i have a march 96 build 80. it is rated to tow 2750 kgs. i want to tow 3500kgs. can someone please tell me the difference in brakes and suspension between my cruiser and one built AFTER august 96 which is rated to tow 3500kgs. and if it is a worthwhile proposition? thank you...

Apparently there is no difference, apart from the build date.
I swapped tow bars on my two cruisers so now my 6/96 turbo diesel has a 3500kg rated towbar.

Someone else was wondering here.
http://www.lcool.org/forum/viewtopic.php?t=6279

Check with Yota or Hayman Reece, as I think it is only the rating of the tow bar and hitch that is the difference.

the tow bars are the same,
hayman reese dont put the rating on
toyota tell them what the ratings are,
toyota changed the rating but nothing
changed on the car.

thank you for your replies to my problem. here is some updated info from my investigations that wont help anyone as it is VERY confusing .....
toyota says there is no difference. queensland transport give a braking system upgrade for all toyotas [4X4] but does not say why these upgrades would be needed! auto engineers on the gold coast have never heard of this before. but the girl from hinterland toyota had heard a vague rumour!
so basically... there is not anyone in official circles who knows s*#(! about this really.
in the end, its the people on this site, with their enthusiasm for their 80's that have the best ideas of all!
i will keep on this until i resolve it and post it here. thanks again.
www.sleeoffroad.com/newbie/newbie100.htm this is a site i found the other day but only found this specific piece just now. true, its a yank site but its a start.

I think at the end of the day there is what is legal and what is safe, I really dont care how big the brakes on the cruiser are, if you want to stop in a reasonable amount of time with 3.5 Tonne sitting behind you, then make sure the trailer is fitted with at minimum overide brakes but preferably electric brakes.

I think you will be able to take little comfort in what is legal when you go down Mt Ousley and run into the back of a coal truck and end up dead.

My recollection is that the RTA specifies the maximum weight that can be towed and it used to be based on the weight of the towing vehicle (it also used to be max unbraked tow weight =2/3 weight of towing vehicle). If the trailer has brakes fitted then the value went up depending on the type of brakes fitted to the trailer.

I would guess that the RTA is the best place for this info not the vehicle manufacturer.
Barry

of course i have electric brakes fitted i dont plan on having a 21ft bushtracker caravan sticking out of the back of my head after chucking out the anchors in ANY situation. i also have new LOAD RATED tyres {BFG}, new suspension {ARB} and the brakes have just been done so i think i am pretty right !!! i love my 80 and it became a member of the family when we bought it new, so it is loved and looked after. and as it has just under 200k on the clock i think i will have mytoy for a while too!