I recently attended Overland Expo in Flagstaff, Arizona. As most people know it is a gathering of some of the most adventurous travelers in the world, along with their Unimogs, Earthroamers, Rovers, and other exotic machines.
What surprised me was the vehicle of choice for the organizers of OX, Jon and Roseann Hanson. Bear in mind that they are experienced expedition trekkers, having traveled to some of the most remote places on earth.... they travel in a Toyata Tacoma with a Four Wheel Camper pop up.
The model they are shipping to Africa for an upcoming trek has the V6 engine. It does not have any lifts in order to hold down weight. The bumpers are aluminum for the same reason, though there is a winch installed. There is minimal work to the suspension. They chose Toya tires with the thickest sidewalls - though Roseann said that Goodrich also had excellent tires for this application, and a locking differential.
They conceded that the vehicle was over the factory load limit, but their experience has shown that the Tacoma can handle the weight. In fact, Roseann said that at one point they had 18 Masai tribesmen clinging to the side of the camper.
I take away from their experience that it's where the rubber hits the road that makes the difference. And I would say to the OP that you may be perfectly OK. I don't know....but its possible.
All this is from a guy who bought an F350 with a 6.0 diesel engine. If you want to see brand bashing, just look up the 6.0. But, in my case, I haven't had a minutes worry. I did what I had to do to make sure the engine was sound and it just purrs down the highway.
As always, your mileage may vary.
