Top-5 caravan-hauling tow trucks

There's a theory that you can never have enough tow vehicle when it comes to safely hauling a big 'van around the country. But like many things in life, especially in a land down under, there are always a few people that take it too extremes...

Upgrading from a D-MAX to a LandCruiser, followed by a RAM 2500 or light-duty truck, is the sensible progression for many caravanners, funds permitting.

But then there are the examples below, which are also good options if you want to win the 'mine's bigger than yours' debate at the next dusty Outback pub you drop by...

Queenslander Brian Pokorny is quite the legend around the traps, causing plenty of chatter on the two-way radio whenever he rolls by with his 2001 Kenworth T950 towing his 21ft Kedron AT5 caravan.

Before retiring and using the re-purposed big rig to tow his Brisbane-built 'van to old machinery and truck shows, Brian logged around 2.5million kilometres in the prime mover during an intrastate truck driving career that spanned 40 years.

In case you were wondering, the big truck boasts a fully certified tow bar conversion for caravanning, which also included upgrading to a 4500kg rated Cruisemaster DO-45 caravan coupling.

You can read the full story here: Kedron-hauling Kenworth turns heads

The Melbourne owner of this impressive rig was sick of being overweight in his previous vehicle, a RAM pickup, so started looking around for an alternative...

The end result was a Scania P 280 XT 4x4 powered by a five-cylinder, 9.0-litre engine that puts out 280hp and 1400Nm of torque. In combination with a gross vehicle weight of around 27 tonnes, and a similarly impressive gross trailer weight, that's more than enough to tow his 24ft Bushtracker around Australia while also carrying custom lockers and a boat on the back.

"We didn't skimp on anything," owner David said back in 2020. "We wanted to get the best and most comfortable that we could, so we put on everything that we needed."

Read the full story here: Caravanner builds monster tow truck

Most people over-pack when they go on holidays, but then there's those that just can't leave anything at home when they hit the road.

This Western Australian-based set-up that hit the market in 2019, includes a luxury motorhome 'tow vehicle' built by NSW-based Jacana Motorhomes and based on a rugged 2010-model MAN 4x4 truck.

The custom two-level alloy trailer, built by West Australia’s Duralite Trailers, carries an aluminium trailerboat, Suzuki Jimny-sized 4WD SUV and CanAm quad bike, with garage space left over for either two Harley Davidson motorcycles or three dirt bikes.

The trailer also includes a 140 litre fuel tank with bowser to keep all the motorized toys topped up!

Read the full story here: Monster toy hauler motorhome for sale

Fifth-wheel caravans are often on the larger size so require a bigger tow vehicle, but this one gives new meaning to big!

Featured back in 2011, the monster rig was the brainchild of Gary Dryden, proprietor of Dryden Trailers, who wanted a custom fifth-wheel caravan to match up with his Western Star prime mover.

The Western Star has a GCM of around 90 tonnes, so it makes light work of the tri-axle McCann fifth wheeler which has a length of 14.63m (48ft), a Tare of 12,200kg and an ATM of 18,000kg.

Apart from the house-size living quarters, the motorhome body incorporates an offside slide-out and a rear garage for a small car. There's also a massive 2270 litres of fresh water, 520 litres grey and 550 litres drinking fitted into the chassis. 

Click here for the full story: Dryden Trailers Custom 46ft Review

This one's a little more down to earth but still impressive as far as tow tugs go: a highly modified Isuzu NPS 75/45-155-based crew cab 4WD truck from the Queensland stable of Australian Adventure Vehicles.

Among the countless mods and add-ons is a two metre high aluminium 'toy locker', with room for a tinnie, quad, or pair of trail bikes on the open rear tray, which also doubles as a sundowner.

The beauty of this tough-truck rig is as it's based on a GVM of 3500kg it can still be driven on a car licence, yet can tow a caravan loaded up to 4500kg.

Get the full yarn here: Tested - AAV Isuzu NPS 75 4x4 adventure truck

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