Like I don't have enough money pits around, I'm thinking of picking up a boat lol. I'm confused as to what I would need for towing with the 04 though. I see varying info. It does look like the truck was ever used to tow, and I'm not sure what is there from the factory. Besides throwing the hitch and ball into the receiver, what is needed for the harness? It would be a trailer with surge brakes.
I'm new to towing in general, so very in the dark here. Also, it would be very short distances with the Disco. Long tows I would use the MDX like when we go to Florida.

 

There are a couple ways to add the lighting connection:

1) Do it yourself and patch into the correct wires in the right rear tail light with a universal 4 plug flat you can buy from Wall-mart for around $40 I believe. You will need to use the wiring diagram/colors from RAVE to get the correct wires and splice in the pigtail ends on the trailer light adapter. Universal wiring kit also available on Amazon. http://www.amazon.com/Hopkins-46155-.../dp/B0002Q8036

Here is a link on installing the Univeral wiring kit with pictures. http://www.discoweb.org/trailerwire/index.htm

2) There is a kit that plugs into the factory LR proprietary plug up behind that same right rear tail light that makes it plug and play. AB has it but it is a bit more cash at $100, and there is an instruction video here as well. Land Rover Trailer Wiring Kit (Same Fit As Genuine Part # HIL-734)


LAND ROVER Tail Light Wiring
GREEN with WHITE Stripe RIGHT TURN
GREEN with RED Stripe LEFT TURN
RED with ORANGE Stripe TAIL/PARK
GREEN With PURPLE Stripe BRAKE
BLACK WIRE GROUND

There are some good sites about towing that I read and re-read before beginning to tow with my D2. I will find some of those links and share them here as well.

 

Thanks. My main question is how it ties into the brakes. I saw the kit and other ones like you posted, but I'm confused as to if there are different kits for trailers with brakes and without. The trailer with the boat I'm looking at has surge brakes. I'm assuming they are electric actuated but I really don't know. Info I found says the are activated by just the deceleration of the tow vehicle, but didn't know if it was more than that with electrical or not. Again, new to any type of towing!

 

If you have a surge brake nothing to tie into the brakes. The surge of the trailer measured inside the surge brake assembly with the forward force of the trailer activates the brakes independent of the tow vehicle. If you want to use electric brakes on a trailer you will need a 7 pin plug on the tow vehicle, and the trailer brake controller up front and wire the brake controller bring brake control wire to the rear. There is an adapter I used since I had the 4 ping flat using for my utility trailer that allowed me to plug the 4 pin flat in the back of it and then just add the electric brake wiring and aux.power wiring to the back of that plug. Take a look at the brake controllers and they will give you the wiring setup. This is what I used to make my 4 pin flat become 7 pin round and still keep my 4 pin flat for my utility trailer. Again, it has a diagram for what needs to be wired in as well. Basically the braking is separate setup based on brake controller wiring and it then joins the trailer wiring at the back of this multi-plug.

In regard to the electric brake controller, they run anywhere from $75-$125 IIRC, I am going from memory here, but connect direct to the battery with a 30A circuit breaker you can get from RV dealer very cheap. Run some heavy wiring from front to back for the brake control wire and power to the Aux pin on the 7 plug which I think can also be wired for backup lights if you have backup lights on your trailer, but most people use that pin for Aux power to pass power from the vehicle to the trailer battery.

 

FYI, you will want to know the weight of your boat, just so you know what you have back there if you are getting into any substantial weight. Greater than 3500 lbs, I believe requires electric trailer brakes, so you should be under that if your boat and trailer are correctly mated, so surge brake should do the trick.

 

Dry weight of boat is 2900#. I figure with the trailer it should be around 3500 all in. The one that came with the boat is surge, so I figure it has to meet requirements, although I do know that varies by state. I would likely just use it for picking it up and maybe a couple short trips. Otherwise, I will use the MDX which has some towing advantages over the Rover....the biggest being it is Japanese, has 15k and will be reliable lol. Also, it has a trailer stability system which is nice to have if we make the long haul down to FL with it. Doesn't have low range like the Rover for pulling out of the water, but 300hp and a very good awd system I think it will do ok.

 

Here is your first trailer lesson on launching the boat.. the boat goes in first.

 

Thanks Buzz! Lmao

 

Surge brakes consist essentially of a master cylinder bolted to the trailer with the piston connected to the coupler. When you use the brakes in the tow vehicle, the mass of the trailer compresses the piston and generates pressure in the brake lines. This pressure is carried back to the slave cylinders at the wheels where the brakes are activated. The harder you brake the vehicle, the greater the force on the master cylinder and the greater the braking force in the trailer system.

There is no surge to electric brake transition based on weight. I've hauled boats on triple axle trailers with surge brakes. Here's a nice surge brake unit for the trailer under that 41' Apache your wife has been asking you to buy: Titan Zinc-Plated, Adjustable-Channel Brake Actuator - Drum - Bolt On - 20,000 lbs Titan Trailer Coupler T4831700

Electric brakes are nice because they can be adjusted to match the load on the trailer, but since boat trailers are typically fully loaded this isn't really a concern. I wouldn't recommend electric brakes for a boat because they are getting dunked in the water all of the time. I'm on the coast so trailers are in salt water all the time so most peole get a season out of their brakes if they're lucky.

The only potential issue you may run into with surge brakes on a trailer is the need for a 5 pin plug. Some surge brake setups use a solenoid on the master cylinder at the trailer tongue to lock out the brakes when you back up. The 5th pin is wired to your reverse lights so that when they come on, the solenoid is activated and the brake get locked out. With a lighter boat this is typically not a big issue but heavier trailers can activate the brakes when you try to back them up even a small grade. If you get a trailer with one, you can also skip the wiring for the solenoid which will likely just get broken off soon anyway and use one of these: Boat Trailer Surge Brake Lock Out Key"Back Up Buddy" | eBay

A chunk of 2x4 stuck in the tongue works just as well but will make you look even cheaper than owning a Land Rover does.

 

Newbie here and would greatly appreciate some help. Is a WDH damaging to the suspension of an LR4? Buying a travel trailer and the dealer is suggesting that I use this type of hitch. I can't find anything about it in the owners manual.