Posted 2006-05-17 12:43 AM (#41817) Subject: suv towing
New User
Posts: 3
Location: wisconsin
i'm looking to pull my 2 horse with a toyota 4runner it is 4wd. HOWEVER i'm only going to use it to pull the empty trailer and possibly one horse if i need to but it will only be 40 mile drive MAX. the towing capacity of the 4runner is 5000# and my horse is probably 800# and the trailer is 3500# i've never pulled with the 4runner before and i'm wondering if there are opinions on what people think of doing this. for longer distances and when i haul both my horses i can get a suburban. i just need something for the short distances to lessons and getting my trailer from point A to B.
Posted 2006-05-17 11:43 AM (#41832 - in reply to #41817) Subject: RE: suv towing
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Posts: 2689
Originally written by m_orge_n on 2006-05-17 1:43 AM
i'm looking to pull my 2 horse with a toyota 4runner it is 4wd. HOWEVER i'm only going to use it to pull the empty trailer and possibly one horse if i need to but it will only be 40 mile drive MAX. the towing capacity of the 4runner is 5000# and my horse is probably 800# and the trailer is 3500# i've never pulled with the 4runner before and i'm wondering if there are opinions on what people think of doing this. for longer distances and when i haul both my horses i can get a suburban. i just need something for the short distances to lessons and getting my trailer from point A to B.
Hi and Welcome to the Forum.
You could at least TRY the 4-runner with an empty trailer first.
I'll assume you DO KNOW that you should have a brake controller.
If I had the option of using a 'burb I'd take it over the 4 runner every time. I'd absorb the extra gas cost SOMEHOW in favor of the added mass and (anticipated) better stability. If there are other factors, such as having to prevail upon a family member for use of the bigger vehicle, well thats a personal issue that I won't comment on (-:
BTW, if you don't have a brake controller for the 4-runner - and if this is only a short term problem - you might find pouring more gas into the 'burb is cheaper than buying a brake controller (and having it installed FOR you).
These are some of the questions for you that we can't answer (-:
Posted 2006-05-17 1:06 PM (#41835 - in reply to #41832) Subject: RE: suv towing
Member
Posts: 26 Location: Alabama
When I towed with a smaller SUV, I had sway problems when being passed by large vehicles. I wouldn't pull with one again without sway bars. I second the brakes also. I was pulling a 3000 lb trailer with a 1000 lb horse with a blazer.
Posted 2006-05-17 3:03 PM (#41840 - in reply to #41817) Subject: RE: suv towing
New User
Posts: 3
Location: Austin, Texas
I towed with a 4Runner (3,900 lbs curb weight, V6, 4WD, and electric brake controller)for a few years. It was reasonably safe for local trips as long as I pulled a very small trailer that weighed under 2,000 lbs. empty. However, it was not suitable for the larger 2,600 lb trailer that I upgraded to. Even with just one horse, that trailer pushed the 4Runner around. It was scary and unsafe, especially under inclement conditions. I absolutely loved that 4Runner, but had to give it up for a more suitable tow vehicle. By the way, be careful with that 5,000-lb rating. That's absolute maximum and doesn't apply to livestock. In my experience, I was pushing it to pull even 4,000 with it...I tried to stay well under 4,000 lbs.
Posted 2006-05-17 3:43 PM (#41841 - in reply to #41840) Subject: RE: suv towing
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Posts: 1416 Location: sc
Originally written by shanson on 2006-05-17 4:03 PM
By the way, be careful with that 5,000-lb rating. That's absolute maximum and doesn't apply to livestock. In my experience, I was pushing it to pull even 4,000 with it...I tried to stay well under 4,000 lbs.
im sure the OP would like to know, for clarity, what page of the owners manual states the max rating doesnt apply to livestock.
Posted 2006-05-17 3:51 PM (#41843 - in reply to #41841) Subject: RE: suv towing
Veteran
Posts: 225 Location: Kansas City
Originally written by chadsalt on 2006-05-17 3:43 PM
Originally written by shanson on 2006-05-17 4:03 PM
By the way, be careful with that 5,000-lb rating. That's absolute maximum and doesn't apply to livestock. In my experience, I was pushing it to pull even 4,000 with it...I tried to stay well under 4,000 lbs.
im sure the OP would like to know, for clarity, what page of the owners manual states the max rating doesnt apply to livestock.
Cause when livestock only stand on 3 legs they weigh less than when they stand of 4.
Posted 2006-05-17 5:41 PM (#41849 - in reply to #41843) Subject: RE: suv towing
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Posts: 1416 Location: sc
Originally written by barry on 2006-05-17 4:51 PM
Originally written by chadsalt on 2006-05-17 3:43 PM
Originally written by shanson on 2006-05-17 4:03 PM
By the way, be careful with that 5,000-lb rating. That's absolute maximum and doesn't apply to livestock. In my experience, I was pushing it to pull even 4,000 with it...I tried to stay well under 4,000 lbs.
im sure the OP would like to know, for clarity, what page of the owners manual states the max rating doesnt apply to livestock.
