SR5 Trailering

Recently purchased an '18 SR5 and was pulling an 8 foot trailer and noticed pretty harsh vibrations between 60-80mph. Truck has never had any vibrations when not towing and doesn't vibrate when under 50-55mph. Any insight would be great!

 

If the truck is fine when not towing, makes sense to first look to the trailer as the problem.

Are the trailer tires in balance?

Was the load adjusted so you had proper tongue weight?

 

I've towed my 2k lb. boat and other stuff with my 2020 sr5. No issues as you described. I use the ect mode and use the sport 4th and 5th gear position for steeper grades.

 

I hoped the trailer may have had some issues, but others small SUVs towed with no issue. Yeah, I adjusted the load to ensure it wasn't the issue. I also took everything off and it still had the issue with an empty trailer. It's pretty odd. I appreciate the suggestion, I will definitely give that a go.

 

Make sure your at the very least in the ect mode, and use the sport mode so as not to bog down your rpm. These v6 autos are happier with more rpm.

 

80 mph? Most states have either a 55 or 65 mph speed limit for towing. Just sayin.

 

When empty or loaded, my 4x8 trailer will vibrate my phone in the mount. Guaranteed that it is tire balance on those little 8in rims for me.

FYI, Slime makes a very good tire balancer. I use it in my motorcycle tires after getting tired of cleaning Dynabeads. You might give it a try? Usually, tire shops are not very happy with Dynabeads or Slime, so consider that before you do it. Not an issue if you mount your own at home.

 

Check if a tire has a bulge or something. What is the vibration like? Side to side or up and down or what? Even my camper bounces up and down a bit.

I tow a lot with my SR5, no issues. The issue is your trailer. 4 different trailers below, 0 issues. I've probably pulled the camper for 8k miles now behind the Taco. I don't have sway control or a weight distributing hitch. The trailer in the 2nd pic was 3 sets of tires in when I retired it and got the new one, but probably only 5k of those were behind the Taco.

 

Unbalanced trailer tire hopping? More likely would be very little tongue weight.

 

Tires can make a lot of difference in how smooth a trailer tows. My 6x12 came with run of the mill bias ply tires and there were always vibrations, whether it was loaded or unloaded. I had a tire shop check them out and they were balanced fine. When it came time to replace them, I put radials on there and it made a world of difference. It's like pulling a different trailer. So much smoother all around. If your having vibrations only while towing, the tires would be my first guess. After that, you could check the hubs and axle. Not sure why it wouldn't be noticeable in an SUV though.

 

It could be the different dynamics off a unibody versus the flexible open section Taco frame?

 

Did you try driving without the trailer attached to see if you still get vibrations between 60-80 MPH?

 

I definitely understand that. I gave a range to show the bounds of the issue, but I appreciate you pointing out though. I'll keep that in mind.

 

We need more info on this trailer...

I watched a guy pulling a little 4×8 job with little 13 inch wheels at 70mph down the interstate and it was walking around behind him. That's asking a lot from a little trailer like that.

Also your trailer hitch might be too high making the trailer lean too far back. This could explain why you haven't had issues towing it with other vehicles

 

I will probably give tires a go and work my way from there. I really appreciate the info on this.

 

Thankfully mine isn't that bad, but I often wonder about upgrading to a 15in wheels and mating axle. Tractor Supply is a bad place.

 

Luckily, I wasn't riding at 70. Only tried speeding up to see if the issue continued. Trailer hitch may also be a solid suggestion as the SUV was much lower. Thanks for that suggestion!

 

You're probably right. I didn't think about the fact that these trucks would allow more flex in the rear and probably transmit more of that to the passengers.

For me, towing is a more enjoyable experience since I got better tires on the trailer. I hope it turns out to be a quick and easy fix for you!

 

Do you have a hitch receiver or are you bumper towing it? That's a 6 inch height difference in itself!

 

A hitch receiver, but it definitely could have been too high and causing elevation issues with the trailer since the trailer was much smaller.