Brian B (Brisbane) replied:

Hi Amanda,

I would check the vehicle towing specs in the owners handbook and also check the rating of your tow hitch on the car. These should give you some helpful information.

Member-Granpa Joe replied:

Your Patrol will tow this easily Amanda,
How many Km on the clock and have you had the clutch replaced yet?

yakodi replied:

We have 02 Patrol 3L Manual, D-tronic helps a little. Towing 20ft 2,600kg Van with 2,500kg Vehicle. Well maintained vehicle but it hates the hills, 2nd gear not uncommon, but it gets there and we cruise on 85-95km/h all day on the highways. I should mention the only problem weve encountered was the engine failing after 120000kms.

Motherhen replied:

Hi Amanda

Check out thread 47718.

Is your Patrol auto or manual? Ours is auto, so your situation may be a bit different to ours if you have a manual.

We towed an 18' Bushtracker with a TARE of 2.2 t (i hate to think what the laden weight would be) with a 3 ltr td AUTO Patrol. Mostly no problems at all and it went well, but a couple of times from a standing start on a very steep hill, it really didn't want to hurry, which may have been due to the auto not coping. If we filled our water tanks (240 kgs), and had a full load of gear, we'd be way over the 2.5 t legal limit for the auto. The engine is the same in the manual and the auto - i believe it is the stopping power of the auto that gives it the lower rating. We did not risk anywhere with loose sand or deep water. Should we have lost our caravan breaks descending a steep winding road, we could have had difficulties if the auto could not cope with the load, but this is of course untested. All the same, it is not a comfortable position to be in knowing that in a difficult situation, you have no power to spare. Also consider how long the motor will last towing that weight all the time; as a 2002 model, you probably have over 100,000 kms on it already.

Also consider the gross mass of your vehicle. When you are fully laden (car and caravan) with yourselves, all you gear, food and clothes, you may well be over the gross mass permitted for the Patrol.

We also fitted EGT and Boost gauges so we could monitor and not overheat the motor as an added precaution.

All in all, it was a very comfortable and satisfactory vehicle for the short holidays, but we would not tackle the big lap with it towing a heavy van.

We have now purchased a 7.3 ltr td auto F250 so will have loads of power and breaking power, won't be out-weighed by the caravan, a huge tray to sleep on when we go off without the caravan, and confidence we have plenty of power to spare. There is not much out there bigger than the Landcruisers; F250s being the most common, Suburbans when you can find them, and a few imported from USA vehicles. They are expensive, but so are the latest Cruisers.