Realistic Towing capability with 2009 V6 DBL cab

I have towed my Pioneer Spirit 18CK many times over the past 3 years. It has a 3750lbs dry weight and runs around 4300lbs when I am traveling. My Tacoma handles it well! Wife and two kids on board and I don't miss a beat. I do not run the truck in to the ground but have no problem keeping at speed limit (or slightly above) 95% of the time. The occasional long hill in the Canadian mountians gets me do to 45 to 50 mph, which a lot of the time is my choice because I love my truck and I want it to last. I think that you will be able to handle either trailer well. Toyota has done a great job with these trucks.

 

Yes I did and they were very simple required no drilling.
I copied the model number for you and the link were I purchased mine.
www.suspensionconnection.com



2005-2011 Toyota Tacoma 4wd - Firestone "Ride Rite" Air Bag Helper Springs
Product Brand:FirestoneProduct Part #:2407
Sale Price:
$262.20

$297.95 : Reg. P

 

my TT is about 3000 lb wet. I've taken it to a bunch of places and the taco does fine

 

This all good info especially about the lubricant changing. The only thing that has changed is the % of weight. My dad told me the same thing about 50% but as you stated, equipment is better now and the average is now 80% of your max load capacity. that is were I calculated mine with everything that I would possibly be carrying at one time. I have never carried everything at one time though i just used it for my calculations and I stay well below 80%

 

Man!! the rear sag is way down. Looks like it's just about on the bumpers. It should be no more then 1" sag in the rear and 3/4 rise in the front especially with that weight and length and the family in the cab. The trailer and truck should be parallel with the ground. You have a greatly reduce traction rate where you most need it, up front . Your choice, your family, your level of safety for the family.

I see rigs like this bouncing down the road a lot and I stay clear. In my personal opinion, if I had your rig, which I don't, it would not leave the driveway w/o WDH.

just my opinion, no disrespect

 

The instructions with my hitch says to measure the front height before hitching the trailer, then adjust the tension on the bars after hitching to return the front to the original height.

 

Save a few bucks on the air bags, free shipping
http://www.sdtrucksprings.com/firestone-2407-ride-rite-air-bag-kit-toyota-tacoma-4wd-2005-2011

 

I just pulled a trailer ~2000 miles from CA to AR with a total weight of 11320# (according to the CAT scale @ Russelville AR) with no major issues. I have the

$448 Firestone 2407 Firestone TACHOMA 4WD(05-13)

Firestone 2407 bags and ran them @ 40psi the whole trip. The trailer was a flatbed with 4ft plywood sides, so it had the aerodynamics of a brick. Inclines weren't really an issue unless they ran on for many miles.... Don't expect much more than 8-10 MPG..... Tekonsha Prodigy P3 brake controller helped too.

 

you are correct but 1/2-3/4" lift in the front is acceptable. Mine is 1/2" lift in the front and a 3/4" drop in the rear

 

If you put airbags on the rear all you have done is pick up the back of the truck. All of the tongue weight w/o a WDH is still on the rear axle with no distribution of weight to the front of the truck or the trailer axles.

 

Max GCVWR for the 2nd gen taco is around 11500# trailer brakes are a must for that weight or pulling anything over 2000#'s. 8-10 mpg sounds about right I get 10-11mpg with my rig that is not quite that heavy. I say it's brick pulling a cinderblock

 

I'll use both, I promise.

 

gfiber, where are you going to be towing your travel trailer? That's a big factor in getting one. Personally, I wouldn't get one so big to tow with my Tacoma. Travel trailers don't tow easily. Going 60 mph and with 5 mph winds and you will be feeling it move the light truck around. Sure there are members here who tow travel trailers, but they are pushing it to the limit. Saying the 2nd gen tows anything considerable "with no problems" is an exaggeration.

 

I may be selling my airbag set-up real soon. It's the Firesone Ride Rite's with the Airlift wireless compressor set-up. It works great, in brand new condition. Less than a year old. Only thing is I have a 1" lift in the rear, so the brackets have been welded and would need to be shaved back to stock. I got it for towing the travel trailer. It really makes a big difference. I also have the universal Cipa mirrors. I have to uninstall and decide on a reasonable price. I'm going to try Timbrens, as I really only tow a bass boat occasionally. Was planning to have one big sale ad, but saw this and thought that it may work out. Pm's welcome while a research prices.

 

I tow a 1972 23ft Airstream with mine. It weighs 3500lbs dry, I am guessing it weighs 5000lbs loaded with 2 adults, 2 kids and 2 dogs. I use an Equalizer hitch and the truck sits level. After a 2,600 mile tow from NC to MI (and back) I can say the Tacoma is a great match for this size of trailer. I averaged 12 mpg if I didn't go faster than 65.

The Airstream has a 550lb tongue weight. I do not have the rear spring TSB. With my Equalizer (weight distribution hitch) set up properly there is no need for air bags. A properly set up hitch will spread the weight equally over all axles.

I used the videos from etrailer to set up my hitch.



http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NpVbheV-wTA

 

One thing I think most people think sense the Tacoma is not a full size truck
it should not be towing large loads.

I can remember in the 80's my dad pulling 32 foot holiday rambler with 1500 series Chevy pickup with a 350 motor and the 3 speed trans the old turbo 350.

If look up the specs for this era of truck the curb weight is very similar to the Tacoma and the horse power was a joke. Correct me if I am wrong but
the horse power some where around 195 HP so I think The tacoma is cable of towing 5500 pound load with out sever damage or shorting the life of the Truck.

JAZZ

 

26' .. 4200# dry about 5200# loaded and ready for travel. I've posted in RV.NET forums of my experiences and I think somewhere round here. I purchased the trailer and truck at the same time and have done about 4000 miles with the trailer. Not much for the 6 years I've owned the combo but each time the Tacoma does it's job well. (Currently 117,000 on the Tacoma ) I was happy to see that the Tacoma (unlike some of the American counterparts) actually made no adjustments to their towing numbers when tested under the new SAE towing tests. Good feeling to know Toyota did the math and knew exactly what the Tacoma could handle when marketing it.

 

This is an awesome thread. I have been looking at getting a 18' travel trailer and thinking it might be too much. Now I'm not worried at all. Thanks for all the good info!

 

Which Cipa mirrors do you have; fender mount, door mount, mirror clip on?

 

x2.... Other full size trucks/suvs numbers dramatically changed, but the Tacoma's number stayed true.