Landcruiser (100 series) as a tow vehicle?

[CreeperSleeper]

What do you tow? - I have towed boats, small utility trailers, and car haulers
How much does it weigh? - Anywhere from 500# to 6500#
Terrain? - Mostly highway, but in the PNW, we have a lot of hills and passes. Pay attention to what gear you are in and don't be in too much of a hurry. The LC trans is nice because it will hold gears.
Mods to the 100 to help it tow better? - I have E-Rated tires (Mine are 285. It towed better with the stock size but worth the trade off for me), AirLift helper springs plumbed independently to reduce sway (If you were setting it up to pull only one trailer, I would do a good weight distribution hitch instead of the bags.), electric trailer brake controller, and "strap on" trailer mirrors.

I've said it before, she tows wonderfully. It could use more power, sure, but anything can! It honestly tows better than the dozen or so 1/2 ton 4x4s I have owned from various makes. The only thing that out-towed it was my 3/4 ton Cummins (but the "Dodge" it came with sucked!).

 

[toyotatruckjunkie]

My situation is very similar to your design criteria.

Our 2001 LC 100 with 168k is my wife's DD, a Toyota reliable, secure/safe kid hauler, Dog hauler, comfortable road trip vehicle, pack mule, etc. Now keep in mind, I LOVE LCs, but I believe it is truly a world class vehicle (far beyond the Sequoia in my opinion). I tow with it regularly, specifically; our 17' ~4500 lb camper, our 26' ~6500 lb boat, our 17' ~3000 lb boat, my ~4000 lb 4Runner on ~1000 lb steel car trailer, or anything else I've hooked to it. It could always use more power, but when I set up tow rigs and trailers, I prefer to be able to comfortably do the speed limit (70mph). I can do that with everything that I tow regularly. Gas mileage suffers (down to about 10 mpg when towing the camper or big boat). I use the Power mode of the trans, and often keep it out of 4th gear if it constantly hunts for a gear. If it will hold, I run in OD.

The only towing related mods I have added are Air bags and Elec Brake Controller. (My big boat trailer has hydraulic surge brakes). It has the factory receiver hitch, 285/75 BFG KO2s in E Rating (new today), stock gearing and stock suspension. I ran BFG KOs in this same size w stock gearing without issue for 100k miles. I had a 1996 LC 80 with the 4.5L 6 cyl. before the 100. It was a great truck with other benefits, but it did not tow as well as the 100 w 4.7L V8 in my opinion.

Hope all this helps.

 

[mehugtree]

I know this is a bit of an old thread, but.... was curious about tow ratings.

I just got done towing a ~2500 lbs travel trailer around the US with a 2013 Tacome Doublecab TRD Off-Road. The weight is well within the towing range of the Tacoma, but boy did it struggle in the mountains. Sure, it made it up everything, but sometimes (like some long climbs in New Mexico and Death Valley) we would either slow down to 45 or have the engine roaring to keep a reasonable speed.

I have a FZJ80, which I assume would be worse.

I'm very interested in a 100 series.

Comparing the Tacoma to the 100 series (based on KBB info):

Tacoma: ~6400 towing capacity ~266 lbs-ft torque
100 Series: ~6500 towing capacity ~332 lbs-ft torque
and, for reference:
80 Series: ~5000 towing capacity ~275 lbs-ft torque

Should one expect much difference between the Tacoma and the 100 series in terms of towing?

thanks!

 

[nnnnnate]

V6 vs V8

 

[toylandcruiser]

I know this is a bit of an old thread, but.... was curious about tow ratings.

I just got done towing a ~2500 lbs travel trailer around the US with a 2013 Tacome Doublecab TRD Off-Road. The weight is well within the towing range of the Tacoma, but boy did it struggle in the mountains. Sure, it made it up everything, but sometimes (like some long climbs in New Mexico and Death Valley) we would either slow down to 45 or have the engine roaring to keep a reasonable speed.

I have a FZJ80, which I assume would be worse.

I'm very interested in a 100 series.

Comparing the Tacoma to the 100 series (based on KBB info):

Tacoma: ~6400 towing capacity ~266 lbs-ft torque
100 Series: ~6500 towing capacity ~332 lbs-ft torque
and, for reference:
80 Series: ~5000 towing capacity ~275 lbs-ft torque

Should one expect much difference between the Tacoma and the 100 series in terms of towing?

thanks!

That's crazy. I have an 05 4Runner and it pulls my 3000 pound pop up with zero issue. Thats going up to an elevation of 8000 feet. There's gotta be more to the story or something wrong.

 

[fireball]

Funny to see this come back up! Incidentally we still have the LC, but have sold the Bronco and the 4R and the wife DDs a Sequoia.

I have yet to use the LC for any towing, but plan to tow a flatbed trailer with a pop up camper on it, total weight ~2000-2500#. So we will see how it does soon enough!

mehug - small world as I bought and sold many houses in and around the EAV and lived there for a few years. What tires and gearing are you running? I have 33s on the LC and with the 4-speed tranny and the large amount of extra weight I've bolted to the thing, it was a bit of a dog. I just recently regeared to 4.88s and the truck drives much better now and I imagine will tow a lot nicer.

 

[calicamper]

The LC has always had what I would describe as a Lazy mellow power its never been a super great towing rig due to the mellow power and short wheel base. I much prefer my Sequoias higher energy sharper tuned V8 and longer wheel base for the towing aspect. But that comes with negatives for trail use also.

The LC also likes to follow dedicated fuel trucks to quench its thurst.
I loved my LC but dont really miss it that much either.

 

[mehugtree]

Fireball - small world indeed! EAV is still doing it's thing. Man it's hot and sticky here already.

I'm running 265/70/R17's - so slightly bigger than stock. And stock gearing.

I did not mention all the crap that was in the back - a spare RV oven and spare tire. So yes, that would add to it, but I'm still surprised at how bad it did. Would the V8 be much better? A bit more power (albeit mellow)?

 

[Chris Boyd]

Now with my 2006 I'm towing a double horse trailer. With both horse loaded, I'm guessing we are right near the max capacity. Other than the fuel mileage, it's a good ride. I added the Timbren springs to this rig too as helpers.

This photo was before the Timbren were added.

And she'll get more than groceries. This is with the Timbren installed and toting a full load of 4 yds of mulch.

 

[grampswrx]

Any chance you could make the jump into a 2008 Sequoia with the 5.7l V8? That would give you plenty of power. I know the 200 series is out of the budget, but here is a 2008 Sequoia for under $15k: http://losangeles.craigslist.org/sfv/cto/5572390517.html

 

[onemanarmy]

Sequoias are a great truck for the money and have plenty of room and power and has the 4wd capabilities that 99% of people will never use.

 

[mehugtree]

I don't think that I would go to a Sequoia. The goal is to tow the travel trailer to cool spots, wheel the truck, and then move on to the next spot. Or something like that.

The 200 series is just starting to be in the financial ballpark, and that would do the job.