Deposit down- Now I'm no sure I can tow it. manual not clear

[l2yangop]

Long time lurker, first time poster. Be gentle 🙂

So I put down a deposit on a 5500b 29ft travel trailer yesterday with the assurance from the sales people that my truck could handle it. I have a 2008 5.7L Tundra 1/4 ton 4x4. GVWR 7100lbs, payload 1655

Of course I had to double check his math when I got home and low and behold, my window sticker says a towing capacity of 5000 lbs. That seems low to me so I checked the manual. The manual says 8700 with GCWR of 14,000lbs. I can't get a straight answer from local dealerships, so here I am. Any tips from more experienced travelers?

The GVWR of the trailer is 7560

***Link Removed***

[camp-n-family]

I towed a 31' 7600lbs tt with my old '07 Tundra. Pulled effortlessly, actually did a better job than my '14 Ram 2500 does.

I was quick to run out of payload with the crewmax (1310lbs) but with the higher payload in the double cab you should be just fine as long as you don't plan on loading the cab and bed as well.

Get a good trans cooler, class iv hitch if not already equipped, a good WD hitch and brake controller and you should be good to go.

p.s. Contrary to popular belief on here, the Tundra is a 1/2 ton truck ( a very stout one) not a 1/4 ton.

[Crambo]

I had a tundra before I bought my diesel and it was a strong puller. I had the tow package with 4.30 gears and trans cooler though. I think you would be fine if you put a before hitch and trans cooler on your truck. I think the tundra comes with a 4.10 rear end even without the tow package. The factory hitch that came on mine said maximum rating was 11000 pounds on the ball mount. I think for a few hundred bucks you can be good to go.

[beemerphile1]

Google 'Trailer Life Towing Guide'.

[coolbreeze01]

l2yangop wrote:

Even though I'm not getting this particular trailer, i do still want to sort out exactly what I CAN tow for next time and deciphering this window sticker versus owner manual is whats so confusing.

Really? I don't understand your confusion. Your Tundra is a nice truck. I would tow whatever trailer I owned, with it, and then buy a 3500 Ram if I wasn't comfortable.

[lawrosa]

It definitely does NOT have the factory tow package. The 5000 listed on the window sticker I'm guessing is the bumper tow weight? Would that make sense? It wouldn't be the class iii hitch weight as that was put on aftermarket by the previous owner i do believe
.
Even though I'm not getting this particular trailer, i do still want to sort out exactly what I CAN tow for next time and deciphering this window sticker versus owner manual is whats so confusing.

Your truck without the tow package per specs is the 8300 or so we talked about.

If it had the tow package it can tow more.. 10300.. ( I forgot the exact #'s..

So whats the tow package? IMO from what I read is

class IV hitch with WD
150 amp alt
trans cooler
Trans gauge
wire harness
Tow haul mode ( not neccesary IMO. Changes shift pattern is all. And takes alternator out of low voltage economy mode..)

Do you need all those things? IMO no and yes..

Can you make the truck the higher rating? Yes IMO.

Regardless what your towing I would add a trans cooler. If you look at my set up in my sig I added the biggest trans cooler I could fit for my s10. It was the weekest link in my truck.

The only way toy are going to get a handle on what you can tow is get to a cat scale and weight the truck. Compare that to your axle weights on the door tag. That will tell you exactly what your payload left over will be..

Make sure you weigh with full tank of fuel and all passengers and gear you may have/carry..

Its not the weight of the trailer per se" but its the TW that is the question..

My s10 can probably pull a 10K trailer but the TW of that trailer will exceed my payload/axles and such.

This is what you want to know..

If your keeping the truck get it weighed.
Put a large trans cooler in. Largest you can fit
install a class IV hith with WD.
Alternator IMO is/will not be an issue.
Get a trans temp gauge. ( B and M make a good one...)

As said I am at my weight limit for my truck. Its just a heavy load to me as I drove tractor trailers before. Othere will say they are white knuckling it..

I dont know your skill set...

[l2yangop]

Whammon1 wrote:
I tow a Northtrail 31QBS with my 2012 Tundra 5.7. Gross weight is near 7000 lbs. My Tundra has a trailer tow weight of 10,100 lbs with the towing package.

With that said I have no problems towing on the east coast. Flat land or mountains the Tundra can handle it. The big thing is to verify that your Tundra has the factory tow package.

I work for Toyota so if you have more questions please p.m. and I will get the information you need as far as the towing capacities of your Tundra.

It definitely does NOT have the factory tow package. The 5000 listed on the window sticker I'm guessing is the bumper tow weight? Would that make sense? It wouldn't be the class iii hitch weight as that was put on aftermarket by the previous owner i do believe
.
Even though I'm not getting this particular trailer, i do still want to sort out exactly what I CAN tow for next time and deciphering this window sticker versus owner manual is whats so confusing.

[midnightsadie]

bet your realy confused by now? hope you get your money back. after all it was the sales person who fooled you. put the blame on him.

[TomG2]

I may have missed it, but the first thing to do is get actual weights. Load your pickup as it will be when towing, then figure out how much payload remains. My guess is that it will be under 1,000 pounds, but why guess at all? Ten bucks will tell you more than four pages of expert "opinions".

