Towing with a 3rd gen

Yep exactly. I was considering the part in the middle where they added a supercharger first. More power, more strain due to shitty gearing isn’t a great formula for transmission longevity

 

Ah.

I think the same can be said about the engine.

Although, there is a TW member with a 3.4L supercharged 1st Gen with like 500k miles.

 

just over 750K currently …manual trans

https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads...er-available-30-percent-larger-rotors.810549/

 

Wow that’s impressive!

But those 3.4s man, one of best gas Toyota engines ever made IMHO.

 

Not the fastest, or most powerful, but they go and go.

 

funny when i see people towing pop up campers with subaru outbacks

 

Oh yes. Just like the good ol’ 2.7L.

If I didn’t need to tow and the 3G was offered in DCSB MT 2.7L configuration, I would have highly considered it.

I still haven’t test driven a 2.7L MT, ever.

 

Yep.

The 2.7 MT is adequate for bumping around if you’re not in a hurry, feels old skool like how Toyota “should” feel. Sloooow but very hard to kill.

Almost bought one a few years ago, but needed to tow.

 

Man, I've seen an Outback with the 6x12 UHaul before, yeesh.

I know they used to come with a 6 cylinder, but still, that trailer's a heavy pig. Hopefully they just had some couches or something in there.

 

When driving stock for a while, then driving 33s for a while, then driving 35s for a while you won't really notice the big picture change because you've seen small changes over time. I'd bet if you went from your 35's back to stock you'd notice a significant difference. Its just like gaining weight, you yourself don't always see the gain because its subtle changes over time, but someone who hasnt seen you in a while will notice you've become a fat ass.

That said, yes you came here asking what other people are towing, but you stated you're asking because you're not happy with towing performance. You also stated you otherwise love the truck and don't tow often. Folks gave you suggestions to improve towing performance but it seems you don't want to hear it, leading us to assume you're just looking for validation to get a new truck.

If you want a new truck then get one.
If you're hesitant to get a new truck because you genuinely like your Taco, then take the chance on a regear. Is it going to transform it to V8 or diesel pulling power, no, but it will be an improvement. The numerous shops and veteran wheelers aren't talking out their ass when they say anything over 33s needs a regear.
Or don't do anything and keep driving what you got as-is.
Either way you're taking a chance. At least a regear has the possibility to be the least expensive.

Or, if you KNOW you're going to get a bigger camper at some point, and you know it's going to be too big for the Taco with or without 35s, tune, regear, etc., then why are you even here asking what others tow? Just get a damn truck, and make it a diesel while you're at it and don't worry about towing anymore.

 

I never bought my truck expecting a lot of power out of it. I have a custom built drawer and kitchen slide in the bed. Rear seat delete with fridge slide. Ikamper and 360 awning on the truck. Recently I added a small custom 10ft utility trailer.

It tows fine for me usually about 2-2.5k rpms unless going up a pass. Gas mileage is about 12 unless hitting a lot of passes. But I also have 265/75/17 tires and inflate them to 70psi when towing. Trailer at 70psi as well. If not I’ll drop to like 10mpg. I also usually drive about 60 to 65 mph. Also have a tune.

 

I finally did some more towing miles with the new set up and getting rid of the rear squat did so much to improve handling. No more light steering coming out of dips, tracks better. Economy is virtually the same with the wider offset and additional tent weight. Averaged around 17L/100 on 350km worth of towing. I tend to get around 14L/100 most days pending route and wind. The boat is quite narrow and low so I don't get much wind resistance from it so I'm happy with the towing performance given the set up.

 

Zero problems…. And I’ve never thought the truck (or my Second Gen) was underpowered.

 

And that right there, worth all that gas pain. Smiles per mile. Priceless.

 

I definitely recognize this place!

 

I tow my boat about 150 miles sometimes , There are times on the long hills I wish I had more power but the truck is paid off and it does a great job at being a reliable truck and pleasant to drive . I just need to make sure I don't overwork it at kill the engine or trans . The boat is a 22 ft Grady white with a 200 hp Yamaha 4 stroke . I average 9-12 miles per gallon while towing at 50-65 .

 

My trucks unhappy going 80 mph without towing. When I do tow a light utility trailer, I don’t notice any performance difference other than maybe stopping distance reduction.

 

My camper weights just under 3k lbs dry and probably around 3500 or so fully loaded. Running some sumo springs in the back and a RedArc brake controller. Everything else is stock. I live in Colorado so the high elevation doesn’t help. But truck manages fine. Getting up mountain passes I run 2nd gear between 3000-4000 rpm. Would I like an extra 50 - 100 bhp sure. But the truck does fine. Don’t know if the truck would like to tow a whole lot heavier in my opinion however I’ve seen people do it. Maybe they got the supercharger on there or the regear though.

 

So you want to run 35" tires and tow >5,000 lbs on stock gears?! You've got the wrong truck/expectations.

 

No no no, maybe it's all of us who are wrong, and OP is right.

OP, if anything, those tires are a little small. Maybe try 37's and see if that fixes your issue. Make sure you don't replace the gearing though, or you'll be back at square one.