Vehicle to tow an 18Ft Pop top

A lot depends on the towing capacity of the vehicle, for instance a 3.00 Patrol will tow up to 3.5 tonnes, a prado will tow around 2.5 tonnes so you need to look at your ATM Of the Van which is probably less than 2 tonne so either one of the vehicles mentioned will tow it.

If the ATM is up around 2.5 tonnes then you should go to a vehicle with a higher capacity than the Prado as it would be right at it's limit.

The Navara ST-R or ST-X rated at 3000 Kg tow capacity will also tow it with ease. Nav.

Take a Jeep Grand Cherokee or a Commander CRD V6 3.0l turbo diesel for a test drive. 160kw and 510nm of torque towing capacity of 3500kg ball weight of 375kg...you'll get a shock at the performance, comfort and power of these things :)

I tow a 6m boat weighing close to 3 tonne and it walks it in.

Hi bing
Spare a thought for a Kia Sorrento 4x4. Rated to tow 2800kg with 280ball weight. I just bought one but haven't towed with it yet.They had a good review as a tow vehicle and are very competatively priced
New Member Bob

The most economical way to tow is with a Petrol 4wd fitted with LPG.

If you have your heart set on Diesel, the Terracan 2.9L CRDi is a lot of vehicle for not a lot of money.

Jim.

Might pay to look for a different brand of towing machine unless you want that lingering doubt about completing your journey each time you use the vehicle.

Landrover Discovery -

either a D2 with the 2.5 litre TD5 or the new D3 with the 2.7 litre TDV6.

Either will do it standing on its ear.

Prado 3.0 litre D4D is also a good choice, but make sure you go for the new D4D engine - the older 3 litre was a good engine, but nowhere near the same grunt and a bit on the thirsty side.

Nissan - the new Navara / Pathfinder diesel is well regarded - haven't driven one myself so can't really comment. The 3.0 litre Nissan engine in the Patrol - well there's plenty of bad press on them both in this forum and in many others - I'd steer well clear.

My choice would be the Discovery - but I'm biased - I am on my second one after four Prado's.