A believer in the Taco's towing capacity.

I appreciate your advice. You say it "seems" I was asking to much of my Tacoma, which would indicate you're not sure. I'm confident that the truck can handle the load, as it already has. My original post states that I've read just about every Taco towing thread there is...and I have. There was, is and always will be those who disagree with me...that's you're right...I'm ok with it.

On my first trip, I towed across the southern states, close to the Gulf. Not too many steep inclines there...about the only real incline was the bridge over the Mississippi River. My speed held at 50 mph without downshifting.

I'll only be towing this TT 3 times a year, in between the wife's assignments...not that often.

In the future, I may go up in size for a tow vehicle, but for now, I'll keep the Tacoma...its proven its worth.

 

I have the Equalizer.

 

I agree...weights are important. My wife says I'm obsessed with it. I didn't have access to scales, so I did the next best thing...using the curb weights of both vehicles, and carefully calculating the weight of items added...fuel, oil, radiator water, myself, etc., for the truck, and items in the trailer. My wife had her car loaded down with most of our trailer Items.

As soon as I can, I'll weigh it.

 

Also, I believe how you drive is as much a factor in "potential liability" as weights are. I was a traffic cop for several years. My specialty was reconstructing fatalities. Trust me...I've investigated enough to know that I don't want to die like that, nor do I want to contribute to someone's death.

 

in for pics...

 

Hey, if it works it works. I just said 'seems' because it is a little more than I'd be willing to tow on long trips with my Tacoma. Glad to hear it is working out for you!

 

Thanks again. I appreciate you comments. Sometimes, you just don't know until you do it.

 

I tow a 22' Airstream (5000# GW) with my 2013 Taco DCSB 4WD V-6.

I live in Arizona in the winter and Colorado in the summer so my towing is mostly mountains.

I did the recent TSB for rear suspension and I have Scan Guage and an additional trans cooler installed. I usually run about 60mph and find the Tacoma does well as a tow vehicle. Airstreams are great for towing and I don't feel the need for a larger truck (I had a Dodge Diesel).

 

^ Sweet!

 

Just went from Flagstaff to Fool Hollow Lake towing a 3500lb travel trailer. WE also had two bikes and a canoe on top of the truck. About 150 miles each way. Of course then I had to deal with the winds along the I-40 corridor......nasty.

Got about 13mpg both ways, running between 60-65mph. For the most part, the cruise control handled it pretty well. This is not the first time I have done this stretch of road, but I recently got a new exhaust so I wanted to see how well everything did on it's own without my help. Not to bad I'd say.

Jeff in Flagstaff

 

That's good to know. What is your average tranny temp in the mountains, if you don't mind me asking?

 

The highest I have seen is 235 but that was prior to the additional cooler. I had an electric fan set-up to blow on the cooler at that time. As for an average, that is hard to say as it would rise on the long pulls then drop rapidly on the downhills below 200.

 

I towed this for the first time last weekend. Have to admit I was pretty scared after reading some of the (mis)information out there. "It's too big. You'll wreck, kill your family, kill everyone around you for 1/2 mile, cause a chain reaction that will bump the main particle accelerator on the Hadron Supercollider creating a black hole that will suck in the universe", etc.

No biggie. Started feeling a little squirrely above 70 so I'm gonna keep it at 60.

 

As Keith said, 2 big keys are a good hitch and a good brake controller.

Keep good fluid in the drivetrain.
Scrupulous trailer bearing and tire maintenance.
Losing a wheel or blowouts can get you in trouble.

I'd consider going to the absolute best trailer tires on the market.
Sometimes the oem tires are cheap as the mfg's know most trailers don't see 5000 miles in their lifetime.

How does your wife like travel nursing?

I'm a late in life RN, work pediatric acute psych.

 

What tranny temps do you see now with the additional cooler?

 

Glad you had a good experience.

 

Are you asking me? If so, she likes it so far...she's in her4th week. They treat her good...one of the less "seasoned" travel nurses is having a hard time...there's some "hen pecking" going on.

 

Here's my 2 cents on towing with ANY truck. The closer you tow to the max weight, the shorter the lifespan of your truck. Period. Put all the fancy gizmos you want on it, like oil coolers, fans, and WD hitches, you're still shortening the lifespan.

Toyotas are tough trucks, and will tow pretty much whatever you put behind it, but only for so long. The tow ratings are "max" for a reason, and even then I consider tow ratings to be calculated for "ideal" circumstances (much like MPG's are calculated). Ideal means flat roads.

The tent trailer I tow a few dozen times a year is about half the max tow rating of my 2004 V6 dbl cab. That's about as high as I'm comfortable going on a regular basis. The truck is my daily driver, and I camp mostly in the mountains. I'm hitting 35/40mph on some of the hills as it is, I can't imagine towing anything much heavier on a regular basis. Sure, I could romp on the skinny pedal and go faster, as the truck *can* do it, but then I'm just working everything that much harder, and getting even WORSE mpg.

Eventually, I plan to get a 3rd vehicle that's larger/more powerful than my Taco, and turning the taco into a trail only vehicle. A V8 4Runner maybe, or a Sequoia. Still not planning on a bigger trailer, just making it "easier" to tow my current one.