The Tacoma Towing Bible

That is what a friend told me. He said a single axle camper is always going to have a little bounce to it.

 

what would changing the angle of the ball do? I know very little about towing with a WDH.

 

when you change the angle of the hitch, it lowers or raises the ends of the spring bars, that increases or decreases the tension on them. the instructions with the WDH should have explained how to set it up.

if you still want to use your airbag, measure the height of the fender front ('front1') and rear ('rear1') of the truck when its empty and unhitched. load truck, *WITHOUT* the trailer, now measure the fenders again (front2, rear2)... subtract front2-front1, and then pump up the airbags enough that rear2-rear1 is the same as front2-front1, this way your truck will ride at the same level full as empty, without the trailer

now measure the height at the trailer hitch... put the trailer ball on the hitch so its just secure but not pressing down on the truck, hitch up the WDH chains, and raise the trailer jack so the trailer tongue is fully sitting on the truck, if the WDH is setup correctly, the hitch should not drop any more than a tiny bit (note, most bigger pickups, the setup is such that the trailer+wdh settles about another inch.... somewhere I read Toyota suggested a 0" delta for the Tacoma).

oh, before each measurement, bounce your weight on the suspension so it settles. and of course, you need to do this where its dead level. Do NOT pump up the airbags after hitching the WDH or it could come unlinked.

 

Or an AAL.

 

Can anyone answer this question for me. I have a '13 RC 2TR base 2wd. I am in the process of installing a brake controller for a small trailer to tow my miata to and from autocross events. I thought the "factory" 7pin trailer harness installation guide on here was everything I needed, however I'm finding that I dont have the T7 connector to plug my brake controller into (the one in the kick panel area supposedly). Can anyone verify for certain that base model trucks dont have this connector (so I can give up looking)? Do you guys know why that would be missing, yet still have both 30A fuses with pins in the fuse box in the engine compartment? Where would that power wire terminate if there is no T7 connector?

*edit* : So I ended up wiring the power and signal separately to the brake controller since my buddy and I just couldnt find it. Works fine and is as clean an install as can be without that T7.

 

I'm thinking of buying a 2008 tacoma 2.7l automatic to tow either an 1800lb or 2500 lb trailer for 3 weeks down the oregon coast and california. I would set it up with a tow package. Just wondering how it would hold up and if the mileage would be comprimable to a V6?

 

If you stay around #2500 you should be fine. You sit at 71% of max. Definitely a tranny cooler will help, and imo, needed. The mileage will suck, just saying. I did manage to get 20 mpg out of my 4 cyl once, but that was heading east on flat land NYS. But I typically got between 12 and 14 with hills, and get a solid 12 in my V-6 , almost no matter terrain. I think you should be good, but wait for others to weigh in. Welcome to TW and have a great trip!

 

I just got back from towing my Miata from Portland to Central Oregon (about 430 miles round trip). I figure the loaded weight was about 3300lbs with some additional in the bed (maybe 150lbs). Got 19.5mpg for the journey and maintained or was able to surpass the posted speed limits on nearly every part of the journey (5-speed). Probably a good idea to have a cooler like OldManTan said, but should be fine otherwise. Brakes would also be advisable and you can see my earlier post regarding its install.

 

any trailer over 1000 lbs HAS to have brakes, its the law.

gas mileage is heavily dependent on terrain and the driver. also on the shape/size/profile of the trailer (wind resistance). keeping your speeds under 55 will HUGELY improve mileage. me, I'm always finding myself pushing 65+ when towing and 70+ othewise, I can't help it. I have a 4.0 V6 w/ a 6-speed manual, i keep it in 5th when towing.

 

That depends on state. Oregon only recommends brakes, Washington mandates them on anything over 3000lbs or 40% of the tow vehicle and California is 1500lbs. Whatever way you slice it, it's still a very very good idea to have electric brakes (or at very least a surge system).

 

NYS is 1000# empty, or 3,000# GVW that have to have brakes. Be careful pushing 65 on any trailer. Typically the tires are only rated for 65, and blow outs can happen more frequently above that speed. The time I got almost 20mpg, I was towing a small pop up with the wind. But on a different trip, I was towing a 2 place snowmobile trailer (ie. a brick) into the wind, and could not hold 60 mph. And 12 mpg to boot. That was in my 4 banger. So I FULLY agree with your gas mileage statement

 

Ok, I have read the beginning of this and several other forums on line and just came across something that doesn't seem right. I just read an article explaining how a WDH works and in that article they said that any cargo behind the rear axle of the tow vehicle should be added to the tongue weight. So that means in the case of a DCSB anything you put in the bed should be included in tongue weight?

