Gen 3 Towing Thread

look at Camco recurve WDH, the spring bars are on top of the tongue

 

thanks for the link to the discussion, and for your comments. seems like it's a complicated issue legally, but maybe not mechanically...

 

thanks! I had not seen those before, definitely improves clearance

 

Coolest vehicles in the park…

Wife’s RAV4 looks pretty cool in front of the caravan… But my cement Taco for sure looks like a perfect match.

 

New to the Tacoma (unless you count my 1990 "Pickup") but have been pulling various trailers with a number of vehicles for years. One important thing to remember is not just the pulling power of the truck, but the size and stability of the towing vehicle in relation to the trailer. This is why sway control (in addition to weight distribution) is crucial. Even then a big / heavy trailer can easily overpower a smaller tow vehicle if things get squirrely (ie: heavy winds, road heaves, flat tire) even if the trailer falls within the official weight rating for the vehicle. I have always preferred to be "overtrucked" for this reason and went from an X-Terra to a RAM 1500 for our R-Pod (3000#). Even with the full sized truck, I still appreciated having WD / sway control for added safety and stability.

Now that the R-Pod is gone, I'm looking at a lighter simpler camper that I would feel comfortable and safe pulling, which gives me an excuse to size-down to a Tacoma.

Honestly, some of the trailer set-ups in this thread make me cringe. They may be able to pull it around just fine, but no way a Taco will keep everything upright and on the road if those big trailers start trying to wag-the-dog. Appropriate steering and brake control are also critical, and most people who do not have significant experience towing know how to do this properly.

https://www.rvtravel.com/tail-wag-dog-towing994/

 

I pull an rPod 180 with out Tacoma, no WDH, just a precautionary sway bar and 500# Sumo springs. Have towed it from AZ to WA, to CA, and through OR,ID, MT, UT, and the AZ mountains, no issues. YMMV.

 

I’m pulling an R-Pod 179. Camping load is 3250#, Hellwig helper springs, no WDH, no sway bar. No issues.

 

I've got an Andersen and love it. Coming home from one of our first trips we had some 35+ mph winds hitting us at a round a 30-40 degree angle from the drivers front. It got a little crazy but the truck and trailer always moved as a unit. I ended up following a long haul trucker with a 53ft trailer and could anticipate what was going to happen based upon what he was doing. At one point we had a really big gust and it blew him about 4-5 feet to the right. A couple seconds later we were in the same spot of the road but the truck and trailer again moved together. Andersen makes some "raised height" brackets for the trailer where the top of the frame is less than 18". It's worth looking through their instructions and seeing if the measurements work for you, they will also sell you the kit with the raised brackets but you have to email or call them as they don't have it as a listed purchase option online.

 

I now have around 1,200 miles under my belt since November with this setup (2020 DCLB OR 4x4 & 2022 Apex Nano 213rds 4,700# loaded) and am enjoying every trip. The largest climb was sea level to 1,800 ft and the taco felt fine.

Understanding how the torque converter works goes a long way to not allowing trans temps to go sky high. With this trailer I can cruise at 60 mph in 5th on the flat.

I’m using an Anderson WDH and it does an awesome job. The dealer set it up and as I was about to leave the technician mentioned I would be better off with a WDH and not just this sway control… Driving away from the dealer with the rear of the truck bouncing around I knew they had installed it wrong… I re-installed and the WDH does great, highly recommend the Anderson.

I’ve installed front air dam (off the sport), redarc brake controller, a trailer rear camera, mirror extensions, trailer TPMS and sumo springs (not sure if these are needed).

The combination of a slim trailer with a low profile and double axle makes for a great drive.

We are about half way through our journey right now and am looking forward to the many miles ahead…

 

Looks great! I have the Apex Nano 208BHS and my Taco does well with it too. I also put in Sumo Springs (black ones, don't remember the rating offhand) on mine just to help out, but if the WDH is set up right it shouldn't really be needed. My previous 2019 Taco didn't have them and did OK as well. But what I've found is useful with the Sumos is that you can load up the trailer for short distances and not worry about hooking up the entire WDH system/bars, which can be a pain, and it does fine keeping the truck level. I've done that when I got new tires put on the trailer and also bringing it in to get winterized, both of which were just down the road from me. Also you are suppose to take off the bars when doing tight turns and backing up (at least on my E2 WDH they said that), so it keeps the truck more level in those situations too.

