Towing with 5th Gen 4Runner

I tow the X18D's Starcraft twin (the 187TB) with my 4th Gen V8. It is the ideal setup for me- I feel as though it's a great pair. My 4Runner tows my HTT without issue...I was just thinking tonight about how perfect of a vehicle it is for me. I may be more hesitant to tow the X18D/187TB with the V6; not so sure that I would want to tow the trailer with anything less than I have.

really struggled keeping up with the 75mph.....

That's your biggest problem. You shouldn't be anywhere near that speed with a trailer in tow. Most trailer tires have a max speed rating of 65mph. Drag also increases exponentially with speed. It won't struggle nearly as much at 60mph and will save you a ton of gas.

You should definately have a trans cooler installed towing any full size trailer. I find it hard to believe that a dealer installed cooler could void their own warranty. I call BS on that.

Don't worry about it dropping into 3rd gear, won't hurt anything. It will tow better and cooler in 3rd at a higher rpm than it will bogging down in 4th. It does get tiring but won't hurt. I towed similar with my old '03 T4R which only had a 4speed. It was recommended to tow in 3rd with that trans. Same engine.

Replaced my 2004 v6 Explorer with a 2012 4runner to tow my TT. Specs on the 4runner were better than the Explorer so I thought it would tow better. The Explorer towed fine with the only time I really noticed I was towing something was when I was going uphill. The TT is 3480# dry with a max loaded weight of 4400#. My loaded weight is @4000# plus 200# of passengers and 100# for my wdh and cargo in the back of the 4runner. The 4runner does fine towing the TT around the Midwest. I drove it out to Mt. Rushmore this summer and really struggled keeping up with the 75 mph speed limit with headwinds and hills. There was a stretch of road with an 18 mph headwind where I couldn't go above 50-55 mph without the 4runner wanting to kick into 3rd gear. Tried to get behind a semi as often as possible to block the wind but they would eventually pull away because I was driving slower. Not a fun trip! Meanwhile, my trans temp on the scangauge was hitting 250*. Not good!!! It was especially frustrating because I knew that a trans cooler would help but before the trip I checked with my Toyota dealer and double checked with Toyota Warranty dept and both said that even if the Toyota dealer installed one, it would void my warranty of any affected parts. Since I bought the 125k platinum warranty and only had 10k on the truck, I certainly did not want to do that. I spent 6 hours on that drive cursing Toyota for not putting a $100 trans cooler on the 4runner. It makes no sense!!! Anyway, I made it home. The truck still runs fine. And I have towed the TT another 1300 miles since then. Here is what I have learned a out towing a TT with the 4runner:

- You absolutely need a weight distribution hitch (mine has sway control built in)
- I get 12-13mpg driving 55mph and 9mpg driving 65-75mph
- trans temp runs about 185-195 on a flat highway with spikes of 210-235 climbing a hill (although it hit 260 on a long steep climb in the black hills so I pulled over to let it cool)
- I don't really feel it behind me most of the time but do on hills, driving over 65, or windy days
- If your warranty is up or about to be - GET A TRANS COOLER INSTALLED!!!

I have read posts that say that you can't use a wdh with these hitch receivers because they are just bolted to the crossmember. I asked the dealer and called Toyota customer service. I didn't get a real confident answer, but was told yes because the owner's manual references using a wdh( so why else would they mention it?). I have towed over 3000 miles using a wdh without any issues. There's no way I could have towed that far without one!

If I knew what I know now when I bought my 4runner, I would have got something bigger. But since I didn't, I will avoid going west of the Mississippi and enjoy everything else (keeping it at 65mph or less).

Bought a 2012 rockwood roo 183. Tow with a 2007 4runner v6. Added Reese Cam WD hitch, transcooler, k&n filter, Trailer weight loaded is around 4600lbs.
4 runner towed more than 2500 miles over the summer and did fine. big hills were the most noticeable but never a big problem.

Towed a 3000lb Coleman Cheyenne for 4 years with same truck and none of mods noted above. Never an issue even towing over the Kagamangus highway in New Hampshire.

Towing the rockwood gets me about 10mpg on average. I have not felt under powered or out of control when towing with this vehicle.

05/19/2012
Added a Oil cooler and a Steering cooler from E-trailers. Both were pretty easy to install and for $160 it's cheap insurance.

