Towing with a Rabbit, can it handle it?

[mpg]

how much does a passat wagon weigh? i towed one(chain-styles) with my rabbit 1.6D for about 10kms, but most of it was up hill... there was a guy steering the passat, and myself driving, plus a whack of tools in my car... i did'nt have much trouble besides the really steep hills. Come to think of it, i used that rabbit to pull alot of random things... like the engine out of said passat :lol:

[Red Rabbit]

So Lanny.....what happened with your Dubber deal down in the States?.....hope there's a happy ending.....

[BlackTieTD]

the plan right now is to take a trip down there on december 4th with my aircooled-savy friend, re-install headlights and taillights as well as front glass, and drive the beast home monday, december 5th, crossing at lewiston for 8am (when they open). biggest snag is being able to get a temporary permit from the MTO for a US-reged vehicle. i will have all pertinent documents as originals, not copies, but you never know what the MTO will do until you get there and see what kind of day they're having.

[Red Rabbit]

Uberkoolhippievagon!!!!!!  What are the long term plans for it?.......

[BlackTieTD]

Uberkoolhippievagon!!!!!!

  thanks red rabbit! there are more pics of it in this thread, near the bottom...as well as a description and 80-pg owner's manual.

What are the long term plans for it?.......

its a kombi, which means its basically a panel bus (cargo bus with no interior panels, side windows or seats behind the driver), but with 3 pop-out windows on each side behind the driver.

i bought a kombi because i would like to attempt to fit it with a mix of camper and standard bus interior, sort of a customization using mainly OE and camper parts. a lot of the old campers and standard buses that are within my price range have trashed interiors anyway, so starting with essentially no rear interior at all isn't far off from where i would have been if i had bought a well-used standard or camper. i'll pick the desired interior pieces here and there from parts buses as i find them, there are a few local ones with rotted out bodies due to the salt issues in ontario.

in order to make this project cost-feasible, i focused on the most important factor: super SOLID BODY, with other key 'desirables' being walk-thru front seats (allowing passengers to move from the driver compartment to the rear without going outside), the wide rear 'hatch' (bus will also be a parts/furniture/building supplies hauler), at least an 11-window model (which kombis are), and 'nice to haves' were healthy running motor and fresh brakes (which the kombi has, allowing it to be road-driven immediately).

so the big obstacle before me for this winter is finding, rebuilding, and installing the entire interior. the other main obstacle is rust repair. although minor, the small rust issues are daunting to someone like me who has very little experience in body work. i'm more leary of messing it up than anything but i hope this will be a good opportunity for me to improve on those abilities.

after that is all taken care of, it would be real nice to put a fresh coat of DIY paint on... but coming back to reality, i will likely be pressed for time as it is getting the bus ready from spring camping trips, so paint will wait... or maybe never happen.

i'm still very undecided about the motor situation... if the bus came with no motor i would almost certainly be putting in a 1.6L TD with a KEP adaptor plate. however, since the OE motor is recently rebuilt and by all unbiased reports runs very strong, i will likely leave it in the bus until it gives me reason to do otherwise.

as always, 'OE+' is the 'theme'

[BlackTieTD]

How do you all feel about this?

Towing the 2330Ibs bus home with a V6 Nissan Pathfinder that weighs 3800Ibs? The only catch is that I want to use a true 4-wheel trailer, not the 2-wheel dolley. Uhaul 4-wheel trailers weigh 1800Ibs unloaded.

4-wheel trailer+bus:
1800Ibs+2330Ibs = 4130Ibs

2-wheel dolley+nissan 240sx+4 spare tires+6'5" dude:
650Ibs+2730Ibs+~100Ibs+~250Ibs = 3730Ibs
(we've done this a few times, and besides the 240 getting a little sway going when we're travelling above 90km/h in high winds only, its been fine, hills and all)

If it was a struggle up hills, I could always pull the bus off the trailer and drive it up on its own, then reload it. I'm more concerned with pulling about 4130Ibs with a vehicle that's curb weighs is about 3800Ibs, about 4150Ibs loaded. Will it be stable?

The other option is to go down there this weekend in the rabbit, drive the bus back, and hope the snow holds off and that the salt residue on the roads doesn't make its way up under the bus (which it will if there is any rain/snow at all). This is more risky from a legality stand-point... I don't know if the US cops will want to recognize an Ontario temp permit.

What do you guys think about that?

[BlackTieTD]

Pathfinder tow capacity is stated as 3500Ibs.

I also have the option of taking the hatches/doors off the bus and putting them into the pathfinder to add more weight to the lead 'anchor' vehicle while taking away weight from the vehicle being towed. Any thoughts?

[Otis2]

Not sure if you got my PM, but I have used a '95 Nissan Pathfinder with 3.0 litre gas V6 as a tow vehicle, and it SUCKED.  I was towing much less weight than you, too, at about 2000 lbs (although possibly I had worse wind resistance because of flapping canvas covers on the trailer).  Fuel economy was commonly 24 litres/100 km, and my foot was pretty much to the floor the whole time.  Engine did not have enough torque to shift up to 5th gear, even on the flats, and I was frequently down to 3rd gear with even minor hills or middling head-winds.

That vehicle is just not up to the job.  Beg, borrow, or rent a full sized US pickup with a V8 and serious tow rating, and do the job right.  You will be safer and MUCH less frustrated.

[BlackTieTD]

hi otis,
yep i got your PM, thank you.
i wonder what the problem might have been with the vehicle you were using. we have towed at least 3000Ibs behind the pathfinder many times with no complaints. the motor doesn't struggle, going up hills is fine... the only trouble to speak of would be in very high cross-winds while driving above about 90km/h the tail starts to wag the dog. i would imagine that if your tow vehicle was in proper order that the wind resistance of what you were towing would have to have been the problem.

the tow capacity of the pathfinder is 3500Ibs, and what we are hoping to tow will be just over 4000Ibs. we've exceeded tow capacities before with no trouble when using an olds as the tow vehicle. it just means you have to triple check all safety mechanisms, stop frequently to recheck/tighten... and drive very carefully/slowly. i won't be in a rush, fuel economy is a concern but not a great one. you were covering thousands of miles with your rig, we will be attempting just over 400. slow and sure... i think we'll make it.

any other thoughts?

[BlackTieTD]

hello diesel forum.
thanks everyone for all the advice about this.
we got the bus home safe and sound, will post more soon!!