I've considered trying to track down and put an air dam from a Sport on my OR as well. I've heard they can help negligibly with MPG, but also with stability, which might be a bigger deal with towing a camper trailer. Did you notice anything either way after putting it on? Did you have to do or remove anything to mount it on your OR? (I've heard maybe the skid plate on the OR gets in the way from mounting it on one, but haven't been able to confirm either way.)

edit: Oh, also wondering what trailer TPMS you are using and how it is working? I've been thinking about adding that to mine as well.

 

Great information on everybody's towing experiences and setups. My Tacoma tows a 2021 Winnebago Micro Minnie 2108TB, 22' length, 4,040# dry/5,500 GVWR and it tows great after 4 trips. I have the Equal-i-zer WDH, Sumo springs, Redarc brake controller in the setup. My SR5 has the OEM Toyo Open Country 245/75R16 tires with load index 109 and want to replace/upgrade the tires to load index 112 for better wet and dry traction and handling. I would like to know what tires (brand and size) you have on your Tacoma for towing and the trailer model. Any advice and/or recommendations would be appreciated.

 

I’m towing an rpod 179 using the stock tires, Goodyear Wrangler 265/70/r16 112T. No issues in 3 years. Lots of life left.

 

New to towing with a Taco but was happy with the way it tows my Satellite 17rb, 3100 lbs dry 3800 lbs loaded. I use a weight distribution hitch and a sway bar.

 

The Anderson WD/Sway hitch is great and lightweight <60lb can revers and do tight turns.

Truthfully can’t say if the air dam is doing anything, but for aerodynamics typically you want the the vehicle lower to the ground so this in theory should help somehow somewhere… I removed the front tow hitch to install the air dam for this excursion but will put it back to OR spec when done with this excursion. Bought some clips and bolts, the air dam was free. Put a post on your home region in TW that you’re ISO front air dam, someone will probably laugh and give you it for free

The TPMS are these…

$80 Tymate RV Tire Pressure Monitoring System - M7-3 TPMS Tire Pressure Monitor System(0-87 PSI) with Solar Charger, RV TPMS with 4 sensors & 5 Alarm Modes, LCD Display, Auto Sleep Mode, Easy to Install

https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B085C2HMQP?ie=UTF8
Tbh the charging port bust on the second time of using but it is solar powered also so it has been working fine.

Im still using the stock OR Goodyears and Westlake tires on the TT

Gave both the wife’s Rav4 and my truck a wash, the first time since leaving Hawaii in September. Just need to wash the TT next.

 

What is your opinion of the TPMS system you linked in your post? Do you use it on the TT? Is the signal strong enough to work properly from the trailer to the monitor unit in the cab of the tow vehicle?

That system is exactly what I'm lookin for to use on both our camper and boat trailer but I'm not really up to speed in regards to what works well and what doesn't.

 

Yes it works fine, my TT is double axle, 25ft hitch to bumper. Main thing to remember is to turn the unit on before moving. Otherwise it can take a while for the signal to connect. The dash unit usb connection broke but I now have a replacement shipping to me… Amazon have 10% off right now so for 60$ it’s worth the peace of mind…

 

I've also got a similar setup. Works well enough. No issues with signal or anything, I do have a repeater wired into the 12v at the tongue though. Easy enough to do on about any trailer.

 

I'm always towing something...

 

I'm not familiar with a repeater system, either. Is the repeater necessary in order to have a dependable signal from the sensors to the dash unit?

 

Depends on the range of the signal, but I'd venture to guess that yes, the repeater makes the signal more dependable. I had a wireless camera that allegedly worked further away, but it would cut out a bunch so I decided not to risk it with the TPMS. No issues with this setup. All of these Chinese setups are pretty much the same.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0797MT15V?ie=UTF8

This is the one I have and it's designed for trailers 25 ft or less. If you look through the pics in the reviews, there is a grey repeater box that wires into 12v.

If you get one that says it has a 50' range, "it should" be good for 50'. Experience tells me that is almost never true though. I recommend one with a repeater. Most probably have one anyways.