Towing with a 3L CRD

[Drew]

I thought I'd take the opportunity to share some info etc based on my minimal towing experience with our 2008 3L CRD Auto and our Jayco van (2T ATM).

So the common questions

ATM, GTM, Ball Load, WTF ? Nice little explanation here

What speed should I tow at ?
Drive to the conditions. Some believe 85-90kph is best, others quicker. Now a nice bit of advice an old timer gave me was, "who cares what speed, as long as you are driving safely and to the conditions"

Just don't expect paddy to rocket up hills with any kind of significant weight on it's rear.

5th Gear
The general consensus is don't tow in 5th gear (unless it's flat). This will limit your speed anyway coz there's nothing like a screaming 3L (other than that other screaming coming from the left hand seat ). Also, I have found that if I manage the gear changes myself (rather than letting the TCU do it), the ride is that little more pleasant.

Tyre Pressures
Have a look at the tyre pressures on the van as well. Some manufacturers advise 36 to 38 psi but the tyre manufacturer says more depending on the weight. That's a choice you need to look into and make. Our vans tyres were always bulging at 38psi and when I did the calculation using the actual weight/wheel configuration (found in a caravanning mag) it was supposed to be more like 58psi.

I spoke to a teckie from the tyre people and all I got was "the van manufacturer sets the recommended tyre pressures". So when I asked what would happen if I lost a tyre/van/life because I followed the van manufacturers pressures and not the tyre manufacturers pressures, all I got was silence.

Remember, I am not recommending anything on tyre pressures, you decide.

Modifications
I did my first trip without any mods, paddy did the job but after installing the EGT gauge I'd hate to see what the temps I got to.

So what mods ? Well it's totally up to you (and of course $$) but here's what I did due to $ (and a little laziness )

Installed a ScanGauge, mostly for fuel figures and because they sort of say it will do Auto Transmission temp (but it doesn't) but found I use it now to monitor Boost, water temp and Litres per Hour.

Put in a catch can. Whilst it collects very little driving around town I find that I need to check/empty it after towing.

Upgrade the exhaust, preferably a mandrel bent one. Once again some say 2.75" others 3" and preferably with a bigger dump pipe as well. Just do your own investigations, there are a zillion posts on this forum alone. well ok maybe not that many. I found this mod alone made a noticeable difference to power.

Now that I had the bigger dump pipe (and it came with a place to stick a probe in), I installed an Exhaust Gas Temp (EGT) gauge. Of course you could just get the EGT gauge done on the stock exhaust too .

I now have the ability to watch most temps and fuel usage, speed tends to be lower on the list.

continued...

[Drew]

So now I tow using the Scangauge for boost, fuel usage (the smallest reduction in pressure on the accelerator can sometimes be a significant saving in fuel) & water temp and the EGT to make sure I'm not working paddy too hard, speed comes after those. By that I mean if the temps are OK I can decide to up the speed if I need to if not I take my foot off the go pedal and temps drop.

Intercooler Scoop
I would have to say the stock scoop is not as good as it could be. Nah who am I kidding, it sucks ! On a 30+ degree day I would notice anything from a small decrease in performance to checking that the handbrake wasn't on on those 40+ degree days.
I replaced the scoop with a bigger one and oh my did I see a difference on those hot days ! Whilst there was a decrease it was nowhere near what it used to be.

Torque Converter Locking Kit
It was around this time I was thinking of installing a temp gauge for the transmission, the extreme nomad body from Wholesale Auto Transmissions and a torque converter lockup kit.

Well after talking to a couple of guys here I installed Torque Converter Lockup Kit as it was the cheapest mod to do at the time.

This has made a difference to the comfort factor (constant dropping in and out of overdrive gets tedious) and I found the water temp rarely got over 92C when they would more often before. I find that I even use it when I'm not towing so I found it worthwhile to do.

Blocking the EGR
Because of the mixed consensus about blocking the EGR on a CRD I made the the last mod I did. Will it cause problems or not ? Do I need to fit a Dawes & needle valve etc or not ? So I fitted the blocking plate and now I'm watching the boost and so far the ECU is controlling it just fine with it never going over 16psi. At this stage I'm happy with that.

Future mods
Well tranny fluid temp gauge would be nice to see how hard it's working and if need be a new tranny fluid cooler but to be honest, I'm keeping an eye on temps and oil and will decide later.

Nomad Valve Body from Wholesale Automatics, would be nice but to be honest I don't know what it would bring to the party. Without trying one out I just don't know. Maybe one day someone will let me try out theirs

Performance chip (of some kind), dunno. If I was single and plenty of $ sure but right now with the mods I've done, paddy tows fine....having said that a little more power

Manual Locking Hubs, seriously considering those especially for when I'm reversing into tight spots, much better control. Used 4L to get out of a spot with the van the other day, great while on the mud/grass but once the car was on the road (I thought I had disengaged 4WD) and wind up! Not happy Jan, trying to reverse (with the van at an awkward angle) to disengage 4WD

Ultimately are all these mods worth the $ ? I can say for me sorta. Whilst some do improve power/performance, others improve driveabilty/comfort and some reduce the likelihood of a mechanical failure. This is just a short story of what I have done, you need to make your own mind up, take it to the Minister of War um Finance, grovel, beg and oh wait that's just me right ?

[Drew]

Oh I forgot, don't forget to keep in mind the weight of paddy in all this, so the van might be 2T but add the bull bar, extra fuel, food etc. it doesn't take long to overload the poor thing.

[threedogs]

Don't think you would be disappointed with a chip, if anything I think it would help,
but would it help to the tune of $1200 or whatever chips are worth, and how long to recover that outlay
easiest mod to hide from MOF BTW lol

Would think I'd be using more fuel towing without it.

[TPC]

That was a good write up thanks Drew, I have a few things more to consider now.
Problem is you are making me want to spend more money.
I had never considered the advantage of manual hubs with being able to reverse in low without windup, mine is a manual and I find it a pain to reverse trailers into tight spots up hill.

[threedogs]

That also comes with the choice of camper you have, its way easier to tow and reverse a trailer/camper with a long drawbar.
All 3 trailers I've made I've purposely put a 6 foot/ 1.8mtr draw bar on them, for that very reason, and no problems at all.

[Lemo79]

Thanks Drew, great read.

[Dave_H]

Thanks for the write up.

[Lozwestoz]

Drew,
Great write up mate, good work.
Speaking of the chip, I installed a Chip-It system in Nov 2011 at about $1000 (at the time).
It gave heaps of power improvements and made the whole car easier to drive when towing (not having to deal with the constant fight to keep the 'lock-up' in was a huge benefit) and the fuel savings it provided gave me my money back within a year. We did a heap of travelling so that shortened the time a bit maybe.
I believe that they are about $1200 fitted these days and could not recommend them higher - I love mine and say a little 'thank-you' each time I hit a long hill or a bit of a head-wind these days.
Good luck
Loz

[Drew]

Drew,
Great write up mate, good work.
Speaking of the chip, I installed a Chip-It system in Nov 2011 at about $1000 (at the time).
It gave heaps of power improvements and made the whole car easier to drive when towing (not having to deal with the constant fight to keep the 'lock-up' in was a huge benefit) and the fuel savings it provided gave me my money back within a year. We did a heap of travelling so that shortened the time a bit maybe.
I believe that they are about $1200 fitted these days and could not recommend them higher - I love mine and say a little 'thank-you' each time I hit a long hill or a bit of a head-wind these days.
Good luck
Loz

What size/type van/trailer mate ?