Let's try this again... towing another vehicle long dist. behind a BJ60 - yes or no?

[cody c]

are there even hills in barrie ontario? Maybe get crushers to send you a turbo and propane injection first.

Ive pulled a speed boat behind mine with 33"s and a couple passengers and it was predictablly slow but no big deal, however if you were to find a hill out in cottage country just pull over and let people pass and its all good.

 

[peterdouglas]

Sounds good. A turbo would be nice in this situation, but I don't think that will be happening... Looks like others have made it pulling a vehicle behind a stock BJ60, albeit a bit slowly!

hey peter i dont think you should have too much trouble pulling your matrix, i have a car dolley and ive pulled a old monte carlo, full size jimmy, full size fordtruck and a grandmarquis with my bj and it has 33" tire and stock gears, max speed 80 in 4th gear thats it slow and steady you should be ok

.

All of these vehicles are heavier than my Matrix, but the Matrix and the BJ60 will be loaded with large, but hopefully light items. I just got tires in January, but luckily they're not too big, just 30". As for the 80 km/hr maximum speed, at least I won't have to worry about getting any speeding tickets! (not likely, even with a stock, unloaded BJ60), haha!

For the oil... I sugest you to check sometime the weekly "circulaire". Every 3 or 4 weeks, you can find a very good deal on Quaker stade synth or Valvoline synth oil. Si les spéciaux sont les mêmes ici comme chez vous !

I don't get the newspaper anymore, but can always borrow someone else's to check for the Canadian Tire circular/flyer. That's how I found the Motomaster Diesel 15W40 oil on sale. Et oui, je crois que les spéciaux sont les mêmes, mais peut-être les prix sont différents...

A good qulaity oil and coolant will be top priority for this trip. After I get there, it will probably be time to change the oil again!

 

[peterdouglas]

are there even hills in barrie ontario? Maybe get crushers to send you a turbo and propane injection first.

Ive pulled a speed boat behind mine with 33"s and a couple passengers and it was predictablly slow but no big deal, however if you were to find a hill out in cottage country just pull over and let people pass and its all good.

Yeah, there are some hills, though not like the ones I'll encounter in the Rockies or even in Western Ontario. There's a hill if you take the back roads to my place. The speed limit is 80 km/hr, and if there's nobody in front of me, I usually floor it before I get to the hill and hit about 110 km/hr, then by the time I'm at the top, I'm at about 75 or 80 km/hr. If I approach it at 80 km/hr, then I have to downshift to 4th about a third of the way up and usually drop to around 70 km.hr.

Another steep hill in a 50 km/hr zone nearby.... I usually leave it in third, sometimes second. Take a couple of minutes to climb the hill. I can keep up with traffic, but engine temperature does climb a notch higher.

Otherwise I could take a trip up to cottage country. - Muskoka or Collingwood. There will be some nice, steeper hills there.

 

[brownbear]

Do you know where I can buy Rotela 15W40? I'm currently using Motomaster Diesel 15W40 oil. Just changed the rear diff gear oil as well with Motomaster 80W90.

Motomaster would be fine. I like it too.

I like the Rotella 0w40 for really cold stuff. -20 c.

But normal for me, I would just use the Motomaster oils. Heck they are just re-labeled brand name oils.

 

[83bj60]

Motomaster would be fine. I like it too.

I like the Rotella 0w40 for really cold stuff. -20 c.

But normal for me, I would just use the Motomaster oils. Heck they are just re-labeled brand name oils.

I noticed a real difference in fuel economy when I switched to Rotella. Maybe it's just me, but I definitely trust that oil for the 3B engine.

 

[kim]

" BC will be painfull though. UUGh the mountain passes will be fun."

Yep. I pulled a 23 foot trailer, ~5000lbs, with an HJ60 from PEI to BC. Be aware that you are pushing wind the whole way driving west. I would expect your mileage to be around 12-14 mpg coming this way.

I would suggest running higher tire pressure, 40psi or so, and forget about 5th gear all together. You won't have a need for it.

It will be slow, slow, slow from the alberta border on.

 

[peterdouglas]

Maybe I'll use the Rotella oil for the trip out west, and then switch back to Motomaster oil when I get there.

Hopefully I will have my veggie oil kit by then and save a lot of money on diesel.

Sounds like this will be a slow and painful trip. But, like I said before, short term pain for long term gain!

 

[brownbear]

Maybe I'll use the Rotella oil for the trip out west, and then switch back to Motomaster oil when I get there.

Hopefully I will have my veggie oil kit by then and save a lot of money on diesel.

Sounds like this will be a slow and painful trip. But, like I said before, short term pain for long term gain!

The tough part IMOP with veg oil is the finding of it on a trip. So you arrive through a town and in need of fuel, head to the diner?? Sounds very impractical when trying to make distance in a hurry. But if you got loads of time, yah sit back and find the greasy spoons.

