BUDGET-bracket pickup manufacturer Tata has significantly increased the braked trailer weights of its Indian-built Loadbeta range without having to make any mechanical or structural modifications. All models had been listed as having a 1,500kg trailer weight, but at the Motor Show the importer announced major revisions.

The previous 'official' figures, said a Tata spokesman, had been conservatively low for the Indian market to help reduce the constant problem there of overloading. The pickup 2.0TDi now has the highest braked trailer weight of any pickup in the UK at 3,065kg, while the dual-purpose Gurkha 2.0Tdi can top this at 3,110kg. Unbraked towing limits of 750kg remain the same throughout the range, which starts at £6,495 before VAT, £8,131.60 on-the-road.