Forum Discussion

GHinson's avatar
GHinson
Explorer
Sep 17, 2012

Safely tow with a lifted tundra?

OK, here's a question for the experts...
I have a buddy that wants to buy a travel trailer. He's single, so initially he was looking at travel trailers in the 19-22' range. After spending some time at a dealership this weekend, he has, of course, fallen in love with larger trailers (26' range). I warned him not to go in the largers models, but he didn't listen!
Here's the catch...he has a 2011 (or maybe 12) Tundra 5.7 with a 7" lift and 35" tires on it. Don't know the make of the tires, but they are load range E. At this time, I also don't know any details on the lift, but knowing him, let's assume it is a quality lift and was installed correctly. The lift did not require any cutting of the frame.
The question: I know Tundras are very capable tow vehicles, but what can he expect from his with the modifications he's had done? Can he safely tow a smaller trailer (less than 4000# GVWR) or even a larger trailer? Would you recommend any further modifications to ensure a safe tow (air bags possibly)? Would those modifications be necessary for a smaller trailer, larger trailer, or either? I understand I haven't provided enough details to expect very specific answers, but I have no experience at all with this and would greatly appreciate any advice or experience you all can share.
I'll post specifics on his setup as I find them out or as I'm asked about them on this thread. Right now, I don't even know enough about it to ask him any more details.

Thanks,
Greg
  • rhagfo's avatar
    rhagfo
    Explorer III
    Sep 17, 2012
    f150camper wrote:
    With a lifted truck and larger tires, pretty much all components are stressed more than stock. That means that the real towing capacity is reduced. I doubt that somebody here will be able to put a number on it though.
    One thing that's specifically stressed are the brakes, they need to work much harder to stop the heavier wheels. And brakes are much needed for stopping heavy trailers, even if the trailer does have brakes. A 7" lift is quite a bit.


    I would agree with all above, in addition the truck is less stable, no mater how high the quality of the lift kit. Bigger tires change the effective gear ratio, makes it numerically, lower so a 3.73 goes to a 3.55 or taller.
    Most likely will need a stepped receiver to get the trailer level.
  • f150camper's avatar
    f150camper
    Explorer
    Sep 17, 2012
    With a lifted truck and larger tires, pretty much all components are stressed more than stock. That means that the real towing capacity is reduced. I doubt that somebody here will be able to put a number on it though.
    One thing that's specifically stressed are the brakes, they need to work much harder to stop the heavier wheels. And brakes are much needed for stopping heavy trailers, even if the trailer does have brakes. A 7" lift is quite a bit.

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