If youre wondering how much your 1st gen can pull… It can

Earlier this week I was looking into the towing capacity on my first gen Taco, its a Black 2dr xtra cab 3.4l 4wd model. I picked this truck up around 4 months ago and have had zero issues with it apart from a deflated tire. Recently an add came up for a Black 99 4runner with a manual transmission. This worked perfect for me since i wanted to manual swap my truck and do the 4runner fromt end conversion on it. Not that i dont like the bubbly front end on the taco i just love the square look. My problem was i had no friends that had a truck i could use big enough to tow this 4runner 485 kilometres (301 miles). So im all on my own for this one again. I brought myself over to uhaul with my truck and hooked up there car towing trailer (2210lbs) then i blasted over 485 kms to where the tacoma was and pulled it onto the trailer with the guys tractor since the 4runner had a blown clutch line. Assuming that the true curb weight of this 4runner was 3770lbs my truck would be towing 5980lbs. Well, thats exactly what i did and with no problems at all. Total cake walk and keep in mind my truck rolled over 513,000 kilometres on the 485km trip back with the payload, original frame, body, engine, trans, and the whole 9 yards. Not a bad truck for $3500 CAD. So if youre wondering how much your 3.4litre tacoma can pull, it can. (P.s, the 4runner was $900 CAD and the trailer rental was $75 for 24hours, what a deal). Also i did all this in a snow storm

 

WTF. Glad you're no where near me or my family. Just because it can pull don't mean it's legal.

You do realized that the trailer and 4runner weighs more than your truck. Uhaul trailer with no electric brake with your barely good enough tacoma brake. Can't believe those fool even rented the trailer to you. What a liability

 

By a long shot I know. Talking legal terms i'm not sure much of the truck is legal.

 

What is wrong with the 4Runner that you are cannibalizing it for parts?

 

Rotted frame, I live up in Ontario Canada so we get some salty winters and the frames on these gens were already bad out of the factory as im sure youre all aware, a lot of people around here didnt go in for the frame recall.

 

Couple teenagers working in the uhaul, im not sure they care enough about their jobs to have a look at my truck plus i told them i was towing a mini cooper.

 

I wonder why? My 2010 Taco had a small hole on the right frame rail next to the catalytic converter, and they replaced it in November 2010; I can't imagine why anybody wouldn't want the equivalent of hitting the lottery in truck repairs...

 

Seriously, if the recall wasnt expired i would take my truck over to toyota to get it done asap. Luckily the last owner of this truck got it krown undersprayed every season

 

You're the type of guy that will say "send it" and kill some innocent family because you can careless.

 

Hasn’t happened yet.

 

I did this with a sedan with a HF jeep bold-on front hitch. Hauls fine. Brakes, not so much. Trailer definitely needs its own braking system.

 

The U-haul auto transporters all have a surge brake.
BTW, if the information was entered into the U-haul system correctly, you wouldn’t have gotten a rental.
It will not let you create a contract if the vehicle pulling can’t handle the load.
They have their own system and database.

 

I believe the manufacturer-rated tow capacity of the 1st gen 3.4L 4WD is 5,000 lbs, with a GCWR of 9,000lbs. That taco's curb weight probably about 3,800 lbs. 20% over the tow rating and also 10% over the GCWR isn't legal or commendable. The issue isn't so much the pulling, it's having the reserve braking capacity to make an unexpected or emergency stop safely, and/or turn or lane-change quickly to make a collision-avoidance maneuver without the trailer's momentum forcing the truck out of control.

Most of us spin the wheel, from time to time, in one way or another. Some of us only only very seldom, for others it's a daily habit. Frequently we get lucky and there aren't immediate consequences. And then sometimes things don't work out & people are maimed and killed unnecessarily.

 

It would never be my first choice but some times it is the only choice one has.

I can say I have hauled on the heavy side a time or two.

Common sense and experience will get the job done. Like thinking one has a 40,000 pound coil loaded suicide and drive according.

I have no problems coming off a hill in first gear never touching the brakes .

Pull over check things often for securing devices Hot brakes or bearings A nice slow easy trip on very familiar roads .

Maybe 55mph was the fastest speed

 

There is a reason Uhaul rents trucks as tow vehicles.

 

Oh it has happened before, just because it didn't happen to you this time. That's why you're that guy, who's willing to take the risk just to save a few buck. Would be a whole lot cheaper to rent a box truck and trailer versus a DOT commercial ticket for improper tow.

 

dont be a cheap POS. rent a truck that can tow this safely next time.

 

The surge/breakaway brake don't mean anything until the trail is off the hitch and moving. I would be more worry about the towing vehicle making a emergency brake. I could only imagine the trailer weight forcing a no stop and pushing the tow vehicle into another vehicle.

Witnessed an early-00 Ranger towing about 8k pounds including the flat bed on the freeway killing a passenger in lane 1. Dude was in lane 3, slam on the brake, wouldn't stop and decides to swerved to avoid hitting the car in front of it. The Ranger end up slamming into another car in lane 1 at an angle, trailer hitting a car in lane 2 when traffic was at a standstill due to another accident up ahead.

When you take a chance and nothing happen, sweet. Dude probably done it one too many time and got complacent, thinking it will never happen to him. Would be glad if he got charge with negligent homicide.

 

Plus it was done in a "snow storm"!!!

That says a lot about you...

It's no secret and is very well known that Tacos, and any other vehicle for that matter, CAN pull more than what they are rated for. There is a rating for a reason. Way over weight and snowy conditions sounds like a recipe for disaster. You got very lucky.

 

A Honda civic would probably pull a trailer loaded with a 4runner if you tried, but it doesnt mean you should. Pulling and being able to drive safely are two very different things. Glad you made it safely but is it worth the risk?