My wife want to haul our travel trailer 4 1/2 hours

So it's my wife's cousin graduation party in Iowa and it's about 4.5 hours away and I'm not sure if it's safe to haul that far. My truck is a dbl cab short box with 2" lift and supercharged with fuel pump upgrade and 2.85 pulley. My main concern is the transmission. I don't know if it's up for the challenge. The farthest I went was about 3.5 hours away with the camper. The camper is 21ft with a dry weight of 3800 lb, with wd hitch and a trailer brake. Just wondering if anyone has hauled that far or think the tranny could handle it. If not I'll just tell my wife that it won't work but she'll give me shit about my truck not being able to make it. Thanks for any advice or input.

 

If it did 3.5 hours, it should to 30.5 hours

 

Agreed, just don't hot rod it. Trans temp gauge might buy you piece of mind.

 

It's well within Toyota's specs for towing. There is a tranny temp light that when lit you would need to pull over ASAP and allow the tranny to cool. I highly doubt you'd have that problem. You're in/going to Iowa. Pretty flat. It's mid-late spring and ambient temps should be mild.

FYI. It's the shifting that tends to heat the auto tranny. If you're 'hunting' gears, you need to shift down 1 gear and leave it. Some people like to just leave it in 4 while pulling. IIRC there's no advice about that in the Toyota manual so shouldn't be a concern unless it's 'hunting' between 4th and 5th. 5th will give you best MPGs. 4th will keep it out of OD and less MPGs but more responsive.

If it was me, I'd put it in 5th/Drive and set the cruise control for 65 MPH and go for it. Sticking to highways is best for MPGs.

Worst case scenario. You overheat the tranny and it needs to be replaced. About as much as a clutch these days which is a wear item that most manuals will need sooner or later. Usually much sooner than a new auto tranny.

+1 for Autos.

Also, as stated above. If you can go 3 hours than any amount of hours can be done. It's NOT about time, it's about HEAT.

 

Transmission costs as much as a clutch? pull it in '4' the whole way with the cruise on 60-65, it will be fine.

 

Bring that baby on over, you wont have any trouble, the factory tow package has a tranny cooler just for this purpose.

 

Have you priced out a clutch and install?

Yes, it's much cheaper if YOU do it in YOUR garage. Most can't or won't want to do that. Much of the cost is labor. It's takes quit a while to change out a clutch. And they're a wear item that is expected to be replaced at some point in time. Keep the fluid in an auto cool and clean and you'll never have a problem.

And I did say "about" NOT the same.

Average clutch replacement is around $2000.

 

I pulled mine from Connecticut to Florida, no issues!

 

Ok thanks guys, I will do the trip and I ordered a trans temp gauge just to keep a eye on it.

 

I hauled our 4800lb (loaded, dry means nothing) from Texas to Utah which was about 24 hrs, no issues. I always recommend putting in the biggest transmission cooler you can fit.

 

Oh, my manual most definitely states to use 4th for towing. The truck was much happier that way as well

 

Hook it up and go, Put it in 4 when towing. My travel trailer is 6000 lbs loaded and gone for 7 hours straight without any issues.

 

Where in the manual? I've looked for it specifically and didn't find it. I must have missed it. Thanks.

 

We used to haul a Rockwood 2306 with a dry weight of 3900# and had no problem. We just bought a 29' Catalina with a dry weight of 4800# and it towed the same as the Rockwood. If you have the tow package I don't see how you can have problems. It is pretty hilly in New Hampshire compared to Iowa.