Monthly Archives: March 2026

Towing with the Bilstein B6 shocks & steering damperer

4X4, Australia, , , ,

Equipment

  1. INEOS Grenadier, AU Spec diesel 2 seater utility with drawers, winch and roofrack. Even empty it is on the heavier side.
  2. Vista RV Crossover XLE. Probably around 1,650 kgs, max is 1980kgs.
  3. Allin tow bar with DO35 hitch.
  4. Eibach springs, lift of 35mm.
  5. Polyair Suspension airbags on Grenadier set to 20PSI when not towing, increased to 50PSI when towing. PSI was varied but The Doc settled on 50 PSI. Vista airbags set at 80PSI when towing.
  6. Bilstein B6 struts front and back.
  7. Bilstein steering damperer.
  8. Side fuel tanks on Grenadier filled. Three fuel Jerry cans on the Vista filled.

Observations from recent Melbourne trip (around 3,000km)

The package towed well; on bitumen and some limited dirt driving with minor corrugations. The condition of the bitumen did vary quite a bit in regional areas.

The package was stable, easy to steer and brake. The setting on the throttle controller was set at FACTORY which worked in most cases, but you run out of grunt around 100kph. The car and van compliment each other and tow well together. The van and car share an almost identical profile, so the wind resistance penalty from the van is minimal. OEM side mirrors work well. Fuel consumption varied between 13.7 to 14.9 litres per 100km. The main factor influencing fuel usage was cruising speed. Ad Blue usage was low. You need to drive faster to get the car to shift into  gears 7 and 8, compared to when you are not towing.

The only challenges were:

  1. where the road was made up of patches of bitumen and I needed to slow down, as there was too much feedback through the dampener and suspension;
  2. hitting the expansion joints on bridges, larger potholes and large indentions on the road gave quite a bit of feedback through the steering wheel. More than the OEM damper. Never any suggestion of death wobbles. Issues disappeared once you when over the expansion joint, etc;
  3. no issues with modest corrugated roads. Heavy corrugations still to be tested; and
  4. the only change will be lowing the hitch so the van is level, the hitch sits too high, even though the van handled well on the trip.

Grenadier gets a new skin

4X4, ,

The Grenadier has its new protective skin on the front and sides. Images courtesy of the House of Tint and Paint Protection Film.

The Doc had to quickly drive back to Sydney via Wagga and Dubbo. It was suppose to be a week trip but the fuel crisis prevented that, however a few days in the van has allowed the Doc to do a partial shake down of the van setup.

The average price of diesel is now hitting AUD3 a litre, with petrol not that far behind.

The Kimberley trip is now in doubt. So The Doc is looking at shorter trips instead.

Trav and Trish at House of Tint did and excellent job on both the car and van. The Doc caught up with Rohan from GrenX who also inspected the Grenadier and was impressed with the new film.

Video of the work done on the van and car:

https://www.facebook.com/share/r/14WcMAZyXDY

Vista RV Crossover XPEL PPF film

Uncategorised,

The Vista RV has its new protective skin on the front and sides. Images courtesy of the House of Tint and Paint Protection Film.

Video of the EPEL film being applied to the van:

https://www.facebook.com/reel/1492935335789729

House of Tint

4X4, Australia, ,

The IG and the Vista Crossover RV van have been dropped off at House on Tint in Melbourne for PPF film protection.

The van was picked up from storage in Dubbo, then driven to a mate’s farm in Wagga Wagga for a few days. The Doc was sleeping in the van and setting it up, at least partially setting it up.

Then on to Melbourne to House of Tint. He could not find a place to park the van so had to use a road side stop on the Hume Highway. Not exactly a quite location.

The Grenadier is being worked on now and should be finished Friday. Then they will start on the van.

The Doc is also trying different tracking software and made this lousy video of the trip.