how much can the PRE tacoma tow?

Sup guys, i'm on my way to getting a Pre-Tacoma (around 84-85 with 22r/re) and this summer my girlfriend and I plan on going back to her house out in Nevada to pick up some stuff to bring over here in California and we will be renting one of those Uhaul trailers.

my questions are, how much can the 4 banger haul?
will it be able to handle the up and down hills?
would I be able to tow the 6x12' trailer from Uhaul or the 5x10'?

no hate please, just trying to live my life

EDIT: If it cannot handle that much towing wise, would the addition of a turbo charger help along the lines of towing?

 

Maybe this will help.

http://www.4x4wire.com/forums/showflat.php?Number=629550

Edit - saw your edit. A turbo will help get you up hills easier, but it won't do jack for overall capacity. That really goes down to suspension...

 

^^ Probably would be a better idea.

 

that's the expensive way to do it. I know towing the truck behind will atleast cost 150 dollars by itself. not including the truck which will be 200-400 dollars. haha. I work there. the Pre-Taco can haul the 6x12 trailer. Your problem will be hills.
IDK if the 5x10 is a one way piece of equipment there, here it isn't. You would have your main problem going up hills. Going down, not so much, hoping you have a 5spd trans. Use your gear more than the brakes going down hills. I would drop it in 4th gear and let the truck slow itself down. If you need to obviously use the brakes.

 

I believe my 90 tacoma was rated for 3500 pounds when new, but the springs were fairly shot 20 years later and it didn't exactly have power to spare when I went to tahoe. I guess it depends how your spring are / your willingness to downshift / run at high rpm and go slow.

 

Well we would, but the ~700 mile trip with the /.79 cent per mile would be pretty expensive plus gas on top of that it's just easier and more fun to tow with my own truck

 

Have you seen any pre-tacos tow trailers? And I was thinking that the hill would be troublesome. how would the hill parts be experienced? do I floor it to keep up speed? what gears should I be in?

 

Back in the day I had an 86 4x4 Toyota with the 22R. According the the owner's manual, it could tow 3500 pounds. Never tried it.

A friend had the same truck and used it to tow a boat on a single axle trailer. The boat probably weighed 3000 pounds. I can remember he took it to Bass Lake up near Yosemite. He said it made it without problems, just very slow. I drove my 86 up there with two kayaks in the back and my brother in the passenger seat. We went up that last hill into Bass Lake at 55MPH in 3rd gear. Absolutely running the piss out of the truck. I cannot imagine towing a boat up the same hill.

Around the same time I had a roommate who had an 87 with the 22RE. He had a ski boat that I am sure had to be well over 3500lbs. He used to tow it about 20 miles to one local lake, all on back roads where he didn't need to go over 40. He did not try to take it on the freeway.

UHaul trailers are pretty heavy for their size, I believe. I would not try to make an out of state move with one behind a pre Taco. If the truck is in like new shape with a strong engine, new cooling system parts, etc, and you drive it very conservatively and pretend it is 1985 again with a 55MPH limit on flat ground, you may be okay. Remember, towing capacity also includes everything in the truck. So if you and the lady weigh in at 300 pounds or so, and you have a few hundred pounds in the bed, then your max is 3000 pounds. The trailer may very well be 2000 pounds empty.

Turbo is a bad idea. The turbo 22RTE engine was not known for long term reliability, and towing generates lots of heat. Trying to charge up a mountain pass with one will likely cause you trouble.

I know that truck rentals are much more money than trailer rentals, but you should consider renting a box truck to make the trip. Avoiding damage to your newly aquired 25 year old truck will make the expense well worth it. I miss my 86, but I never saw it as a towing machine.

Good luck.

 

Have you driven a Pre Taco with the 22R/E?

We have an 86 1ton Toyota at work. It tops out at 60MPH traveling up hill on a 7 percent grade, empty. My 86 with 22R and 4x4 used to do 55-60 up the same hill, empty.

I see you climbing major hills at 30 mph in second gear with a nervous eye on the temp gauge. Flat ground 5th gear is going to be worthless. You're looking at 4th gear, 55MPH. Any incline in the road and you will be downshifting to 3rd.

I'd love to see you do it, and to be able to say the truck did it and you made it home safe. I just think you're asking for a long, slow, hot ride across the desert, and I don't think it's going to be any fun for you.

Can you afford an early first gen Tacoma? A 2.7 four cylinder is going to be a more realistic option for towing. Or even a 3.0 V6 in an 88-95. Although those had their problems, and you should research carefully.

 

Better off renting a pickup truck. If the trailer is too heavy loaded & you get on a hill you can't get up. Then what are you going to do. And the strain on that old of a truck may cause serious damage to the engine & or transmission.

 

Thanks guys, I will take everything into consideration.

Just wondering, how's the 3vze hold up in the older trucks?

 

They had headgasket problems. My buddy bought a 91 that had already had them done at 75K miles. There was a Toyota recall. He sold the truck with 130K on it. It never gave him any trouble. I've heard of them blowing again in another 50-100K miles.

There are some guys on here saying they have run 200K miles on a 3.0 with the same headgaskets. But I can't help but notice there are a lot of 3.0s for sale locally on Craigslist with blown gaskets.

The one my buddy bought had actually had the gaskets replaced, heads surfaced, and the previous owner had to have it towed back to the dealership a week later. Turned out that the block was warped and the new gaskets didn't seal. Supposedly was common thing. Something to keep in mind if you buy one that "just needs headgaskets."

When I worked autoparts, one of our customers had a 94ish 4Runner 3.0 that he said he was pulling a tent trailer with. He said it was very slow in the mountains, but always got there.