[12thgenusa]

Just get a small 5th wheel. 🙂

Seriously, I had forgotten there was such a difference between those with the tow package and those without. My 2007 has a tow rating of 10,300 and a GCWR of 16,000. The talk of poor gas mileage in comparison with similar vehicles is just scuttlebutt.

I believe the 5000 is a limitation of your hitch (class III). Those with factory tow package have a class IV/V hitch.

[Whammon1]

I tow a Northtrail 31QBS with my 2012 Tundra 5.7. Gross weight is near 7000 lbs. My Tundra has a trailer tow weight of 10,100 lbs with the towing package.

With that said I have no problems towing on the east coast. Flat land or mountains the Tundra can handle it. The big thing is to verify that your Tundra has the factory tow package.

I work for Toyota so if you have more questions please p.m. and I will get the information you need as far as the towing capacities of your Tundra.

[l2yangop]

rbpru wrote:
Yangop,

From all this rhetoric you should be able to step back, take a breath and understand that you need to know,
• The GVWR (Gross Vehicle Weight Rating), this is the maximum total weight your vehicle was designed to carry. This should be on a sticker on your vehicle.
• The Gross Vehicle Weight (GVW), it is the weight of your vehicle when it left the factory, plus people, cargo, or stuff that was added such as a truck cap, bed liner etc. If you do not know this number; weight the vehicle at a truck (CAT) scale.

The difference between these two numbers is how much more weight (tongue weight) you can add to your vehicle and still remain within your vehicle’s design limits.


You will hear all sorts of opinions such as.
• If you do not have a 50, 70 or 80% cushion, your combo is unsafe. This is not true. What is true is the closer you come to the design limits the more wear and tear on the vehicles component parts.
• This that or the other combination will give you a “white knuckle” ride. What is a scary ride for some folks is just a heavy pull for others. It is the same for truck, bus and wind buffets, rain, snow and a host of other things that upset some but are taken in stride by others.


Finally, keep in mind that the TT dealer is looking at the same vehicle charts you are.
• He probably has dozens of happy customers that are pulling less than their max towing weight but have no clue as to what their max cargo capacity is.
• Since max cargo capacity is based on the specific vehicle’s options, the TT dealer does not have a clue.
• Likewise the dealer does not know if you haul everything but the kitchen sink or you are a minimalist.

Your answer is all in the numbers and your personality, either you have a vehicle that has the necessary towing options for the TT you wish to purchase or it does not. Either you are satisfied with your proposed combination or you are not.

Example, my F-150 E-Boost is maxed out with my 5000 lbs dry weight TT and all our stuff. The combo has performed well on both sort and long hauls for the last 15,000 miles.

thank you for this. my experience here has been very fruitful

[rbpru]

Yangop,

From all this rhetoric you should be able to step back, take a breath and understand that you need to know,
• The GVWR (Gross Vehicle Weight Rating), this is the maximum total weight your vehicle was designed to carry. This should be on a sticker on your vehicle.
• The Gross Vehicle Weight (GVW), it is the weight of your vehicle when it left the factory, plus people, cargo, or stuff that was added such as a truck cap, bed liner etc. If you do not know this number; weight the vehicle at a truck (CAT) scale.

The difference between these two numbers is how much more weight (tongue weight) you can add to your vehicle and still remain within your vehicle’s design limits.


You will hear all sorts of opinions such as.
• If you do not have a 50, 70 or 80% cushion, your combo is unsafe. This is not true. What is true is the closer you come to the design limits the more wear and tear on the vehicles component parts.
• This that or the other combination will give you a “white knuckle” ride. What is a scary ride for some folks is just a heavy pull for others. It is the same for truck, bus and wind buffets, rain, snow and a host of other things that upset some but are taken in stride by others.


Finally, keep in mind that the TT dealer is looking at the same vehicle charts you are.
• He probably has dozens of happy customers that are pulling less than their max towing weight but have no clue as to what their max cargo capacity is.
• Since max cargo capacity is based on the specific vehicle’s options, the TT dealer does not have a clue.
• Likewise the dealer does not know if you haul everything but the kitchen sink or you are a minimalist.

Your answer is all in the numbers and your personality, either you have a vehicle that has the necessary towing options for the TT you wish to purchase or it does not. Either you are satisfied with your proposed combination or you are not.

Example, my F-150 E-Boost is maxed out with my 5000 lbs dry weight TT and all our stuff. The combo has performed well on both sort and long hauls for the last 15,000 miles.

[Slate_CM]

More truck! Diesel! Dually!

As lawrosa says, without tow package your rated for 8300. With the proper hitch I think you would be fine. Or to be safe you can buy a $60,000 truck to go with your $15,000 TT.

I actually have the same year Tundra and my TT is 28ft and 5600 dry. I've covered 500 miles in a day, Seattle to southern Oregon. It was not difficult, stressful or especially tiring.

[donn0128]

Besides at 12-14 MPG that thing is really horrible in the fuel economy department. There are a lot of trucks out there that are more capable for towing duty and still get as good or better fuel economy.