towing question

[mike91]

I have a 03 ac and I tow a trailor almost every weekend. I usually tow my race car which is a 91 toyota mr2. I use a uhaul trailor just because I get them for free. My question is, do you think buying one of those light weight pop up campers would be too much for my truck with the race car on a trailor. I think they say the camper weighs around 1,000 pounds. I dont want to overload my truck, but it would save a bunch of money if I could camp for free or close to free. The mr2 weighs 2,700, I dont really know how much the trailor weighs, maybe 2,000. I took it to a semi scale once and the whole package was 10,800 I think. This could be off a little. So what do you guys think.?

[skinny2]

Well, maximum payload on your rig should be somewhere in the 1,500# range. So between the pop-up camper, you, and stuff you'll be pretty much maxed out right there. Nevermind the car trailer is probably adding right around 700#. I wouldn't do it on a regular basis myself, these are pretty light-duty trucks.

How about you just pitch a tent? Do they even make a pop-up camper that will fit a Tundra?? It would be pretty small with that short-bed, they're usually just livable if you have an 8' bed. Also don't forget, those weights they give you for the campers are DRY, which means add a couple hundred pounds easy for bedding, appliances, etc.

[mike91]

Thanks for the reply, The camper I was looking at goes over the cab, and they seem to be pretty spacious. I also think the trailor weighs a little more than 700# I have heard from several people that they seem to be heavy, and that was with them pulling them with powerstrokes, cummings, and duramaxes. I have seen people travel from a lot further away with more of a load than that, and there trucks usually have atleast 4 times the miles that I have on mine. Thanks for your impute on the subject. Has anyone hauled a load like this with their tundras?

[stevekx]

you could buy a car trailer with a pop up on it.

[dsrtrcr01]

I haul this load and the Tundra does just fine, up big grades and all. The incline to mount the car would be far to great for an MR2 so this trailer is out of the question unless you built extremely long ramps or lowered the trailer. Why not get the camper and use a tow dolly, which would cut the weight ALOT. There is always the use of a camper shell with some nice bedding in it. You could run an inverter or generator on the trailer and have some power for a TV, microwave or whatever.

[skinny2]

Originally Posted by mike91

Thanks for the reply, The camper I was looking at goes over the cab, and they seem to be pretty spacious. I also think the trailor weighs a little more than 700# I have heard from several people that they seem to be heavy, and that was with them pulling them with powerstrokes, cummings, and duramaxes. I have seen people travel from a lot further away with more of a load than that, and there trucks usually have atleast 4 times the miles that I have on mine. Thanks for your impute on the subject. Has anyone hauled a load like this with their tundras?

When I said 700# for the trailer, I'm talking about the tongue weight which counts toward your GVWR (payload). The U-haul car trailers indeed weigh 2,000#, so you're at 4,700# give or take. 15% tongue weight equals 700# on the truck. That plus 1,000# camper plus yourself puts you way over the rated payload capacity of your truck. I agree with others, a new trailer would make more sense you'll be more likely to keep it within your towing/payload capacity. But obviously cost may become a factor there.

[mike91]

the reason why I need a full trailor is because the race tires I use wouldnt make it 300 miles. Where did you find that trailor and camper set up? That is what I am looking for. I am not worried about the trailor being too tall. I am a fabricator so building new ramps or extensions would not be that big of a problem. Alot of my friends have tall trailors and they just pull the back tires of the tow vehicle up on some ramps and it seems to work perfect. Thanks alot guys, you are really helping.

[dsrtrcr01]

Originally Posted by mike91

the reason why I need a full trailor is because the race tires I use wouldnt make it 300 miles. Where did you find that trailor and camper set up? That is what I am looking for. I am not worried about the trailor being too tall. I am a fabricator so building new ramps or extensions would not be that big of a problem. Alot of my friends have tall trailors and they just pull the back tires of the tow vehicle up on some ramps and it seems to work perfect. Thanks alot guys, you are really helping.

