Towing 4000+ pounds cross country and high elevation

[iRide4Runner]

I have a trip planned coming up and i need some input about towing. I'll be pulling my 4000 pound pop-up camper from springfield, MO to Telluride, CO. It's about 1,100 miles with lots of hills as you can imagine. Anyone have any experience with this?

 

[Jeremy556]

I've pulled an enclosed utility trailer (much worse drag than a popup), at a little over 5K, across country and over the front range in Colorado. Other than being a bit noisy going up the steeper grades in second gear, the 4Runner worked just fine.

You will need to have good, working electric brakes and controller. You will want to have air bags or a WD hitch to deal with the sag, and an aux transmission cooler would be nice to have.

 

[Matt's4Runner]

1. Brake controller

2. Weight Distributing Hitch

3. Take it easy

 

[2010riddle]

I saw mention of avoiding using a WD hitch on a rear cross-member mounted receiver like the 5th gens have. Not sure if its a long term use issue, but pulling at trailer that heavy will bring issues to light sooner than later.

Anyone thoughts?

I too am gearing up to try and make a trip with a 5k lb trailer so any insight would be helpful...

 

[Matt's4Runner]

I called the Toyota number in the manual and was told that using a WDH was permitted and would not void the warranty as long as the weight limit (5,000 lbs) is not exceeded. I also went to my local Toyota stealership and asked the service manager who told me there would be no issues. Finally, the 4th gen. manual specifically states not to use a WDH, while the 5th gen. manual says nothing about it.

 

[bt216]

I have a WDH on my garage floor if anyone's interested

 

[INsr5Runner]

Let us know how it goes! I plan on trailering my FJ40 out to Ouray next year from Indianapolis.

 

[homeyclaus]

I pulled a 3800 lb GVWR 21' single axle travel trailer to Florida and West Virginia more than a few times, and weight was not an issue. What was an issue is the wheelbase of the vehicle, since trailer side surface area made the whole thing pretty squirrely. With a two-axle trailer I would expect that to suck a lot less.

And yes, we had a good brake controller and a weight distributing hitch. No issues in terms of power.

 

[lezavw90]

Does no one read the owners manual? If they never gave you one you can find it easily on Toyotas website. if its a 2012 or older it clearly states in the owners manual that you can use a wdh. Apparently they removed the sentence in the 2013 manual from what we found out in another thread.


We started with a 2500lb 15' single axle and now have a 3700lb (fully loaded) tandem axle 17'. The tandem axle makes all the difference in the world for stability and braking.

 

[iRide4Runner]

Got the WDH and a brake controller today. At least it will give me something to do in the garage tonight. Planning to hit the road on the 25th, I'll be sure to let you guys know how it goes.

 

[2010riddle]

I called the Toyota number in the manual and was told that using a WDH was permitted and would not void the warranty as long as the weight limit (5,000 lbs) is not exceeded. I also went to my local Toyota stealership and asked the service manager who told me there would be no issues. Finally, the 4th gen. manual specifically states not to use a WDH, while the 5th gen. manual says nothing about it.

Thanks Matt. That's the $30k answer right there.

The specific caution against it for the 4th gen V-6's and the lack of any mention of it in the 2010 manual was a bit concerning. You'd think if something changed structurally with the 5th gen they might mention it specifically along with the other detailed towing recommendations such as adding on oil coolers, etc. :crazy:

 

[Matt's4Runner]

I agree. A poster above claims that our manuals do mention the WDH, but I couldn't find anything. It is a thick manual though! :jaw drop:

 

[lezavw90]

Ok, I will spoon feed you all this information again. If you search towing or wdh, this link comes up. I have posted this link in probably 4 threads now

http://www.toyota.com/t3Portal/document/om/OM35A22U/pdf/sec_02-05.pdf

This is direct link to a 2012 owners manual, page 301 makes reference to using a wdh.

 

[Matt's4Runner]

:hail:

 

[Yogi56]

We pull a 24' boat just under 5000 lbs up a 6-8 percent grade at 30-35 mph. I was pleased with the lack of squat without airbags or mods. Not sure if the KDSS helped but it's a nice freeway pull at 60mph.

 

[iRide4Runner]

Sitting at Beau Joe's in Idaho Springs getting some grub. Towing went pretty good. I can definitely tell that the trailer is back there but it's not terrible. The weight distributing hitch makes a bug difference in the handling/ride. Brake controller is a plus. Climbing steep grades is slow going, 3rd gear
Doesn't keep the speed well and ends up downshifting. 2nd gear is a steady climb up at 45 it so. All in all, it's not bad. Will be pulling down 550 south tomorrow, should be interesting.

 

[Matt's4Runner]

Keep us posted.

 

[philsey]

[MENTION=95801]iRide4Runner[/MENTION]

Curious if you've actually weighed your trailer (loaded), and, do you know the tongue weight?

 

[veloindy]

Sitting at Beau Joe's in Idaho Springs getting some grub.

Smokin' Yards is so much better! But, Beau Joe's is a good CO experience in Idaho Springs. Enjoy your time!

 

[cdthiker]

if you dont have one already the trans cooler that was mentioned will save your rig if you plan on towing that trailer on any sort of regular bases....
it is worth it to get one, they are fairly cheap and easy to put on
good luck