Toyota, Toyota Prado, 2010 Prado, New Prado, 3 door Prado, ZR Prado, Towing with the new Prado, Toyota Kakadu Prado, Prado ZR, Prado VX, Prado GXL, Prado VX, New 2010 Toyota Prado, Test Tow with new Prado, Towing with Prado, Prado Tow test, Toyota Australia, Prado GX GXL VX KAKADU, 3t Towing, 3000kg towing Prado, Kedron Caravans, Gall Boys, The Gall Boys, GallBoys, Off Road Caravans, Off Road, 4WD, 4WD Towing, Toyota Towing Kedron Caravan, Kedron Boys, Kedron, 4wd Caravans, offroad caravans, remote towing caravans, caravan, all terrain caravans, ATV, ATV2, TopEnder, Cross Country, buying a 4WD, Goodyear tyres, 4wd Tyres, 4wd Tires, Goodyear tires, Off Road adventures There’s an array of information and specifications that is available on them, but thought to share a more general feel of it and the new features.
Being a long time Toyota driving family, and in the caravan industry now since 1962, as most, we were keen to get behind the wheel of the new mid-size 4WD, and see how it handled both on and off-road, with and without a van in tow.
Since the release, have driven the Prado pretty much exclusively, (the 5 door extensively, and the 3 door even more so, as a daily drive). Over this time, have been able to experience a great range of varied conditions with them out on tow tests, away filming, on photo shoots and even for our own caravanning Christmas holidays.
Some quick specifications noteworthy to the towing community (for those that don’t already know) are that the 3-door’s braked towing capacity is 3000kgs (with an allowable down-force of 300kgs), and the 5-door’s 2500kgs (braked) with 250kg on the ball, and both are back to having the option of the very solid exposed towbar fitted which is great. The varied capacities between the two has brought much discussion and plenty of opinion, though hearing that if you have the maximum amount of loading and passengers in the 3-door (five people) with 3000kgs behind it and then 2500kg’s behind the larger 5-door (at seven person capacity), then the overall weight of both is very close for an equal strain on motor, drive train and also for emissions.
We have been used to driving the LC200 series for quite some years now, as our caravan production has been focused more so on that weight category, and the move to driving the Prado for this reason was a little to get used to at first, but has been a very positive one at that.
The 200’s are without doubt the best extended touring vehicle in the fleet to suit the round Australia trip with a van that weighs around the 3000kg to 3500kg mark that’s for sure, but when you drive around town the majority of time, and for the benefits of the Prado as a great tow vehicle with a little less tow capacity, you also gain much more in the way of manoeuvrability for parking, savings on rego / insurance, and an increased fuel efficiency. Would say if you’re more suited to towing within their capacity, whether with it be with a caravan, boat or horse trailer, the Prado just makes good sense as an ideal all-rounder.
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Having read various reviews over the time, saying from how well they tow.....to wanting more power, thought to offer our experience, as for the person who hasn’t driven or towed with them and reading some of these reports, would be fair to assume you could wrongly think that by hooking up a decent size van it may struggle, and this couldn’t be further from the truth. The power they have is ample, and can say this with good experience.
What the designers have achieved with the balance of power to fuel consumption feels ideal for the size of the vehicle.
We were lucky enough to meet with some of the development team in their design phase some years ago now, and heard the lengths that are gone to for their new production models, and is quite mind boggling to the size of the operation, and to then be able to experience nearly every facet of driving with them since, from the dealers ‘Road Show’ release at a 4WD park on Brisbane’s south, to filming with Channel 7’s Creek to Coast at Landcruiser Park and then out on the various other photo shoots has been great. Toyota, Toyota Prado, 2010 Prado, New Prado, 3 door Prado, ZR Prado, Towing with the new Prado, Toyota Kakadu Prado, Prado ZR, Prado VX, Prado GXL, Prado VX, New 2010 Toyota Prado, Test Tow with new Prado, Towing with Prado, Prado Tow test, Toyota Australia, Prado GX GXL VX KAKADU, 3t Towing, 3000kg towing Prado, Kedron Caravans, Gall Boys, The Gall Boys, GallBoys, Off Road Caravans, Off Road, 4WD, 4WD Towing, Toyota Towing Kedron Caravan, Kedron Boys, Kedron, 4wd Caravans, offroad caravans, remote towing caravans, caravan, all terrain caravans, ATV, ATV2, TopEnder, Cross Country, buying a 4WD, Goodyear tyres, 4wd Tyres, 4wd Tires, Goodyear tires, Off Road adventures
The dealer’s release was, as you’d expect, a very professional and well laid out affair, and being a first time visit, had thoughts it would be somewhat subtle, though
as the day progressed, the driving experience to display the crawl feature became quite the opposite.
