OK you all. I have a question on using the Disco. for towing. I have a 27-foot boat that is right at the max. tow capacity stated by Land Rover. I use my 2004 disco to tow it around town, to the marina and back, etc.

I recently moved from seattle to Kennewick, WA (230 miles) and it's time to haul the boat over since things are warming up around here. I have a little apprehention in using my Land Rover to tow it this far with one major mountain pass (snoqualmie pass).

Does anyone else have experience towing something this large with their land rover? Does it hold up well or have you noticed your Rover wearing down a bit quicker in the mechanical dept.?

 

With that kind of trip, be very careful. Make sure everything is fresh and topped off. If you can pull over going up the pass and switch to low range, I would do it. You will only be able to go about 35, but it will be much less strain on your tranny and engine.

I pull my little 16' all over, but I can fell it back there going up steep grades. I would not pull a boat that big over a mountain pass with mine unless I could shift it down first.

 

I assume you have a trailer brake controller.
I would NOT tow that thing any farther than the end of my driveway without one.

Make sure the trans is in 3rd gear the whole time, set the cruise at 60mph and go for it man!!
Keep a eye on the temp gauge and use the highest octane gas you can.
And like OKDGuy said, use low range and engine braking when going down the back side of the mountain.

 

Oh yes, I have 4-wheel disk brakes on the trailer. They are hydraulic surge brakes though so you really have to stomp on the Rover brakes to get much braking effort out of the trailer.

The Rover handles the 27-foot boat with relative ease in town and awesome on slick and steep boat ramps (gotta love that AWD 4-lo) feature for street use on the 2004 Disco.

That said, the short wheel base and high profile of the disco does not lend well to a warm and fuzzy tow vehicle feeling at highway speeds with over 6000# pushing it.

 

Well first off the Rover is NOT all wheel drive, it is full time four wheel drive.
AWD cars do not have a low range, AWD cars use clutches to transfer power front to rear and side to side.
Full time 4x4's use good old reliable noisy gears.

 

True enough. I choose to use the term AWD when I refer to the feature that LR has that allows you to use lo-range on hard pavement.

Most people that own 4x4 vehicles don't comprehend that concept...lol