Towing in the mountains

What can I realistically expect to tow at 6000’ elevation, going uphill in the Colorado mountains and maintain 45 mph?

My wife and I are recently retired. She wants to purchase a camping trailer and I’m trying to determine what size camping trailer is realistic for the pickup I already own.

I have a 2016 Tacoma Limited with towing package: (3.5-liter Atkinson cycle V-6 engine, 6 speed AT with ETC, factory trans cooler, 18” tires, D cab, 4x4). The vehicle is rated to tow 6800 lbs with this towing package.

I’m hoping I can tow a trailer in the 4500 lb (empty weight) range.

I’m not concerned about towing 6000 lbs on level ground at 60 mph, but I am concerned about what might happen at 6000’ elevation going uphill in the mountains. I’m okay dropping to 45 mph on the uphill runs. I’m somewhat concerned about breaking action going downhill, but I can add breaks to the trailer.

I’m looking for comments from forum members who have experience in the areas described above.

Thanks for you help.

 

Welcome to TW!
Start Here
https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads/the-tacoma-towing-bible.4031/

 

Definatly get brakes for the trailer. A brake controller in the cab. Check out the manual for towing in mountainous areas and use the shift limiter ( not like you'll hit 6th towing anyways) maybe check out anti sway bars too

 

Welcome to The Forum!

Good luck with the towing!

 

A 4500 trailer empty, unless you're a minimalist, gain's an additional 2k pounds easy by throwing everything in. It doesn't take much.

 

Subscribed, picking up a 2800 lbs single axle toy hauler this month.

 

Your truck is not rated at 6800 Lbs, that is for a 2 wheel drive, V6, Access Cab Tacoma.

 

Towing section is a great resource.
We pull a 4200lb 19ft Hideout, the 2nd Gen did fine and this 3rd Gen should be the same.

Brake controller of course, we also use an equalizer with a friction sway bar. Towing mirrors as well. We run a Scangauge to keep an eye on transmission temps.

 

Google this...2016 Toyota Tacoma takes on the extreme Ike Gauntlet. This is a video review of how fast you can go up I-70 in Colorado with a maximum weight trailer.

 

Awesome video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DCkBmiZV09w
From this I think my Tacoma with tow package would be able to handle a 6000 lb load in the mountains. I'm not trying to set a speed record, just get there. Thanks for the link to the video.

 

Thanks to everyone for the feedback. I've read hundreds of comments on the "towing" thread. I'll go rent a camping trailer in the 5000 lb class and let you know how it goes.

 

In the video they should have pulled with the transmission in S-mode.

 

Here was another one with a 5000 Lb trailer

 

Renting for a tryout is a great idea. Going over the Colorado passes you're competing with 18-wheelers to find out which of you holds up traffic more. 50mph is a realistic target, engine screaming near redline in 2nd gear. The longer the trailer, the harder it is to change lanes to pass the slowest 18-wheelers.

 

A realistic maximum for these trucks is about 4500 lbs (loaded) and that is due more to the limited payload than the drive train pulling the weight. A 6000 lb trailer will put almost 900 lbs on the tongue with a WDH on a truck with about 1200 lbs payload. That only leaves you about 300 lbs for passengers and cargo in the truck.

Also, you'll lose about 3% of your engines power for every 1000' above sea level. That means that when crossing those 10,000' passes your engine is only putting out about 70% of it's power. I live in GA, but have made 9 trips either to or through the Rockies over the years. It really depends on the vehicle, but some struggle with the altitude more than others. My Tacoma has made the trip 3 times and mine (2nd gen with 4.0) has handled it pretty well. I can't say about the newer 3.5, but my guess is that it will struggle a little more than the 4.0 in the mountains.

The Ike Gauntlet video's are nice and help give an apples to apples comparison between various trucks. But I'd not treat a truck of mine as hard as they do. Push one that hard on a regular basis and it won't last long.

To my knowledge all trailers over about 3000 lbs come with trailer brakes. You shouldn't have to add them.

I wouldn't pull a 4500 lb load across the Rockies with a Tacoma. I would at lower elevation. I'd buy a bigger truck or limit it to a 3500 lb popup that doesn't catch as much wind. Others would. But I'd rather err on the side of caution.