Guests were taken out for some well supervised training in groups, (with a mixture of the 3 and 5 door waiting in the background), then had the chance to jump in the driver’s seat to be guided through the various features of the models to confidently and safely navigate through the varied 4WD tracks.
This was a really good experience with thoughts of how great they handled it all, and it was coming to our last phase of the tracks being shown practices of recovery and further vehicle handling techniques by full time profession drivers, that I was looking at a few vehicles lined up at the base of a very, very steep and heavily rutted incline that had me thinking how good it was going to be, to sit back and watch them get up it, as at the time it just looked so difficult.
This was all good until the words come out, ’OK, if everyone’s all comfortable with this and there’s no more questions, let’s move on to the next part of the course for instruction on how the crawl feature works in some of these models and get you in the driver’s seat for a first-hand look at its ability up this next incline’.... I couldn’t believe looking at it, that they were prepared to have everyone who was present attempt it.
The crawl feature is truly something you have to experience to realise the extra ability it gives the vehicle. You set one of 3 nominated speeds, take your feet of the pedals and steer, letting the vehicles computer work out the best wheel to send the power to for the maximum traction, and as it states, crawls you in a steady and most incredible manner up and over terrain you would generally otherwise deem as something you otherwise wouldn’t entertain.....and this is exactly what happened.
The hill had you a touch nervous the first go, though the ability, and how easy it made it going up, just took any concerns you initially had away, and continued round for three laps, each time growing more and more confident, and then into the 3-door for the same experience.
You could then see how it makes sense to have the dealer’s staff be familiar with these types of features to explain the operation and what value it adds to the vehicle’s ability. As otherwise it’s an unseen ability of great benefit. At the end of the day you may not use it frequently, but when you do, whether it be making a weekend run to the beach or out to a 4WD park, but it allows for travel through these types of tracks (even if not as extreme), for some great 4WD’ing in a steady and subtle manner, to experience areas less seen and generally of great interest.
The ZR in the 3-door and Kakadu in the 5 also have an exceptionally good array of external cameras that stream vision to the in-dash screen from the front, rear (obviously when in reverse), and also under passenger mirror (ZR) and both mirror (Kakadu).
The safety value of the rear camera is well publicised for reversing, but as for the front camera this was brilliant when heading up the steep inclines off-road, as the monitor clearly showed the track and ruts directly in front of the vehicle that you couldn’t otherwise see. With this also had the added bonus of yellow lines overlayed which showed wheel projection for steering. You can have this display set to automatically come on at slow speed also for everyday parking, as the side mirror mount vision is handy for something as simple as how close the vehicle is, and lined up alongside a gutter. Toyota, Toyota Prado, 2010 Prado, New Prado, 3 door Prado, ZR Prado, Towing with the new Prado, Toyota Kakadu Prado, Prado ZR, Prado VX, Prado GXL, Prado VX, New 2010 Toyota Prado, Test Tow with new Prado, Towing with Prado, Prado Tow test, Toyota Australia, Prado GX GXL VX KAKADU, 3t Towing, 3000kg towing Prado, Kedron Caravans, Gall Boys, The Gall Boys, GallBoys, Off Road Caravans, Off Road, 4WD, 4WD Towing, Toyota Towing Kedron Caravan, Kedron Boys, Kedron, 4wd Caravans, offroad caravans, remote towing caravans, caravan, all terrain caravans, ATV, ATV2, TopEnder, Cross Country, buying a 4WD, Goodyear tyres, 4wd Tyres, 4wd Tires, Goodyear tires, Off Road adventures Another added feature in the models that have it is the radar cruise. You set to a speed on the highway and with the press of a button, nominate one of three distance settings from the vehicle in front of you, which as gimmicky as it sounds at first, is a feature that is great to use. With safety at the forefront and the recognition of speed related incidents, not to mention the array of enforcement cameras now out for even creeping over the limits, this allows you to set, and if approaching the rear of another vehicle in a two lane scenario, will detect the vehicle in front and at the distance set, slow to maintain their speed until you can safely change lanes, when it will then, if no other vehicles are in that front zone, accelerate back up to the nominated speed, all without touching a pedal when set.
