Towing with a Four Runner

Gross 4500, hitch 550, dry 3852, 19 feet, Airstream 19cb towed by 2012 4Runner. Be aware the hitch on 6 cyl 4Runners are NOT weight distribution compatible as the are not tied to the frame. To use WD have a Lexus hitch installed, as it attaches to the frame rails. The 4Runner pulled the above just fine without WD. Towing capacity 5000 pounds.

A dry trailer weighing no more than 3500 pounds should work.

If the 4Runner came with a factory hitch receiver, the max hitch weight might be stamped on it. Otherwise check the owner's manual.

My '08 Lexus GX470 has a 6500 lb tow capacity, and 900-some lbs max tongue weight if a WD hitch is used. So even though max tongue weight is usually 10% of the tow rating on most vehicles, it isn't always so.

I'd suggest she look for a trailer under 24' long and under 3500 lbs dry weight. For some really light, easy to tow trailers with less frontal area, look at Scamp, Casita, and similar.

Our previous travel trailer was a Rockwood 2502. 25', no slide, 3995 lbs UVW. We used an Equalizer weight distributing hitch, and towed it with a 2005 Nissan Xterra, which had a 5000 lb towing limit.

The W/D hitch kept the trailer/tow vehicle level (see pics below), and prevented hobby-horsing and greatly limited any sway due to cross winds or large trucks passing nearby.

I towed with this setup for 4 years, and it worked very well. It had no problem handling the added weight with the 4.0L engine.











Properly equipped: W/D hitch, brake controller, transmission cooler if not already equipped, etc.

FWIW, we have a 2017 4Runner TRD Pro. I wouldn't hesitate to pull the same travel trailer with an equivalent setup to the one we used with the Nissan.

twodownzero wrote:
There are lightweight single axle trailers that'd probably be fine. What's the payload though? Tongue weight is a concern.

How do I determine payload and tongue weight?

There are lightweight single axle trailers that'd probably be fine. What's the payload though? Tongue weight is a concern.