 

[daviesl]

drive

I've taken both the U.S. route and the Canadian route on that Toronto to Vancouver trip and found the U.S. route had almost no steep grades, just a little one in Montana getting into the Rockies. You totally cut out any hill climbing in the East. Lake Superior Provincial Park is almost a worse climb than the BC Rocky Mnts. The fuel is cheaper in the States too. I took that route last year because I had an especially large load and was worried about the Canadian route. I have taken the Canadian route, there and back about 10 times. The U.S. route has less of a drive between stations, about 2 hours on average while in Canada you can go for 4 hours easy without seeing a station. The downside is your money is going into a different countries pockets. It matters if you're confident in your vehicles abilities and in your pocket book. d

 

[daviesl]

oh, there also seems to be less traffic on the U.S. route, =less stress. And I always found the wind thing to be hit or miss. The Canadian route is way cool if you've never done it before, more historical sites. check out the petroglyphs at Agawa Bay in Ontrio.

 

[peterdouglas]

The tough part IMOP with veg oil is the finding of it on a trip. So you arrive through a town and in need of fuel, head to the diner?? Sounds very impractical when trying to make distance in a hurry. But if you got loads of time, yah sit back and find the greasy spoons.

I was going to collect and filter all of the WVO in Ontario, before I leave. It would take up a lot of space, but I would take containers of the oil along with me. I hear those on-board filtration kits aren't that good anyways, plus, like you said, it would delay me a lot to have to look for restaurants along the way. A friend of mine drove a GMC diesel mini-bus and towed a trailer behind with a couple of drums of home made bio-diesel for his trip out west. He made almost the entire round trip without having to stop and buy regular diesel (although he did collect WVO and make more bio-diesel in BC before he came back).

I've taken both the U.S. route and the Canadian route on that Toronto to Vancouver trip and found the U.S. route had almost no steep grades, just a little one in Montana getting into the Rockies. You totally cut out any hill climbing in the East. Lake Superior Provincial Park is almost a worse climb than the BC Rocky Mnts. The fuel is cheaper in the States too. I took that route last year because I had an especially large load and was worried about the Canadian route. I have taken the Canadian route, there and back about 10 times. The U.S. route has less of a drive between stations, about 2 hours on average while in Canada you can go for 4 hours easy without seeing a station. The downside is your money is going into a different countries pockets. It matters if you're confident in your vehicles abilities and in your pocket book. d

I've only ever taken the Canadian route when going coast-to-coast. Google maps and Mapquest both suggested the US route. My only concern was the border crossings... would they hassle me entering and exiting the US with a vehicle(s) full of stuff? But, I like the idea of less hills, less traffic and cheaper fuel (if I won't be running on veggie oil).

 

[brownbear]

Yah you can't go through the USA. Not with a car full of all your belongings on move. They won't let you in. Then Canada will pull your truck apart at their border. It's a bad deal...


You will not have the capacity for all that oil. Seriously your loaded to the max now. A bus is different story.

A 60 can only tow a bit under 3k pounds. Brakes are limited, plus you have no real power.

Carrying more than a full tank fo fuel is going to be too much.

figure; my 90 litre tanks can get me about 600 kms, or less loaded heavy. So lets say, 500. for a round number.

Toronto to Vancouver is roughly 4700 kms. Your going to burn 14 plus litres per 100kms so thats 658 litres plus you are going to need. So think 3-4 drums of oil.

Which isn't possible when already towing a Matrix. If you were empty with a small utility trailer then yah it could work.

I think I am optimistic on the fuel burn too, I bet 16 plus litres per 100 kms loaded at capacity.

My BJ60 best fuel mileage is 10.5 litres per 100 kms. Thats not too heavy, but with gear on board.

 

[kim]

"I think I am optimistic on the fuel burn too, I bet 16 plus litres per 100 kms loaded at capacity"

I mentioned earlier, I pulled ~5000 pounds behind an HJ60 with 6 passengers and a dog, all of our stuff etc. On a trip from BC-PEI-BC I travelled around 14000 kms and I got about 15 mpg going east and 13mpg going west. I guess that would be 16.2L/100 going east and 18.7L/100 going west.

I was impressed with that mileage.

also, which route. I wouldn't drive beside Lake Superior if you are wanting to make time, go up and over through North Bay and Kapuskasing, not many hills that way, IMO.

 

[brownbear]

So he should see similar numbers with his BJ if it is running good.

The HJ can probably handle the load better.

 

[peterdouglas]

Yes, I suppose if I'm towing the Matrix then I won't be able to carry my WVO with me, save for perhaps whatever I can fill the veggie oil reservoir with, and maybe enough for one fill-up. The tank I'm looking at getting is a 15 gallon tank.

If it weren't for the border crossing with a fully packed truck and car, then for sure I'd go through the US. Otherwise, the North Bay-Kapuskasing route sounds like the next best. My only hope for WVO would be to start frequenting the veggie oil forums and see if anyone along the way could give or sell me some filtered veggie oil as I pass through their town. From what I've read, people do that on occasion. Otherwise I'm looking at about $500 to $650 in diesel fuel!

