New Member in need of help with towing capacity

Hello everyone! I own a 2003 Tacoma V6 TRD with 250,000 miles on it. I love my truck and maintain it well! Im looking to purchase a teardrop camper and need some advise on what i need to know about towing a trailer. How much can i tow? do i need special breaks? its my truck going to overheat? idk? lol

I dont believe my truck has a tow package. Im pretty sure my weight capacity is 3,500 but my truck is lifted and im not positive how much.. my guess would be 3-4" . So i dont know how to figure out my towing weight.

I would like to buy a NuCamp T@BCS-S dry weight 2,105 I'm pretty sure i can tow this but I would like to get as much info as possible before i make a purchase... They are not cheap and sadly pricing for these has increased dramatically in the last 6 months.. Im so upset i didnt buy one last summer....

I do have experience with towing and currently own a 1985 pop up skamper.

thank you in advance for any advise to might have!!!

 

Welcome to TW! First you need to determine for sure if you have a tow package or not. With tow package tow capacity about 6500lbs, without about 3500lbs. Either way the trailer you want at 2105 lbs dry weight would be great for your truck. With or without the tow package your truck will tow that with zero problems. Even loaded your truck will handle it just fine. You’ll scarcely know you have a trailer behind you. All you have to do is hook it up and go.
I would suggest if you don’t have one have a transmission cooler installed. That is probably the most important. Some will suggest a scan gauge to monitor temperatures but your trailer is pretty light so it’s an option not a necessity.
It would be desirable if your trailer has brakes but at that weight not absolutely necessary.
How long of trips do you plan to take and what areas will you be towing (mountains, deserts, hilly country etc. etc.)?
Be sure your shocks and springs are in good shape. Since your truck is lifted you’ll probably need a drop hitch.
Any other questions please ask. Again welcome to TW.

 

If it’s just you. There are much lighter tear drops. There are several that are sub 1000lbs dry. Also check out Sylvan Sport. They have a really cool set up if don’t need a hard sided camper it’s under 900lbs dry I believe.

 

The towing capacity is either 3,500 or 5,000 lbs.

I believe you can do a VIN search on the Toyota website.
All you have to do is register as a user.
Then add your truck.

Look directly behind your engine cooling fan.
See what color the piece is that the fan is attached to.
Green or Orange?

Also, this is from a 2003 owners manual.

 

This is great info and just what i was looking for thank you. My Transmission is a manual. do they have coolers for manuals?
Im not really sure where i will be traveling to yet. im planning on living in it and not sure where i will go. Im still figuring that out. but i will be traveling thru the mountains and might stay somewhere in the Sierra Nevada Mountain Range. Thanks for the advise on the shocks. I have never replaced them because they seem fine. Would you recommend replacing them before towing? And I do have a drop hitch!!!

 

It is just me.. I am trying to find the lightest camper available with an indoor shower/toilet. The Nucamp T@B seems to be what im looking for. Do you have any other camper suggestions?

 

YES!!! Thank you so much for sharing this! I found this info in my manual a long time ago and i never checked my engine and forgot what color meant what.. Thank you SOO much! My truck does not have a tow package.

 

My owners manual says if towing and cargo weight exceeds 2,000 i need to use a sway control devise.. I dont know what that is... anyone care to help?

 

https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads/the-tacoma-towing-bible.4031/

 

Let me see what I can find. I don’t mind helping out. Anyone wanting to be outdoors gets extra points from me,.

 

Follow your owners manual. If it says you need a sway bar then get one. A sway bar lessens sway, lean and roll in turns. It’s a safety device. I didn’t realize you had a manual tranny. You do not need nor do they make a tranny cooler for a manual transmission.
Shocks are important, they make a big difference in the handling of your truck and safety. You should definitely look into getting new shocks before towing. You may want to have them checked to see if you need new ones.

 

You mentioned modifications to the truck. I suggest you go to a CAT scale to weigh the truck. Look at the placard on the driver's door jamb to find the GCWR (Gross Combined Weight Rating) of the truck. Subtract the CAT scale weight. This is the amount you can handle before the truck is over its limit.

With a lift, you will need a hitch with enough drop to match your trailer.

Suggest to only use about 85% of the GCWR.
You may want to pull the Skamper for a few trips.

Remember, the Cargo weight is anything in the truck or being pulled by the truck. This includes: Driver, passengers, food, clothes, pot/pans, dishes, silverware, water, propane, ........... Trust me 500 lbs of gear and people builds real quick.

 

That would be fabolous thanks!!!

 

This is great advice thank you so much! I'm reading over my manuel about towing and trying to make sense of it... I did get my truck weighed a few years ago maybe I can find the paperwork..

So after I subtract my CAT from the GCWR is the remaining weight the total weight of my trailer with full water tanks plus cargo ect?

should I look into my gawr also? I'm not sure how to do this.. thanks again for the advice

 

Thank you

 

Ok sounds good thank you for your help much appreciated!!!

 

Is there a budget you’d like to stick to? Indoor shower and toilet. Let’s see what’s out there. I’ll assume you don’t want a teardrop? Most of those would not have a shower or toilet inside.

 

We towed an AT Chaser with our 2003 4x4 DC...auto trans with the tow package.

Fully loaded with water and gear probably at 1,700 lbs.

No problem towing, but you will want to install a brake controller for the electric brakes on your trailer. I didn’t need a sway control for this trailer, but the brake controller really helped alleviate stress on the trucks brakes and trans.

We now tow a 3,950 pound GVW travel trailer with our 2019 Tacoma with the tow package...using both a friction sway control and torsion based weight distribution hitch. Much needed along with the brake controller when towing and braking through the mountains.

Lotsof great info in this thread so far. Let me know if you have more Q’s.

 

Yes. Remember, this is the combined weight of truck, trailer and cargo (in truck and trailer). Suggest not to exceed either the truck or the trailer GVWR.

I know.....it gets confusing.

The truck and trailer have their individual "empty weight". This is the CAT weight of your modified truck. Trailer empty weight should be on it's weight placard.

The truck has a GVWR (Gross Vehicle Weight Rating). Subtract the Truck's CAT weight from this number to determine the CARGO load of the TRUCK. This Cargo includes everything in the truck including people, pets, gear, and tongue weight (includes a % age of trailer and WDH) and whatever else.

The trailer has a GVWR also. This will be on the trailer's weight placard. The difference between the trailer's GVWR and empty weight is the CARGO weight of the Trailer.

The GCWR is the Truck GVWR + Trailer GVWR.

Note: Its likely the maximum GVWR of the truck and trailer together may exceed the GCWR of the truck.

In a nutshell, you have 3 weights you need to manage. GVWR of truck and trailer, plus the GCWR of the truck + trailer. The only number you can adjust is the CARGO. Keep in mind, the Tongue weight is a part of the CARGO in the truck.

Suggest to stay within 85% of the GCWR.

Do a trial load in the truck and trailer. Take the combination to a CAT scale. Ask them to help you weight each axle, the truck alone and the combined weight of truck + trailer.

 

From my research, it looks like that trailer is supplied with a GAWR of 2900 lbs.
The GAWR is the maximum weight the axle should carry.

I would say, if loaded correctly. You will not be over 3,500 lbs, the axle isn’t rate for it.

The problem comes when you over loaded the trailer. And it’s not hard to do.
The dry weight above doesn’t included some things.

I got this from the 2020 Brochure

Dry weight is the weight of the camper with standard equipment, excluding; propane, tank fluids, cargo, and optional equipment.