SiberianDVM

'Cause GF won't go to DE in August in a no A/C 911. I guess she could drive the BMW there, while I drove the 911, but if the 911 breaks, it still has to be trailered.

Anyway, I just talked to her, and she may want to trade the truck for a slightly smaller one with a V8. After running over a wheelbarrow and backing thru a fence, she may finally be willing to admit that the mile high Tundra has poor visibility. I will probably make up the difference.

mglobe

A smaller truck with a bigger engine does not make a better tow vehicle. Stability, frame rigidity, and braking power are all arguably more important than engine size/power/torque. You can get a trailer up to speed with most truck engines. The real issues are how it's going to handle if you have to stop quickly, make an evasive maneuver, deal with wind gusts,...

And if you are just getting started at the track, you may not want to dive right in to a tow vehicle and trailer quite so quickly. Eventually you'll want it to be able to haul all the equipment, extra wheels, tools,... But at first there is a lot to be said for the simplicity of arriving at the track, taking out your floor mats, and driving.

chrisc

I'm in GA too, borrowed a fellow Rennlister's Trailex 7541 model to pull my 924S from Atlanta to Roebling Road. Car weighs just under 2700, add about 950 for the trailer and I was getting close to the max tow weight @ 4500 lbs. The tow is a Honda Pilot with the towing package. The Trailex owner pulls a 944 so the trailer was set for my car. I couldn't believe how well it trailered, which I attribute to the quality and engineering of the trailer. Car pulled so easily the Pilot went into the Eco mode at 65 MPH. Surge brakes on both axles really made braking comfortable. Key here is I didn't push it, kept it at 65 while my buds blasted off into the distance at 80 pulling with their real tow vehicles. I think you can trailer with the Tundra (trans cooler?) with the right trailer and conservative attitude.

SiberianDVM

How about this truck? It's just down the road, and GF wanted leather interior anyway, Has towing package with brake controller.

http://www.autotrader.com/cars-for-s...16875238&Log=0

For a few thousand over what she would get in trade-in we both would feel more comfortable.

Gary R.

That will tow an open trailer like nothing, good safe choice.

mooty

tundra, i am afraid, is not a truck.
those who think so, haven't drive a real truck.

can you tow?
maybe.
but to test it out, tow to 50mph and jam on the brake. if you, car, trailer are still in one piece. you have a truck, otherwise not so much.

Rceron

Curious, even the Tundra's with the 5.7L? Or you implying all 1500 series truck (1/2 ton) are not real trucks? Sometimes I feel my Denali Yukon with 6.2l is not a real truck either despite engine.

Gary R.

My 2500 Denali just barely makes it as it's not a diesel...

SiberianDVM

Well, I want a real truck, so i've decided to buy one of these. There's a place on Peach Orchard Road that sells them. I used to drive them when I was in the SCARNG. Plenty of room for beer and all the GF's luggage. God knows, it can't be any harder to work on than a Porsche. Parking it in my carport will be my biggest problem.

gieseja

I've nothing but great towing experiences with my tow package equipped tundra. 24' featherlite enclosed, trailex enclosed to daytona and back, big *** limo on open steel....

The v6 tundra probably has a low tow rating due to no transmission cooler.

chrisc

As a friend recently found out the hard way, the government has made the ratings more complex by adding an acceleration factor to certain speeds. Think they measure elapsed time to 15, 30, 45 & 60. The friend traded in a 2008 rated for 5000 lbs on a 2012, same model, which has a little more hp and torque. He assumed everything would be the same. While going over the owners manual he was shocked to find the rating on the new vehicle is only 2000 lbs. He checked with the dealer and was told it was due to the new methods of establishing max weight.

TheOtherEric

A typical rule-of-thumb is to tow no more than 80% of your capacity. I tow a 993 on an open aluminum, with a Tahoe rated at 7700 lbs, and I personally wouldn't be comfortable if my truck were rated at 5k. Having 20% margin is a must, but having 50% margin is actually comforting.

chrisc

Think you are putting margin on top of margin, and that's fine. When I worked for one of the big three we were told the ratings were conservatively posted to prevent inadvertent over loading. The factor back then was 15% to the safe side i.e 5000 rated would still be ok at 5750.

mooty

you are asking MY opinion?
if so, yes 1500 is not a real truck. gas engine not real truck
my 2500 diesel is barely a truck. try to tow up laguna seca in enclosed 24'. see how fast u can get up there. but i tend to over do everything.... then one day some a-hole cut me off as i was turning and exiting offramp. i had no where to go, i had to jam on the binders. NOTHING, no drama, it just slowed down. in a smaller, lighter truck looking vehicle, i may have jack knived or flipped, who knows. i am looking for 3500 dually now.

i just like to have a lot of margin...
i hear ppl often say, i can't feel my 20' (granted, they are enclosed trailers) behind my cayenne, my 1500, my 2500.... but i can feel my previous 20' trailer or even my trailex open trailer behind my 2009 2500 duramax.

Sterling Doc

This seems a little dramatic. With proper attention to trailer set up you'd have done fine in a lesser vehicle.

I've had some pretty extreme circumstances towing with my old Q7 pulling a 6K enclosed trailer - full ABS panic stops from 65 MPH, swerving over an entire lane at 60MPH to avoid an idiot chasing his dog in traffic on a 4 lane expressway (yes, really), getting stuck in tornado warning zone with high winds, and at one least storm with 40+MPH winds pulling the same trailer in the new Durango R/T. Before that I towed an open trailer for years behind a VW Eurovan - which was near it's 4,400 tow rating.

In each case, I've scaled out the trailer, and tongue weights to make sure everything's in spec, and follow all the specs carefully on hitch, and (where indicated) antisway hardware. I make sure all the brake hardware, tire pressures, etc. are all spot on. In some ways the better inherent handling and steering feel from these tow vehicles is useful when towing. Yes, I can feel the trailer back there, but not in a scary way.

To the OP, what you ask could be done safely if you make sure to check everything, and scale it out to mak sure it's all within specs. Make the car position on the trailer so you get it right every time. You may well not be able to bring all the extras you want, so an upgrade to the 1/2 ton would be a good idea, and is plenty of truck for an open trailer. Don't be swayed by the monster truck zealots.

As aside, going "Dutch" on the new truck is a bad idea, and "borrowing" it is risky, as well!