Can I tow a trailer?

Hi all,

I would like to tow a 4' x 8' Cargo Trailer from U-Haul with my 2004 Tacoma Pre Runner V6 TRD. I am moving from South Texas to California Bay Area; approximately a 2k mile road trip. The trip would consist of myself, my husband, and our two dogs. We are not taking much with us but our mattress, 65" Visio Smart TV and a few boxes of clothes, pots and pans and small kitchen gadgets. We do not need a huge U-haul truck. Our bed is the biggest item we are taking with us and the dimensions for that are 77" x 58" with depth of 14" (standard queen mattress).

Myself : 150lb
Husband: 150lb
Dogs (combined): 120 lb

I am not sure how much our bed and boxes weigh. I just want to make sure we do not overload the weight limit.

 

You should be fine as long as you are using the tow receiver and not just the bumper.

 

Welcome aboard. Should be fine.

 

That’s a light load, whether you have a tow package or not it should be no problem.
Get ready for a shock when you see the cost of living in the Bay Area compared to Texas. Good luck, be safe.

 

The truck will pull it fine

Your biggest worry is the kind of trailer you'll be getting from uhaul. I've had good ones, and I've had rentals that I wouldn't trust to go across the parking lot.

Check the tread of each tire and bring your kickin boots or a bat- give each one a solid thump before you even hitch up. You're looking for aired tires, pliable rubber with no "brittle" cracks that you can see. If you have time, put 25 miles on the trailer at highway speed before you load it. Pull over and put your hand on each wheel hub. If all four are warm, you're ok. If one is uncomfortably hot to the touch, return it and demand another.

During the trip, feel the hubs with each fuel stop. Again, if one is running too hot to touch, find the nearest uhaul and demand an exchange. I've seen a lot of those trailers on the side of the road, but a little bit of monitoring will make sure that you aren't one of them.

Good luck!

 

Are you saying Uhaul doesn't grease their hubs?

 

Perish the thought. Every experience I've had at uhaul was met with friendly, hardworking staff that absolutely love to maintain their rolling stock when they aren't efficiently and cheerfully helping customers.

 

You'll be fine. The 5VZ v6 in your truck is rated for 5,500 pounds. I'd estimate you to be around 2,000 pounds with all that stuff. My little 5x8 trailer weights 960 pounds dry.

Do you have a trailer hitch and wiring? Don't use the bumper ball.

 

Thank you guys for the helpful information!

@BartMaster1234, we installed a hitch last week. We still need to purchase the wiring.

 

$23, and plugs into your stock tail lights.

Hopkins 43315 Plug-In Simple Vehicle Wiring Kit

$49 Hopkins Towing Solutions 43315 Plug-In Simple Vehicle Wiring Kit

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0002Q7ZKK/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_i_SrzpCbK8V171Y

 

Also you can rent a much bigger trailer than 4x8. If you’re going through U-Haul, you can go up to 6x12 if you need more space.

The 4x8 weighs 920 Dry, and the 6x12 weighs 1,920 Dry. As long as you don’t exceed 5,500 pounds you’re good to go.

 

You would be better served to buy a trailer in TX, use it for your trip then sell it in CA. You should be able to buy a trailer for $1,300 new. You could probably make money on it in Ca. I recommend the Big Tex brand.

 

And remember you can only tow in "Drive" on flat/level ground. Shift to "4" before starting up any hill. This prevents the transmission from over heating as you may not have a trans cooler.

 

Also, turn off Overdrive. Never tow with Overdrive on.