So, I bought my first travel trailer and...... questions...

I’ve been looking at trailers myself..... this is great.

 

I have my eye on a really nice pop up camper. They have come a long way since the one I spent time in as a kid in the 80's.

They have slide outs on them now lol!

The one really big downside to a Pop up is setting them up in the rain and disassembly when wet. This is something I will have to come to grips with. It's just like folding your tent up in the morning after its rained all night. Things inside are gonna get wet.

Any way it's on the list to get before Christmas this year.

 

Unfortunately, calculating the loads is the first and really, only thing that needs to be done BEFORE buying a camper.

You honestly don't have enough truck. Oh, it will pull fine...on level ground w/no wind and the truck basically empty. Other than that, I would be looking at a F150 w/tow package and 2.7 TT EcoBeast .....

You will probably be over the rear axle weight limit, the payload limit, and those itty-bitty circa 1960's drum brakes on your truck won't be happy in a panic stop.

 

The wet thing is a real problem sometimes. I have never had to put down mine in an all out downpour.
I have had to put it away after the rain several times. Really your stuff doesn't get all wet. The beds and stuff are on the inside of the canvas the ceiling and the canvas it's self is mostly what stays wet. I try to dry mine with towels if possible other than that just open it all at home in your yard as soon as you can. Like the next day or two it's not raining so it can fully dry out.

 

OP, a lot of people are giving you "advice" & telling you things on this thread but you already own the truck & trailer so I'm just going to wish you happy camping. I was in your shoes earlier this year & stepping up to a TT has been one of the best decisions I've ever made. WDH, brake controller, ECT mode, etc is all the standard stuff but you'll get a feel for everything as you use it. One number that I haven't seen you mention is payload so just please keep that in mind as you figure out how to best use your rig. Depending on your Tacoma, you have about 1100# of payload. Just do some quick math to add up the following: passengers, loaded tongue weight, WDH, camp grill, camp chairs, all other cargo you'll have in the tow vehicle.

I love my Tacoma but it's got limitations. Have fun out there.

 

Umm, what? I had one permanently mounted in my Subaru, never saw any batter issues. When the car is off, there shouldn't be any power to the obd port.

 

Hey @Phich, I just wanted to say thank you. We currently have the below: 19ft(+tents of course), 8ft wide, and 4200 lbs loaded (3700 dry). My gf and I had our hearts set on downsizing next year to the same GeoPro you had but I'm glad I saw this first. I figured a few hundred lbs less and less width aka wind resistance would make enough of a difference. Guess not eh? I'll stick with what we have because we love it and it tows pretty well for what it is. Thanks again!

 

Glad I could help!
I love my new pop up and the mpg is about the same as when I’m not towing.

 

There shouldn’t, but it sure as hell drained my battery.
Battery was dead or weak days in a row, every day.
I unplugged the scan gauge and the battery stopped draining.

 

Interesting. I still have the SC, but haven't found a way to mount it in the Taco yet. When I figure that out, I'll definitely keep an eye on the battery when it's plugged in.

 

Thank you

I am going this weekend to look at a Jayco PoP Up at the local RV dealer.

It's not brand new but I like the idea of basically having a tent off the ground with AC lol.

 

Why not air springs then? Pump ‘em up when you need em, deflate them when you don’t

 

What is even more funny is that people think "weight" is the only factor in towing ability ;-)

Did you know that the frontal area of a trailer impacts the weight that the truck can tow?

That is why boats or utility trailers are easier to tow and less stress on a truck than when towing a RV

Try carrying a 4 x 8 sheet of plywood across the lawn in a wind. Next, try carrying some 2 x 4 lumber that weighs the same as the sheet of plywood ;-)

The max frontal area that a Ford F-350 truck with a RV camper in tow is......60 sq ft. Regardless of the weight.

Your owner's manual will tell you the Tacoma is not designed for towing, but primarily for hauling (in the bed).

Toyota (as most manufactures) subscribe to the Society of Automotive Engineers J2807 standard regarding towing. Your max tow rating assumes a lot: an empty bed, only two, 150lb passengers , a 70lb weight distribution hitch, and a few pounds of personal belongings. Nothing else.

If you meet those requirements you then need to go to the next requirement on the flow chart.

Example: You also need to measure the weight on your rear axle when all loaded up and find out how much over the axle rating you are.

Example: You have to weigh the truck/camper combo all loaded up to make sure you aren't over Toyota's Gross Combined Weight Rating

Your owner's manual has examples of all the math you have to do and IF you meet ALL the requirement you might be good to go ;-)

Anyone that thinks "Oh, I have a 6,300lb tow rating, that means I can tow 6,300 lbs" Has no idea what they are doing and NEEDS to read their owner's manual.

Remember: Every additional ounce in or on the truck (aftermarket stuff or cargo) must be subtracted from the tow rating. There are lots of opinions on towing, but SAE J2807, and the Toyota engineers (and your owner's manual) are probably the best place to get the right answers, not what Billy Bob says on a forum about towing his boat.

Bottom line: The tow ratings are highly optimistic not only for Toyotas, but all vehicles. Why? Because the SAE rating assumes that you will have only two American adults weighing 150lbs each in the vehicle, you will be traveling with an empty truck bed (not even a cap), that the WD hitch will weigh only 70 lbs, etc, etc. Not very likely in the real world.

 

Thanks for all the comments.

we have done full research, all calculations (I’m retired engineer so it’s in my blood) and know our limitations. We’re highly experienced campers but first time RVers and looking forward to it. We’ve chosen the trailer we think best suits our needs while staying within weight capacities. We know how to pack light from many years of traveling in British sports cars that have minimal storage areas. I understand the slowness of trailering this much but it can’t be as enjoying as the days of driving a 1963 VW micro bus converted into camper up Grant’s Pass on I-5, having to drive on the shoulder so big rigs could pass me in the slow lane. We’ll be extra careful and I’ll take photos along the way.

 

Good don't by new. They depreciate fast. If you can take used in good condition that's better. Better advice is wait till the end of the season but that's probably not going to be an excellent strategy with covid adding demand for campers as when I replace my 1994 jayco with a 2009 Coachman in 2017.

If you can get ac even better. I only have a power vent fridge, stove and gas heat.

 

OK wait a sec. What is the manual showing in this pic if not the same thing as my picture? I received the Tekonsha P3 today and will install tomorrow but don’t want to pop off the kick panel if I do t need to.

 

It's up there, you might need to dig around. It will be easy to find when you're holding the other end to match.

 

Well it looks to me that the sketch points to bottom edge on dash under steering column and not the kick panel. Anyone else have the 2017 TRD OR that can confirm these are the same?

 

The other pic didn’t post. Here it is