What is the correct way of towing a sports-utility vehicle - lifting the front, the rear or by putting the whole car on a flat-bed truck?

It depends on the SUV. If it has an all-wheel-drive system that cannot be disengaged, like the new Mazda CX-7, a flat-bed truck or a trolley tow-truck is best.

But if the 4x4 mechanism can be disengaged, like in the Suzuki Vitara, the car can be towed either by the front or rear.

In the case of something like the Toyota RAV4, where the rear wheels are electrically engaged and the primary driving wheels are the front, you should tow from the front.

For two-wheel-drive SUVs, it depends if it is a front-wheel-drive or rear-wheel-drive, although the majority here would be the former.