It sounds very much like the vehicle has gone into limp-home mode. This is a self-preservation system whereby the engine and drastically reduces the power it’s producing, limits top speed and often locks the transmission into a low gear. Something has happened that has caused this, and a common reason is that something in the engine, fuel system, or (more likely) the transmission has started to get too hot with the strain of towing.

With luck, full operation will be restored once the vehicle has been allowed to cool down. But you may need to visit a dealership to have things reset. It’s always a good idea to do a full engine and transmission fluid and filter change after any overheating event anyway.

The list of possible causes for a modern turbo-diesel engine not to start would fill a pretty large book, and there’s no point trying to guess the problem. If the engine is cranking but nothing else is happening, most mechanics will start by looking at the fuel system. There could be a problem with the tank pick-up, the fuel rail, the injectors, the filters and many more components. But a check of the fuel delivery pressure and volume is a good place to start.

But this is not a job for the amateur in their driveway. Modern diesels use super high injector pressures, and, if there’s any residual pressure in the system when you crack it open, that pressure is enough to remove fingers, just like a high-pressure water jet can cut steel.

Cars are often less than perfect and problems can show up once they are released on to a particular market with particular conditions. But every new make and model that hits the road and is eligible for registration has to pass a range of tests and certifications before the government will allow that to happen. So your question is really one for government, but the reality is that in many cases, nobody can see these problems coming.

Meanwhile, while I won’t speak for every `information’ source on the internet, I can say without fear of contradiction that no road tester or writer for Carsguide accepts payments from car importers for their opinion. Social media influencers may be a different matter, but I promise you that anything published on Carsguide is the truth and in no way influenced by the car maker or importer. We now live in an age where you need to be very careful where you source your information, but Cargsuide is one source you can trust. It’s something the writers (my colleagues) are very proud of.