Actual Tundra Towing Capacity

[stuart]

I just bought an 04 Access Cab Tundra that I thought would tow 7200# as long as it had the Factory Tow Package. NOT
I learned the following: GCWR (11,800# as set out in the manual is Gross Combined Weight Rating). GCWR is the TOTAL WEIGHT of TRUCK and TRAILER FULLY LOADED. Toyota advertises Towing Capacity of 7200#. They reach this figure by subtracting the Tundra's stripped empty weight (4573# lets say 4600 even) from GCWR (11,800)= 7200#. They have not included the weight of driver and passengers, fuel, equipment and add ons, fluids like water and oil etc., in this figure. So it is rated for 7200# only if completely empty. Realistically Towing
Capacity is more like 6200#. The GVWR (Gross vehicle weight rating) is posted on the driver's door as 6200# on the access cab.
Next I learned that the factory tow hitch on the Tundra is ONLY RATED FOR 5000# and the Tongue is rated for only 500#. I should point out that ANY TONGUE WEIGHT OF THE TRAILER MUST BE ADDED TO THE WEIGHT OF THE TRUCK thereby reducing the 6200# available even more.
My example. I have a 4300 JD 4wd that weighs 2900#.
The 430 FEL is about 900# and Bush Hog 500# for a total 4300#. Looks like I am OK to tow until you include 2000# for the trailer. Now I am at 6300# well over the 5000# rating for the FACTORY HITCH and the GVWR.
TO BE LEGAL AND SAFE: I am told that I must add a WDR otherwise known as a Weight Distributing Unit ($320) which will allow me to tow 10,000# with a 1000# tongue weight limit: BUT I still cannot and should not exceed GVWR or GCWR.
And I thought all I had to do to tow 7200# was hook up the trailer and drive off.
This is what I have been told when I went to buy a trailer. Any and all comments, explanations, thoughts and considerations are appreciated.
PS. I should also mention I need to add a BRAKE CONTROLLER as well.

 

[Jaybr]

I think the way they calculate the tow rating is pretty standard. I've always understood that you can't tow at the full rating and fill the bed up at the same time. Any weight your carrying in the truck needs to be deducted from the max tow rating.

Now if the Access cab has lower tow rating than the regular cab because of extra weight of the truck, it should be listed that way. I had a 2000 Tundra and went to a Titan in 2004 primarily for the increased towing capacities. Nissan clearly list different tow capacities on different models of the Titan.

 

[thatguy]

Marketing is a great tool isnt it?? I sorry you had so much unexpected troubles, its ashame that the 'realistic' capacity was in the fine print.. Atleast you figured that out, im sure someone didnt do the math and IS towing the advertised weights

Brian

 

[RollingsFarms]

i owned a '95 Toyota 4x4. great little truck to drive around, although the gas mileage average was never better than 17/18mpg. motor blew at 138,000 miles and i maintained the truck by the book....although the more i maintained it the more it seemed to fall apart. anyways, i wanted a full size truck that had more room, more power, could tow something, and was reliable.....i went and bought a 2004 Chevrolet Z71. it exceeds all my wants and needs. reliabilty has been flawless thus far compared to the supposedly "bullet proof Toyota"....and the Chevrolet has been worked ALOT harder then the Toyota ever had been. ialso own a '95 nissan reg. cab 2wd truck and have beaten the **** out of it....but it just keeps on running smoothly as if it were brand new. yes, some Toyotas are reliable and meet their owners needs flawlessly, but so do other brands. my advice, if you want to tow something, buy a Chevrolet or a Ford or Dodge. Look at what contractors, construction workers, farmers, city maintinace people are driving.....these folks REALLY work their trucks day in and day out. youll notice they arent driving the new Tundra or Titan.

 

[Renze]

Most consumers dont know all about that... I work at a company converting Vans into 5th wheel tractors, with air brakes, ABS etcetera... we have to tell the salesman which rear end, transmission ratio he has to sell to be able to tow a certain trailer... They have 4 pages of heated rear view mirrors and similar useless options, but they cant tell you what it is allowed to tow... We are the link between salesman and importer because dealers dont know a thing about it...

 

[swines]

That's why I have an F350 crew cab, diesel, dually, with the Tow Boss package....

I drove a new Toyota Tundra at the car show about 2 weeks ago on the "all terrain" course setup by Toyota...a highly underwhelming truck when compared to Chevy, Dodge, or Ford...in my opinion.

 

[KentT]

BTW, once you use a weight-distributing hitch and electric brakes, you'll never want to be without them again... money well spent if you'll be towing often or far.

 

[Bob_Skurka]

I learned the following: GCWR (11,800# as set out in the manual is Gross Combined Weight Rating). GCWR is the TOTAL WEIGHT of TRUCK and TRAILER FULLY LOADED. Toyota advertises Towing Capacity of 7200#. They reach this figure by subtracting the Tundra's stripped empty weight (4573# lets say 4600 even) from GCWR (11,800)= 7200#. They have not included the weight of driver and passengers, fuel, equipment and add ons, fluids like water and oil etc., in this figure. So it is rated for 7200# only if completely empty. Realistically Towing
Capacity is more like 6200#. The GVWR (Gross vehicle weight rating) is posted on the driver's door as 6200# on the access cab.
Next I learned that the factory tow hitch on the Tundra is ONLY RATED FOR 5000# and the Tongue is rated for only 500#. I should point out that ANY TONGUE WEIGHT OF THE TRAILER MUST BE ADDED TO THE WEIGHT OF THE TRUCK thereby reducing the 6200# available even more.

What you learned is pretty much normal. It has actually been discussed here several times, but not in as much specific detail as you have spelled out regarding your truck.

Unfortunately many people do not understand towing and hauling capacities. While the math is simple, it is often confusing because people simply do not factor in all the various components.

For example it a PU truck with an extended cab & long bed can have the same tow rating and GCWR as a PU truck with regular cab and a short bed, but it will have a lower ACTUAL capacity for several reasons. First, the larger cab and/or longer bed weigh more, that reduces the capacity you can haul. Second, a larger cab means more potential passengers, so a PU with 2 adults has 400# of passengers in it, but a PU with 4 adults in the cab will have roughly 800# of passengers. If the springs on the trucks are the same capacity, which is likely, then the load capacity is reduced as far as how much cargo you can place in the bed. Similarly, the towing capacity is reduced simply because GCWR does not go up so if the truck is loaded down, or weighs more, then the cargo capacity and/or towing capacity is correspondingly lower.

 

[BobRip]

Stuart, I looked on my 2005 Tundra and on the bumper is says maximum of 5000 pounds. This is for a bumper mounted ball, if I understand correctly. Please correct me if I am wrong. I do understand the gross vehicle weight issue. Marketing people love to play games and create confusion. We see it way to often in our society.

 

[Jaybr]

my advice, if you want to tow something, buy a Chevrolet or a Ford or Dodge. Look at what contractors, construction workers, farmers, city maintinace people are driving.....these folks REALLY work their trucks day in and day out. youll notice they arent driving the new Tundra or Titan.

So are you suggesting that if the tow rating on your Chevy, Ford, or Dodge is 8000 lbs, you can put 4 people in the cab and 1000 lbs in the bed and still tow 8000 lbs?

I see plenty of contractors driving Tundra's and Titan's, and in the 1/2 ton market they are great trucks. The only advantage I see in the Chevy/Ford/Dodge offerings are their 3/4 and 1 ton offerings, especially in diesel.