Tow Test: Toyota Fortuner 2021

You don’t see many Toyota Fortuner SUVs on the road today, which is surprising, as on paper and in practice the slim-bodied HiLux-based Toyota five-door wagon that slots in below the more popular Prado has the lot for many caravanners. In many ways it’s a wolf in sheep’s clothing.

Its attributes start with a compact, seven-seater body with minimal front and rear overhang; part-time four-wheel drive when you need it; a torquey and relatively frugal 150kW/500Nm 2.8-litre four-cylinder turbo-diesel engine; smooth six-speed Aisin automatic transmission; a braked towing capacity of 3100kg and – in the mid-spec GXL model we tested – a full leather interior with all the latest tech smarts.

Despite a price rise of $3560 compared to the pre-update model, the facelifted 2021 GXL’s price tag of $55,085 plus on-road costs still makes it pretty affordable for its capabilities. It compares favourably with the $59,900 (plus ORC) of the similarly-specced seven-seater 2021 Isuzu MUX LS-U which has a slightly larger 3.0-litre four-cylinder engine and now higher 3500kg tow rating.

Regardless of all this, we saw just three Fortuners on a recent 5000km trip towing a 2424kg (tare weight) Sunseeker Mirage caravan to Cape Tribulation in far north Queensland and back to the Gold Coast. Maybe the word about the 2021 Fortuner has still to get around?

More grunt for towing

The upgraded 2021 spec Toyota Fortuner has certainly made the rugged mid-range GXL variant an even sharper towing proposition.

A new driveline with 20kW more power and 50Nm extra torque for the standard 2.8-litre four-cylinder turbo-diesel engine head the major specification changes (there's no petrol-engined option). The performance jump comes from a larger, new water-cooled heavy-duty ball-bearing turbocharger with a newly developed variable nozzle vane mechanism, as well as measures to increase engine rigidity, cooling and efficiency.

At the same time, the automatic transmission has been recalibrated to deliver more frequent torque converter lock-up.

Combining the beefier yet more frugal engine and upgraded transmission with the Fortuner's all-coil suspension and strong upper body has enabled the model’s maximum braked towing capacity to be upped by 300kg to 3100kg; opening it up to a wider range of caravans, particularly weightier off-road models.

There’s only a cranking battery under the bonnet, but there’s room next to it to mount an auxiliary battery if you want to run a cabinet fridge. We took an Enerdrive ePOWER B-TEC 100Ah lithium battery and ran it through a DC-DC charger to power our ancient Engel.

The 2021 Fortuner’s steering is also more user-friendly thanks to a new variable-flow power-steering pump that offers more assistance at parking speeds, while delivering a more direct feel out on the highway.

Off-road ready

A rear differential lock continues to enhance off-road performance, while its ground clearance of 216mm is decent for an SUV of this type and allows you to tow caravans as far into the bush as most owners will dare. Ditto its wading depth of 700mm.

Importantly for adventurous caravanners, you can take the Fortuner seriously off-road straight out of the showroom, with its only limitation being rear tow bar clearance.

Like most Toyota 4WDs it’s a bit soft in the tail and a visit to an after-market suspension specialist to fit pump-up air shocks or similar would be preferable to the cosmetic fix of a weight distribution hitch, which could hobble it off-road.

Regardless of what you do though, you’ll never turn the Fortuner into a plush-riding off-roader. Being based on a hard-working tradie-ute platform, you will never disguise its agricultural, rugged underpinnings, but that’s not necessarily a bad thing if you're purchasing it as a tow tug.

As delivered, it shudders over potholes, pockmarks and especially sharp edges like road joins, which makes two-hands on the tiller necessary, but that’s hardly a bad thing.

The relatively tight turning circle of 11.6m was certainly appreciated and meant that we could jack-knife the caravan in tight spots without fear damaging the Fortuner’s rear bumper.

Interior comforts

Inside the Toyota Fortuner GXL you could be forgiven for thinking you were in something more prestigious. Apart from its seven-seat format, standard GXL features include keyless smart entry and start, automatic climate-control air-conditioning, roof rails, LED fog lamps, privacy glass and downhill assist control.

Satellite navigation is incorporated within the GXL’s central tech panel with its 8-inch touchscreen, as is a DAB digital radio, Apple CarPlay and leather-faced seats. No power tailgate though – a curious spec omission.

My only real gripe here is the car’s persistent and seemingly unstoppable female voice warning system common to most Toyotas. I managed to turn the ‘Lane Departure Alert’ system off, as it has the unerring effect of pushing you from one side of your lane to the other – hazardous when you have around seven metres of caravan in tow and you're facing oncoming B-Doubles.

