Towbar downward force limit of L Series?

fishboy · Post by **fishboy** » Thu Jan 12, 2012 10:08 am

Can anyone tell me what this is, and if it could be improved with a wee bit of welding?

(I want to put a dirt bike carrier like this http://winghamweldingworks.com.au/index ... cts_id=250 on the back...total weight might be 100kg...)

thunder039 · Post by **thunder039** » Thu Jan 12, 2012 12:33 pm

fishboy wrote:Can anyone tell me what this is, and if it could be improved with a wee bit of welding?

(I want to put a dirt bike carrier like this http://winghamweldingworks.com.au/index ... cts_id=250 on the back...total weight might be 100kg...)

gday mate i had one of these on my foz, although mine a slightly different design. for mine you had to have a heavy duty tow bar, not a normal standard tow bar. if its just a normal one i dare say you will be over loading it

YouTube · Post by **El_Freddo** » Thu Jan 12, 2012 12:51 pm

Yeah as thunder has said, you need the heavy duty tow bar, the one that is the square tube that uses a pin to hold the tow ball tongue in the tow bar assembly like one below:

You might have to have one specifically made to safely handle that weight on the back of the L series.

The next thing to look at is beefing up the rear suspension to be able to safely carry that load. While these devices are great on a big 4wd that makes trailer manoeuvring difficult in tight places, they might not go so well on a small to medium vehicle as the extra weight hanging so far behind the rear wheels may make the traction of the steering wheels very low. I'm sure you'll start spinning the front wheels more often in the L series with this device.

If you've got a trailer it's probably best to stick with this, they don't really weigh a lot and the L series isn't exactly a performance machine from the factory plus the stock brakes need to be used with the knowledge that they're not the best they could be unless you've maintained them to keep them at their peak.

I don't mean to put a downer on this idea, I just want to make sure you've looked at this from all the angles.

Cheers

Bennie

spike · Post by **spike** » Thu Jan 12, 2012 2:17 pm

just to put it into quick words
the L towbar isnt the best, it will tow a trailer but ive broken them from the mounts pulling trees (dead and light) so wouldnt trust them to hold one of these.

light trailer is best

thunder039 · Post by **thunder039** » Thu Jan 12, 2012 2:21 pm

El_Freddo wrote:Yeah as thunder has said, you need the heavy duty tow bar, the one that is the square tube that uses a pin to hold the tow ball tongue in the tow bar assembly like one below:

You might have to have one specifically made to safely handle that weight on the back of the L series.

The next thing to look at is beefing up the rear suspension to be able to safely carry that load. If you've got a trailer it's probably best to stick with this

yea i had the same problem with my stock suspension for the forester wasn't heavy duty enough and was like steering a boat because the front wheels so light.
speaking from experience i would suggest towing a trailer, or if you cant do that your going to up for some $$$$ in tow bars and suspension

fishboy · Post by **fishboy** » Fri Jan 13, 2012 7:25 pm

Okay, I think i'm going to go down the trailer route. Cheers guys.

Mind you, the current way I transport my 185cc trail bike is by lying it on its side in the boot with the rear seats folded down. It fits!! (but leaking fuel is an issue)

thunder039 · Post by **thunder039** » Fri Jan 13, 2012 9:29 pm

fishboy wrote:Okay, I think i'm going to go down the trailer route. Cheers guys.

Mind you, the current way I transport my 185cc trail bike is by lying it on its side in the boot with the rear seats folded down. It fits!! (but leaking fuel is an issue)

just wow

YouTube · Post by **El_Freddo** » Fri Jan 13, 2012 9:34 pm

fishboy wrote:the current way I transport my 185cc trail bike is by lying it on its side in the boot with the rear seats folded down. It fits!! (but leaking fuel is an issue)

And the difference is that the weight is over there rear end, not hanging further out the back from it!

I hope you tie it down so it won't move! And draining the fuel tank before putting it in the back of the car could be a good idea, painful but safer

Got a photo of the bike in the back of the subi?

Cheers

Bennie

spike · Post by **spike** » Fri Jan 13, 2012 10:39 pm

fishboy wrote:Okay, I think i'm going to go down the trailer route. Cheers guys.

Mind you, the current way I transport my 185cc trail bike is by lying it on its side in the boot with the rear seats folded down. It fits!! (but leaking fuel is an issue)

i was going to make that suggestion but thought id get burned =]

drain the fuel and watch the oil and youll be fine. also a lot safer that trailers getting stolen

NachaLuva · Post by **NachaLuva** » Fri Jan 13, 2012 10:45 pm

spike wrote:i was going to make that suggestion but thought id get burned =]

drain the fuel and watch the oil and youll be fine. also a lot safer that trailers getting stolen

Lol

I think the trailer idea is a better option. get a trailer hitch lock & it cant be stolen