A toyota sienna toad

Thanks for the comments. I still plan on the Remco pump. The way depreciation seems to work it will be cost effective to convert the Sienna rather than the 30 to 40K for a new fully equipped van. Besides, we really like the Sienna. Dolly towing was great when I was young, but gets hard on the back and knees with age. The plan is to have hitch/auto shop install the Remco, the baseplate, the light wires, and the ReadyBrake cable. The shop doesn't think I need a hot line to the battery, but the new Allegro Red catalog notes a hot line in the tow plug, so I may add it anyway. I was really just wondering if anyone else was towing the Sienna.
Thank all, Gary

I chose using a Remco pump on our 2002 RAV4 at a point where it was more economical to buy the pump than it was to replace the vehicle. Plus, we really liked the car, as evidenced by our decision to buy another one years later. The installation is not particularly difficult, and well within the capabilities of any shade tree mechanic that's able to read and follow directions. When we bought the new 2911 RAV4, everything from our 2002 transferred over to it except the base plate. Oh, and the 2002 still serves us nicely as a second car that stays at our NY cottage.

The Remco pump installation includes a dash control unit that mounts in the coach. The controller will warn of various error conditions ranging from an improper hookup to a low pump pressure, minimizing the risk of any transmission damage due to a wiring or pump failure, or even an operator error such as failing to hook up the umbilical cable or failing to turn the pump on.

willald wrote:
My solution I was considering, was to get a good quality wireless camera/monitor (maybe something like the Swift Hitch), and somehow attach the camera so that it would show the dashboard of the toad (thought about strapping it to the driver seat headrest and aiming it forward?) Then, have the camera monitor up front in the MH, where I could see it. That way I could keep an eye on the toad's dashboard, and would know if engine shut off, or if any other gauges showed something not right.

I know, sounds ridiculous and 'rigged'. However, a wireless camera like that would be a LOT cheaper than a new vehicle or a lube pump, and would have other uses as well. Might be a good temporary solution until one was ready to buy another vehicle. :)

Will

a $69 rear view camera would work just fine. plug it into 12 v on toad, plug screen into RV, wiggle camera around to work. sounds like a plan.
bumpy

Bumpyroad wrote:
out of curiosity, what kind of mileage, or more correct, how much fuel will a vehicle burn while idling. My boss left his car idling in the work basement garage for an 8 hour shift and it was still purring when we got off work.

Obviously it'd depend a lot on the engine involved, but probably not much at all. Especially compared to how much the MH is burning up. :)

is the vehicle dying the only real issue here?

..That, and more importantly, the fact that you have an engine running back there without being able to see any of the gauges (dashboard) for it. If it developed an overheating condition or other issues, you wouldn't know until it was too late and major damage was done.

how could something be rigged to let you know up front it is still running?

I actually considered doing this at one time, Bumpy. My solution I was considering, was to get a good quality wireless camera/monitor (maybe something like the Swift Hitch), and somehow attach the camera so that it would show the dashboard of the toad (thought about strapping it to the driver seat headrest and aiming it forward?) Then, have the camera monitor up front in the MH, where I could see it. That way I could keep an eye on the toad's dashboard, and would know if engine shut off, or if any other gauges showed something not right.

I know, sounds ridiculous and 'rigged'. However, a wireless camera like that would be a LOT cheaper than a new vehicle or a lube pump, and would have other uses as well. Might be a good temporary solution until one was ready to buy another vehicle. :)

Will

willald wrote:

crasster wrote:
....I'd call a toyota dealer and get more info.

..In this case, a Toyota dealer's advice would be almost useless. They are going to say they've never heard of, nor do they endorse use of a lube pump. And, they will say the van can't be towed without a dolly or a flat bed trailer, period. Been there, done that.

..Same thing, with your owner's manual in this case.

If Remco indicates that they have a lube pump that will work with the Toyota Sienna minivan, that is probably your only option if you really want to tow the van 4 down.

However, the 'warnings' other posts have mentioned about installing a lube pump are definitely something to consider. A lube pump is a pretty expensive modification to make, and you have to decide if thats what you want to do or not. You'll spend upwards of $1k for the lube pump itself, plus several more hundred in labor to get it installed. Is a 9 year old vehicle worth sinking that much into to make it flat towable, or is that $$ better spent in trading that van for a vehicle that can be flat towed from the factory? Only you can decide that.