The KDSS suspension of the Kakadu and ZR models gives that well grounded feel, and improved traction when in off road conditions also. When you first look at the 3-door, being the shorter wheel thoughts are in towing that it would be vulnerable to excessive pitching, but setup properly this is not the case, and rides very smooth and stable.
There’s a host of air bags in them, and in the models that have it fitted another great added feature is the auto tensioning seat belts that pull you back into your seat pre-collision. It’s from this to the ease of button start or front seat heaters (ZR & Kakadu) with a host of other features that make a great blend of
a very capable 4WD with added comfort and safety.
If you are in the thoughts of moving up or even back into the mid-size 4WD market, the Prado is one that should be at the top of the list to check out. Weigh up the value for money of comfort, features, efficiency and the reliability that is so synonymous with the Toyota brand, (especially valuable for remote travels) and see if it’s going to suit your needs.
The Toyota website outlines all the detailed features and specifications and if you’d like more info or to check information for your closest dealer to organise a drive yourself, then checkout
Safe and Enjoyable Travels!.
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The new 3-Door (ZR model shown) - 3 tonne braked tow capacity
The 5-door (Kakadu model shown) 2.5 braked towing capacity
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Dave spent the day putting the new model through it's paces at Landcruiser Park.
Discussing our thoughts on the new Prado's towing ability off-road with Creek to Coast's Dean Miller.
The new style Genuine Accessory exposed towbar. 2500kg tow capacity for the 5-doors and 3000kg for the 3 doors.
In certain models, cameras show dash monitor views of the front - rear and side, and a 220v outlet resides in the rear cabin. Toyota, Toyota Prado, 2010 Prado, New Prado, 3 door Prado, ZR Prado, Towing with the new Prado, Toyota Kakadu Prado, Prado ZR, Prado VX, Prado GXL, Prado VX, New 2010 Toyota Prado, Test Tow with new Prado, Towing with Prado, Prado Tow test, Toyota Australia, Prado GX GXL VX KAKADU, 3t Towing, 3000kg towing Prado, Kedron Caravans, Gall Boys, The Gall Boys, GallBoys, Off Road Caravans, Off Road, 4WD, 4WD Towing, Toyota Towing Kedron Caravan, Kedron Boys, Kedron, 4wd Caravans, offroad caravans, remote towing caravans, caravan, all terrain caravans, ATV, ATV2, TopEnder, Cross Country, buying a 4WD, Goodyear tyres, 4wd Tyres, 4wd Tires, Goodyear tires, Off Road adventures
Toyota, Toyota Prado, 2010 Prado, New Prado, 3 door Prado, ZR Prado, Towing with the new Prado, Toyota Kakadu Prado, Prado ZR, Prado VX, Prado GXL, Prado VX, New 2010 Toyota Prado, Test Tow with new Prado, Towing with Prado, Prado Tow test, Toyota Australia, Prado GX GXL VX KAKADU, 3t Towing, 3000kg towing Prado, Kedron Caravans, Gall Boys, The Gall Boys, GallBoys, Off Road Caravans, Off Road, 4WD, 4WD Towing, Toyota Towing Kedron Caravan, Kedron Boys, Kedron, 4wd Caravans, offroad caravans, remote towing caravans, caravan, all terrain caravans, ATV, ATV2, TopEnder, Cross Country, buying a 4WD, Goodyear tyres, 4wd Tyres, 4wd Tires, Goodyear tires, Off Road adventures Thanks to Sean Hanley, Simon Clarke, Ian Linton, Tony Perrin, Steve and Paul Connelly from Toyota,
and the Boys from Channel 7's 'Creek to Coast' for a great day testing and filming with the new vehicle at Landcruiser Mountain Park.
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