Cause when livestock only stand on 3 legs they weigh less than when they stand of 4.
well i was trying to point out the inaccuracy of that statement without being a smartass. however if you could train them to stand on 3 legs the whole time couldnt you technically go to 125% of the limit??????
Posted 2006-05-17 6:16 PM (#41850 - in reply to #41817) Subject: RE: suv towing
Extreme Veteran
Posts: 479 Location: central sierra nevada foothills
I was under the impression that you could not use an SUV to tow a livestock trailer or any big trailer with? I thought the law stated that it must be heavier than a 1/2 ton? At least here in California that's what I thought.
Posted 2006-05-18 1:59 PM (#41907 - in reply to #41817) Subject: RE: suv towing
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Posts: 3
Location: Austin, Texas
Should have qualified all my remarks with "in my experience." Didn't mean to imply that I was quoting from the manual. In my experience, using my 4Runner to haul a loaded horse trailer at the maximum rating in the manual (5,000 lbs) was not safe.
Posted 2006-05-19 12:04 PM (#41963 - in reply to #41907) Subject: RE: suv towing
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Posts: 1719 Location: PA
Shanson, to some people on this board, experience means nothing. If they can't find it in writing, it can't be true. I am with you. The OP may be able to do it weight wise but it won't be fun.
Posted 2006-05-19 1:54 PM (#41974 - in reply to #41963) Subject: RE: suv towing
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Posts: 1416 Location: sc
Originally written by hav2ride on 2006-05-19 1:04 PM
Shanson, to some people on this board, experience means nothing. If they can't find it in writing, it can't be true. I am with you. The OP may be able to do it weight wise but it won't be fun.
well now thats not exactly true. although some on this board confuse "years of experience" with "actual skill". people also tend to leave driver skill out of the equation when max tow ratings are being discussed and they are screaming its unsafe to tow at the max. i would concede towing at the max (that includes all vehicles) is something probably best left to those with the appropriate "experiance/skills", and ill leave it at that.
Posted 2006-05-19 2:41 PM (#41982 - in reply to #41850) Subject: RE: suv towing
Regular
Posts: 59 Location: Colorado
Originally written by cowpony01 on 2006-05-17 6:16 PM
I was under the impression that you could not use an SUV to tow a livestock trailer or any big trailer with? I thought the law stated that it must be heavier than a 1/2 ton? At least here in California that's what I thought.
Thats is simply not true, even in the "land of laws" of CA. How are you defining livestock, bunny rabbits or horses? Try even defining a "1/2 ton" truck.
A vehicle is rated to tow what it is rated to tow, regardless if it is a car, Minivan, or SUV. A Diesel Ford Excursion (SUV) is capable of pulling a "big" trailer. Someone may have said as a general rule, that most SUVs are not suited for towing "livestock" and in many cases that's true. However there plenty of SUV's of sufficient mass and towing capacity to safely tow a horse, or two.
As for the original post. I don't know, with all the gear loaded it sounds like they will be very close to their max rating. I used to have a 4Runner and having towed some smaller trailers with it, I would not have looked forward to towing a horse trailer w/horse. Although technically it probably could have done it. Good trailer brakes would have been real important going down hills.
Posted 2006-05-21 5:02 PM (#42050 - in reply to #41817) Subject: RE: suv towing
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Posts: 32 Location: indiana
I have been towing with a Toyota 4 runner for about 2 years. I pull a 3,000 lb trailer with one horse only. I use it only for short trips although I have gone as far as 200 miles round trip on a couple of occasions. I haven't had any problems but I do feel under trucked. I am now looking for something bigger because i would like to haul two horses. I don't think the 4 runner is the best choice, but it will work for short hauls and one horse.
Posted 2006-05-21 7:04 PM (#42058 - in reply to #41907) Subject: RE: suv towing
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Posts: 2689
Originally written by shanson on 2006-05-18 2:59 PM
Should have qualified all my remarks with "in my experience." Didn't mean to imply that I was quoting from the manual. In my experience, using my 4Runner to haul a loaded horse trailer at the maximum rating in the manual (5,000 lbs) was not safe.
It would have been safe if you had stayed (well) within it's limitations.
Another thread has just been started on the (relative) stability and safety factors of gooseneck and bumper-pull trailers. I think it misses the point to generalise by trailer type, or by tow vehicle type, or even by closeness to maximum rating. Safety is MUCH MORE a function of how much margin you keep available to you.
Did anyone here ever run a bald tire junker in their college days ?
Did you drive it the way you might drive a modern/newer car ?
suv towing