 

It will be 2-3 months before I get to rent and make a test run. Going in for a knee replacement tomorrow.
In the mean time I've installed a

$147 ScanGauge - SG2 II Ultra Compact 3-in-1 Automotive Computer with Customizable Real-Time Fuel Economy Digital Gauges , Black , 5"

Scangauge II and programmed it to read transmission and oil temperatures along with what gear the transmission is currently using.
Under no load, after about a 30 mile drive at 70 mph, and ambient 54 deg F: the water runs about 195, the oil about 180 and the torque converter about 190 (all F degrees). As soon as I start up the engine the torque converter temp is about 12 deg. higher than all the other temperatures. So I'm guessing that temp gauge is "wrong". The oil, water and trans pan are all within 1 degree of each other.
The trans pan temp pretty much stays the same as the oil temp. The torque converter stays about 12 deg higher than the trans pan temperature all the time. Oh, as a reminder, my truck has a towing package so it has an oil and trans cooler mounted in front of the radiator. That probably accounts for the temps tracking so closely.

Here's a list of the codes to enter into a Scangauge II for what gear is in use, with trans and oil temperatures:
https://www.scangauge.com/support/x-gauge-commands/toyota-lexus-scion/

 

i'm sure you'll be fine

 

Since starting this thread on 3/10/19, followed closely by getting a knee replacement surgery, I've had considerable down time to continue to research this question. (By the way, I'm post knee surgery 6 weeks today, progress is good, still lot of nighttime discomfort but I can see the light at the end of tunnel.)

I've ran numerous load calculations, read dozens of articles and watched more YouTube videos than I care to repeat and used all of the "calculators" from this site thread: https://www.granddesignowners.com/f...ermine-Your-Truck-s-Trailer-Towing-Capability

The first video in the link does a great job discussing the topic.

Bottom line, The camper we want to purchase is just too much for the Tacoma. The numbers are very close and I'd be comfortable pushing ahead on flatland, but it's not worth the risk for hill/mountain driving. So, I'm in the market for a new tow vehicle.

Here's the camper we're buying: https://www.granddesignrv.com/showroom/2020/travel-trailer/imagine/floorplans/2600rb


Thanks to all for your ideas and support.

 

I'll add this quick story that helped me with my decision and research:

A very good friend has an F150 and purchased a 28' camper a several years ago. They travel Nebraska to Texas frequently, no problems. Last summer they decided to vacation in Kentucky, Tennessee and South Carolina. Upon returning, I asked about the trip. The husband said it was fun and they had a good time. The wife shook her head in disagreement but didn't say much until later. Her version was this: They had to get towed into town three times because they couldn't make it up some of the hills. On many of the hills they were so slow traffic was backup up and many of those drivers were very rude, even throwing stuff out their windows at them when they finally had an opportunity to pass. Even when my friends weren't the slowest vehicle on the road, they didn't have the power to pass the slowest vehicles. So, she said, she will never leave the great plains states with the camper/pickup combination they currently have.

I have to agree this would not make for an enjoyable vacation experience and I wouldn't want to add this stressful experience to my marriage relationship. My wife's pretty tolerant of my faults, but it's likely if my wife and I had this experience we would never take a road trip together again. This real life story kept me digging for a safe decision rather than a road experiment. I like my Tacoma and I don't want to trade "up", but I don't need the relationship aggravation along with the mechanical aggravation. The numbers don't work and it's not worth the risk.

 

I have to agree with most of what you said (OP). I just picked up a 221 UMD Outback TT in Surprise Az. and towed back to Cortez Co. My unit weighs in empty at around 4900 and I felt that was all I wanted with a 6400 tow rating as once we put some gear in we will be bumping it. Coming north out of Phoenix to Flagstaff is a damn good pull, so I knew this would tell me all I wanted to know about pulling this unit. Now I will say this unit is intended to do camping around our area like Moab and Ouray and other 2 hour trips, not cross country. I have extensive experience pulling trailers (many years in trucking business as an owner operator and other 5th wheel and bumper pulls) but might not recommend this weight or length to a novice. I did install sway control and wdh and the brake controller with both axels having brakes works really well. Left gear selector in 4th and toggled back and forth to 3rd. Did have to go to second on the hardest pull but speed kept up around 65 for the most part. 10 MPG if that bothers you. To me it's the cost of comfort.
If you find yourself going slow and traffic backing up behind you, find a safe place to pull over to let it clear up. Some states can ticket you for backing up more than 5 cars.