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cclarkego · 07-22-2009, 05:38 PM

A very good friend is offering to trade their 1996 Range Rover straight over for my 2002 Chevy Malibu.

I need a new tow vehicle since I ruined my transmission trying to pull my 24" Tradewind with my 1996 Ford Explorer to Montana and back to California. (I knew it was iffy weight wise...but it was my first trip ever)
My mechanic patched me up, but warned NOT to pull the trailer again)

Comparison:

1996 Range Rover HSE 4.6L with 4WD and AC 140,000
in good condition, runs great (I checked KellyBB which quoted $6000)

2002 Chevy Malibu 40,000 in perfect condition
I had planned to sell it for $6000

My question, how well do the Range Rovers hold up over time and in towing my size Airstream? My friend is only concerned, knowing my tight budget on a limited income, that if anything were to go wrong, it would very expensive to fix. This person is a best buddy, totally trustworthy and assures me everything runs fine. I know no one can predict the future.
I have a incredible mechanic who owns a great shop nearby and even barters engine work for art, who said he would look it over and help me out the best he can if needed.

I would just like to throw this out there to the Airstream world and get as many opinions as I can.....It would be so nice to be able to tow my trailer again to travel....

bob34787 · 07-22-2009, 05:49 PM

as an old land rover owner I can add my .02$ if the previous owner has had all of the factory maintenance done than it would be fine. you must remember that brakes on the rover run in the 900-1200 range and if it has the air suspension you will easily spend more on replacing it as they are prone to wear. my 03 discovery only had a tow capacity of 5000 lbs and it got 11 mpg on the highway, also it must be run with premium gas. As a side note I treaded my 03 discovery in last year with 34,000 miles on it and only got 5,500.

remcolent · 07-22-2009, 05:51 PM

Arange rover is a Europeaan car.
Hitch weigt overhere is around 250 pound max !!!!!
how about the prices for the wear and tear parts?
I have a chevy overhere in the netherlands and there are almost no parts in stock.
And prices are $$$$
I can inmadgene that it is the same for european cars in the US,
A range rover has a short wheel base and a high center of gravety.
It is a good TV for a horse trailor but not for a longer airstream I think.
I did tow my 32 ft airstream with a rang rover once.
That was without WD and it was unsafe above 40 mph.

stufarmer · 07-22-2009, 05:52 PM

Very expensive maintence. You can't just go to Pep boys and have repairs done. You'll need to find a european repair facility for your services. Other than that...they're a nice vehicle.

47WeeWind · 07-22-2009, 06:07 PM

I have never owned a Range Rover so won't comment. But others who have towed Airstreams with them have posted remarks in these forums over the past years. Click on the "Search" name in the blue bar above, then enter "Range Rover tow" in the Google search bar to find past posts here about towing with Range Rovers. You can get a broader range of responses to part of your question by using the search function in this particular instance. Have fun!