How much can your large SUV really tow?

What you don’t often see in the typically upbeat SUV ads depicting a family on a driving holiday, with a massive van or boat hooked up to it, is exactly how much the vehicle can legally tow.

Sure, the banner headline might say ‘3500kg towing capacity’, but is that really the case?

Most of the time, it isn’t.

The fact is that if you are planning to tow a heavy trailer with any of these SUVs, you must get as interested in various legal towing/payload masses as if you were a commercial truck operator.

Learning about this can be like watching paint dry, but the fact is that if you want to play with heavy stuff on the road, you need to be able to do so safely and legally.

We’ve lined up five of the best, most popular large SUVs to see how they perform as carry-all tow haulers. They are:

• Ford Everest
• Isuzu MU-X
• Mitsubishi Pajero Sport
• Toyota LandCruiser
• Toyota PradoToyota LandCruiser towing a Millard caravan

The five most popular large SUVs we’ve brought in here range from the current Ford Everest to the all-new Toyota LandCruiser 300 Series.

Of our five, the Ford Everest will be replaced later this year by an all-new model with a 3500kg tow-capable turbo-diesel V6 (upping its tow capacity by 400kg over the current model), while the LandCruiser 300 is brand-new.

Going by sales figures alone, the 300 Series is not yet a big-volume model, but that’s simply because of supply constraints. If there were no production delays, the LandCruiser 300 would be right up there, based on huge demand in the marketplace and past sales of the 200 Series.

The Toyota Prado can tow the least weight of this group, at 3000kg braked towing capacity. The Ford Everest and Mitsubishi Pajero Sport can tow up to 3100kg, while the new Isuzu MU-X and the LandCruiser 300 are 3500kg-capable machines.

We’ve selected mid-grade models to best approximate what private buyers might choose.

If you choose a lower-spec model, it will likely be slightly lighter and therefore have slightly better payload. Conversely, if you pick the top-shelf model, it’ll be heavier and have slightly less payload than the model represented here.The Toyota LandCruiser 300 is a 3500kg-capable machine

Overloading a vehicle and trailer is surprisingly easy to do, but there are reasons why you should avoid getting into this situation by having your rig weighed at a public weighbridge or by a private weight operator.

The primary reason for weight limits is safety. If you carry more weight than your SUV and trailer are designed to handle, there’s a chance the rig will become unstable, possibly leading to a crash.

What are GVM and payload?

There are limits to how much your SUV can weigh. The maximum permitted weight of a vehicle as it stands on the road with everything and everyone in it, and anything on it, is called Gross Vehicle Mass (GVM).

How much you can add to the SUV – including people, luggage, fitted accessories and anything else – is called payload and is calculated by subtracting the kerb mass of the vehicle (the weight of your empty SUV) from GVM.

There are slightly different ways manufacturers calculate kerb weight of their vehicles.

According to the DIN standard, it is the mass of the vehicle in running order unoccupied and unladen but with all standard equipment and fluid reservoirs filled to nominal capacity, including a 90 per cent full tank of fuel. EU kerb weight figures are 75kg higher to account for the driver.

The thing is, nobody is going to fine you for being under or over kerb weight – it is an advisory weight, and as we discovered in our ute test a few years ago, most are not precisely as specified for weight on the tech sheet anyway.

So you really need to get your SUV weighed as it is (or expected to be) all laden with gear and people ready to get onto the road.

Maximum towing capacity is pretty straightforward, usually described as braked (that is, when using trailer brakes) or unbraked, which is a much lower limit.

What is often missed is another associated maximum weight, called maximum tow ball mass (TBM), which is the maximum static weight the tow bar can safely withstand being pushed down on it by the trailer.

One more towing weight you need to know: the maximum allowable weight of the vehicle and trailer combined, which is called gross combined mass (GCM).

These manufacturer-set weights (GVM, GCM, maximum towing capacity and maximum TBM) are also legal safety requirements. You, as the driver, are responsible for not letting your vehicle and trailer weigh more than these limits.

Even though tow ball weight becomes vehicle payload once you’ve hitched up (as the front of the trailer is pushing down on the tow vehicle), ideally this is not factored into a manufacturer’s nominated GCM.

Put simply, no manufacturer can tell what your trailer’s static nose weight is going to be. For some, the GCM calculation would appear to be made on the assumption that it will be 10 per cent.

So, for example, in the Ford Everest, you could tow a trailer that’s precisely 3100kg, and has exactly 10 per cent TBM (310kg). You’re then left with a maximum payload of 373kg to put into your Everest, and then the total weight of vehicle and trailer would equal 5890kg – which is 10kg less than GCM. Perfect.

But what if your trailer’s nose weight is more like seven per cent (217kg)? Sure, if you still only put 373kg payload in the Everest as the example above, then you still have a 10kg safety margin before reaching GCM.

But if you were to try to take advantage of the extra payload that the lighter TBM allows (466kg), then you are in trouble with GCM. Why? Because that additional payload will put you 83kg over the Everest’s 5900kg GCM.

Just by hitching up a trailer you have instantly reduced how much payload you can carry in your SUV.

TBM becomes part of your SUV’s payload because the weight over the trailer’s coupling is being supported by the SUV’s back wheels. When we’re talking about the kind of weight these SUVs can legally tow overall, TBM is usually a significant, large weight too.

We’re talking hundreds of kilos of payload taken up just by having a trailer hitched up.

That means that you have to subtract this tow ball mass from the SUV’s maximum payload to work out what actual payload you have.

And when towing a 3500kg trailer, that means you have as much as 350kg you can’t put in or on your vehicle, because your trailer is already using that amount of payload up sitting on the tow ball.

For SUVs that might also be carrying a lot of occupants and their holiday gear, especially ones that have lots of accessories such as a bull bar and so on, GVM can be easily exceeded.

