Top Ten Tow Cars

Towing a trailer – be that a caravan, a horsebox, a boat on a rig or even just an open trailer for taking stuff to the tip – is one of the toughest jobs you can ask a car to do. To that end, a really great towing vehicle needs to be strong, solid, stable and, preferably, blessed with four-wheel drive. So here, in no particular order, are our ten favourite tow cars, in an array of sizes, body styles and budget levels. There’ll definitely be something on this list that suits your needs.

Pick-up trucks are great towing vehicles. They’re very big, heavy and almost always fitted with four-wheel drive. One of the best of its type is the Ford Ranger, which is why it is Europe’s top-selling pick-up truck. An all-new model has just launched and boasts smart styling, a quality interior and some interesting drivetrains, the pick of which is a muscular 3.0-litre V6 turbodiesel which will ensure the Ranger can easily haul 3,500kg of braked trailer.
New price from: £35,760 Model to go for: 3.0 EcoBlue V6 Wildtrak Max towing capacity (braked trailer): 3,500kg Find a Ford Ranger on Auto Trader

This is an insider’s secret in the towing world. While SsangYong may not have the most auspicious of brand names, the value-for-money Rexton is the tow car of choice – especially for heavy horseboxes. This is because it can pull the maximum 3.5-tonne braked trailer behind it, thanks to a combination of ‘proper’ four-wheel drive with a low-ratio gearbox and a strong 2.2-litre diesel engine. OK, the Rexton is a little less polished in terms of refinement when compared to something like a Kia Sorento, but the pay-off is that it is much more capable both off-road and for towing.
New price from: £38,745 Model to go for: 2.2 Ultimate Auto Max towing capacity (braked trailer): 3,500kg Find a SsangYong Rexton on Auto Trader

The Sorento is another seven-seat SUV of the ilk of the Toyota Highlander, but it’s slightly more affordable, offers a wider array of engines and comes with an industry-leading seven-year warranty. There are hybrid and plug-in hybrid versions of this highly likeable and supremely practical family mover, but the one which tows the most is fitted with the 2.2-litre CRDi turbodiesel engine. This allows the Sorento to pull 2.5 tonnes of braked trailer, which makes it one of the most capable tow cars out there – even the largest of trailer units should be no problem for it.
New price from: £49,590 Model to go for: 2.2 CRDi DCT All-Wheel Drive Edition Max towing capacity (braked trailer): 2,500kg Find a Kia Sorento on Auto Trader

If you want an EV but think that will prevent any towing plans you might have, think again. The BMW iX is a large, heavy, opulent SUV with powerful electric motors and a big battery, making it ideal as a tow car. Indeed, all models will haul 2.5 tonnes of braked trailer, which makes this BMW one of the most impressive EVs of them all for outright towing capacity. You’re best opting for the middle-ground model of the xDrive50 in M Sport trim. This gives you the massive 111.5kWh battery pack, meaning up to 380 miles is possible in one hit, as well as all the usual iX luxuries and benefits, such as a truly high-class interior and a useful 500-litre boot.
New price from: £69,905 Model to go for: xDrive50 M Sport Max towing capacity (braked trailer): 2,500kg Find a BMW iX on Auto Trader

Volvo’s renaissance since 2015 is beautifully encapsulated in the V90 Cross Country, a lifestyle crossover estate that adds a dash of SUV desirability. Better yet, it makes for a cracking tow car in this spec, because it can tow up to 2,400kg of braked trailer, mass which will be easily controlled by the car’s standard-fit four-wheel-drive system. There’s also a 551-litre boot and one of the highest-quality car interiors you could imagine – complete with the comfiest seats in the business. A smooth turbodiesel mild-hybrid engine will return around 44.8mpg when you’ve not got a trailer of some sort hooked up to the back, too.
New price from: £56,310 Model to go for: B4 AWD Mild Hybrid Plus Max towing capacity (braked trailer): 2,400kg Find a Volvo V90 Cross Country on Auto Trader

The Skoda Superb is an aptly named car, because it is just that – superb. As an Estate model, it’s positively massive, with huge rear legroom and a gigantic 660-litre boot space, making it the envy of many supposedly much larger and grander estates. So it’s a great car as it is, but specified with the stronger 2.0-litre TDI turbodiesel engine and the four-wheel-drive system, this Skoda can haul up to 2,200kg of braked trailer. That’s more than enough capability to cover even the largest caravan, while even smaller horseboxes should be within its remit.
New price from: £32,605 Model to go for: 2.0 TDI 200 DSG 4x4 SE L Max towing capacity (braked trailer): 2,200kg Find a Skoda Superb Estate on Auto Trader

It would’ve been easy to pick an Audi Avant – that’s ‘estate’ – model here, but we’ve got a couple of estates for you lower down the list, so why not tow in style? The five-door A5 Sportback is surprisingly practical, with its large hatchback opening up on a 465-litre boot, while Audi’s traditional strengths of torquey, efficient turbodiesel engines paired to quattro all-wheel drive make for excellent tow-car specifications. A nice 40 TDI quattro S line would be fine enough, albeit it can only lug two tonnes – for that 2,100kg peak, you need the high-performance S5, with its 700Nm turbodiesel engine.
New price from: £41,965 Model to go for: S5 Black Edition TDI Max towing capacity (braked trailer): 2,100kg Find a Audi A5 Sportback on Auto Trader

Trying to avoid that old cliché about the ‘Swiss Army knife’, the Toyota Highlander is a very versatile vehicle. It’s a hybrid, so it’s efficient. It’s a seven-seat SUV, so it’s large and practical. And it’s capable of hauling up to two tonnes of braked trailer, while it also comes with towing-friendly all-wheel drive as standard. Factor in Toyota’s usual strengths, like a well-made, generously equipped interior and the brand’s trademark reliability, and you can see why the Highlander is such a desirable tow car.
New price from: £57,980 Model to go for: 2.5 Hybrid AWD-i Excel Premium Max towing capacity (braked trailer): 2,000kg Find a Toyota Highlander on Auto Trader

The Dacia Duster represents one of the most affordable, and likeable, ways into tow-car ownership. Its 1.5-tonne towing rating means it is more than capable of hauling a decent-sized caravan for a weekend away, albeit you need the four-wheel-drive turbodiesel model for that lugging capacity – which isn’t the cheapest model in the Dacia’s range. But it’s still not an expensive hauler, which makes it great.
New price from: £17,295 Model to go for: Blue dCi 115 4x4 Extreme Max towing capacity (braked trailer): 1,500kg Find a Dacia Duster on Auto Trader

This fabulous update of the ‘classic’ Land Rover model blends all of the old vehicle’s unbeatable 4x4 skills with some true SUV elegance, making it one of the greatest tow cars of them all. Available in short-wheelbase, three-door 90 format, or as longer 110 (five-seat) and 130 (eight-seat) variants, we’d advocate going down the middle with a 110 in D300 MHEV HSE specification, which means a lovely six-cylinder turbodiesel that allows the Land Rover to haul the maximum 3,500kg of braked trailer.
New price from: £57,540 Model to go for: 110 D300 AWD Automatic MHEV HSE Max towing capacity (braked trailer): 3,500kg Find a Land Rover Defender on Auto Trader