Gareth
Site Moderator
Member Since: 07 Dec 2004
Location: Bramhall
Posts: 26772
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Just got back from a weeks caravaning in the Lake District.
Suffice to say that the D3 is the most accomplished tow car I have had. It pulled my 1450 kg double axle with absolute ease. No sway or pitch, and really relaxed cruising on the motorway.
The fuel consumption really shocked me though. I get around 24-26 mpg normal use, and was expecting it to dip below 20 mpg with the caravan. But I was gobsmacked when I checked the consumption and it was doing 22 mpg towing.
I have the "Land Rover" button set to raise or lower the suspension, and this is really great for hitching up.
I was a bit worried about not being able to use my stabiliser with the D3 plug in tow bracket, but it does not need it, it is so stable.
Command shift is superb for keeping the gearbox stable when ascending hills in tow. In auto, it did hunt up and down a bit, but not as much as the old D2. With Command Shift, its easy.
I notice that the rear fog lamps on the car still work with the caravan plugged in. On all other cars I have had, these have been disabled when plugged in, to stop the reflection dazzling in the mirror.
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 3rd Apr 2005 7:58 pm |
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marc
Member Since: 21 Feb 2005
Location: Nottingham
Posts: 169
 
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Gareth,
I agree with you on how excellent the Disco 3 is at towing a caravan.
I only had 300 miles on mine when I towed my caravan and my first impressions were superb.
The fact that the width of the Disco vs. my caravan are almost the same so visibility is excellent, and although I put extension mirrors on I found that I was not actually looking through them due to the enormous standard Disco mirrors that are more than adequate.
The next thing I noticed was that no extra revs were needed to get the outfit moving.
Anyway whilst on the move I found that there was hardly any pitching and rolling (only noticeable on very bad surfaces and whilst driving over mini roundabouts (I forgot the van was on the back at that point   ) and I was incredibly impressed how the wind (it was very windy on the way to the campsite) did not affect the outfit even when driving on roads high in the Derbyshire Peaks at 50mph with lorries etc driving close by in the opposite direction.
MPG wise I am getting about 26 solo and 23ish towing (although I haven't towed on the motorway yet so it might improve).
I just love this car the more I have it.
Cheers
Marc Disco 3 now gone!!
Discovery 3 S spec 2.7 V6 Diesel. 
Previous Car to D3: Seat Leon Cupra R with a nice 280 bhp...... Sad to see it go 
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| 4th Apr 2005 11:46 am |
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Pelyma
Member Since: 06 Jan 2005
Location: Patching, Sussex
Posts: 15496
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Well I've recovered from our 10 days away with the caravan. Mine is a single axle van MTPLM of 1414kgs. It pulled like a dream. My wife's Frontera always pulled it well, but it was so much easier with the disco. I particularly found reversing easier, possibly because of the much more responsive steering.
I only noticed gear changes on hills, using cruise control on the motorway made the drive very relaxing and the auto box was wonderful in heavy traffic and manoevering on site.
Not too many discos in the New Forest, I saw a Bonatti grey one in Brockenhurst (S) with the fixed towbar (not so sure about its looks) a silver SE in Burley (looked like HSE wheels and rubbing strips) a blue one in Lyndhurst and a bonatti grey one towing on M27 near J1 as I was going home. No Disco3.co.uk stickers though DS3 TDV6 HSE - Silver with Alpaca (old one) Gone
DS3 TDV6 HSE- Silver with Alpaca (new one) Gone
D4 HSE Lux - Montalcino Red Gone
Porsche Cayenne V8 Diesel S
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| 5th Apr 2005 7:46 am |
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