RV FEATURE
TOWING
Towing heavy trailers is what these utes are all about – or are they ? These utes all have better nominal towing capacities than the typical 3500kg ‘ standard ’. The RAM DT 1500 has the best towing capacity by a good margin . At 5144kg , the RAM is 644kg ahead of the next in line , the Silverado , with its 4500kg towing capacity . The Tundra trails the field with 3991kg – just 491kg more than a HiLux .
The catch with the RAM ’ s 5144kg towing capacity is that if towing more than 4500kg , under Australian legal requirements you will need an air brake system fitted .
It ’ s common knowledge that most mid-size utes cannot tow their 3500kg maximum and carry a full payload without exceeding Gross Combined Mass . Here , too , the GCM problem raises its ugly head . If towing at maximum permitted capacity , the Ford ’ s available payload is 152kg , the HSV ’ s is 72kg , the Nissan ’ s is 79kg , while 181kg is available in the RAM .
The Toyota certainly can tow the least weight at 3995kg , but it can carry its maximum permitted 693kg payload at the same time while not exceeding its GCM .
While they are big , the surprise is that these utes are not all that heavy . The lightest of the lot – by a fair margin – is the aluminiumbodied F-150 at 2207kg – almost identical to the mid-size Ford Ranger .
The 5L F-150 King Ranch can haul up to 4127kg .
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