What would you choose for towing a rig around the country?

Derek Barnes · Senior Member

RE: What would you choose for towing a rig around the country?

bgt · Guru

Eaglemax the problem is that all of us go RVing for different reasons. What suits me may not suit you. I can understand those on the road fulltime wanting/needing a large caravan. I can understand those camping in a station wagon. I think what needs to be clarified is the weight issue. Who does that? Maybe ALL new caravans need a new figure on them. A figure that states in simple language what your vehicle must be rated at to tow 'this' van.

Whenarewethere · Guru

Eaglemax wrote:

Luxury.... We rearrange the car so we can sleep in the back, we go to bed a few hours before we get up & put everything back again!

Derek Barnes · Senior Member

My choice is the Nissan Patrol Y62. It has a GVM of 3500kg, a GCM of 7000kg and a gross rear axle capacity of 2030kg. It has all the luxury needed when driving around town but all the grunt and great handling for long trips towing the caravan and off-road jaunts.

What ever you buy make sure you give it a test drive. We drove many 4WDs before we chose the Patrol. The Ford Everest was a great disappointment as it felt underpowered and "washy" when stopping at lights. We thought that the possibility of the lifting mechanism breaking on the Discovery 5 was risky when travelling far from major centres. The Toyota Landcruiser was on par with the Patrol but the third row seating intruded into the storage space.

Dicko1 · Senior Member

https://www.club4x4.com.au/modern-ute-tow-ratings-bullst/

-- Edited by Dicko1 on Tuesday 18th of May 2021 02:54:03 PM

yobarr · Guru

Derek Barnes wrote:
My choice is the Nissan Patrol Y62. It has a GVM of 3500kg, a GCM of 7000kg and a gross rear axle capacity of 2030kg. It has all the luxury needed when driving around town but all the grunt and great handling for long trips towing the caravan and off-road jaunts.
What ever you buy make sure you give it a test drive. We drove many 4WDs before we chose the Patrol. The Ford Everest was a great disappointment as it felt underpowered and "washy" when stopping at lights. We thought that the possibility of the lifting mechanism breaking on the Discovery 5 was risky when travelling far from major centres. The Toyota Landcruiser was on par with the Patrol but the third row seating intruded into the storage space.

Hi Derek.The Y62 is undoubtedly a great car,big,luxurious and very powerful.My neighbour has one,and recently completed a trip from Brisbane to Cameron corner and return.He was towing only a small camper trailer,but when he returned to Brisbane he said he was considering selling his house to pay the balance on the fuel card.Just saying. As an aside,there is NO chance of reaching 7000kg GCM while towing a PIG trailer,with about 6520kg being the best you'll do.Happy to explain if you wish.The rear axle is OK at 80kg more than an LC200,but the Y62 is a better car if you have a good fuel card.Cheers

Trevor 57 · Senior Member

If I was gonna stick to reasonable bush tracks and highways, probably a F truck

yobarr · Guru

Bobdown wrote:
That's fine Yobarr, I missed your words. ."I set sail". But I wouldn't stop for that pie at the Bakery, it might put you over the limit, you are 'sailing' very close to the wind.
I hope your van has a good suspension, from a Factory Tare of 1740 kg, you have doubled that to your ATM, the wheels might be like those utes you posted.
Cheers Bob

No worries Bob. On the van I run the same wheels and tyres as those on my car,rated at 1550kg per tyre,so my wheels and tyres are barely at 50% of their rated carrying capacity.And I have pushed the ATM to 3500kg,with 12" brakes and 700mm clearance under the floor.All is good! Cheers

vince56 · Senior Member

Yobbar, Patrol a "better car" than an LC200? Yeah right.....

The Travelling Dillberries · Guru

blakey72 wrote:
Hi all, I'm kinda new to all this so you'll have to excuse my lack of knowledge. My wife and I (in our early 50's) plan to buy a 4wd and van and start traveling around the country. We would like to get 'off road' to an extent such as up around Cape York and northern WA. We don't plan to go full on off road, maybe semi. I am looking atm for a 4wd new or 12 months old to do the towing. I want something that will do it with ease, get us out of trouble if needed and be reliable/comfortable.
I have looked at the Toyota Land Cruiser, Nissan Patrol and Ford Everest (2.0L TT) so far. Is there anything else I should be considering? Budget is up to $150k at a stretch. Caravan will be 21 foot dual axle semi off road. Not sure which yet but we have been looking at Safari which are based in Ballarat.

Cheers
Blake and Julie.

Hi Blake,

The weights and measures crew get a bit carried away (not mentioning the Stalker has joined in now)

If you are looking for a very capable tow vehicle that will afterwards keep you in good stead with the bride, I would be looking at the Jeep Grand Cherokee. A very comfortable vehicle with many attributes you wont find in the others mentioned.

