Towing a Two Horse Trailer

[lrover94]

Anyone have any experience pulling a two horse trailer? I don't have all the specs on the trailer, but she who must be obeyed is wanting one and I want to replace my Dodge with a Disco, soooo, I need some ammo. Please let me know that good and bads. Many thanks!

Mike W
Damn its hot in southern Iraq

 

[sean]

it would be a easy pull considering the disco has a higher towing capacity than some full size trucks.

 

[scottjal]

Disco with its short wheelbase isn't exactly the greatest tow vehicle but if you stay within the owners manual numbers you will be perfectly fine. I have no idea what two beasts and a trailer weigh.

 

[Blueboy]

get a LWB RR instead.

extra wheelbase will handle the trailer better.


Jaime

 

[flyfisher11]

Get the disco and find a cheap 3/4 ton to pull the hawses.

 

[I HATE PONIES]

The disco should pull it without a problem. Make sure the trailer has a good set of brakes because stopping may be a problem. There is a writeup regarding wiring the trailer wire harness on the disco. I think it is in the tech section but im not sure.
I would also try to get a trailer with an extended toungue so you can still use the rear door.

 

[jimjet]

Discos cant pull shit.

You will melt a Disco pulling a loaded horse trailer any distance
especially with hills.

.His tow has to be around 3000 with 2 hawses and the trailer.
The only good pull is in low range at 20mph.

X2 "Get the disco and find a cheap 3/4 ton to pull the hawses"

I have a 10 x 12 single axle that i carry 1 motorcycle and 1 ATV

and it sucks balls.
my 04 is worse than my 98 because of tire size.
My 98 was stock.

Get a Chevy with a 350 and tow till your little heart is content.

jim

Roverlady should know fer sher.

 

[manny]

Easy JimJet, Im glad that lrover posted this. Earlier this month I replied to an ad from Jerome (blt2crawl, I think) anyways we drove to Denver and purchased a hitch from jerome (great guy). On the 4th of July we entered a rodeo in Cimarron, NM and hauled our horse, Buddy, in our two horse trailer. Anyways the Disco did much better than we anticapated. The following day on the 5th we entered another rodeo in Trinidad, Co and had to go thru the Raton Pass going and coming back, I was worried. Needless to say our Rover made it up the pass going and coming with no problems, we are scheduled for another Rodeo in Colorado soon, this time we plan to take two horses, i'll let you know how we did when the time comes. Glad to hear there are horse folks here, Adios Amigos.

Manny
2000 DII

 

[landrovered]

I pulled a steel trailer with two TBs from Georgia to WV over the WV turnpike and back in a RRC SWB. I have pulled the same trailer with two warmbloods with a RRC LWB. For short trips it is fine but on the highway a swb sucks, I will never do that again. Every time the horses shift it makes the whole rig swerve. Plus with the swb it weaves a lot even when the horses are riding quietly. If you have a Brenderup or other light trailer it would be better. Personally I like the idea of using my rovers to do everything but my 3/4 ton chevy is a whole lot better and IMHO safer than a rover in this case.If you are serious about trailering with a 4.0 or a 4.6 rover make sure you get it rechipped. Under heavy load at slow speed the factory fuel curves are too lean and can lead to localized overheating in the the head that results in microcracks that in turn leads to porous block. Rechipping solves this problem.Good luck, haul safe...

 

[garrett]

anyone that tells you that it will pull easy doesn't know what they are talking about. i would not risk it at all. i pulled a steel two horse trailer with one horse (1200 lb horse) and it was not so fun.
i pulled a 6x12 closed trailer this weekend and it was fine, but a loaded horse trailer with no brakes is no fun and not a safe bet.
like it was stated above it's not a static load like a bunch of furniture, but eventhough they don't have much room to move they still can and will shift their weight around a bit.
pulling a lightweight single bumper pull would not be a problem i am sure, but i certainly would not risk it over any distances.
i hire professionals to move our four TBs around. it's VERY cheap. $65-150 a horse usually if you are shipping multiple animals.
go here: www.uship.com

 

[az_max]

I towed a 10x30ft car hauler trailer across town for my friend with my RRC. I think the distance from the tongue to the first axle was longer than my truck! Had a tendancy to throw the truck around, can't imagine driving on the highway with it. That, and it was a huuuge windbreak behind the truck. Next time I'll find someone with a 1 ton truck to do it.

 

[manny]

Well, i've hauled alot of thing's here on the farm, and this was the first time we had hauled with the DII. First impressions were better than I imagined, maybe it was the cold beer before the rodeo that clouded my impressions.

Manny
2000 DII

 

[sean]

i was rather impressed with how mine pulls the series around, even with 33" tires.

 

[lrover94]

Well, after careful review and she who must be obeyed finding my post here, I have decided just to keep the Dodge (2500 w\ a Cummins 5.9L-6 spd). We do the show circuit here in Ohio, well they are I am in Iraq for the time being, and the Dodge will pull and stop just about anything I put behind it. Thanks for all the input. Keep the thread and testing going and I will keep coming in a lurking.

Cheers,

Mic

 

[Diesel]

Seeing that you have the best possible pickup truck available with which to tow, you would be displeased with a discos performance to say the least. I've rode with a friend towing a pop-up camper across illinois with a discovery and it labored. I would bet you get better economy with the Dodge as well.

 

[kennith]

A rover is like a swiss army knife. You wouldn't want to have to chop a cord of wood with it, but in a pinch, it can do anything. The Rover is a jack of all trades, but a master of none. If you are hauling horses regularly on our fast highways, you should probably get the master.

While they will tow adequately, and even nicely, it's simply another thing they can do, not a primary function. For everyday towing, get something that was designed for it.

I tow with my Disco, and fairly regularly. I have towed some very heavy loads, but I'm not fooling myself. A pickup is better for heavy towing on our roads.

Cheers,

Kennith

 

[spydrjon]

Anyone have any experience pulling a two horse trailer? I don't have all the specs on the trailer, but she who must be obeyed is wanting one and I want to replace my Dodge with a Disco, soooo, I need some ammo. Please let me know that good and bads. Many thanks!

Mike W
Damn its hot in southern Iraq

I saw a jeep liberty pulling one.... how tough could it be?

 

[garrett]

there are some very lightweight trailers out there that can be used. some are single and some are doubles. i see plenty of DIIs at horse shows, but not many in comparison to the Duramax duallys or Yukon XLs, which do a far better and safer job. especially when you are towing $200K in horses and your kids in the truck.
you'll see plenty of vehicles out there pulling trailers that you might not otherwise think could, but that certainly doesn't mean it's a good idea or safe.
the DIs and DIIs just have too many negatives to make it a good experience or solution.

 

[champana]

You should look into an aluminum horse trailer.

 

[BaldEagle]

you made the right choice, i've pulled horse trailers for thousands of miles. the only safe way to do it is with a 3/4 ton or larger. especailly if you do it often. and even more if your wife and kids are the ones doing it. we first used a half ton gmc, it was scary as hell. bought a f250 with a diesel and never thought twice about it. i couldnt imgine pulling a horse trailer in my disco unless it was a one time local thing, like to the vet.