Possible transmission issues?

Hello Everyone!

So a quick rundown on what I'm towing so everyone knows the situation.

I have a 2006 Weekend Warrior Toyhauler Supercross Edition 18ft. Bought it last december. The sticker on the side says it weighs 2895lbs. I haven't looked at the tongue weight. It has 50 gal water tank, one propane tank, 2 deep cycle batteries and an A/C unit. After a dirt bike, quad (combined weight of 600lbs) all of our camping gear, clothes, food, water, gas, (the usual camping gear) I estimate total weight being around 4,500 lbs (I think). Anyway, I know the taco has a towing capacity of 6,500lbs (with tow package, which I have) so 4,500ish lbs is well within the ability of the truck but has anyone had any transmission issues? I ask because I do a lot of desert trips, which is most to all of my yearly camping, and the drive out consists of a lot of hills. 2 fairly large inclines with the rest being small to medium size, you could say. Going up these hills my speed drops to about 20-25 MPH. Very slow crawl which I know would be the case, I just afraid that I will be doing damage to the transmission. I tow in "4" and yea the tranny cooler helps but is there any long term affects I should be concerned about? Will towing this trailer eventually fry my tranny? Would it be worth buying another [bigger] truck to tow the trailer? Or am I totally fine and just over thinking it?

I just came back from a trip to Pismo beach over the weekend and there were some pretty gnarly hills on the drive out there so this is what got me thinking about this whole situation. Plus my step dad mentioned something about it too.

The last thing that I want to do unknowingly is destroy my truck over time. Any advise, thoughts, comments are always appreciated.

Thanks!

 

You have the tran cooler yes?

Edit: Thought I read that. You should be fine as long as your temp isn't going too high.

 

Yea I have the tranny cooler.

I don't have a scan gauge. Would it be wise to invest in one? My assumption would be that is the only way to monitor the transmission temp?

 

If you do a lot of towing, especially long distance and "hilly" towing, it wouldnt be the worst idea to invest in one (or the like). Better safe than sorry. You should honestly be ok though. Just make sure you change the fluid out more frequently than if you werent towing.

 

And make sure you definitely dont tow in O/D lol

 

Drive in 4 and on long hills you may want to put it in 3. Desert driving in the summer is considered extreme conditions. The extreme heat is a killer of everything. I would consider changing fluids like oil and tranny fluid more often than recommended. You may want the install a larger after market tranny cooler.
I’ve towed everything imaginable over the last 50 years and never had a problem with over heating or tranny problems. I often tow in the California Central Valley which is desert hot in the summer. Never used scan gauge. I have however kept my vehicles super well maintained.
In your case since a lot of Your towing is in extreme driving conditions and although not maxing out your tow capacity you are towing a heavy load for a taco, a scan gauge may be a good idea to know what’s going on heat wise.
Keep in mind GVWR too. If you are hauling a bunch of stuff in the bed including dirt bike, quad and you include passengers, tongue weight and misc. I assume you are close to or exceeding GVWR. That could present problems.
Bottom line I think you’ll be fine if you maintain your truck well, change fluids more frequently, maybe get an after market tranny cooler and maybe get a scan gauge.

 

I installed a scan gauge II for my own peace of mind. We made an 1100 mile trip towing 2 tons and it was good to know what the tranny temps were running.

 

Nice, I'll probably get one here soon. Nice set up btw

 

I use torque pro on android with a bluetooth OBDCII reader.

 

Out of an abundance of caution, since I don't have a gauge, on the big hills I just slow down and gear down to 3rd and stay in the right hand lane with the big rigs. I am towing a 4,300 pound dry weight trailer.