Cheers.

Chris.

Radar · Guru

my choice if would be a Dodge 1& 1/2 tonne trayback from the mid fifties to tow my caravan.

I know what I would never have again and that is a crew cab ute with lots of limitations. At times a great vehicle but hook up that caravan, what a serious waste of tub area.

yobarr · Guru

The Travelling Dillberries wrote:
blakey72 wrote:
Hi all, I'm kinda new to all this so you'll have to excuse my lack of knowledge. My wife and I (in our early 50's) plan to buy a 4wd and van and start traveling around the country. We would like to get 'off road' to an extent such as up around Cape York and northern WA. We don't plan to go full on off road, maybe semi. I am looking atm for a 4wd new or 12 months old to do the towing. I want something that will do it with ease, get us out of trouble if needed and be reliable/comfortable.
I have looked at the Toyota Land Cruiser, Nissan Patrol and Ford Everest (2.0L TT) so far. Is there anything else I should be considering? Budget is up to $150k at a stretch. Caravan will be 21 foot dual axle semi off road. Not sure which yet but we have been looking at Safari which are based in Ballarat.
Cheers
Blake and Julie.
Hi Blake,
The weights and measures crew get a bit carried away (not mentioning the Stalker has joined in now)
If you are looking for a very capable tow vehicle that will afterwards keep you in good stead with the bride, I would be looking at the Jeep Grand Cherokee. A very comfortable vehicle with many attributes you wont find in the others mentioned.
Cheers. Chris.

The Jeep Grand Cherokee is,no doubt,a lovely vehicle,but with a GVM under 3000kg and a wheelbase of just over 2900mm, it cannot SAFELY tow more than around 3000kg. Cheers

yobarr · Guru

vince56 wrote:
Yobbar, Patrol a "better car" than an LC200? Yeah right.....

Try to SAFELY tow 3500kg with an LC200? Because of the lightweight rear axle,it can't be done. The Y62 can easily be loaded to 6520kg GCM,but the Cruiser can't SAFELY get near that figure. Whilst I never have been a great fan of Nissan vehicles,I believe that in this race the Y62 is a clear winner,if you believe that SAFETY is of any concern.Cheers

Bobdown · Guru

yobarr wrote:
vince56 wrote:
Yobbar, Patrol a "better car" than an LC200? Yeah right.....
Try to SAFELY tow 3500kg with an LC200? Because of the lightweight rear axle,it can't be done. The Y62 can easily be loaded to 6520kg GCM,but the Cruiser can't SAFELY get near that figure. Whilst I never have been a great fan of Nissan vehicles,I believe that in this race the Y62 is a clear winner,if you believe that SAFETY is of any concern.Cheers

Take your Pig trailer hat off Chris, a LC200 cr*ps all over a Patrol as a vehicle, not talking about towing 3500 kg, just the make of vehicle.

I think you would have a Nissan Navara instead of the Toyo Ute you have if you believed they were better.

I do think you are running your setup at its maximum, unless you have empty water tanks, always good to have a few hundred kg's spare for beer.

Cheers Bob

Stretch60 · Senior Member

I think more people should stop listening to the common makes supporters and look outside the box. When researching a car for towing performance and budget I couldn't go past the V6 Amarok. The benefit is that the interior is more car like than truck. Suspension easily handles the 3t weight without a WDH and fuel consumption is comparable to most. And then look under the skin and you will find a very strong and well engineered vehicle.

-- Edited by Stretch60 on Wednesday 19th of May 2021 07:49:36 AM

gdayjr · Senior Member

I have just quoted up a new Iveco Dailey E6 50c18 12cm van.

It will be pulling a 3200kg caravan.

The van as i wanted it with a few extras and diff locks comes in at $83k.

Check out the list of O.E fitments below.

https://www.iveco.com.au/Product/new-daily-van?gclid=CjwKCAjwy42FBhB2EiwAJY0yQpGkLw1FmztzFcaU2iQIlyg1XBObmECK6tpwVNdU81h9OoLeMtdI-hoCCNwQAvD_BwE&gclsrc=aw.ds

I do not want or need a 4wd, i do not want a ute.

I will be carrying two motorcycles, a Kayak, and a few other toys. Heaps of room, heaps of carrying capicity, all the modern driving aids.

bgt · Guru

I think the OP has nodded off to sleep by now!!

Jim Featherby · Veteran Member

Best answer yet, I totally agree.

