The Tacoma Towing Bible

that harness plugs into a connector that should be tucked in behind/below the interior aux fuse panel thats at the lower left corner of the dash. the other end of that harness plugs into the Tekonsha brake controller, so no wiring at all is required.

 

Read thru lots of these pages and hardly see properly rated tires ever mentioned when suggesting upgrades to tow at capacity. Get those "P" rated tires off the truck if you have them for towing, you don't want to end up on the side of the road upside and backwards.

 

All I can say is that Amazon said it fits my truck, and ours should still be the same at that point. Just add your truck to the garage, and Amazon will tell you. If you are still unsure I can check the number on my harness.

 

I ordered one and if it doesn't fit I'll send it back. I'll report back whether it fits or not.

 

???

 

Ive been trying to figure out what I can pull with my truck and this thread is super helpful. I don't have a computer right now so this is all from my phone and some things on the posts don't show up right.

I have a 2011 quad cab 6 ft bed 4x4 Tacoma. I want to pull a converted cargo trailer that is 7'x14' and roughly 2000lbs dry. I am going from south Mississippi to southwestern Oregon, probably take the southern route as I have no desire to go thru snowy mountain passes more than necessary. I have a trailer hitch that's connected to the frame bit from best i can tell and what Ive read on here my truck does NOT have the "towing package". I would need the oil coolers and brake controllers etc...which Ive read about on here.

I want to know about the gear ratios on my truck and if I can tow the trailer. The A/TM code on my truck is A04A/A750FN.

If I install the coolers and the brake controllers CAN I PULL THIS TRAILER ACROSS COUNTRY?

 

Think about a trans cooler, or just change the trans fluid after the trip if this is a one-way trip. Is the trailer going to be empty?

 

When are you leaving? Are you going to Southern/Northern Oregon?

 

Trailer weighs 2000# but we will have a bed and a frame and cabinets etc.. In it. Not sure exactly how much weight but its surely aint gone have a hard time hitting 3500 plus. I just worry the truck will hurt going over mtn passes and such and I don't want to tear it up and be stuck with that scenario.

Does anyone know if Tacoma's that were factory equipped with "towing package" have different gearing?

 

I'm about to custom order this trailer, they said about 3 weeks, then in gone pimp it out, then we leave. No real timeline but Ive got a while before I leave. Southwestern Oregon, around medford

I think Ive about decided just to trade the truck in for a fullsize. Only had this truck for 3 months and I like it, but ill wanna tow that trailer occasionally in the mountains and I wanna be able to do that in confidence, I think a bigger truck will facilitate that solace

 

long as you've got a v6, you'd be fine... just downshift a gear or two in the hills. really, downshift a gear always, don't use your top overdrive gear on the flats.

pretty sure the gearing is the same with or without the tow package, the major features are A) transmission cooler for automatics, B) larger alternator, C) full trailer wiring with 7-blade RV connector, which both allows trailer brakes, and lets the vehicle charge the trailer batteries when you're driving.

me, I'd be worried towing a trailer over 5000 lbs for any significant distances on a regular basis.

the bigger issue is tongue weight. a 4000 lb actual trailer is going to put 500-600 lbs on your hitch. that comes out ofyour payload, a double-cab only has 1000 lbs of payload, so that would only leave you with 400 lbs which means 2 big grownups and no cargo. if you EASILY want to pull that 5000 lb trailer all over the place, AND carry a ton of gear on board, I'd be looking at a ford f250, chevy 2500HD kinda truck... those things have 2500-3000 lbs of payload, so even with a heavy tongue weight, you can still load the truck down with gear and people.

 

If you're not married to the Tacoma for it's size or potential off-road capabilities then a full-size would be better for towing a trailer like that in the mountains. The Tacoma will do but it won't be as comfortable. A supercharger (~$5k) would perhaps be less expensive then the cost of selling the taco and buying a full-size (taxes, title, fees, selling/trade in hit, etc) and fix any issues going up mountains. Proper engine braking will be fine on the downhills. Airbags on the rear for suspension leveling on the Tacoma is a given too.

For me I love manual transmissions, so that's what's keeping me from a full-size. But I plan on going a popup-camper route vs a giant trailer, a ton less air resistance for easier pulling and usually lighter weight, something like: http://www.forestriverinc.com/product-details.aspx?LineID=394&Image=17020&ModelID=2138#Main is on the bigger end of popup sizes but it has a bathroom for the ladies that come along and room for dirt bikes.

 

the popup campers that fit on a tacoma are *tiny* inside.

edit:
oooops, you mean a popup TRAILER. ahahahahaah, i thought you meant a popup CAMPER, like a FourWheel Camper...

We had a popup tent trailer, it was pretty annoying to setup, especially if you like to camp 1-2 nights at a spot, then move somewhere else. the Casita is a much better fit for us, and being curved fiberglass its really quite aerodynamic.

 

This is a popup on a trailer.

 

yeah, I figured that out 10 seconds later after clicking your link. i'd seen forest-river popup slide-ins before, although they dont seem to list them anymore.

 

I'll be towing a 6x13' trailer pretty regularly this summer (trailer is 900-1000lbs empty and loaded will be anywhere from 3000-3500lbs), should I be worried about transmission temps? I have the 6 speed manual with the factory tow package and just installed a brake controller for the electric brakes. Will be towing up a lot of steep grades (NE Oregon/Central and N Idaho).

 

don't use 6th. always run one gear lower than you would if you weren't towing. on the steep stuff keep downshifting til it pulls easily. you'll be FINE. only thing that will suck will be the gas mileage

 

[the 4.0 V6 is quite happy revved to 4000 or 5000 rpm. it will guzzle gas, but it will pull just fine]

 

Haha yea I'm expecting that..not like it was that great to begin with either. I just bought the trailer and plan on hauling a rzr and camping gear on it this summer..it pulled fine empty but tripling the weight is gonna be a whole nother ball game. Empty it pulled up a few steep grades quite well in 5th gear..I imagine loaded up I'll be using 4th a hell of a lot more.

Generic question: At what RPM towing uphill should I avoid? So far I've kept it below 2500..any opinions would be appreciated.

 

Lol was replying when you posted this. 4-5k is okay? Even on a hot day for 3-4 HOUR trip? I didn't plan on going anywhere over 3k.

Edit: bold