Gen 3 Towing Thread

Hard mounted my Prodigy P2 tonight. A little cut and paste and I'm set placed this in the cubby hole. Drilled holes in the prodigy and cubby to properly secure it, as well as an access hole for the connector.

 

Multiple trips to the lake this summer no prob (100 miles round trip) on 305/70/16's.

 

His link was the wrong one- watch this one:

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=DCkBmiZV09w

 

That might have been the strength towing mpg video. They do have one that goes up a 7% grade with that same trailer.

 

Just finished my second 3.5 hour tow trip (each way) with my 14' enclosed with 2.5' V-nose. Truck has no issues with the weight. The hole it punches through the air is another matter. Won't pull more than 4th on the flat as I tested it in S5 just to see if it would use that gear and it won't unless on a downhill slope. S4 full time now with my ScanguageII keeping me informed of trans temps. Like others have said if you were to tow cross country (with a travel trailer or enclosed) you want a larger truck. I can accept the limitations of this truck when towing because I get fantastic fuel economy for the 99% of the time that it is just me going from A to B. When towing this combination my fuel economy is cut in half vs no trailer. With my Dodge 2500 with a cummins I barely noticed a MPG a drop but then again that isn't a fair comparison. A 1/2 ton should see better fuel economy vs the Tacoma towing this setup but then again I don't want a 1/2 ton daily driver.

 

https://youtu.be/DCkBmiZV09w

 

Cause this truck fast as hell lol.

 

That trailer is awesome!

 

Went from a 2006 rc prerunner 4 cyl 5sp to my 17 DCSB TRD OR auto. Big improvement all around with only a slight drop in mpg from the anemic but tough 2.7 to the new 3.5l. I tow a small 16' toy hauler that's stickered around 2350 dry weight and 3500 gvwr. My 2.7 would tow it but it didn't like it, 60mph and 12 mpg on somewhat flat terrain in 4th. I pulled my basic tekonsha Voyager brake controller out of my old truck and put it in the new truck and tow in s4 with ect engaged. My scangauge needs the firm ware update to read the pan and tc temps for the trans but after reading everyone's feedback on their trucks I'll keep towing until I get it back. I do miss the manual trans for towing but it is nice leaving my left food in one spot for a trip. I loaded down and went South for the hurricane last week for work and I was very pleased with my new trucks performance when towing , got 9-10 mpg and as long as I kept it at 60-65 mph the truck didn't hunt for gears or strain. It's relatively flat in south Georgia but tomorrow I'll be headed to north Alabama then on to the ozarks next week with it.

 

First time towing with this truck and with a manual transmission. Didn't see the water today, just insurance and Title transfers. Was impressed with the little truck "that could". I had a decent grade on the way home which kept me in 3rd gear at 54mph. I also burned the clutch pretty good while backing her into the slot. The boat and trailer are 4000lbs, but the Tacoma powered through it!

 

Well towed from New York to Las Vegas for my move. Did it in 3 days and the truck pulled great. 5800lbs total. Truck has sumo springs. Got about 12 to 14 mpg averaged Colorado was about 10 lol. Very pleased with how it went.

 

2015 Summerland Mini. Approx 3200 dry. 4000 loaded.

 

Surge brakes on the trailer? You gotta put the pin in to back up without them locking if you don't have an electric lockout.

 

Yep, it turned out to be the surge brakes. The pin was in the tow position. Rookie mistake! I looking forward to backing it in properly next time. Those trailer brakes really help when stopping. Not so helpful when backing up!

 

I towed a 26' overall camper yesterday that weighed 4,740 dry. I towed it all stock with no brakes or stabilizer bars for about 10 miles to try before I buy lol. I felt like it towed ok in the 45-55mph range and could hold 60-63mph ok but with any hill it would go down to 3rd at 4k Rpms and I would have to manually shift up, any pointers?

 

These are tough little trucks. Just goes to show you don't have to have a full size truck to tow.

 

What axle did you swap out for, and did you retain the lunette? That looks very well balanced to the Taco, and I really like the rim/tire combo.

 

Great to hear you had no problems.

Like to know if you did notice any improvement with having Sumo Springs? I'm pulling a model 180 R-Pod camper trailer of around 2850 lbs. dry weight and am using Sumo Springs too with out any problems. Run it in S mode with the ETC on in 4th and 5th gear all day long doing highway speeds 55 to 70 mph getting the same as you did in mileage. I do wonder if an upgrade over the factor shocks, especially the rear, would make a difference on the smoothness of the ride and take some of the 'bounce' out of the single axle camper trailer? Anyone care to chime in there opinion?

 

I wonder if a weight distribution hitch would take some of the bounce out of the rear when pulling an r-pod?

 

Rewind 10-15 years and these Tacomas are equivalent to what was then a full size truck. Now, everyone thinks they need an F350 super duty to tow anything. I'm very happy w/ the towing performance of this truck.