V8 or Deisel for towing

wendy5050 · Newbie

V8 or Deisel for towing

Peter_n_Margaret · Guru

Diesel very time, no competition!
Longer life, better torque, better fuel economy....
Check out the new Tojo 70 series 4.5L V8 diesel, and get both.... they are claiming 11L/100km.

Peter_n_Margaret · Guru

Unfortunately, I can't offer any towing comparisons, but the following may be of interest:

A couple of years ago we did a bush trip west of the 'Rock', the east McDonalds, the Oodnadatta Track and the Flinders Ranges, several thousand km, in the company of friends. Both vehicles travelled the same roads at the same speeds.
Our OKA has a 4 cylinder, 4 litre, turbo charged diesel. It happily cruises at 100kmph if required. It had covered 350,000 km on the engine at the time. It weighed a tad over 5 tonns for this trip and has the aerodynamics of a brick!
Our friends were driving a petrol / gas 4.2 litre 6 cylinder 80 series Toyota Landcruiser. They weighed around 3 tonns.

The Landcruiser used 24 litres per 100 km.
The OKA used 16 litres per 100 km.

We are currently in Kununurra. Petrol & diesel are similarly priced at around $1.57 - $1.60 per litre. Your "$10 - 15K" price difference dissapears pretty quick, especially away from the big cities.

wendy5050 · Newbie

Well first of all thanks for the info from both of you, hope to hear from some others soon. Have carried out further investigation through RACQ and other sites. The general impression is if you can afford it go with the diesel especially if you intend to keep the vehicle for more than 30,000km. We have put our selves into a narrow position with only about 3 choices. Land cruiser, Patrol or Land rover as we are going to be pulling a 2.5ton van.
A friend of mine found this link that just about sums it up if anyone else is interested.
art-1---Large-Wagons" title="http://www.overlander.com.au/vehicle_tests/vehicle_manufacturer/274/Ssangyong/33/2006-Tow-Test

art-1---Large-Wagons">http://www.overlander.com.au/vehicle_tests/vehicle_manufacturer/274/Ssangyong/33/2006-Tow-Test

art-1---Large-Wagons

Allow about an extra 10ltrs per 100km for petrol V diesel so about $1500 per 10,000km travelled. biggrin

Peter_n_Margaret · Guru

We don't own one, but again there is only ONE choice if you want parts and service ALL over the country.
Just look at what they drive in the bush, on cattle stations, in the mines, the Police.....
You won't see a Land Rover, or a Patrol....or too many 100 series Landcruisers either......but you can get a new rear spring for a 75 or 78 series 'Cruiser at any hardware store.
Unless you want fancy upholstery and trim there is no choice, even accepting a fair debate on the qualities of the competition.