I also ended up hating the never-ending voice alerts about railway crossings (which are encountered every few kilometres in Queensland cane country) and school zones at all hours of the day and night, including weekends and school holidays. Please tell me there’s a fuse you call pull!

Unless you’re towing a family caravan, the two rearmost jump seats that reduce the rear load space, are redundant and can be removed in a few minutes with a spanner if required.

Built to tow

Once hitched, the Toyota Fortuner tows easily, with its peak torque available over a broad rev range from 1600-2800rpm. We found an indicated 2000rpm in sixth gear was a relaxed touring speed, returning less than 16 litres/100km economy on flat, lightly trafficked back roads, but the transmission will still hanging onto top gear and returning even better economy at lower posted limits.

The Fortuner is designed to tow and hence comes fitted with Trailer Sway Control, although with our sensibly-loaded caravan we never had to invoke it. Like most other autonomous safety tech, it’s designed to protect the inexperienced from themselves. But given the number of first-time caravanners on our roads with the current travel restrictions, perhaps it isn’t a bad idea. The life it saves might just be mine!

By the time we had reached the northern limits of our trip, the fuel economy had averaged just on 16L/100km, which is somewhat better than you would get with a big LandCruiser 200 Series up front. When we came to hills, we tipped the transmission into ‘manual’ to drop down a gear and up the revs closer to 3000rpm and coming down steep slopes we put it into manual and relied on the transmission to slow the rig for corners. At no stage of the 5000km trip did we exceed 3000rpm – there simply was no need to.

We also spent most of the trip in 2WD, only employing 4WD on twisting unsealed roads, where extra chassis stability and traction on hills was called for.

Returning home via the Atherton Tableland, our average speed increased and a persistent headwind raised our fuel consumption and caused us to ‘run on empty’ after we misjudged the range of the Fortuner’s marginal 80-litre fuel tank a couple of times. Unlike the Prado and LandCruiser, there's no sub-tank to call on at such times, but fortunately the Fortuner’s tank had a few extra litres in reserve after its ‘range’ warning dropped below zero.

Overall consumption at the end of the trip was 16.1L/100km and for practical purposes, 500km should be considered the upper safe tank range when towing in relatively flat country, which isn’t too bad.

Safety tech on a budget

Given the increased price of new and used caravans these days, the latest Toyota Fortuner allows the adventurous traveler to cap towing costs with a competent tow tug at a relatively affordable price that is nimble enough to perform other road duties when unhitched.

As we have come to expect from Toyota these days, the Fortuner gets a five-star ANCAP rating, with features such as AEB, pedestrian and cyclist detection, lane-departure warning with steering assist, adaptive cruise control and road sign recognition.

I know these systems are popular with those who can’t or don’t want take responsibility for driving, but the lane departure warning was dangerous when towing, as it often pushed the rig off the left hand edge into the centre of the road and potentially into the path of large B-Doubles.  

The continual voice alerts about railway crossings were also particular annoying in Queensland cane country, where little tracks cross the road every few kilometres, as were the school zone voice alerts, which did not factor in the time of day or school holidays!

But not all new tech is bad. The latest mid-year version of the Fortuner just announced now has Toyota Connected Services, with the system able to automatically generate an emergency call to Toyota's 24/7 Emergency Call Centre and relay the location of the vehicle in the event of a collision that requires intervention, or if an airbag deploys.

Occupants can also manually trigger an emergency call to the call centre via an SOS button, allowing them to determine the vehicle's location and coordinate with emergency services.

If the vehicle is reported stolen, Toyota Connected Services can also assist authorities to help track the vehicle's location via the stolen vehicle tracking (SVT) service.

All very handy if you're stranded in a remote area.

While the price of the GXL Fortuner with these extra goodies has risen slightly (by $735 to $55,085), we’d still recommend the latest Fortuner as a well-priced tow tug – particularly for caravanners who want to venture into remote areas.

How much does the 2021 Toyota Fortuner GXL cost?

Price: $55,085 plus on-road costs
Engine: 150kW/500Nm, 2.8-litre four-cylinder turbo-diesel engine
Transmission: Six-speed automatic
Seats: Seven
Kerb weight: 2125kg
GVM: 2800kg
GCM: 5545kg
Tow rating: 3100kg
Fuel economy (as tested, towing): 16.1L/100km
Fuel tank: 80 litres