Towing with a Pickup

[Tony_5042161]

I am thinking of buying a nearly new Nissan Navara (£16,000)or similar pickup on the grounds that it represents better value than simlar priced saloons for towing 1500Kgs. Has anybody any views on this?

 

[Lutz]

The disadvantage of a pickup as a tug is that it has a relatively low rear axle load when unladen. In order to allow for the payload that pickups are designed for, their rear suspensions tend to be a bit on the hard side when travelling solo. This can make them rather twitchy when towing. Therefore, if you're considering towing with a pickup, always ensure there's enough weight on the back axle, i.e. avoid towing with the pickup unladen.

 

[hornpipe]

The disadvantage of a pickup as a tug is that it has a relatively low rear axle load when unladen. In order to allow for the payload that pickups are designed for, their rear suspensions tend to be a bit on the hard side when travelling solo. This can make them rather twitchy when towing. Therefore, if you're considering towing with a pickup, always ensure there's enough weight on the back axle, i.e. avoid towing with the pickup unladen.

Quite frankly, I think all unloaded/or lightly loaded pickups are inherently unstable and should never be used for towing. This particularly applies to front wheel drive models. Problem is that all owners of pickups seem to assume that their vehicle is God's gift to the towing community. How many of us have seen little pickups struggling to cope with monster vans? I also regret to note that many of the culprits are site owners and dealers!

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