Towing Capacity

Thats what I meant. The presence of a tow hitch is not a gaurentee of a tow package. You can have the hitch reciever and no tow package even stock if I remember correctly.

 

Thank you, still getting used to this site, new to it. Will see what I can find under the trailer towing section.

We are looking at a 18-20 foot trailer, most weigh between 3500-4500 lbs that we are looking at. Do you feel is absolutely necessary for a transmission cooler? If you feel it is a huge plus, I am on board. Just trying to save some money but also if a transmission cooler will save my transmission, that is a very cheap item to buy then, as I know the transmissions are not cheap. Thank you again for your help and will try the other forums too, still learning to navigate this site

 

Thank you very much for this and the photos. Was just trying to determine if there was a tow package or not? I bought the truck used and it has the under the bumper 2" hitch and an electrical hookup, but not an electronic brake connector in the cab.

 

Wow, that is a great link, thank you a ton. Reading now.

 

yes... the transmission cooler is mandatory. guys have gone so far as to add a bigger one. you also need to monitor the temps, scan gauge, or ultra gage

 

That is pushing it for me. I'd look for a lighter trailer. The truck will tow 5500 lbs, but it is the payload of your truck that is the limiting factor. Look at the door jamb for a sticker quoting payload capacity. My truck is 1200 lbs. A 5500 lb trailer will have about 700 lbs of tongue weight. In my truck that only leaves about 500 lbs for passengers and cargo. That ain't much.

And you need to be certain of your trucks actual towing capacity. They range from 3500-6500 depending on how equipped.

 

Mine came with the tow package, but i would think a oil cooler would be smart for towing with it. We shopped for a 19' trailer and i was really concerned about weight when were shopping. I ended up with a 19' 2800lb trailer, it pulled like it wasnt there. Only really notice wind resistance (gas mileage). of course we went camping with friends and the lady decided she wanted a bigger trailer. I set my limit at 25' and 5000lbs after reading a bunch on here, and ended up with a 25' 4800lb trailer. It pulls about the same as the 19' one did. Think about what your going to take, water weight , stuff in truck bed weight, read that towing bible thread. Set your comfortable limit before going shopping and stick to it.
trailer brakes and sway bars needed

 

Dubie220 - If you have an automatic transmission, you do have a transmission cooler included as part of the tow package, along with engine oil cooler, larger alternator, receiver hitch, trailer wiring connector, and a larger (27F) battery. There should also be a brake controller wiring pigtail that will plug into the truck wiring. Mine was in the glove compartment in a plastic envelope.

 

I'm planning on towing an open car trailer @ 2200lbs with my 04 M3 on it (3400lbs) to track days. My 07 GX470 towed it without any issues, so I am hoping my '14 prerunner can do this just as well. Trying to keep distances under 300miles, mainly in Texas so no mountains.

 

With trailer brakes you should be fine. Stay out of overdrive

 

I tow a travel trailer that's about 5,500lbs loaded. Most of my towing is in the mountains between 4k and 8k ft elevation. The transmission heats up, even in 4 but it hasn't over heated (temps never exceed 230f).

The truck tows well but you'll want to confirm you have the towing package, get mirror extensions if your trailer is wider than the truck, and use a brake controller and weight distribution hitch. I get about 10mpg in the mountains and I'm usually going 60-65mph

 

Looks like mine, only bigger. Haha.

 

I tow my trailer all over, 1000+ miles, no problem...headed to Nova Scotia this summer, 850 mile trip one way. 5700# loaded, no problem

 

Although my Tacoma is "rated" (what does that REALLY mean anyway?) for 6,500lbs., I decided I would not tow a camper/travel trailer that exceeded 3,500lbs. loaded. Hell, can it "tow" 8-9,000lbs.? Probably, under the RIGHT circumstances.
Well, I don't do RIGHT conditions and circumstances. I'm more interested in knowing what I can comfortably and sensibly tow under normal and real world conditions. I don't ask myself how much I can tow, if I only drive on a flat surface and in a straight line. I want to be able to hook the damned thing up, know that I can comfortably tow it under all driving conditions that I might encounter during that drive, and not put such a strain on it that I'll have to replace the transmission well before its time. I'm comfortable with 3,500lbs.

 

@calico, the Tacoma does fine in "real world conditions" with the more weight behind it but I agree that people shouldn't tow more than they are comfortable with.

Doesn't get much more "real world" than towing over the pass in a spring storm. I'd rather not do it again though....

 

When towing an RV, I can't stress enough the use of a WDH. It's not so much for the weight but the length and overall size resulting in tongue bouncing from bumps and swaying from wind. The WDH along with sway control will attempt to tie the two vehicles together as one. I think all rvs come with brakes so make sure you install a brake controller or have someone do it for you.

 

Towing anything other than an RV is a totally different kettle of fish.
In Canada, at least in Ontario, the max you can tow/total combined weight is stated on our ownership. Normally when registering a vehicle it is defaulted to 3500 kg(7700 lbs). This includes the truck and loaded trailer combined. I had my weight increased to 4500 kg (9900 lbs) on my ownership. This is the maximum you can weigh without getting a CVOR (a comercial license) which involves log books. Other than that, the trailer has to be safetied every year. This does not affect single axle light duty trailers. So... in other words, unless you plan on getting a CVOR, there is no point getting a full size truck for towing.

 

Ok having said all that, I could be completely wrong because the way it's written on the website it clear as mud. even though I was advised by staff at the MTO, they may not even know what right or wrong. Leave it to the government to make things complicated!

 

An update: Maybe this will help someone who is like me and had no clue on towing: I was concerned about whether my Tacoma 2011, V6, Double Cab could pull a small camping trailer. First off, thank you to everyone that supplied posts and all the incredible knowledge! Also the forum/post called Towing Bible on this site was incredible. I purchased this truck used about a month ago. What I found out, thanks to these great posts is, that there was already a transmission cooler, wiring next to the hitch receiver - which led me to believe that this an actual Toyota trailer package from the factory. The dealership was able to confirm that it was a towing package. They stated that it is rated up to 6,500 pounds, just what the forums said, but recommended staying way under that. Well, my wife and I purchased a 20' Coachman travel trailer. It weighs unloaded 2,700 pounds and loaded (guessing 3,700 pounds). I had to purchase this trailer 6 hours from where I live and unbelievably it turned out to be the one day that it was a blizzard and the roads became covered in about 4 inches of wet slushy snow (on the highway). To say that I was freaked out is a gross understatement. lol. I purchased a CURT weight distribution hitch (rated between 6,000-8,000 pounds) and it is worth every dollar! I found that if I stayed in 4th gear, not drive, the truck pulled this trailer with little to no effort. I did add the trailer break controller box (as I believe it is required). My worries were put at ease after about an hour of driving with this trailer, on the highway. I did stay conservative with the speed, but did hit 70 MPH for a brief few seconds to see how it would handle, it was fine. I drove between 63-66 miles per hour on the highway. No issues with pulling, sway (I believe the CURT hitch helped with the sway), or braking. Anyway, just wanted to jump back in, maybe this post will help reassure someone else like me. After this experience I would have to say that the truck had a lot more power and capability of pulling a heavier load. I am not sure if I would ever want to hit the 6500 pound range, but feel pretty confident that 4,000-4,500 pounds would work just fine.

 

Congrats on the new trailer