toyota hiace?

[Derek]

Hi,

I'm looking at buying a 86 2L 5sp manual rear-wheel-drive Toyota Hiace for
short-term camping/fishing recreational purposes. It's quite old and done
400+ clicks but is in good condition with a recently new reconditioned
engine put in. It currently doesn't have a towbar attached but I'm looking
at getting one put on.

Does anyone out there know,
* How much a towbar would cost to buy and install?
* What the towing capacity of it is?
* Wether towing say a 15ft boat is a good idea for a van this old,
considering I don't want it dying in the ass in 2 years time?

Any knowledge/experience/comments about Toyota Hiace's much appreciated.
Going to buy this week.

Cheers
Derek

[Bernie Gibbens]

Post by Derek
Does anyone out there know,
* How much a towbar would cost to buy and install?

300 bucks or so, depending on where you go and what type of bar you buy...

Post by Derek
* What the towing capacity of it is?

Again, it depends largely on what type of bar you buy. Anywhere between 1600
and 2000kg I think.

Post by Derek
* Wether towing say a 15ft boat is a good idea for a van this old,
considering I don't want it dying in the ass in 2 years time?

Vans generally don't make great tow vehicles, as they can struggle with
their own weight at certain times. For around town towing they're generally
not too bad, but for anything long distance I'd consider something a little
more powerful.

Regards,
Noddy.

[Graham]

86 Toyota Hiace
* How much a towbar would cost to buy and install?

Depending on the exact model, Hayman Reese list three different bars
priced at $226, $312 or $299.

* What the towing capacity of it is?

1000kg.

* Wether towing say a 15ft boat is a good idea for a van this old,
considering I don't want it dying in the ass in 2 years time?

What does your 15 foot boat weigh? My 16ft trailer sailer weighs 660kg.
A 15ft open tinny might only be 400kg, a 15ft half cabin with a BIG
motor might be 900kg.

[Derek]

Post by Graham

86 Toyota Hiace
* How much a towbar would cost to buy and install?

Depending on the exact model, Hayman Reese list three different bars
priced at $226, $312 or $299.

* What the towing capacity of it is?

1000kg.

* Wether towing say a 15ft boat is a good idea for a van this old,
considering I don't want it dying in the ass in 2 years time?

What does your 15 foot boat weigh? My 16ft trailer sailer weighs 660kg.
A 15ft open tinny might only be 400kg, a 15ft half cabin with a BIG
motor might be 900kg.

It's a 15ft half-cabin with a 15hp motor (not very new) so I guess it's
around the 800kg mark. The longest distance to tow it would be a max of
100km and I wouldn't be towing it regularly, only once a month at the most.
Has anyone had experience with wear and tear from towing heavy loads and can
advise wether I should go ahead with the purchase?

Also could anyone advise wether pulling a 15ft half-cabin cruiser out of the
water is going to be a struggle?

Cheers,
Derek

[Graham]

Post by Derek

Post by Graham

86 Toyota Hiace
* How much a towbar would cost to buy and install?

Depending on the exact model, Hayman Reese list three different
bars priced at $226, $312 or $299.

* What the towing capacity of it is?

1000kg.

* Wether towing say a 15ft boat is a good idea for a van this
old, considering I don't want it dying in the ass in 2 years
time?

What does your 15 foot boat weigh? My 16ft trailer sailer weighs 660kg.
A 15ft open tinny might only be 400kg, a 15ft half cabin with a
BIG motor might be 900kg.

It's a 15ft half-cabin with a 15hp motor (not very new) so I guess
it's around the 800kg mark. The longest distance to tow it would be
a max of 100km and I wouldn't be towing it regularly, only once a
month at the most.
Has anyone had experience with wear and tear from towing heavy
loads and can advise wether I should go ahead with the purchase?

I've been towing my trailer sailer with an N13 Pulsar for six years now.
It's adequate (and no more than adequate), and I see no point in
spending several thousand dollars more on a bigger car.