It is made by Thor (Wanderer)and is called a Pak Rat. I got the longer version. They stopped making them in 2004. I got the last one and had to drive to Oregon to get it. They are out there used. Here are some search sites I used when looking and other info links.

RV Trader... New and Used RV Classifieds. America's First Choice to Buy or Sell your New or Used RV Online | RVT
Search RV Trader for new and used RVs and motorhomes for sale. - RV Trader Online

Wanderer Pak Rat
Pak Rat

[skinny2]

How's that thing tow? It looks like it would sway like a mother.

[dsrtrcr01]

Originally Posted by skinny2

How's that thing tow? It looks like it would sway like a mother.

I run good tires and have a WDH. It tows really good. The weight is not an issue, the drag from the height is what slows me down. I haul butt to about 55mph. There is no sway and I can take corners very well. the whole road I take to the desert is a windy mountain 2 lane road and it does great. Last time I towed this load pictured I got 12.94 mpgs. The only thing that was scary was on the freeway with Semi trucks passing me it would sway pretty bad. BUT that was with the P rated tires which sucked and were scary on the turns. Since I got the better towing tires I have not been on the freeway but it takes corners much better with no scary sway to it.

Oh but when you hit a head wind your gas mileage drops like a ton of bricks.

[mike91]

I must say, that is a sweet set up. I am jelous. So do you guys think the weight is a issue?

[dsrtrcr01]

Originally Posted by mike91

I must say, that is a sweet set up. I am jelous. So do you guys think the weight is a issue?

When I said it is "not an issue" I did not mean it is not over the trucks given weight limits. I have not been able to get to a scale yet so I am not sure on that yet. I meant when driving the rig the weight is not what slows me down or holds me back.

[skinny2]

Originally Posted by dsrtrcr01

I haul butt to about 55mph. There is no sway and I can take corners very well. the whole road I take to the desert is a windy mountain 2 lane road and it does great. ....... The only thing that was scary was on the freeway with Semi trucks passing me it would sway pretty bad. BUT that was with the P rated tires which sucked and were scary on the turns.

So you're not going above 55mph? I know I had to load my tractor backwards with the brush-hog on it awhile back so the trailer weight was heavy in the back. About 60mph the trailer went crazy on me swaying and I had to back it down very quickly. I was only going about 10 miles so I didn't sweat it, but anything that starts swaying that bad just because of speed would be very unsafe if any type of emergency maneuver was necessary. Just FYI for anyone considering something like that. I would think an anti-sway unit would be #1 requirement for even considering something like that on a regular basis. Just my $.02 with over 150k miles under my belt towing at max GCVWR with my bigger trucks.

[dsrtrcr01]

Originally Posted by skinny2

So you're not going above 55mph? I know I had to load my tractor backwards with the brush-hog on it awhile back so the trailer weight was heavy in the back. About 60mph the trailer went crazy on me swaying and I had to back it down very quickly. I was only going about 10 miles so I didn't sweat it, but anything that starts swaying that bad just because of speed would be very unsafe if any type of emergency maneuver was necessary. Just FYI for anyone considering something like that. I would think an anti-sway unit would be #1 requirement for even considering something like that on a regular basis. Just my $.02 with over 150k miles under my belt towing at max GCVWR with my bigger trucks.

Yes I do go over 55 very often. I do not want to be yelled at by the online police but this set up sees 70 very often. What I said about 55 was when the wind drag starts being felt, meaning you can tell you have to push the gas pedal harder to go faster. I know what you are saying about sway at speeds and sounds like what happens when you have not enough tongue weight. I have towed trailers since I was 11 years old (Small town) so I am very experienced. I do not feel this set up is unsafe/scary in any situations I have been in including going down a large 9% grade with blind turns on the 8. When I came around the turn at highway speeds there were 3 cars littered rolled and smashed all over the highway with other cars stopping and swerving. I let off the gas lightly applied the brake and did some evasive maneuvering and made it through with out a scratch.