If your 4Runner has a transmission cooler bigger than a paperback book I wouldn't worry about. If not install a larger one, then don't worry about it.

I towed a 4,000 pound travel trailer (for 5 years) with my '05 Sport V8 4Runner and when I got rid of it (at 100K) the transmission shifted better than the 6 speed abomination in my Silverado.

1) The ScanGauge is a useful tool for a lot of data. The trans temp CAN be pulled off the data stream, at least on the 4th Gen, a number of us have pulled it, even if you didn't. I don't know about the 5th Gen

Ok, let me clarify. The ScanGuage does not do this right out of the box, it needs to be modified and programmed to do so. Some people have been successful, many have not.

camp-n-family wrote:
The x17z would be better weight wise but I would go with the tandem axle tt even if it's heavier. The T4R can handle the weight, the only concern is the tongue weight without a WDH. Consider having a custom made receiver made. The tandem will provide better stability, be safer in the event of a blowout, smoother tow etc. Depending on configuration the tandem will usually end up with a lower tongue weight once loaded as well.

I wouldn't be too concerned about the trans temp if you have a trans cooler. The T4R computer reads it, even though it doesn't display it, and will set off a dash light well before any damage would occur. The scanguage won't help. It plugs into the OBD port and will display many readouts, but trans temp isn't one of them. Can't remember why but if you search the topic on T4R.org you'll find lots about it. Some said they were able to modify it to work but it never did for me.

I will respectfully disagree on several counts:

1) The ScanGauge is a useful tool for a lot of data. The trans temp CAN be pulled off the data stream, at least on the 4th Gen, a number of us have pulled it, even if you didn't. I don't know about the 5th Gen. Proof below in pic of my ScanGuage on my 4Runner. TFT (trans fluid temp) is the trans temp. FWT is Coolant Temp.

2) You can be significantly shortening the life of your transmission if you only rely on the idiot light, by severe spikes of trans temp towing up grades in 100 plus degree heat. Ignorance is not bliss. For towing in extreme heat, knowledge of trans temp is important to know.


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MadCap wrote:
Thanks for all the helpful input.

I had a slight feeling the jayco x18d might have been pushing it, especially tring to keep to the 80% rule. The other trailer in mind is the jayco x17z model. The estimated dry weight on that unit is 2785, tounge weight of 395 and GVWR of 3500. Would this be a better match? Or will I be limited to a pop up trailer due to the hitch design being bolted to the crossmemeber vs the frame. As someone stated previously, no one makes a frame mounted hitch for the 5th gen 4runner yet, so I'm left with the stock hitch from the factory.

If I were to pursue a smaller hybrid, will a sway only control hitch be sufficient without the WD?

crcr, where does the scan gauge pull the trans temp from? Do i need to add some type of temp sender inline on the tranny?

No sender is needed. Scan Gauge II pulls the temp right off the vehicle's computer data stream, by plugging into the OBD port right under your dash. This is where dealerships and independent repair shops plug into to pull data off the vehicle.

I had to program some numbers in the unit -- forget where I got the numbers -- either the Scan Gauge website, or on T4R.org, the best forum for 4Runner owners. Search or ask about it on the 5th Gen section of that forum -- see if other 5th Gen owners have pulled trans temp using a Scan Guage.

The x17z would be better weight wise but I would go with the tandem axle tt even if it's heavier. The T4R can handle the weight, the only concern is the tongue weight without a WDH. Consider having a custom made receiver made. The tandem will provide better stability, be safer in the event of a blowout, smoother tow etc. Depending on configuration the tandem will usually end up with a lower tongue weight once loaded as well.

I wouldn't be too concerned about the trans temp if you have a trans cooler. The T4R computer reads it, even though it doesn't display it, and will set off a dash light well before any damage would occur. The scanguage won't help. It plugs into the OBD port and will display many readouts, but trans temp isn't one of them. Can't remember why but if you search the topic on T4R.org you'll find lots about it. Some said they were able to modify it to work but it never did for me.

If the hitch that comes on the 4Runner is rated for 5k lbs, I wouldn't hesitate to hook a 5k trailer to it. You'll probably be limited by TW before overall weight first anyway.

In any event, I would tow the X18D with a new 4Runner without thinking twice about it. A smaller trailer will pull better, and a bigger truck would be nice, but you've already got the 4Runner and the X18D seems like a nice fit.