to balance the risk of total loss (doubtful if the full frame is bent that it can be repaired) versus less sway as you load up your trailer to the max.
 
  #16  
Old 07-03-2022, 11:20 AM
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We regularly tow a TAB400 trailer at about 3500lbs with a hitch weight if about 400lbs. I would avoid long draw bars (they add excessive strain to you hitch and mess up the built-in anti-sway algorithms) and WDHs (because they are a pain to use and you don't need them if you have air suspension). I solved the spare tire overhang problem this way:
https://landroverforums.com/forum/20...e2/#post826111
When looking for a new trailer I'd pay special attention to making sure it will work with the LR recommended hitch length.
 
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  #17  
Old 07-03-2022, 06:03 PM
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Waiting to get the 110 but bought it with the goal of off road friendly towable. Currently bouncing between the Opus OP-15 and Conqueror UEV 490. ~ 5000 GVWR range, with fully articulating hitch. Leaning towards the Conqueror.
 
  #18  
Old 07-03-2022, 06:50 PM
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The Curt EchoSmart Brake controller worked perfectly well.

Great for folks like myself who tow infrequently I reckon.

Fun little trip with the clan in this rented trailer. I'd prefer to stay within the JLR specs for the drawbar, but needs must, and the 12" worked. No WDH.




 

Last edited by GavinC; 07-03-2022 at 06:52 PM.
  #19  
Old 07-04-2022, 01:36 AM
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Originally Posted by GavinC


The Curt EchoSmart Brake controller worked perfectly well.

Great for folks like myself who tow infrequently I reckon.

Fun little trip with the clan in this rented trailer. I'd prefer to stay within the JLR specs for the drawbar, but needs must, and the 12" worked. No WDH.
ours sort of crapped out. I had to keep deleting and reinstalling the app, the rebooting the phone and unhooking and reinstalling the brake for it to keep working properly. Every time we turned off the ignition.
 
  #20  
Old 07-04-2022, 10:49 AM
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Not towing now, but I've got a 25' Airstream which should be delivered in September. The 7,300 lbs GVWR of the trailer is well within the P400 specs of 8,200. However, the trailer tongue weight of 880 exceeds the specs of 771. To address that, I had the hitch attachment strengthened. I'm using a Eaz-lift Elite weight distribution hitch with sway control. And yes, the manual says trucks with air suspension should not use WD hitches, but the towing experts with whom I've been working recommend this setup and folks with an identical setup are reporting an excellent towing experience. The spare will get in the way of the trailer jack. The hitch was shortened to improve the leverage so I've moved the spare to the roof rack. I chose the Redarc Tow-Pro Elite brake controller and installed the control in the spare knock-out below the dash dimmer switch.

 

Last edited by POPTOPP; 07-04-2022 at 10:55 AM.


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