I am heading to the lower Keys in Florida. I want to pull my very light weight (17' aluminum hull side console with a 40 hp Johnson outboard) fishing boat down with me. I have an 2002 4x2 Tundra Access cab SR5 TRD with 600 miles on it. This trip will be around 400 miles or so each way for me . Is there any reason I can't or shouldn't pull my boat with the Tundra only having 600 miles? Or is there something I should do before doing so? Of course all towing and safety procedures apply. I am only new to the Tundra not towing a boat. And thanks in advance for any input.
Gary
The thread "Towing with my new Tundra" merged with the thread "Fifth Wheel Towing & Hitch Questions/Help/Info" as they are the same subject. ~MustangSally
If memory serves me correctly, and it usually doesn’t, I believe the owner’s manual requests you not tow for the first 1000 miles. 600 miles is probably close enough though, especially if the fishin’ is good.
The owner manual says not to tow within the first 500, 1000 is the break-in period, so I guess you'd want to vary speed, keep it under 55, and keep the rpms under 4k... but, *shrug*, I didn't.
I'll bet the whole thing doesn't weigh 800 lbs., does it? I pulled an 800 lb. U-Haul behind my Sequoia, loaded to about 1200 lbs., and I barely knew it was there. But, the Sequoia was well broken in by then. Use your lower gears to accelerate, keep the RPMs low, don't lug the engine and otherwise be easy on it. I'll be you won't know it's there.
I agree with DJ and Stuff. I regularly tow a Triton FS21 which weighs about 3400 lbs all up. I'll bet your rig is well under 2000 and you will hardly notice it back there. Just take it easy and don't flog your rig. You'll be impressed with how easily your Tundra handles the load.
This past winter I towed six snowmobiles all two ups with the trailer close to 6000
lbs plus three of us inside about 500 lbs and about 200 lbs in the bed.
we went all over Northern New Hampshire and into Canada just about every
weekend and the Tundra ran like a champ no problems at all and anyone who
knows the area i am talking about then they know the hills. The tundra had power to
spare.
On page 173 in the 2002 owners manual it says do not tow for the first 800 km or
500 miles I had about 1400 on mine before i towed anything.
Thanks to everyone that responded. I never doubted the Tundra's ability to handle the light load. What I was worried about was the fact that I had not reached 1000 miles. However that won't be an issue after tomorrow as I went on an eight hour road trip today and now have 925 miles on her. I'm not leaving for the Keys for two days so 1000 miles will easily reached. I am really looking forward to this trip, the keys make such a great background for taking photos of the truck. And who knows, I may actually even catch a tarpon or two.
Gary
I seem to have offended some of the tundra lovers out there by complaining about
how unhappy I am with my new 2002 ltd 4x4 access cab. I am confused by the
terminology , " dont feed the trolls! " What is the significance of this term?
I have been towing for a while now with my Tundra. It is an 02 4x2 SR5 and it tows for approx 300 miles every month. My trailer weighs 1200 lbs and the race car weighs 2350 lbs with full gas. I put approx 500 lbs in the bed and two people weighing 320 combined in the cab. All in all I have approx 4500 lbs of weight. The Tundra has no problems at all towing that weight. I have the HD bilestin shocks and let me tell you that the rear end does not even sag with up to 800 lbs of weight.
The truck drives very smoothly while towing. It is so smooth that it is very easy to tow at 75 mph. When i took my brother with me to the track, he complained that I was towing very fast. So I let him drive and after a while told him to look at the speedo. Sure enough he was towing at 75. Sometimes I forget that I am even towing.
This truck is a great tow truck. I tow in third gear up the hills and only lock it in second once up the steep incline. On the straights, I use OD and cruise control.
I've got a new 2002 Tundra SR5 Access Cab 2WD V8 with the factory tow package. I'm looking to tow a 5,100 pound RV (ball hitch) and need to install both a brake controller (picked up a Prodgy unit which I here is the best), and the 7 blade RV wiring connector.
Looking under the rear bumper, I can see that there is a rectangular plug that has a pigtail going to the stock 4 prong flat connector that is part of the stock tow package. This square plug appears to have more than 4 connectors (more like 6 or 8), and so I wonder if there is a pigtail for a 7 blade RV connector that I can simply swap.
Or is there at least a wiring diagram for the tow package that would indicate what's what?
Thanks!
The thread "RV wiring for tow package" merged with the thread "Fifth Wheel Towing Questions/Help" as they are the same subject. --- Possum
You will need to replace the 4-pole flat connector with a 7-way round. Then to the 7-way you wire up the brake controller, add a backup light wire and add the charge wire. The instructions for doing most of that are in the "Garage" Lighting & Electronics forum as are Trailer Towing Electrical Diagrams for a 2001 Tundra (which should match up with a 2002).
Relatively new owner here and total novice "tower".
The manual says that the bumper is rated for 5,000lbs, and with a Class III hitch my truck can pull 7,100lbs.
Now for the dumb question:
Given the above, can I just simply punch out the plastic cover on the bumper and screw on a ball and be ready to tow up to 5,000lbs? (still need the wiring of course)
Do you punch out the plastic cover (under rear license plate) with a screw driver and hammer?
Have a couple of other questions, but will put in other threads.
Thanks
The thread "Towing questions" merged with the thread "Towing Questions/Help" as they are the same subject. --- Possum
Your bumper can be used as a hitch attachment point for moderate loads. Remember all the weight will be on the rearmost point of the truck. You still may require brakes on the trailer depending on the application. Some brake setups require an in vehicle brake controller. Weight on the back only can present handling and control problems. This is why weight equalizing hitches are required on heavy trailers.
It goes without saying but I'll say it anyway. The weight of the trailer is going to (with or without brakes on the trailer) diminish your braking capacity. Until you get used to towing the trailer brake much earlier than normal until you get a feel for the trailer. And watch your trailer with your mirrors when you turn. The trailer will turn tighter than the line the truck turns on. Just some advice. We all started towing at some point and I hate it when guys are jerks about your lack of experience. I've been there. This is a great forum by the way. I'm going to sign up as a supporter.
You could fill books and books with what I DON'T know about towing, but I'd sure spend a few hundred bucks for a receiver before I'd try to drag anywhere near that much weight with no more than the bumper hitch!
__________________ Larry Lawton
Retired in Wyoming
Towing with my new Tundra
No Problem
Towing with me new Tundra
Larry Lawton
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