So I have been towing for years and I tow a car hauler with various cars on it a few times a month in Texas so it's mostly flat highways. Towing, it does fine but I am sure I am right at the limits of its capacity and that worries me sometime. It sags in the rear, but it pulls straight. I get 10 miles per gallon and we know the Land Cruiser is reliable, but I'm always on the hunt for the next best thing and even though I really don't need it would a pick up be better since a longer wheelbase? Will it be safer on the road? I only pull at 65 miles an hour so speed isn't an issue I haven't felt any hairy moments whatsoever. Should I add to my fleet or just continue with the status quo?
Wheelbase is your friend when towing. A longer pickup truck will likely give you a less stressful towing experience and possibly even at higher speeds, but if you haven't felt uncomfortable in the Land Cruiser and don't plan on towing anything heavier than what you've done so far, you might just want to do a sway controller to be on the safe side rather than upgrading your tow vehicle. I went from towing with a Nissan Frontier to a 2015 Silverado this year, and the extra capacity of the bigger truck just makes the whole experience a lot more relaxed and enjoyable. Lots of people will tell you that you can tow X with a 4 cylinder Ranger across the Rocky mountains, and I'm sure you could, but at no point will you enjoy that drive.
Invest in an equalizer hitch. That will help with the rear squat.
lownslow said:
Invest in an equalizer hitch. That will help with the rear squat.
100% correct! Even the cheapo at the hammer store will do the job you need, but setup can be confusing to some.
There are easier to use styles, but many at MUCH higher prices, probably rolled of the same assembly line!
The easier to use ones, are , mostly, worth the extra cost - but not because of better quality.
Hammer store, new in box $100
Didn't check your location, but if I have to tow next week, I might get this myself!
cyow5
Reader
10/1/24 7:19 a.m.
Is it me or can that RAV4 go much farther back? The looks like at least 25% tongue weight, so dropping it back to 15% would take off a lot of tongue weight while still be very stable.
buzzboy
UltraDork
10/1/24 2:47 p.m.
Holy smokes, the J100 is only a 112" wheelbase! Same as my Sklasse.
I'm not sure where the jury on this board lands, but you could be a good candidate for something like a trailer towd.
In reply to cyow5 :
It definitely can. I can try that with next load.
If it's always flat and straight, and you're sticking to 65mph, I don't see any issue with what you're doing there; but for comparison since I've been through a few tow vehicles all with a similar (sans wind deflector) open trailer now, I used to tow with a GMT400 Yukon (almost the same wheelbase as your rig) and now use a 2011 Tundra with a 164" wheelbase. There's almost no comparison- the Tundra is more comfortable at 80mph than the Yukon was at 60, and if things are flat it'll return 12.5mpg doing it, closer to 10mpg if it's hilly. We're generally towing a long way so the reduction in stress after 12+hrs of it is a wonderful upgrade.