..Not to mention, as some already implied: A lube pump is yet one more component you have to worry about, one more place for potential problems to occur. Have to decide if its worth it to you, to be able to tow the vehicle you have.

One other 'controversial' method I've seen some people do, that you might think about as a temporary solution until you can get a vehicle better suited for flat towing: Leave the engine running/idling in the van, tranny in neutral, when towing it. Using this approach, nearly any FWD automatic tranny vehicle can be flat towed. That approach saves you the cost of a lube pump, but isn't without its downsides, either: Uses up more fuel, will almost certainly log miles on the toad odometer when towing it, and concerns over engine running in toad when you can't monitor it very well.

We towed a minivan (a Kia Sedona) for a while, using a lube pump. It worked OK, but ultimately we got to where we just didn't trust the lube pump anymore for various reasons, and got a vehicle that is flat-towable from the factory (Ford Fusion hybrid we tow now). The lube pump solution can work, but like I said, it comes with its own set of pros and cons, like anything else.

out of curiosity, what kind of mileage, or more correct, how much fuel will a vehicle burn while idling. My boss left his car idling in the work basement garage for an 8 hour shift and it was still purring when we got off work.
is the vehicle dying the only real issue here? if so, how could something be rigged to let you know up front it is still running?
bumpy

crasster wrote:
....I'd call a toyota dealer and get more info.

..In this case, a Toyota dealer's advice would be almost useless. They are going to say they've never heard of, nor do they endorse use of a lube pump. And, they will say the van can't be towed without a dolly or a flat bed trailer, period. Been there, done that.

..Same thing, with your owner's manual in this case.

If Remco indicates that they have a lube pump that will work with the Toyota Sienna minivan, that is probably your only option if you really want to tow the van 4 down.

However, the 'warnings' other posts have mentioned about installing a lube pump are definitely something to consider. A lube pump is a pretty expensive modification to make, and you have to decide if thats what you want to do or not. You'll spend upwards of $1k for the lube pump itself, plus several more hundred in labor to get it installed. Is a 9 year old vehicle worth sinking that much into to make it flat towable, or is that $$ better spent in trading that van for a vehicle that can be flat towed from the factory? Only you can decide that.

..Not to mention, as some already implied: A lube pump is yet one more component you have to worry about, one more place for potential problems to occur. Have to decide if its worth it to you, to be able to tow the vehicle you have.

One other 'controversial' method I've seen some people do, that you might think about as a temporary solution until you can get a vehicle better suited for flat towing: Leave the engine running/idling in the van, tranny in neutral, when towing it. Using this approach, nearly any FWD automatic tranny vehicle can be flat towed. That approach saves you the cost of a lube pump, but isn't without its downsides, either: Uses up more fuel, will almost certainly log miles on the toad odometer when towing it, and concerns over engine running in toad when you can't monitor it very well.

We towed a minivan (a Kia Sedona) for a while, using a lube pump. It worked OK, but ultimately we got to where we just didn't trust the lube pump anymore for various reasons, and got a vehicle that is flat-towable from the factory (Ford Fusion hybrid we tow now). The lube pump solution can work, but like I said, it comes with its own set of pros and cons, like anything else.

Moved from class A forum

I have a 2011 seinna and would not consider towing 4 down. I tried to put it on a dolly but the wide track wheel placement would not fit a std dolly either.


Any thing can be done...some things are done better. Need to get a recognized toad with mfg endorsement.

pops

We're towing our second Toyota RAV4 automatic 4WD four down. I installed the same Remco pump on our 2011 that I had on our 2002. The 2002 was towed about 30,000 miles, and the 2011 now has about 10,000 miles in tow on it, all with zero problems with the pump. Other than the usual hook up procedures for the tow bar, safety cables, and electrical plug-ins, the only thing we do inside is put it in neutral and leave the key in the "Accessory" position to unlock the steering wheel. Because we also use an electric vacuum pump for the brake system, I do have a towed charge line installed from the coach, so the RAV battery is always kept charged.

crasster wrote:
I have a Sienna (2003) and as far as I have researched, tow dolly was the only option. Flat had too many variables, such as if the pump and electrical concerns.
.

yep, after suffering the heartbreak of a drive shaft disconnect, I would never tow something that needs that kind of modification.
bumpy