I Know Another Tire Thread (Towing)

I know I know another thread about tires. My stock Goodyear's are done and its time to get new ones. I have done a bunch of searching and was sold on the Wildpeaks A/T3 in 265/75/16 116T. However I upgraded my popup to a larger travel trailer (3800lbs loaded) and now I'm wondering if I should go up to the 123S or look at another e range tire? I tow 1-2 times a month. I do a fair amount of driving for work and so I didn't want to stiffen the ride to much and keep better MPG. I do want to have a good towing experience though.

 

I run Pirelli Scorpion MT and tow a 3800 lb trailer fully loaded and another 500 lbs of wood, bbq, generator, ect, in the bed through 11 different states each year. Great tire, Moab tested, only issue is they are a soft tire and wear out quickly. Good luck with your truck.

 

My past towing experience with our 2nd gen was greatly improved going from a P series tire 265/65R17 Bridgestone Revo2 to a set of E load K02.
Higher load rating let me put more pressure into the tires, help keep them from overheating, and gave me a stiffer sidewall. Driving felt more stable with less 'squish' in the truck.
Drawbacks were a rougher ride, and a heavier tire.

It made such a difference that I just put Load E on our 3rd Gen as well. We tow the same 19ft Hideout ~4200lbs.
Last summer on oem Toyos;

 

I'm no expert, but if you tow a lot, you probably shouldn't buy a C load tire.

 

The spec sheet on Falken's site shows the 123S as being a 20" tire: https://www.falkentire.com/tires/light-truck-suv-cuv-tires/wildpeaka/t3w-tire - I think you want the 123/120S to keep the same size.

You gain a lot of tread depth with the 123/120S over the 116T. That's a big plus for durability. I'd definitely go up.

I much prefer the stiffness and durability of an LT tire over a P tire. The stock firestones on my SR5 were garbage, and one catastrophically blew out on at ~10k miles. They felt mushy too. The 33s I have right now are Pathfinder ATs, 285/75/16. They're E rated and tow great.

A few more things:

• You won't notice a MPG change comparing same-size tire, so MPG shouldn't factor in your decision between the two.
  
• A heavier duty tire may ride rougher, but there's a lot of other factors too. My KO2s rode rough and wore fast, but my Pathfinders are very smooth in comparison. A wider tire will feel smoother than pizza cutters. The tires you're comparing are 4-ply vs 10-ply, so definitely expect a stiffer ride with the 123/120S.
  
• A lower pressure will ride better, don't run the tire pressure on the sidewall, do the chalk test.
  
• A larger diameter tire will ride smoother. It will change your gearing though - just be ready to use the skinny pedal a lot if you go up a size. It's not uncommon for me to pull the trailer up a hill in 3rd at 3.8-4.2k rpm on the highway.
  
• With the heavier trailer, keep it in ECT and manual shift, don't let it go above 4th gear or it'll hunt for gears.

I gained back a towing mpg when I switched the trailer tires from the garbage stock ones to some Cooper ATs. The bigger tires have less rolling resistance and better durability than the original tires, which flexed a lot and had bulgy sidewalls. I run about 11mpg with my current setup towing. Without towing, I'm getting about 15mpg on my city only commute and about 18mpg highway.

 

my questions is irrelevant but how do you like to Wolf Pup? how does the truck handle it? I am going this weekend to look at one like it with intent to purchase. Ill either pull with my 2nd gen or wifes T4R

 

It's great! We have spent a few weeks in ours and love it. https://www.tacomaworld.com/media/albums/camper-tour.57672/ has a few pics of the inside and some mods I've done to it. We don't vacation in hotels or condos anymore, having our house on wheels is just too much better than any hotel we've stayed in.

All brands are a wash when it comes to quality, so be very thorough during your inspection. Mine had the microwave unplugged and a few seams that needed caulked better than the factory did. My buddy just bought a Wolf Pup 18TO and they didn't include the battery! There's just so much to check, so take your time and make sure you are meticulous.