To illustrate how little you can actually carry in a vehicle when towing such heavy trailers, let’s look at the Isuzu MU-X, which has the lowest payload here when towing at its maximum 3500kg (assuming a 350kg TBM).

The MU-X can therefore take just 295kg of payload, once it has 350kg plopped on its tow ball (total 645kg payload).

In theory, that’s enough for three 80kg adults and 15kg of luggage.

You might note that these calculations are 40kg short. That’s because you have to count the tow bar kit as payload, as it is an option. You ticked the steel bull bar and driving lights option too? That’s roughly another 60kg of payload taken up by such accessories, so you’d better let one of the passengers know that they’re not coming on holidays…

While we’ve highlighted the MU-X as it has the lowest payload, none of these vehicles will meet the weight needs of some buyers. You can’t have an SUV tricked up with a huge array of accessories and full of passengers and luggage and tow a fully decked-out large off-road caravan as well.

Because actual towing weights and payloads are different for everyone, there’s no set way to calculate towing masses, except those that include the legal maximums. There are too many variables.

So, it’s worth repeating this: Get your rig weighed at a public weighbridge or by a private weigh operator.

There are two simple methods to estimate weights before you buy: Realistic towing capacity with a full payload, or payload remaining when towing at maximum capacity.

Realistic towing capacity is calculated by subtracting a vehicle’s GVM from its GCM. That leaves you the total trailer towing weight that the vehicle can tow, regardless of where that weight is shifted (that is, even though up to about 10 per cent of that trailer weight becomes vehicle payload via tow ball download).

This calculation method is not perfect, but it removes all doubt and ‘what if’ scenarios when trying to estimate a realistic towing weight that does not risk exceeding legal limits.

If you must tow at, or close to, these popular SUVs’ maximum legal ratings, you won’t be able to carry as much in the vehicle as a result, simply due to the large mass imposed on the vehicle by the trailer.

As you’ll see in thefigures below, with a heavy trailer hitched up you’ll have as little as 295kg to play with in the Isuzu MU-X, while the Pajero Sport and Prado (with 3000kg and 3100kg towing capacity respectively) will give you 405kg of payload available.

Ford Everest Trend 2.0 Bi-Turbo 4WD
Usable payload remaining when towing at max capacity: 373kg
Total payload used when towing at max capacity: 373kg + 310kg = 683kg
Payload unusable (or would exceed GCM) when 10% TBM assumed: 0kg

Isuzu MU-X LS-U 4x4
Usable payload remaining when towing at max capacity: 295kg
Total payload used when towing at max capacity: 295kg + 350kg = 645kg
Payload unusable (or would exceed GCM) when 10% TBM assumed: 50kg

Mitsubishi Pajero Sport GLS 4WD
Usable payload remaining when towing at max capacity: 405kg
Total payload used when towing at max capacity: 405kg + 310kg = 715kg
Payload unusable (or would exceed GCM) when 10% TBM assumed: 0kg

Toyota Prado GXL
Usable payload remaining when towing at max capacity: 405kg
Total payload used when towing at max capacity: 405kg + 300kg = 705kg
Payload unusable (or would exceed GCM) when 10% TBM assumed: 0kg

Toyota LandCruiser GXL
Usable payload remaining when towing at max capacity: 350kg
Total payload used when towing at max capacity: 350kg + 350kg = 700kg
Payload unusable (or would exceed GCM) when 10% TBM assumed: 0kg

*Assumes 10 per cent TBM and towing at full weight capacity

With an assumed 10 per cent TBM, all can be loaded to GVM and tow at their maximum capacity except the MU-X, which would be 50kg over its GCM.

For all the SUVs’ ‘realistic payload’, the tow ball download weight (which is estimated as 10 per cent of trailer weight) is subtracted.

For example, the Ford Everest’s maximum real tow capacity is 2800kg (5900kg GCM minus 3100kg GVM) and tow ball download is therefore estimated at 280kg. Its real payload is therefore 3100kg (GVM) minus 2417kg (kerb weight), which equals 683kg total payload minus 280kg (tow ball download) – leaving 403kg.

The least tow-capable SUV using this method is the Pajero Sport with 2790kg towing capacity (down 310kg from its maximum), while the LandCruiser has the highest capacity, just 30kg of its claimed maximum at 3470kg.

Ford Everest Trend 2.0 Bi-Turbo 4WD
Kerb mass/GVM/GCM: 2417kg/3100kg/5900kg
Claimed tow/payload:3100kg/683kg
Real tow/payload:2800kg/403kg
How many kg less than claimed for towing/payload using this method: -300kg/-280kg

Isuzu MU-X LS-U 4x4
Kerb mass/GVM/GCM: 2155kg/2800kg/5900kg
Claimed tow/payload:3500kg/645kg
Real tow/payload:3100kg/335kg
How many kg less than claimed for towing/payload using this method: -400kg/-310kg

Mitsubishi Pajero Sport GLS 4WD
Kerb mass/GVM/GCM: 2060kg/2775kg/5565kg
Claimed tow/payload:3100kg/715kg
Real tow/payload:2790kg/436kg
How many kg less than claimed for towing/payload using this method: -310kg/-279kg

Toyota Prado GXL
Kerb mass/GVM/GCM: 2285kg/2990kg/5990kg
Claimed tow/payload:3000kg/705kg
Real tow/payload:3000kg/405kg
How many kg less than claimed for towing/payload using this method: 0kg/-300kg

Toyota LandCruiser GXL
Kerb mass/GVM/GCM: 2580kg/3280kg/6750kg
Claimed tow/payload:3500kg/700kg
Real tow/payload:3470kg/353kg
How many kg less than claimed for towing/payload using this method: -30kg/-347kg