Towing - 2nd gen vs 3rd

Both trucks will preform about the same. The 3.5 will require more RPM to stay within the "power band".
The 3.5 makes it power and torque a little higher in the RPM range.


Neither engine, or truck, is great at towing.
I'm of the opinion they are both "over rated" on the towing capacity.

 

2005 vs 2017

We've pulled this same ~5k lbs trailer around BC for over ten years now with a 2nd gen and now a 3rd gen, both did fine.
Would it be nice to race off stoplights and fly over mountain passes in a cloud of V8 power? - sure but then I would have to live with a fullsize the other 360 days of the year.
The 2nd gen might have started off a bit better, but ours ran hotter, slower, louder, and used more gas than our 3rd gen does while towing.
Let the 3.5 rev, it's happy above 4k rpm - the 4.0 was miserable up top..

 

Yep. Would not wanna tow this often:

I miscalculated and definitely overloaded my trailer by at least 1000#….


Was an interesting 10.5 hour drive…

 

Do you actually own a tacoma?

 

You can look on TFL Trucks on YouTube, the 3rd Gen smoked the 2nd Gen in the towing test.

 

Yep. 2021 OR.

I’ve had Toyota trucks going back to 1985.

 

Needed to shed weight to get a better running start!

 

All of the transmission gear-hunting in the first 5 ft kind of killed that plan.

 

I've towed a fair bit with all three gens, also all manual transmissions so a little different but obviously same motors if you're looking auto.

For me towing, Gen 2 is a bit easier off the line but gen 3 is better at speed. A key part of this is knowing the differences with the two motors power curves. The the 3.5 likes to rev which is fine. I'm normally towing a 20' Dory which has a bigger bow than most boats but easier than a TT for sure with wind. I don't have any reason to complain (knock on wood) with the gen3, and have no regrets.

I'd never get a huge (full size) unless you tow 4k plus a lot, meaning more than 25 - 50 times a year.

 

Well said.

 

I have very little towing in the 4.0 2nd gen. I can tell you with a lot of towing experience the 3rd gen the MT reverse is geared way to high to back up any load. If I towed more them ~3500lb often, I would be in a full size Tundy..

 

05 4.0 OR MT vs 23 OR MT towing 7500lb dual axle utility trailer (NOT fully loaded)
i preferred my 05, it climbed hills wayyyyyy better when towing and was smoother overall. i feel like i'm constantly either revving the engine on the 23 way out or lugging it and losing speed.
the 05 was more consistent in sticking to one gear and going and way better staring off the line. most of my towing is on rural 2 lane roads through northern NJ and PA and less highway.

 

Pretty much the same experience for me too. I had a 13 sport MT and now a 21 OR MT. The 13 towed way better. I looked into the OTT tune for the 21 and wound up getting it. The 21 towing is reminiscent of the 13 now. It's hard to believe Toyota left that much on the table with the 3rd gen's.

 

Ah yes youtube the pinnacle of truth.

 

Then link all you find that address OP's question specifically. I regularly monitor the towing forums since that is what I do with my Taco and where I have the most expertise to offer on this site. This question has never come up since I have been a member and I haven't seen it once in my few years here. That isn't to say there aren't threads out there -- so link them -- all those hundreds of threads that compare towing performance when switching from a 2nd Gen to a 3rd Gen.

I'm looking forward to your response given your other interactions (^) in this thread. I can tell you have a lot to offer others.

 

I’ll get right on it then…

 

i've seen a lot of talk about the OTT tune and i'm on the fence just due to warranty concerns in reality. i thought everyone was crazy at first talking about tuning their Tacoma until i got my 3rd gen and now i 100% understand it.

 

I was wondering where on his body this thread hurt him.

 

These tuners will let you try them and if you don't like it they'll switch it back at no charge. Then you can decide for yourself with no risk. That's what I did.