Author: JHoffman
Subject: Pushing The Limits On Tow Vehicles
Posted: 20 Sep 2016 at 8:49pm
NWRPodder, first welcome to the group. Im new this year myself. One thing I would caution you on is to watch the temp gauge when climbing the hills. Short runs at high RPM are usually ok but prolonged high revs will overheat the engine. Also it's a good idea to have a way to monitor transmission temps. My Tundra has a tranny temp gauge from the factory. I have the 5.7L and I used to set the cruse at 70 and never change it. Occasionally it would shift down and rev a little over 3000. I've discovered that if I just use a steady foot on the accelerator and allow the speed to drop off just a little on the hills I can get much better MPG's. My truck has a 10k towing capacity but it's not the weight that makes the vehicle struggle so much as it is the amount of drag it now has to overcome. The front of the camper is like pulling a big sail behind you. A 3000 lb pop-up tows much easer then a 3000 lb Pod simply because it's a much lower profile. Your 4Runner is bigger then what many people on this forum are using, it will do it, just take your time.
Subject: Pushing The Limits On Tow Vehicles
Posted: 20 Sep 2016 at 8:49pm
NWRPodder, first welcome to the group. Im new this year myself. One thing I would caution you on is to watch the temp gauge when climbing the hills. Short runs at high RPM are usually ok but prolonged high revs will overheat the engine. Also it's a good idea to have a way to monitor transmission temps. My Tundra has a tranny temp gauge from the factory. I have the 5.7L and I used to set the cruse at 70 and never change it. Occasionally it would shift down and rev a little over 3000. I've discovered that if I just use a steady foot on the accelerator and allow the speed to drop off just a little on the hills I can get much better MPG's. My truck has a 10k towing capacity but it's not the weight that makes the vehicle struggle so much as it is the amount of drag it now has to overcome. The front of the camper is like pulling a big sail behind you. A 3000 lb pop-up tows much easer then a 3000 lb Pod simply because it's a much lower profile. Your 4Runner is bigger then what many people on this forum are using, it will do it, just take your time.