GEN4 towing a caravan review and MPG

I thought it may be of interest to give my experience of towing a caravan with a JB74  (GEN4). I was incredibly hesitant to buy the new Jimmy  last year after having 4 GEN3s and found them a bit lacking in power (torque) for long journeys when towing.
The GEN4 has a bit more torque however it delivers it's optimum power in lower revs than the GEN3,  my caravan weighs approximately 920kgs and in the car I put in the awning, chairs and other bits which weigh about 45kg plus also my wife which I won't disclose how much she weighs as I would like to keep my teeth.
pulling away from a standing start is ok, it won't win any medals as the car isn't fast off the mark anyway, however it is important you can pull out at junctions quick enough as not to slow down oncoming traffic. I could keep up with the flow of traffic, on the motorway 53/55mph was achievable most of the time (60 is the max for a trailer/caravan) Steep hills required dropping to 4th gear and it is important to try and keep the revs in the 3000/3500 band as to not lose momentum. I had no brake fade going down the hills however the caravan also has brakes which assist with slowing the outfit down. Noise in the cabin is high as we all know that the Jimnys have no sound proofing, my ears are not the best and I found having a conversation with the wife difficult. MPG was good, I did a 113 mile trip, going up it managed 34.6mpg and coming back it did 36.8mpg. You do get sucked in a bit by lorries overtaking which can take you by surprise if you don't see creeping  up on you, that's probably due to the slab sides of the car
The Jimny would not be my first choice as a tow car as it is noisy, busy and has limits, however if you match your outfit carefully it is possible to be used to drag a caravan.

 




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Which Eriba are you towing? Ours is a Familia Touring 320 GT, but our Jimny G4 is an auto, so is perhaps less suitable for towing.

Mine is also a Familia 320GT, it was replated to 1050kg, however I do try and keep as close to the 900kg as possible, I am not too sure about the automatic as I found it best to keep the revs up. The low profile of the Eriba also helps with the towing..
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I agree with that, it's a similar experience with a G3 if you match the load. I tow about 650 to 700kg with all the bits loaded, so lighter but similar mpg (34) and speed range. Its not the best tow vehicle (for speed) but it's still does it without too much fuss if you don't mind the odd high rpm moment.

Is it mandatory that Eribas go with Suzuki's? Let's start a splinter forum

 

Any excuse to post a picture of the caravan and car you will be stuck behind soon

I don't have a new picture but we were hay leading last weekend and Temeraire with the baby twin axle was entirely unfazed by it all at approx 1180kg coping well with some of our serious hills. Only thing we noticed was a little snake started at about 45mph which suggests the trailer might not have been properly level though if I'm honest Dreadnaught would occasionally do that too so it could be something or nothing

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I agree with that, it's a similar experience with a G3 if you match the load. I tow about 650 to 700kg with all the bits loaded, so lighter but similar mpg (34) and speed range. Its not the best tow vehicle (for speed) but it's still does it without too much fuss if you don't mind the odd high rpm moment.

Is it mandatory that Eribas go with Suzuki's? Let's start a splinter forum

 

Any excuse to post a picture of the caravan and car you will be stuck behind soon

Hahaha, they love the Jimny and the Eribas on the other side of the channel. I did have an Eriba Puck @ 500kg MTPLM and a GEN3 and that was great.