The Korean car industry has come a long way – the likes of Hyundai and Kia are no longer budget options, although many models are still good value and make great choices for those looking at the tow cars on the market.
High-tech, safe, well-specified, and with long warranties, Korean cars can be excellent options for caravanners looking for the best tow cars.
Kia and Hyundai aren’t your only option. KGM (formerly SsangYong) builds affordable, highly specified models – as always, just be sure to make sure you’re sensibly matching a car to a caravan.
Warranty is another pretty compelling reason why your next tow car could be Korean. Instead of the three years offered by most brands, Korean manufacturers typically offer five or seven years of cover.
Here’s our pick of Korea’s finest tow cars.
The best Korean tow cars
Kia EV9 GT-Line
- Price: £73,275
- Kerbweight: 2664kg
- 85% match: 2264kg
- Towing limit: 2500kg
If you dislike electric vehicles or have no interest in towing a caravan with one, look away now. But if you are open to pulling your caravan behind an EV, there’s no better car for the job than the Kia EV9.
The Kia’s kerbweight helps. Weighing about half a tonne more than most of the conventionally powered big 4x4s gives it a head start when it comes to stability. Even while towing a long and large tourer, nothing much can upset the EV9’s composure.
It’s very quick, as well as stable. With 378bhp, this huge SUV for towing pulls a van up to 60mph without drawing breath. And being a 4×4, it can make good use of all that power even when the road surface is greasy.
Inside, the Kia is exceptionally roomy in all three rows of seats, although the cabin doesn’t feel quite as special as the interior of a BMW iX.
There are lots of thoughtful design touches, though, with cupholders, storage, and USB chargers for all passengers.
The EV9’s biggest drawbacks as a tow car are shared with all electric tow cars, namely a short range and the difficulty of recharging while towing (see what I had to say previously when considering the pros and cons of hybrid vs plug-in hybrid vs electric if you want to know more about the advantages of each type).
When we tested the car, the towing range was 115 miles or so.
The EV9 hasn’t been on sale for long, so there aren’t many used examples. Low-mileage cars are starting to appear, priced from around £65,000.
Full review: Kia EV9 GT-Line
Hyundai Kona 1.6T N-Line S
- Price: £31,190
- Kerbweight: 1405kg*
- 85% match: 1194kg
- Towing limit: 1310kg
If you have a lighter-weight caravan to tow and you are shopping for a light and small tow car to match, take a close look at the Hyundai Kona.
The 1.6-litre turbocharged petrol engine should cope with any sensibly matched caravan, so long as you are not in too much of a hurry.
When we last towed with a Kona, we found it reasonably stable for a small and light car, although it was pushed around a little in breezy weather.
Inside, the latest Kona is roomier than the previous generation. That’s especially noticeable in the back, which now accommodates adults without being cramped, something which could be particularly helpful if a group of you are heading to the best adults only caravan sites.
The boot space is also pretty impressive for a car of this size, with 466 litres for holiday bags when the rear seats are upright.
The car has a four-star safety rating from the experts at Euro NCAP, rather than the full five stars. That’s good as opposed to great, although in fairness, the standard needed to achieve the maximum five-star score keeps getting higher.
N-Line S models combine sporty good looks and an impressively high specification, all for just over £30,000. Choose entry-level Advance spec instead and the price drops to under £27,000.
Kia Sorento 2.2 CRDi ‘3’
- Price: £46,195
- Kerbweight: 1929kg
- 85% match: 1640kg
- Towing limit: 2500kg
Kia has revised the Sorento, updating the looks inside and out as well as upgrading the infotainment system.
There are now three levels of specification, all of which are available with hybrid, plug-in hybrid or diesel power.
We would still plump for the diesel model for regular towing – in fact, I said earlier this year that I think diesel tow cars still have a place. The 2.2-litre diesel is familiar from the pre-facelift vehicle and produces a burly 325lb ft of torque.
That makes for easy towing, pulling any sensibly matched caravan up to speed with ease.
In addition to that, if our experience of the earlier model is anything to go by, the diesel will be much more economical than the hybrids on a long tow.
The Sorento’s suspension has been tuned for comfort rather than sporty responses, but even so, the Kia is stable and secure at speed. Four-wheel drive is standard, which is going to be a definite advantage on slippery roads or when towing away from a grass pitch.
Inside, the new infotainment system looks great, although some of the controls aren’t as easy to use as they were.
There’s plenty of space here, though. Even the sixth and seventh seats can be used by adults without demanding the flexibility of a gymnast.
If you prefer to buy used, we have seen a 2021 car with just over 51,000 miles for £28,900.
Hyundai Tucson 1.6 T Hybrid 215PS Ultimate 4WD
- Price: £42,230
- Kerbweight: 1846kg*
- 85% match: Above max tow
- Towing limit: 1360kg
Recent changes to the outside of the Tucson are subtle, but the revisions inside are more thorough, in particular for the infotainment system.
There are no diesels, but you can choose from petrol, mild hybrid, full hybrid and plug-in hybrid models. Despite being the most powerful model, the plug-in hybrid is limited by its low maximum towing weight of 1210kg.
The full hybrid’s 1360kg is less restrictive, so that’s the model we’d recommend.
There are two-wheel-drive versions, but the 4×4 adds to the car’s kerbweight as well as improving wet-weather performance. It’s a shame the 4×4 is only available in the top spec; lesser models are well equipped and a lot cheaper.
We found the Tucson a stable tow car, although an SUV of this size and weight ought to be approved to pull more than 1360kg. The acceleration while towing is strong, although the engine can sound strained.
Inside, there’s space for five in the solidly made cabin. Despite the space taken up by the hybrid components, the boot is still a useful size.
The four-wheel-drive car is quite rare on the used market, but we found a 2021 model with 19,000 miles for £26,450.
KGM Rexton K40
- Price: £42,585
- Kerbweight: 2180kg
- 85% match: 1853kg
- Max towing weight: 3500kg
Take a good look at the Rexton if you are after a heavyweight off-roader for the price of a middleweight. At well over two tonnes and with a maximum towing weight of 3500kg, there isn’t much the KGM can’t tow.
Even for an experienced tow car driver, we would never recommend towing a caravan that weighs more than the car’s kerbweight, but that’s hardly likely to be restrictive when the vehicle weighs as much as the Rexton.
The hefty KGM employs body-on-chassis construction, contributing to its weight. It’s quite crude to drive compared with the latest Hyundai Santa Fe or Kia Sorento, but it undercuts them on price.
Where the Rexton outdoes rivals is where the road ends and the adventure begins – it really is superb off road. You can confidently access places where the likes of the Sorento would struggle – although this is likely to appeal to a relatively low number of tow car buyers.
The Rexton is a seven-seater. Despite its size, the third row is quite cramped. There’s plenty of room in seats one to five, though, and lots of luggage space once the third row has been lowered.
SsangYong-badged Rextons start from around £20,000 – see how I got on with the 2022 Ssangyong Rexton when I put it to the test.
I also recently took a look at the best Japanese cars for towing – models which offer stability and reliability.
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