I have a Navara stx v6 550.Can I tow a 2.5 tonne van legally

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It depends on your ball weight and GCM (combined total of tug and van).

The specs I found (quickly) are:
Tare: 1920kg
Gross Vehicle Mass 2860kg
Gross Combination Mass 5860kg
Braked towing capacity 3000kg

So on face value 2.5t is OK. But everything you put into (and onto) the ute will be included in your GCM. You’ve got about 900kg of cargo, passengers, fuel, bullbaiting etc to play with and still be under the GCM.
 
It depends on your ball weight and GCM (combined total of tug and van).

The specs I found (quickly) are:
Tare: 1920kg
Gross Vehicle Mass 2860kg
Gross Combination Mass 5860kg
Braked towing capacity 3000kg

So on face value 2.5t is OK. But everything you put into (and onto) the ute will be included in your GCM. You’ve got about 900kg of cargo, passengers, fuel, bullbaiting etc to play with and still be under the GCM.
Thanks mate, I checked vehicle tare wt is 2100kg GCM 6010kg.I think I will have to change the Ball to one with greater capacity. I'm not sure about the actual tow bar. It is quite confusing all the different things that need to be taken into consideration. Thanks heaps for the reply
 
Also if you are towing 2.5T then your towball weight will be 250Kg. Then there is the lookup chart in the owners manual somewhere that says if your ballweight is 250Kg then the GVM is derated by about 100Kg. (from memory).

Do you have a bullbar, canopy etc?

i would be surprised if you can tow 2.5T plus essential gear without a gvm upgrade.
 
Had a quick look this morning; can’t find it yet. Have it in the notes on my phone so got it from some Nissan specs somewhere. Will keep looking
 
I’ve searched through that book several times. I recall Nissan put the table in a weird place where no one would ever see it. I have found the table elsewhere in this forum that I posted previously out of my STX550 owners manual.

Ball Weight and effect of vehicle GVM
150Kg GVM
200Kg Reduced loaded vehicle mass below GVM by 60Kg
250Kg Reduced loaded vehicle mass below GVM by 130Kg
300Kg Reduced loaded vehicle mass below GVM by 200Kg

From the table if the ball weight is 250Kg then the vehicle can carry 130Kg less.
 
Yes it is on the driver’s door as well (attached). Mine is a 2012 Spanish built STX550.
F9B255CE-7F93-4CCB-873A-71F5AD55FBFE.jpeg
 
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I recall it’s in a weird place.

Is there not a sticker on the driver's door with that info?

It's weird that you don't mentally see it anymore when you probally catch sight of it everytime you open the driver door
.. in a similar position on the inside of the opened, driver door is the weights

20210921_162317.jpg
 
Just check with the caravan manufacturer about the ball weight too. My own 2.5T caravan is supposed to have a ball weight of around 135kg, the recommendation for ball weight is "between 5% and 10% of the trailer's mass".

This means that you might not have all 250kg on the ball. The absolute best thing to do is to load your caravan up and actually measure the mass on the ball. Your caravan supplier should be able to help you with this.

Also in NSW you need to not only have an electric brake controller, but a breakaway brake battery monitor as well, visible from the normal driving position. Mine sits on top of my brake controller. I don't know what the exact regs are in WA, I suggest you check those out.
 
In Vic, for the weight range being discussed here, you need to have a breakaway controller with a battery for it on the towed trailer but there's no requirement for a monitor for it inside the tow vehicle, so clearly regulations do vary between states and it's up to you to find out what's required where you are.
 
It depends on your ball weight and GCM (combined total of tug and van).

The specs I found (quickly) are:
Tare: 1920kg
Gross Vehicle Mass 2860kg
Gross Combination Mass 5860kg
Braked towing capacity 3000kg

So on face value 2.5t is OK. But everything you put into (and onto) the ute will be included in your GCM. You’ve got about 900kg of cargo, passengers, fuel, bullbaiting etc to play with and still be under the GCM.
GMG, where did you find the GCM and other figures from? I've got a 2013 STX550 and I can find the GVM on the plate on passenger mid pillar, states 3010, axle weights are in the owners manual, but can't find GCM.
Cheers Jim
 
Usually the GCM is specified as the "gross vehicle mass plus the braked towing capacity" but that's a trap, because in the little table at the bottom of the spec sheet (attached below for your year model) there's a "reduce GVM by xx kg based on towball download" requirement. The towball download is not always 10% of the trailer's mass - my 2.5T caravan has a 135kg ball weight specified, so you need to get it weighed properly if you want to be accurate. The ball weight for heavy trailers can be anywhere between 5% and 10% and the trailer will be stable (my caravan is a dream to tow).

So, let's assume a 3,000kg trailer with a 200kg ball weight, the table tells us to reduce the GVM by 60kg.

Normal STX550 GVM: 3010kg
Reduced for towing: 2950kg
Max trailer mass: 3000kg
GCM: 5950kg

A roadside inspection (they've been doing them in Vic, NSW and Qld just before the batpox hit us) would show this up but a casual inspection won't. Insurance assessors will undoubtedly be picking on this one to see if they can avoid paying out on a claim - that's what insurers are best at.
 

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