RV FEATURE
Obviously , we haven ’ t considered how any of the vehicles may physically perform with 3.5-tonne van in tow . This is a simple look at the manufacturers ’ ratings and assessing how realistic they are from a legal perspective .
In my opinion , the Toyota Land Cruiser 70 and the Dodge Ram are the vehicles I would recommend for towing 3500kg . This is principally due to the fact their GVM is the limiting factor in their weight-carrying capacities . If you find you do not have enough remaining payload to suit your requirements , you can legally increase the GVM of these vehicles to bring the remaining payload on par with their remaining payload against GCM . Being the heaviest of the vehicles here , they should also prove to be much more stable platforms for towing that kind of weight .
If you ’ re not keen on upgrading the vehicle ’ s suspension , I would include the SsangYong , Mazda and the Mercedes in that list as well . They all offer a reasonable remaining payload against GCM , making towing 3.5 tonnes a realistic proposition . Whether they would be physically capable of towing that weight is a different matter .
SUMMING UP
I acknowledge it is possible to purchase a GCM upgrade for any of the other vehicles ; however , the legal status of these upgrades remains a question of some debate .
Finally , remember we have only looked at the top-spec models of these vehicles in this comparison , and only at how the weight calculations work out when hitching up 3500kg .
As we saw with the Hilux , you could choose to purchase a lower-spec model and have a few extra kilograms to work with . And of course , towing a lighter trailer would result in additional payload availability .
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