1982 BJ-42 Towing Capacity??

[Dougal]

Wayne.....I think your forgetting your arguing against a wall.

He's actually arguing against Toyota.

4 tons in NZ might be a hell of a lot different than in North America. I can tow 10k lbs on small roads. Our tow ratings in NA are for interstates that encompass mountain passes and massive prairies.

Europe has plenty mountains, according to the Europeans in this thread they have a 3 ton tow rating in Norway and a GCM of 6300kg in Belgium. For a fully braked trailer of course.

So far only Jim has posted up Toyotas recommendations for NA at 2500lbs, do you notice there is no mention of trailer brakes there?
Why you'd consider a large flat prairie to be a challenge to tow weight across I do not know. Trailer size would certainly be a concern in the wind, but weight and size are very different things.

 

[mac]

Ok, I'm gonna jump in and share my experience. That IS what it comes down to honestly- experience. I, like Brownbear, towed an unbraked trailer across the Canadian wild and also felt like I reached the limit of my 3b and BJ60. I think I may have even passed it. My trailer weighed in at approx 3000lbs, 31" tires, 3:73 gears and four speed tranny. I don't care what Toyota says is safe or practical, in the REAL world that was not enjoyable and was way too hard on my poor 3b.

To answer you, Dougal, regarding the challenge of towing across a prairie- I can attest to the fact that this is one of the most difficult portions of pulling a load with an underpowered 3b. Prairies are rarely completely flat and so the grade tends to be a loooong one, spanning the prairie. This is something you won't notice driving just anything across the land, but pull a load with a BJ60 or the like and the uphill grade is easily distinguished.

One needs to be realistc regarding these older Toyota diesels. they are reliable, strong, well built engines, but they are not fantastic tow rigs. I don't doubt that the chassis will handle the claims of "T" engineers but consider the beating you are giving to your cylinder head as the egt's climb to sky and stay there because you have to keep your foot planted on the floor board just to maintain forward motion. It's just a crappy way to travel.

As a side point, I gotta say that the way some people on this board defend their point of view is detracting from productive discussion. It's getting tiring.

 

[Dougal]

Ok, I'm gonna jump in and share my experience. That IS what it comes down to honestly- experience. I, like Brownbear, towed an unbraked trailer across the Canadian wild and also felt like I reached the limit of my 3b and BJ60. I think I may have even passed it. My trailer weighed in at approx 3000lbs, 31" tires, 3:73 gears and four speed tranny. I don't care what Toyota says is safe or practical, in the REAL world that was not enjoyable and was way too hard on my poor 3b.

What do you have for brakes on such a trailer?

 

[mac]

No brakes, as stated. Stopping honestly wasn't really an issue. I felt the engine braking did a good job even in the passes. The issue was lack of power. I can't see a 3b living the long life that most of them do if they are subjected to that kind of abuse too often. I'm glad I didn't have a pyrometer. Not to mention it just plain sucks to climb pass after pass in 2nd gear while seniors driving Winnebegos pass and wave.

 

[brownbear]

To answer you, Dougal, regarding the challenge of towing across a prairie- I can attest to the fact that this is one of the most difficult portions of pulling a load with an underpowered 3b. Prairies are rarely completely flat and so the grade tends to be a loooong one, spanning the prairie. This is something you won't notice driving just anything across the land, but pull a load with a BJ60 or the like and the uphill grade is easily distinguished.

The prairies are actually the hardest of the towing IMOP. The grades like said above are long and winds unrelenting. I found country towing with 80-90 km speed limits really easy towing. But the prairies with 110 km speed, huge head winds and fast traffic the worst part of the experience. It's not uncommon to have 100 km an hour winds to buck. Odd I never had a tail wind.

When I crossed the prairies last week it was 35 C and I had 80 kmh head winds. My truck was barely able to hold 90 kmh full out with 12 psi boost for 900 kms. Stock I doubt it would be possible. I was above the GVW for the vehicle with the trailer an loads on the truck.

 

[CountFloyd]

****! That was an annoying read...
Still no comcensus...

 

[-MaTTi-]

Europe has plenty mountains, according to the Europeans in this thread they have a 3 ton tow rating in Norway and a GCM of 6300kg in Belgium. For a fully braked trailer of course.

My BJ42 says 5340 kg for the manufacturer's listed GCWR (the total weight of the tow vehicle and trailer), and because GVWR (gross vehicle weight rating) is 2340 kg, this means the max. trailer weight is 3000 kg (braked). Same is mentioned in the registration certificate, but it’s only 450 kg without brakes.

 

[Dougal]

f***! That was an annoying read...
Still no comcensus...

Concensus on forums doesn't matter. Car manufacturers have different weight ratings for different markets for legal reasons rather than technical reasons. Read your manual or consult the data plate.

 

[caper]

My BJ couldn't beat its own meat , magine hookin 8800 lbs to it hahahahahah,

 

[ilias88]

BJ40

I have 2 bj40's and on the papers it says the car weighs 1560kg.
Max load load (car included) 2300kg meaning aprox 640kg loading in the car.
And max load pulling (also car included) 6300kg

This stands also on the ID plate of the car.
This is in Belgium

Hi Wim,

so you tow 3500kg (max allowance) with your BJ's in Belgium?

ilias from Gent