When it comes to trucks, towing capacity is one of the first specs people bring up. It’s a bragging right, a sales point, and often the measure of how “tough” a truck really is. For most drivers, that means pulling something practical. Whether that’s a camper for summer trips, a boat for weekends at the lake, or maybe a horse trailer. Every now and then, automakers and engineers decide to throw practicality out the window and see just how far they can push their machines.
That’s when things start to get a little out of this world. We’re talking about trucks that have pulled space shuttles through city streets, pulled freight trains weighing over a million pounds, or even set speed records while towing trailers across the Mojave Desert. These aren’t the kind of scenarios you’ll find in an owner’s manual, and they definitely aren’t scenarios most truck buyers will ever encounter. These are simply extreme and over-the-top demonstrations that are pretty much trying to prove a point, which is that modern trucks are capable of far more than we usually give them credit for.
In this roundup, we’re looking at five trucks that made towing history, whether by breaking world records, challenging the laws of physics, or just simply reminding the world that the right mix of engineering, grit, and a little imagination can move just about anything.
With American trucks, the Ford F-150 nameplate is pretty much an icon. There are few others that can make that claim. Known for being a practical choice for everyday driving but still packing some serious muscle, the F-150 has built a reputation for excelling in horsepower, torque, and towing power. In 2019, Ford decided to go far beyond published spec sheets to prove just how capable its truck could be.
Ahead of the release of the all-electric F-150 prototype (which would eventually evolve into today’s Lightning), Ford staged a jaw-dropping stunt: the truck towed a freight train weighing over a million pounds. Yup, over 500 metric tons. That’s not a typo, either. The demonstration took place on train tracks in Pennsylvania, where the electric F-150 pulled 10 double-decker rail cars loaded with 42 F-150 pickups. The run stretched for 1,000 feet, showing off the instant torque electric motors are famous for.
Now, it’s worth noting that this wasn’t about setting an official towing capacity record. No one is realistically hitching a freight train to their F-150. Instead, it was a bold and smart marketing move meant to showcase what the future of Ford trucks could do. It also showed that bringing electric-based powertrains to trucks had tons of potential. Maybe even more than 500 metric tons.
One of the biggest criticisms electric trucks and vans face is that they simply can’t handle the heavy lifting that diesel-powered workhorses are known for. But in 2023, the IVECO eDaily blew that myth out of the water, and straight into the record books. This modest-looking 3.5-ton electric van set a Guinness World Record for the heaviest weight towed by an electric van, managing to pull an incredible 338,600 pounds (153 tons). The load towed by the eDaily consisted of a massive IVECO trailer truck, a construction truck packed full of rocks and a fire truck.
The record attempt took place at the Nardò Technical Center in Italy, where the eDaily demonstrated that electrification doesn’t have to mean compromising on muscle and power. To put that number into perspective, that’s like towing two fully-loaded Boeing 737-800 planes, and then some — not bad for a van designed to make deliveries around town. The truck used was a standard model, equipped with a stock 190-horsepower electric engine, meaning that it was ready to achieve such a feat straight off the lot, without any extra bits and bobs attached. This record definitely gave the eDaily a spot in towing history and proved all the Diesel-loyalists wrong.
The Toyota Tundra has never been the strongest contender in the world of pickup trucks, but in 2012, it earned a permanent spot in towing history with one unforgettable stunt, proving it was just as powerful as the record breakers. NASA needed to move the retired Space Shuttle ‘Endeavour’, a 292,000-pound giant, through the streets of Los Angeles on its way to the California Science Center. Part of the journey included crossing the Manchester Boulevard Bridge, and it needed a lighter tow mechanism than what was being used before that point. That’s where Toyota stepped in.
A stock Toyota Tundra CrewMax 4 x 4 with no modifications was brought in to do the job. You might think that they definitely had to have used a fifth-wheel, gooseneck or some other extra towing equipment to pull it off, but actually, it was equipped with a plain and simple standard towing package. With a massive crowd and millions of online viewers watching, the Tundra slowly but surely towed the shuttle across the bridge. Today, the Toyota Tundra is still just as capable as ever before, with the 2025 Tundra able to tow as much as 12,000 pounds, which is pretty good for a light-duty, half-ton truck.
When you think about towing records, most of them come down to raw strength. Basically, how many tons can a truck drag across a short distance? However, in 2012, Diesel Power Magazine wanted to make history, and to do this, they decided to focus on something completely different: speed. They wanted to prove that diesel trucks could tow heavy loads better than anything else. To achieve this, they decided on a modified 2006 GMC Sierra 2500 HD that was built by Pacific Performance Engineering and was nicknamed ‘The Sleepermax.’ It was fitted with compound turbos, upgraded injectors, and optional nitrous, making it capable of churning out over 1000 rwhp.
Instead of hooking the Sierra up to the heaviest load possible, they paired it with a fully equipped 2,700-pound Carson Kalispell travel trailer provided by Carson Trailer itself, and set their sights on becoming the fastest-trailer towing setup in the world. The team headed out to the Mojave Desert in California with Jason Sands behind the wheel and ready to make history, which they did. The first two attempts fell short, but the third time really was the charm, and the Sierra was able to tow the trailer at 141.99 mph, setting the record for the world’s fastest caravan tow. Today, the GMC Sierra HD is one of the most powerful diesel trucks on the market, with the 2025 model boasting a towing capacity of up to 22,500 pounds, and when fitted with a gooseneck, a whopping 36,000 pounds.
No list of towing legends would be complete without a Ford Super Duty, and the F-450 takes the cake as the heavyweight champ of pickups, especially when it comes to towing and hauling capabilities. While it doesn’t hold a Guinness World Record for a single jaw-dropping stunt like hauling a space shuttle or breaking speed records at Bonneville, the F-450 has a claim to fame that’s arguably more impressive for everyday truck owners: it’s currently the king of towing capacity among in-production trucks.
For 2025, the Ford F-450 Super Duty can tow up to a staggering 40,000 pounds when properly equipped with a gooseneck setup. That’s 20 tons! It’s the kind of weight you’d expect to see behind a semi, not a truck you can easily drive home from a dealership. That puts the F-450 at the top of the list when it comes to towing capacity. The truck that comes closest to this is the Ram 3500 HD, which has a maximum towing capacity of 36,600 lbs, meaning it still trails behind the Ford Super Duty. Of course, this dominance doesn’t come out of nowhere. The Ford F-Series has been America’s best-selling truck line for over four decades in a row, building a legacy of dependability, power, and innovation.