Backing Trailer On Steep Driveway ‘21 DCLB AT

Hey folks, tried searching and couldn’t find much so here goes.

I’m new to towing and just bought a 17’ camping trailer (2500lb), I have quite a steep driveway to back into and I’m wondering how best to approach it. 4L? 4H? Not at all? Not sure how much power the taco has in reverse.

thanks in advance!

 

Group Buy - 2LM PnP - Plug and play 2WD low range for the 3rd gen. Tacoma | Tacoma World

 

I don't envy that task at all - no advice or experience - but backing a straight-line is one thing, up a steep incline is another - and
hopefully at the end of the trail there is a level spot for the trailer.

Best advice I can think of is.... cut yourself a spot to do the turn at the top... or just move.

 

I’m not sure of your exact situation, 4 low isn’t a bad idea, so long as it doesn’t require moderate to tight steering corrections, as that will cause a lot of binding in the front end. Which is probably why @shakerhood is suggesting the 2 low mod.

 

check the buy/sell forums, I think there are a couple of the mod harnesses up for sale.. Been there a bit, they might take a little lower than listed price. Never know

 

I absolutely suck at backing up a trailer. Even on flat level wide open spaces I still suck, so I don't envy your situation at all. Maybe you should look into storing your camper rig at one of those storage lots, they are everywhere here in north Georgia. Good luck!

 

Here in CA, the storage lots are about $500 a month. I got lucky and found one for $160, but i gotta back this pig up into the spot still..

 

if the driveway really is that steep, i think you might just spin the tires with the 2-lo mod, especially if it's wet with all that weight. I would just put it in 4 low. you can disengage it when you have to make a sharp turn but you can still do small turns in 4 lo. you can also try just using the auto-lsd function in reverse.

 

2500 pounds isn't that much. I'd try it in normal 2wd and see how it goes. I can see the 4 low mod for a manual but with the better tq multiplication of an auto down low I don't think you'll need it.

If you're new to backing up a trailer remember it does the opposite of what you're used to. Turn the wheel right, it goes left.

A simple fix for this is to put your hand at the bottom of the wheel and it will work like you think it should. Also, you don't need big inputs. Small input to the steering wheel will be exaggerated by the trailer.

 

AT, reverse gear is 3.73. 1st gear is 3.60. I’d give it a try in 2wd.

 

Need pictures and description of this steep drive, and also, have you tried backing up it yet? Might be getting yourself worked up over a molehill unless you've tried it already.





My drive is a 25% grade, but it's only 30 feet straight into the garage. I can back it in on 2Hi without any difficulty.


...unless its snowing.

 

As @shakerhood mentioned... the 2Lo mod.. so in reverse you have 3.73 gears, and 3.90 gears in the rear end... you also have a approximately a 2 to 1 ratio in the torque converter. So in 2hi you have an overall ration of 29 to 1. If you have a 2Lo mod then you have the 2.47 ratio of the low gear transfer case as well, this makes it 71.85 to 1. This will give you control. You can get the same ratio out of 4 Lo but then the front diff is in play and may cause binding depending on the driveway surface material.

 

Don’t freak out if the engine stalls and a bunch of lights pop up. If the truck rolls forward while in reverse (easy to do in this situation), it will stall.

 

Thats actually a good point, Never thought about that.

 

You have a torque converter, you are good to go in 2HI. If you had a manual 2WD low mod is must for those things.

 

I think you’ll be fine (assuming we are talking reasonably steep driveway and not a paved cliff). 2,500 lbs isn’t that heavy.

Does your trailer have surge brakes with a brake piston in the hitch?

If so, I recommend using the hitch pin to lock the piston in the open position so you don’t get the trailer brakes engaged while pushing it up the hill.

Most surge brake systems have a solenoid that locks the trailer brake piston when the truck reverse lights go on, but I have seen them fail often enough that I just manually lock mine out with the pin.

I’d also invest in wheel chocks for the trailer. You don’t want that thing accidentally rolling down into the street.

 

I had to do this one time with a bit heavier of a load with the manual and my truck straight up couldn't do it with stock gearing unless I were to burn up the clutch bad. That said, reverse in the 6MT is WAY too tall. I ended up just going nose in instead. Wasn't a huge deal which way I parked at the time.

The automatic should provide plenty of slip to have no problems. Might help to double foot it to avoid roll-forward. I would practice a bit on the flat before tackling the task.

 

I backed a trailer with about two yards to dirt into a similar driveway. I don't recall having to put it in 4LO, having the trailer weight down on the hitch should give you enough traction.
Keep an eye on the trailer bumper scraping the driveway before the tires start to make the climb, happened with my trailer. Had to approach almost parallel with the street and cut hard once the trailer tires where going up the driveway. Took a few attempts.

 

Find an empty patch in a big parking lot. Practice spotting the trailer between the lines in reverse. Drive past, back in. Practice.
As @MadRussian said, MAKE sure you check to be sure the trailer's rear bumper or undercarriage does NOT bottom out before the trailer axle is on the incline, THEN check to be sure your truck's rear undercarriage doesn't scrape once the trailer's on the incline and the truck's rear axle just meets the start of the incline. Could be costly OR you'll learn that it's Mission Impossible.
Editted 6/10 10:33am

 

Go practice for an hour in a flat lot. Then go home and back that bitch where it needs to go in 2wd. I do it all the time.