And 55 is even safer. It all depends on wheel size and axles for trailer ratings. Certainly not over 65 for sustained periods. It is a lot of friction!

If you towed at 55 on the interstates in Arizona with the 75 speed limits you are just looking to cause an accident with the semi trucks running 75 also. Even vehicles running 65 are looking for trouble. Once the trucks are passing you it causes a backup for the cars and then the trouble begins. I am much more comfortable keeping up with the flow of traffic.

I tow an average of 6-7k a year, some with a different vehicle and different trailer, but I have never abided by the mph suggestions. I have always believed in maintaining the entire rig and have never gotten into trouble being ultra conservative.

This trip will 5k miles. We will make Colorado by day 2, which means were doing about 900 miles those days. I have never had an issue with our trailers doing this trip, and this will be the 5th time we've done it. (Knocking on wood)

You would be killed doing 55 on 70 through Kansas. Seriously.

So how do you disable the torque converter lockout on the SR5? Going to 5th still allows it to lockout. I'd like to stay in 5th but not have certain load situations when towing where it is hunting between 5th locked out and not.

4S locks out overdrive. 5S will allow the converter to lock/unlock + allow the trans to engage/disengage overdrive. Believe me I tried 5S and you can move along with the converter locked. But overdrive engaged while towing ain't happening.

It is important to choose the correct equipment for the situation. The 5th gen will tow. However, it will not be the fastest. What it does a good job of while towing is: stopping. Combine that stopping power with proper speed and you have a good chance of reaching your destination.

I know gearing down to 4th (4S) locks out 5th (Overdrive). However my question (and I think the answer is no) is if there is a way to prevent the torque converter from locking but not gear down to 4th. IMHO 5S should do exactly this, but it does not (ECM mod?). Current 5S is really no different than Drive as far as I can tell.

You, my friend, are correct. 5S is almost exactly the same as Drive.

Our 5 speed transmission has gears 1-5 plus an additional overdrive gear. 4S is the only way to lock-out that overdrive gear that 5S allows. Yes 5S works the same as Drive does concerning the overdrive operation.

4S towing at 60 - 65 mph equals around 2,500 RPM. The engine noise level starts to get annoying at higher speeds in 4S. I personally have ran 90 mph towing for a short distance (in 4S). Not many vehicles can boast fuel efficiency numbers, while towing, in the 12-16 MPG range at 65 MPH.

On a side note: I recently purchased a RAM 1500 for towing on long distance cross-country trips (and for other personal reasons).

The 4runner is great for those 360 days of non towing. The 4runner cabin is great for family vacations. The truck will be nice to have on those 5 or 6 days of towing at the expense of burning more fuel. The truck cabin is also lacking that enclosed, climate controlled cargo area the 4runner has.

Plan is to also keep the 4runner at least until after the new CAFE standards kick in.

Or you could do like I did and get a GX460 with a V8.

Ummm. I believe you are in error here. The transmission is a 5 speed including overdrive (not plus overdrive, ie. 6 speed), in other words 5th is the overdrive:

Attached is the spec sheet.

You get the impression of the "6th" gear when the lockout engages and the tranny stops slipping. I my experience it's around 200 RPM at 120 km/h.

Attached Images

2012_4Runner_Product_Info.pdf (78.8 KB, 108 views)

You want the torque converter locked. When it is locked, the input and output shafts turn at the same rate and the transmission fluid is no longer acting as a clutch. Unless you are going down a grade, and you can use 5th with the converter locked, and not gain excessive speed from gravity, you should stay <5.

Why are people towing with their vehicles if they know nothing about them? The reason why they put an owners manual in the glove box is to tell you how to properly operate your vehicle. I see towing accidents all the time no matter what the tow vehicle caused by people not understanding how to handle their vehicle. If you're not familiar with how to properly shift your vehicle, don't tow. Anyone who tows knows that gearing is a HUGE factor. You should be shifting manually to help save your transmission and to help save your brakes. You should be downshifting at proper RPMs to help slow the vehicle down and your brakes should be assisting. Lugging your engine at low RPMs when towing causes engine/transmission overheating. Sacrifice a bit of fuel economy and shift it yourself. Tow/haul mode basically keeps the transmission from shifting into overdrive on the vehicles with this feature. ECT Power button on older Toyotas made the transmission more sensitive to shifts to assist with keeping the transmission from hunting for gears but I bet Toyota got rid of it because people never knew how to use it anyway. On a side note, you're supposed to gradually accelerate when towing. Expecting the vehicle to accelerate normally when towing a trailer is absurd.

If I can tow over double the weight of my vehicle safely with only "183hp," I think you can move 2700 pounds pretty quickly with an extra 87 horsepower.

Thank for @VoodooTitan , and yes @Antman , my ipad so lovingly autocorrected for me.

I meant that on the '14 SR5, there is no Sport mode, so how do you switch off overdrive?

Meh...as a married man I get corrected daily.

Here was my experience:

Towing South on IN I-65 set cruise on 62 mph for downhill foot break. Engage family in conversation. Cresting overpass, forgot about cruise, trans kicks down to 3rd gear, get "that" look from So I start paying a little more attention to throttle control and decide to experiment with 5S (screw the manual).

I'm at 62 mph on flat ground running 2,500 rpm in 4S and shift to 5S. RPM drops to 2,200, let up on throttle, 1,800 RPM. Ease up on throttle again and 1,500 RPM. Meanwhile I'm trying (and failing) to maintain speed.

After several tries and determining 1,800 rpm is maintainable at 65+ mph I set cruise. After a couple more overpass incline/decline situations with unlocking uphill and hitting that 1,500 rpm situation downhill along with more of "that" look. I determine 4S is the winner.

It's terrible advice, but you could try a sledgehammer.

Is there an OD button on the shift lever? Usually they'll have that as an option, I know it was on older models. I'm not familiar with the SR5. I have a Trail that I haven't been inside of for 5 months...

It is astonishing how little you know about your own vehicle...