Craig1 · Guru

Graham, that grill is reminiscent of 1998 AU Falcon. Hope it grows on you

gdayjr · Senior Member

Craig1 wrote:
Graham, that grill is reminiscent of 1998 AU Falcon. Hope it grows on you

It will be behind an alloy bull bar, but from where i will be sitting, i won't be able to see it anyway.

yobarr · Guru

Stretch60 wrote:
I think more people should stop listening to the common makes supporters and look outside the box. When researching a car for towing performance and budget I couldn't go past the V6 Amarok. The benefit is that the interior is more car like than truck. Suspension easily handles the 3t weight without a WDH and fuel consumption is comparable to most. And then look under the skin and you will find a very strong and well engineered vehicle.
-- Edited by Stretch60 on Wednesday 19th of May 2021 07:49:36 AM

Hi Andrew. At one stage I did have a look at an Amarok,a most impressive vehicle,with good wheelbase,low tare,and the 3 litre model has heaps of power.However,don't even think of towing more than 3000kg if safely is of ANY concern.Cheers

yobarr · Guru

bgt wrote:
I think the OP has nodded off to sleep by now!!

Bruce,there is no need to fret,as the OP has been keeping a close watch on this thread.He no doubt has much to consider,but at least he now has been made aware of the severe towing limitations of some of the more popular,but over rated,cars.Cheers

P.S This list may be of assistance? The missing figures for rear axle capacity can be supplied if the OP needs them.The single biggest limitation of these lightweights is the rear axle carrying capacity,and none of them can safely tow a 3500kg caravan as a PIG trailer.

-- Edited by yobarr on Wednesday 19th of May 2021 12:40:01 PM

Craig1 · Guru

Graham, I said similar about my BT50 tail lights. " they are behind me, who can look at their own backside"!

Eaglemax · Guru

bgt wrote:
Have a good look at the RAM. We owned one for 5 years. Best vehicle we ever owned. The 4x4 would be my first choice.

This trumps all the others. 4500 towing capacity...if you want to tow a house.

https://www.news.com.au/technology/motoring/motoring-news/new-ram-1500-pickup-truck-goes-on-sale-in-australia/news-story/6e03b9ec5232fd6d5e609bd7fa7d9b34?utm_campaign=EditorialSB&utm_source=news.com.au&utm_medium=Facebook&utm_content=SocialBakers

Tony

-- Edited by Eaglemax on Wednesday 19th of May 2021 10:20:39 PM

bgt · Guru

If they keep selling so many RAMs there will be no utes left. After all, they eat utes for breakfast!

Whenarewethere · Guru

I am not sure of the exact specs on the Land Rover Defender, but I personally feel it is worth at the very least simply having a look at it even if you have no intention of buying one.

There are 2 Land Rovers if my extended family & we haven't had any issues with them & both of us will buy another one when the time comes.

mike g g · Senior Member

We have a jeep grand cherokee diesel 2019 a great well priced tow vehicle 3500kg tow rated 350kg tow ball ,good fuel economy when towing ,93 litre tank also has off road ability, very comfortable my wife reckons most comfort car we have owned in 55 years(happy wife happy life) ,yes their have been some issues with jeep but no more than others ,and I've had some 3 day old terri fuel pump fault,Price is ok when compared to other 4x4 s in there class,I think a lot of jeeps issues where dealers company not necessary the product.have a look take a drive you will be surprised ,no I don't work for jeep or any other car dealer but have driven and owned a few different cars ,Mike g

Aus-Kiwi · Guru

bgt wrote:
If they keep selling so many RAMs there will be no utes left. After all, they eat utes for breakfast!

My worry is fuel consumption ? Tmk they are petrol only in Aust ? Imo you CANNOT beat a good diesel when it comes to efficiency towing weight ! Sure the Falcon , Holden have done well ! But they are not around anymore !! Cummins, Duramax or Powerstroke up there with the best . Unfortunately we dont get a lot of them down under !! Ooops NO theres a diesel . Specifications

ENGINE TYPE. turbocharged and intercooled DOHC 24-valve diesel V-6, iron block and aluminum heads, direct fuel injection.
Displacement. 182 cu in, 2987 cc.
Power. 260 hp @ 3600 rpm.
Torque. 480 lb-ft @ 1600 rpm.

-- Edited by Aus-Kiwi on Thursday 20th of May 2021 11:33:29 AM

yobarr · Guru

bgt wrote:
If they keep selling so many RAMs there will be no utes left. After all, they eat utes for breakfast!

"Eat utes for breakfast".Perhaps but only if they're lightweight utes that can't tow more than 3000kg ATM.! Cheers

Kebbin · Guru

My next vehicle will be the V6 Amarok although our resident expert thinks otherwise the features such as 4 wheel diss brakes, AWD, Stability Control Programme and Trailer Stabilization make it the best of the Utes for towing according to real world experts.