If I were driving my Matrix, I'd be getting about 6.4 l/100 km (44 mpg) on the highway (or about half of what a fully loaded BJ60 would get). But, the Matrix can't do or carry what my BJ60 can, nor can it do so in style! Well, it's got class, but the BJ60 has rugged good, retro looks and will always get more attention than a run-of-the-mill Matrix.

 

[83bj60]

Yah you can't go through the USA. Not with a car full of all your belongings on move. They won't let you in. Then Canada will pull your truck apart at their border. It's a bad deal...


You will not have the capacity for all that oil. Seriously your loaded to the max now. A bus is different story.

A 60 can only tow a bit under 3k pounds. Brakes are limited, plus you have no real power.

Carrying more than a full tank fo fuel is going to be too much.

figure; my 90 litre tanks can get me about 600 kms, or less loaded heavy. So lets say, 500. for a round number.

Toronto to Vancouver is roughly 4700 kms. Your going to burn 14 plus litres per 100kms so thats 658 litres plus you are going to need. So think 3-4 drums of oil.

Which isn't possible when already towing a Matrix. If you were empty with a small utility trailer then yah it could work.

I think I am optimistic on the fuel burn too, I bet 16 plus litres per 100 kms loaded at capacity.

My BJ60 best fuel mileage is 10.5 litres per 100 kms. Thats not too heavy, but with gear on board.

I agree with your consumption assesment, but I think you're a tad pessimistic. Properly tuned, the BJ60 can be a real fuel miser. On the flat with no little headwind and properly inflated tires he should do better than 16l/100. Isn't there a lot of flatland driving across Canada?

My old BJ60 would frequently use as lttle as 9 l/100, summer driving with 4 people at average of 90KPH, with 7 inch wide well inflated Michelin tires. Tire type an size have a lot of impact on fuel consumption...

Anyway, this is largely academic. Hopefully he's got nice narrow road tires and not fat swampers.

 

[kim]

I agree with your consumption assesment, but I think you're a tad pessimistic. Properly tuned, the BJ60 can be a real fuel miser. On the flat with no little headwind and properly inflated tires he should do better than 16l/100. Isn't there a lot of flatland driving across Canada?

My old BJ60 would frequently use as lttle as 9 l/100, summer driving with 4 people at average of 90KPH, with 7 inch wide well inflated Michelin tires. Tire type an size have a lot of impact on fuel consumption...

Anyway, this is largely academic. Hopefully he's got nice narrow road tires and not fat swampers.

Sure they are good on fuel but Peter will be pulling a car and his truck will be loaded, I would guess a total haul of around 4000 pounds, minimum. You double your vehicle weight and you basically double your fuel consumption. Also, the prairies are flat but it is uphill all the way from the Red River to the Rockies and you are pushing a natural head wind the whole way west. It is a fact that has been proven over and over again in fuel mileage.

You are correct in the tire pressure though. I'd run 40 psi anyway.

 

[brownbear]

Yah with that kinda load, I would be 50 psi or so in the tires. What ever I put in would be the max load psi rating on the tire.

I hope for Peters sake I am pessimistic on the numbers.


But I have driven loaded inside heavy( no trailer) and never even got close to 10 L per 100, more like 13 plus.

He said he was going to stuff the inside of both vehicles too.

 

[83bj60]

You double your vehicle weight and you basically double your fuel consumption.

Not necessarily, and definitely not on the flat. Rolling resistance is the main factor here, so headwind and tire have a big impact there.

Also, the prairies are flat but it is uphill all the way from the Red River to the Rockies and you are pushing a natural head wind the whole way west. It is a fact that has been proven over and over again in fuel mileage.

I can agree on that part of the treck, to a point.

You are correct in the tire pressure though. I'd run 40 psi anyway.

That is especially important if you are running loaded, otherwise heat may simply wear them out very quickly and contribute to excessive fuel consumption.

I traversed the US 20 years ago from Montreal to Phoenix by way of the midwest in an International Scout. It had a 6 cyl engine and fully loaded with a dual axle U-Haul I was able to average 13-14MPG, unloaded I wasn't able to make much better than 16-18. That was driving in mid winter from Montreal, QC to Phoenx, AZ through New York, Indiana, Oklahoma, Texas and New Mexico. Some vehicles are very economical to drive loaded, some not. My sister moved her son to BC last summer in her Matrix, she complained how much more fuel it used from driving unloaded, made a big difference.

Anyway Peter, let us know how you manage But do check your tires!

 

[brownbear]

sidewall flex from low pressure or heavy loads is the fastest way to a blow out. The sidewall flex creates too much heat and will then blow out.

More pressure lessens this effect. Even too much pressure is safer than low pressure. At least over inflated tires just wear out the centre first.