So lets say you have a canopy 200#, cooler 60#, dog 80# and a tool box with random emergency stuff etc 125#, that is 465#'s. Take a Jay Flight SLX 195RB with a dry hitch weight of 260#'s and you're already over the max tongue weight of 650#'s for an 06 DCSB SR5 with Tow Package.

That doesn't seem right... I know the wet and ready to camp weight of the trailer plus the loaded taco (people gear pets gas etc) should not exceed the GVWR of the Tacoma 11500# IIRC.

My understanding is 10%-15% of trailer weight is transitioned thru the tongue (probably not the "proper" explanation) so if the GVWR of the SLX195RB is 3500# then if I load it to the max I can expect 350#-525# for Tongue weight. That tongue weight should be included in the Payload capacity...correct?

 

yes, the tongue weight should be included in your vehicle payload weight. those DC tacomas only have 1000 lbs total payload, including driver, so you really quickly exceed that. this is a large part of the reason I'm trying to stick to light trailers like my Casita, 2200 lbs dry, 3500 lbs max, and its rarely loaded over 3000 lbs, and also why I have an access cab (1200 lbs payload).. I'm also running LT tires which are considerably stronger than the stock tires.

the percentage of the trailer weight thats on the tongue is a function of how you load it. more weight forward of the trailer axle == more tongue weight. more weight aft of the trailer axle == less tongue weight. that said, you do NOT want to put lots of weight in back as a light tongue weight makes for an unstable ride.

the Weight Distributing Hitch takes some of the tongue weight off the rear axle and transfers it via the trucks frame to the front axle.

only the trailer tongue weight is factored into the tacoma GVWR, the trailers axle weight is separately carried. Some vehicles do give a separate 'gross combined weight' for trailer+truck, but I've not seen this speced for a Tacoma.

 

Sorry if I was unclear above. I know the tongue weight must be factored into the Max payload but the article I read said that any cargo behind the rear axle of the tow vehicle must be accounted for in tongue weight.

So in my example above the weights would add up to 725# with a dry trailer. It doesn't make sense to me that cargo in the bed would go against your tongue weight max. It DOES make sense that the tongue weight would go against your Max Payload however. My fiance and I are getting married in September and then we'll be watching for year end deals and checking out RV shows until we find a good deal on a Jayco Jay Flight SLX 195RB.

And I just looked at my sticker and my 06 DCSB SR5 with Tow Package says 1200# payload, 5450# GVWR, ???Where would the tow rating be stamped???

 

you'll find the tow rating in accessory literature from the vehicle manufacturer. it doesn't seem toyota makes those readily findable for older vehicles... on american cars like fords, you can find a tow guide for any year going back 15 or more years.

 

3rd Gen post?

 

We purchased a 2010 V6 Prerunner w/o factory tow package. I have installed a Curt Class III hitch, 7-pin connector, and T-harness for lights. I also purchased a Curt brake controller and Tacoma adapter cable. Question: All your description concerning running wires from the front of the truck to the rear is for non-V6 models, implies that "Gen 2 V6 with the plug and play wiring" already has this for the brake controller and 40 A trailer battery charge. Where are these wires at the rear of a non-factory tow package V6 truck?

 

if you don't have factory tow, then you'll need to run the all wires yourself, supply the relay, etc. the tacoma adapter you bought is likely useless as you won't have the connector it plugs into

 

Hi there folks! Question about those "Hitch Mount Cargo Carriers". The carriers are advertised at holding 500 pounds and most weigh about 50 pounds. That would make 550 pounds fully loaded. Is this weight considered tongue weight? According to the the specs my 2.4L I4 max. tongue weight is 350 lbs. If it is considered tongue weight then you could only fit 300 pounds on the rack. Also I am wondering about the hitch mount motorcycle rack, it is similar situation where you can say a fully loaded motorcycle weighs 450 pounds which would be too heavy for the tongue weight.
Thanks and thanks to the OP very informative for any vehicle!

 

The Curt Electric Brake controller I have only plugs into the Tacoma adapter cable. It does not have separate connections like the one shown in "Towing Bible". Why couldn't I simply pick off the blue wire at the back of the factor Electric Brake connector, that the adapter cable plugs into? I am talking about the one above the quarter panel on the driver's side of the cab.