Towing U-Haul 800 Miles

[confederate2]

Just wanted to get an opinion from the towing experts here. I am in the process of retiring and moving to Tennessee from Louisiana. I was going to rent a U-Haul truck but the price is so high I thought I would just rent the largest trailer they have and see if that will get everything up there in 1 trip although it may take 2 in which case I would probably be better off with the truck. But with that said. I intend to rent the following trailer:

Capacity
Volume: up to 396 cu. ft.
Max load: 2,600 lbs.
Gross vehicle weight: 4,400 lbs. max
Empty weight: 1,800 lbs.
Dimensions
Inside dimensions: 11'7" x 6' x 5'5" (LxWxH)
Door opening: 5'0" x 4'10" (WxH)

It is a 6 x 12 foot tandem axle. My 2wd Tundra with towing package is rated at 7200 pounds. Of course I know that the real world tow weight is no where near that. Am I ok to tow this trailer loaded with my class 3, transmission cooler, etc. towing package without any special equipment. U-Haul does not recommend a weight distribution hitch with their trailers. Can you all advise if this will be safe. I have had my truck for 3 years since new and have never towed with it. Also while U-Haul recommends a maximum tow speed of 45 mph I think I will get run over doing that. I was thinking of about 60 with overdrive off. Does this sound good.

Thanks
Sammy

[george60]

I did exactly this on a 500 miles trip. My truck is 2003 SR5 AC 2WD V8. It pulled it just fine without breathing hard. Very stable, smooth and no problem braking.
I figure I had about 3200 lbs including the trailer. I went over two 4000 passes and the rest was flat Central California freeway.
The only and critical thing with U-Haul is you make your reservation with your credit card etc. and there is NO guantee the trailer will be there to pick up.
They DO NOT relocate trailers. If someone doesn't bring one back on time so that you can use it U-Haul just says "tough luck". I had to make a 100 mile rond trip to get the trailer.
Oh I forgot. My truck has the factory towing package. (trans cooler, hitch and wiring)
I thought I could cruise in 4th gear (OD) but most of the time I stayed in 3rd and traveled at 60 MPH.

Hope this helps.
Good luck - George60

[lelandstanford]

Do these trailers have brakes?

[tuesdayd]

I just finished towing the same trailer from Raleigh, NC to South Florida. I had it loaded pretty full; guessing about 2000 lbs of stuff. It was a two tank trip so I decided to do one tank with OD on, and one tank with it off. With OD on, I got 14.5 mpg, and it only downshifted a few times going over the steepest of the hills I encountered in NC. The second tank had OD off, and I got 14 mpg; it never downshifted, but by this time I was in flatlands.

I kept the cruise control on about 67-68 mph. I did the same speed going up so I could do a with/without mileage comparison. Going up I got about 20 mpg. The trailer has surge brakes, and they must have worked pretty well cuz I couldn't feel much of a braking difference - but some. When accelerating I could definitely feel it. The truck was pretty slow, but once up to speed, it pulled the trailer easily. And it still had a good amount of passing power when I needed it.

Overall, I was very pleased with the way the truck handled it.

[confederate2]

In reference to brakes it is like tuesdayd said it has an automatic hydraulic surge brake whatever that is. I have to assume that does not require anything special on my vehicle. Anyway thanks for all the replys, it looks like I will be fine with this set up.

Thanks
Sammy

[JeffD]

I owned and pulled a similar trailer for many years with my '00. Mine was a haulmark 7x14 double axle. I logged many many many miles with no problem.

If the trailer is loaded properly you should be able to easily go the speed limit without and problems at all.

I am always leary of rented stuff, but it should be fine.