Post by Derek
Also could anyone advise wether pulling a 15ft half-cabin cruiser
out of the water is going to be a struggle?

I don't have any problems. The lower gearing and RWD of the Hiace will
probably help, though if it's empty you may have traction problems. A
little bit of technique helps, avoid pulling straight up a loose surface
if you can pull across.

[kevcat]

Post by Derek
It's a 15ft half-cabin with a 15hp motor (not very new) so I guess it's
around the 800kg mark. The longest distance to tow it would be a max of
100km and I wouldn't be towing it regularly, only once a month at the most.
Has anyone had experience with wear and tear from towing heavy loads and can
advise wether I should go ahead with the purchase?
Also could anyone advise wether pulling a 15ft half-cabin cruiser out of the
water is going to be a struggle?

The Hiace van is rated at 1 tonne(atually they can usually carry about 1
1/4 tonne)
a 15 foot boat is nothing
these vehicles are made to carry around a load all day long, that's what
they are designed to do
so don't worry about how long it will last, it will last for years if
you treat it right(servicing and repairs)

the only problen you may have is traction if the boat ramp is steep or
wet(or both)
if you have something in the back to add weight over the rear axle it
should be fine, the diff ratio will be around 4.11:1 and as stated they
are rated at 1 tonne so the first gear should have no trouble with
regards to enough power

just be aware that at highway speeds the wind resistance will kill any
power over 90kph so don't expect to be able to maintain 100kph if there
is a strong head wind or hills while towing the boat


last of all, Engine, gearbox and diff is shared with the Hilux if that
gives you any idea of it's reliability

Kev

[Boc©]

Post by Derek

Post by Graham

86 Toyota Hiace
* How much a towbar would cost to buy and install?

Depending on the exact model, Hayman Reese list three different bars
priced at $226, $312 or $299.

* What the towing capacity of it is?

1000kg.

* Wether towing say a 15ft boat is a good idea for a van this old,
considering I don't want it dying in the ass in 2 years time?

What does your 15 foot boat weigh? My 16ft trailer sailer weighs 660kg.
A 15ft open tinny might only be 400kg, a 15ft half cabin with a BIG
motor might be 900kg.

It's a 15ft half-cabin with a 15hp motor (not very new) so I guess it's
around the 800kg mark. The longest distance to tow it would be a max of
100km and I wouldn't be towing it regularly, only once a month at the most.
Has anyone had experience with wear and tear from towing heavy loads and can
advise wether I should go ahead with the purchase?
Also could anyone advise wether pulling a 15ft half-cabin cruiser out of the
water is going to be a struggle?
Cheers,
Derek

HI there - I use my 91 Toyota hiace 2.4 to tow around my ski boat - My boat
is about 17 foot long with a 350 chev - I carry all my tools and have a van
full of racks with parts on board - my van weight without boat and all
tools onboard ect is about 1.5 tonne - I don't have to much trouble when
towing my skiboat - the only main thing to note is coming up the boat
ramps - you may have to use a little more clutch than your accustom too (
presuming you drive a manual ) I have also towed 19 foot ski boats with
little effort.

Takes a little longer to get to cruise speed on the free way - but I have no
trouble getting to 100 Kmh ( note that any trailer load over 850 kg cap
requires brakes on the trailer and max highway speed of 80 kmh )

If your looking for a tow bar - try coldies tow bars ( Sydney ) they provide
onsite installations - so they come to you rather than you to them - so
would be easy to get them to come to your work rather having to wait an hour
in a shop whilst its being fitted :) I don't have there number handy but
you do see signs around Sydney - main sign I can think of is at the horse
knackery at Riverstone ( bushes pet foods ) near the corner of Windsor road
and Garfield rd Riverstone

Boc

[kevcat]

Post by Boc©
max highway speed of 80 kmh )

Only in NSW

Kev

[Graham]

Post by kevcat

Post by Boc©
max highway speed of 80 kmh )

Only in NSW

No longer in NSW.
The 80kph limit for trailers over 750kg (not 850kg) was dropped quite
some time back.