TT Towing

OK. I'm about to purchase a 17' Jayco X17Z with a GVWR of 3500 pounds, it has a single axle, and no trailer brakes. I have a 11 prerunner W/OUT towing package and with be purchasing Tranny cooler, 4 pin harness, oil cooler, and class III hitch. Is there anything else i should consider? I know this forum has pretty much covered nearly everything there is to towing. I just wanted to make sure i dont miss anything. Thanks.

OK I guess i wont be installing an oil cooler being over 500$, so just tranny cooler, hitch, harness!!!

 

You want the 7 pin harness for a Travel Trailer, you'll need pins 5, 6, and 7 for brakes, battery charging and lights and stuff.

Also, a non-Tow Tacoma is rated at 3500#, so you're likely to be pushing 4500# to 5000# when loaded. The tow packaged Tacos are rated to 6500#.

 

Why do you need a 7 pin harness for a trailer that doesn't have brakes?? 4 Pin is sufficient for that trailer.

OP, you have a stated towing capacity of 3,500 lbs and that TT is right there before you add supplies, water, propane, a battery, etc. I think you may have biten off more than you can chew... Also, don't skimp on the tranny cooler. $500 is cheap compared to a new transmission. Get the cooler or get a truck properly set up for towing (full size or Tacoma with the tow package). You also might want to think about a weight distributing hitch and a brake kit for the trailer (in which case you will need a 7 pin connector).

 

I agree Pugga, I didn't come out the way I meant it. I tend of overbuild so I mean to suggest instead of the 4 just do the 7 now and then don't worry about it later.

 

PM'ed

 

Makes sense. I just did a 4 pin on mine because most of what I tow will be under 3,500 lbs and won't have brakes (I have a non-tow package equipped Tacoma like the OP). Towing around the 3,000 lb mark without brakes isn't a whole lot of fun, you really need to pay attention and leave plenty of room. Personally, I think an empty 3,500 lb travel trailer w/out brakes is not a good idea for the Tacoma.

 

he said no oil cooler, but get the tranny cooler. Just saying. I think you guys misunderstood.
Also, the 3,500lbs the OP quoted is the GVWR, or in other words max allowed weight. Not sure why you guys were adding > 1,000lbs to that. Maybe because you did not read his post? No, the trailer is not at his towing capacity without adding supplies, not true. Empty weight with no options is around 2,800 lbs. Granted, there is not much cargo carrying capacity, but it's a small trailer.

Are you guys just rejecting anything, or are you reading posts sometimes? I agree that brakes would be a must. Otherwise, he is near the limit, but probably ok.

 

I actually think he'll be fine pulling this. I pulled a 3000 lb boat w/o brakes and it did fine. Scared me a bit on downhill stops, but I planned ahead and it went ok.

 

Its 3000lb as delivered before you add your own stuff. Pay extra and get trailer brakes on it. You'll also need 7-pin wiring and a decent controller, but it is MUCH less stressful towing if you can stop.

 

I believe the 3500 is for "bumper" towing. He plans on adding a Class III receiver to it. My class III Valley hitch is rated at 5,000 lbs with 500lbs tongue weight.

OP, Look to see if you can buy an OEM hitch, then you'll be rated at 6500 lbs...if that matters to you. The oil cooler and tranny cooler don't really add "capacity"

Also, go ahead and add the 7pin plug. It's easier to go 7-4 than it is to go 4-7. I added a 7pin to mine. Then I just use a $10 adapter plug when i need to use a 4pin connector.

Also you may want to look into a higher output alternator. Although it's not 100% necessary, it does help when powering up the lights and such on the TT.

Also, get trailer brakes for sure and a brake controller, especially towing a TT.

 

The perpose of the tranny and oil cooler is so that when towing 6500 lbs or whatever you don't toast the tranny and motor. With out the coolers he'd only be able to tow the recommended 3500lbs and perhapes a bit more without worrying about damage from excess heat. It will not affect the towing capacity of the drive train by adding a class3 hitch

 

I am not sure if that's the case. (I mean it, I don't know)
I have heard differing opinions and statements on this.

 

Not necessarily. The oil and tranny coolers just help extend the longevity of the engine and transmission. They don't add any physical towing capacity.

 

Yes the don't add physical towing capacities but I'm going off personal experience I had a Chevrolet that went through 3 trannies (all the same model) then I placed a tranny cooler in and oil cooler in and never went thrue another after that until I got rid of it. Now that being said I think by adding said equipment it will allow you to tow more with the taco because they all have the same models of transmissions in them to the best of my knowledge so I figure it has to do with the added cooling capacities. Why do I think that you ask, because heat is your worst enemy on your drivetrain so if you can maintain it at a appropriate operating level it will in crease the performance and longevity of the drivetrain. But I could be wrong

 

I am planning on getting a WD hitch. I'm also going to fully wire my truck for brakes/7-way. Still going with the recommended tranny cooler. i'm also trying to find an alternator, but i haven't had much luck finding an after market one. Also i will paying very close attention to my weight to not exceed 3500 pounds due to that being the max for the trailer to hold. But i will take the advice on adding trailer brakes to the TT.
I live in south east Texas, so no hills. I will only be pulling it 200 miles max, this is just a weekend get a way for me and the wife. We are both country folks stuff living in the city of Houston with no family near by so we need something to pack up on weekends and get out of the city. What would be sweet is to find a totaled out tacoma with tow package and strip the package off of it. But until then i will have everything minus the oil cooler, just cant afford that one (for now).

 

I just purchased a 28ft new camper. I have a 4 door double cab pulls it fine. Not as much power as the previous F350 diesel I had but it pulls fine.

 

The F350 may have been overkill (F250 sounds about right), but a Tacoma is certainly not a good choice for a 28' travel trailer by any means.

 

Hey Coupe85K,

I actually live near Houston and do some camping, where do you guys like to go?

We typically go to Sam Rayburn, St. Augustine State Park, Powell Park, and are really wanting to go to Cagle Recreational Area near Conroe.

And yea, in good old SE Texas, you pretty much don't even run into medium sized hills.

 

Hey Fajitas, well this is going to be my first camper, we did alot of tent camping around the river in south texas. And i've actually decided to go with a nice pop-up instead of the expandable, figured i would start off with that and then upgrade to a full size camper in a few years. Main reason is i dont really want to fork out the money for the insurance on an expandable, they want 500 a year and the pop-up is only 200 a year.