4500 lbs camper too much?

My wife, kids and I are hitting the road full time for about two years. So we are wanting the biggest camper we can SAFELY tow. I am huge on safety when I comes to my truck and family well being. Here’s the specs

2007 crew cab off road. 1 inch add a leaf. Has all the towing goodies from the factory.
WILL BE USUNG A WEIGHT DISTRIBUTION HITCH.
The camper is a 28 footer, 4500 dryweight. Fully loaded will be around 5500.
Thoughts and concerns?

my wife will be doing travel health care work so we could literally end up any way in the US. So all terrains will be driven on.

 

What is the factory specs for towing with that vehicle. Would look at all the so called towing package from that year ad see what it says, What kind of brake controller do you have installed?
When was it last inspected for use for that reason? Have you ever towed something that large before? Also remember your gas mileage will most likely be half of what you are getting now. The final answer will be what are you comfortable with towing safely for any length of time.

 

I’d throw on a set of airbags. That amount of weight will slam your ass down and your steering feel the change in geometry dramatically.

You’re gonna be happy to pull 12 MPG’s. Are you AT? Have a tranny cooler? I’d get fresh fluids in all the boxes. Might want to consider heavier weight gear oil, especially in the rear. New brakes / rotors recently? Brake controller is obviously a must.

 

Auto with trans cooler. All fluids will be fresh. Brakes will be pretty close to new. Frame and leafs are one year old. I did forget in my post that I’ll do airbags.

 

Sag from weight in bed: Airbags
Sag from trailer: Weight Distribution Hitch

 

No way in hell I would tow that much with a Tacoma. No way.

 

I tow through 11 different states each year. My truck has gears, air bags, new spring pack, transmission cooler, and 700lb springs. I tow this: 15' 2800lb trailer. With it loaded, it comes in around 3400lbs, there is another 500lbs of gear, firewood, generator, etc in the bed. I can pull this at 70 to 75mph no problem, pass 18 wheelers if needed. Can tow up hills at 45 to 55 mph. I get between 8 and 11 mph.

Now, personally; this is the largest trailer I would tow with a Tacoma. In a head wind, I got about 6 mpg, at 50 mph.

Good luck with your truck and what ever trailer you have or get.

 

NOPE! Wouldn't do it. The problem isn't PULLING it, but your GVWR. Your truck is rated at 5450 lbs. Go weigh your truck and subtract that number from 5450. That is how much payload you have. It will be no more than 1200 lbs and may well be under 1000 depending on your individual truck and any modifications made or tools etc. that stay in the truck.

A 5500 lb TT will put 715 lbs on your tongue (figure 13%, you need a minimum of 10% and up to 15%). Then you have to figure for the weight of the WDH (50-100 lbs), the weight of your family,and any other cargo hauled in the truck. You won't know until you weigh the truck, but it is very possible you'll have less than 200 lbs payload left before you put yourself and family in the truck. You might get by pulling 5500 lbs for short pulls with just a skinny driver in the truck. No way I'd take my family out in that. A lot of 1/2 tons would be overloaded.

This stuff just hides the problem, doesn't fix it. Too much weight on the rear of the truck means not enough weight on the front axle. The one that does about 80% of your braking and 100% of your steering. Not enough weight on the front axle means danger. Modifying stuff just hides the problem.

 

What he said. There’s no way I would pull that with a Tacoma.

 

Exactly, I don't care how good of a truck the Tacoma is, that much weight is just dangerous. He will put not only his family in danger, but everyone else on the road around him. Plus; it will destroy the truck's drivetrain in the long run.

 

Truck is rated for 6500. My family will be in my wife’s vehicle so I’m not to worried about that additional weight.

 

Good luck with that. Be safe. Done with this.

 

I’m getting rid of my Tacoma bc of this reason.... we got a 20’ camper 4K dry weight and I did one trip last year and know I don’t want to do that all summer.... we’ve got 4 trips planned and my truck is for sale now... I have a 17 model 6 speed manual!! With trailer breaks pulling and stopping isn’t the issue!! It’s just the weight of the trailer vs the weight of the truck isn’t near enough!!! If anything happened no way the Tacoma could keep y’all safe!! It’s a danger for your family and the others around you!!

 

It sounds like it will work but real life is there are to many variables

 

Wasn’t trying to upset anyone. Just trying to get some real answers from real experiences. Thank you to those who have given that to me. I’ll be getting my deposit back on that trailer tomorrow and start searching for something around the 3k weight.

 

I got rid of my Tacoma last weekend for a Tundra since we bought a travel trailer last year. We did a couple shorter camping trips, but I didn’t feel comfortable for longer trips. Now I do not have to worry about that anymore. Good luck hope you get it figured out.

 

You're not wrong with any of what you wrote. That said, I drove from AK to WA with my truck weighing almost 6500lbs and towing a 3500lb trailer and had no problems other than 10mpg. After dropping the trailer off for a friend I then drove the Trans-America trail and some BDRs and touched a minimal amount of pavement from the Pacific Ocean to CO. The truck can handle weight well above what it's rated for if you want to do it.

I also now have a larger, heavier truck that hauls and tows better though so...

 

I pull a 12 foot snowmobile clamshell aluminum enclosed trailer. Weight of the trailer is under 1000lbs and with a sled might be 1500 lbs total. My truck gets a little over 11 miles a gallon and when the wind hits the trailer I can feel it pull hard. Theres no way I'd be trying to go that big of a trailer and cross country. Your almost maxed out for the taco with that setup.

 

Look OP, can your truck do it, versus what you will feel comfortable are two different things. The truck is rated at 6500# BUT, with cargo, people, the lies that the camper people tell you, I can tell you from experience that you won't like that camper choice, although you could pull it off.
If your really using it as a mobile home then get a full size capable of pulling a fifth wheel because you will want creature comforts beyond what a Taco can ever hope to pull around the country. Like say washer and dryer Our 3800 pound camper fully loaded is a 8mpg beat down and we only camp locally in FL, GA.
Best of luck to you.

 

He's going to be lucky to get 8mpg hauling that. Mine is a 25ft dry weight of 4810 lbs. I average 8.1 mpg on flat terrain in the south (FL and GA). My next truck will be a F250 or Freightliner M2 MDT.

I wouldn't go any bigger the what I have with a Tacoma and pack lightly.