Weigh In - 6800 lbs loaded (7000 w/ Wife and Her Gear) (1 Viewer)

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Joined
Jul 24, 2016
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Location
Bend, Oregon
So while driving Highway 101 through Oregon yesterday I stopped at a highway dept scales and weighed my 2016. The front axle was 3350. The rear axle was 3450. And obviously the total was 6800. On my truck I have installed sliders from Slee, a Gobi rack, and one half of an ARB drawer set. I also have a pair of Maxtrax and a couple of pelican cases weighing about 20 pounds each on the roof rack. Inside the truck I have about 80 pounds of additional recovery gear, two suitcases, about 30 pounds of photography gear, and a 30 pound box of hiking gear.

My wife was not with me on this trip so with her and her gear that would add about 200 pounds. So with her with me the total vehicle weight would be or exceed 7000 pounds.

I know this leaves me under the GVWR but it is pretty close and doesn't leave me any room for other items such as bumpers. It also makes me a little bit concerned about towing a trailer which has a huge weight of 750 pounds.

Is it time for me to consider a suspension change? Nothing extravagant. But do I need something stronger than the stock suspension to support this weight, especially if I will be adding on the trailer beginning in April?

(By the way I will have 20,000 miles on this vehicle by the time I finish this trip and arrive back in Denver. I have owned it for about seven months. )
 
Really great question that i'm sure a lot of us will benefit from!
 
You mentioned MaxTrax and recovery gear, so I assume your rig leaves the pavement. And you are nearly maxed out and thinking of hauling a trailer?

Is your upgrade question rhetorical? Having a hard time pulling the trigger?

Seriously, upgrade. There isn't a good argument against it in your case except funds, IMO.
 
Is 750# your entire trailer weight, or just the tongue weight? If it's the entire trailer, you are probably only adding 100# or so to the hitch.

In Australia, with the proper suspension upgrade, you can actually get the GWVR label on your vehicle updated with a higher GWVR (GVM, as they call it).

GVM Upgrade Toyota 200 Series Landcruiser

I don't know if this applies to the US though. I believe US GVWR is only mandatory when vehicles are sold as new in the US.

GVWR Sticker and Alterations Debate! - iRV2 Forums
 
Hmmm.......Like @linuxgod, I belong to an RV forum where there are on-going "conversations" about whether suspension mods can increase GVWR. So far, the weight of evidence :)cool:) there is that the factory GVWR is just that, the GVWR. You don't make it more by changing tires/suspension/brakes/steering components/etc. It seems if you go over the GVWR, you may be stressing some component somewhere beyond its design. You may be able to rationalize away a lot of arguments for not going over that number, but losing some weight on your truck might good before you start towing? Good info, though. I'm going to be weighing my rig before I start towing later this spring and I'll post up some numbers.
 
Hey Dan, do you know the weight of your Gobi Rack and ARB Drawer? I don't think the weight difference between 2015 and 2016 trucks is all that much, stock/stock comparison, and I recently weighed my truck (I'm 120lbs lighter than yours with everything on my truck.)

I intentionally avoided a heavy after market roof rack to keep my CoG as low as possible and overall weight down (I know I will never use an RTT.)

Anyway, thought this might help you make some determinations on future mods and weight on the truck:

My Land Cruiser Weighs 6,680 lbs
 
Very interesting and thanks for posting up your results.

I am considering a 200 series for my next vehicle but the weight scares me. There is a good thread on expeditionportal titled "how obese is your rig?" with some thoughts and other truck weights.

For comparison, in my 4runner I weighed in with an empty truck and 3/4 tank of gas at 4800 lbs (2660 front, 2140 rear), leaving me with ~800lbs of available payload. My truck has aluminum bumper, skids, rack, a winch, sliders (steel) and dual battery included in that weight.
 
Some answers to questions. (Sorry, I can't answer all questions.)
  • I don't know the weight of the Gobi Rack though it is the "Stealth" model. I am thinking 300#?
  • I don't know the weight of the ARB drawer though I only have the left side installed and I removed both rear seats.
  • I don't know the weight of the Slee sliders.
  • My trailer is a 6000# (GVWR), 5000# (dry weight with propane) trailer which when loaded is approximately 5500#. I can play with the tongue weight by careful loading but it is still likely to be ~700# (before any WD hitch effect). I will be using a WD hitch with at least 800# bars.
I should also point out that I am currently on an extended road trip so it is about as loaded as it will be.

Also, I am currently running Nokian tires which are cosiderably lighter than the KO2s sitting in my garage. That will add a lot to the weight but I don't think will have much of an effect on the GVWR concerns.

Oh, and one more thing. This past weekend I loaded it down with the addition weight of 6 cases of wine bottles, 2 quarter kegs and about 100 cans of soda. (As father of the groom it was my responsibility to get all this from Seattle over to the wedding on the Olympic Peninsula.) I drove carefully as I really did not want to turn the inside of our new-ish LC into a punch bowl!
 
  • I don't know the weight of the Gobi Rack though it is the "Stealth" model. I am thinking 300#?
  • I don't know the weight of the ARB drawer though I only have the left side installed and I removed both rear seats.
I really doubt the rack weighs anything near 300 pounds. My Front Runner full size rack has a shipping weight of ~80 pounds which of course is aluminum, but I highly doubt it weighs ~300. Also a single drawer has a shipping weight of 88 pounds, which if you've removed both sides of the 3rd row seats is actually lighter than the seats weigh.
 
I really doubt the rack weighs anything near 300 pounds. My Front Runner full size rack has a shipping weight of ~80 pounds which of course is aluminum, but I highly doubt it weighs ~300. Also a single drawer has a shipping weight of 88 pounds, which if you've removed both sides of the 3rd row seats is actually lighter than the seats weigh.

Agreed. My Gamiviti full expo++ rack is steel, with mesh grid... basically as heavy as they could make it, and the shipping weight was <100#
 
Not sure it matters, but my '13 Cruiser weighs 5880 with a full tank, me, and my cattle dogs. Subtract ~200 lb for me and the dog.
 
Agreed. My Gamiviti full expo++ rack is steel, with mesh grid... basically as heavy as they could make it, and the shipping weight was <100#

Thanks. I don't know where I came up with the 300#. It's probably closer to your Gamviti as it has a full mesh grid.

As for the ARB drawer, I thought it would weigh less than the rear seats so good to see that confirmed.

I don't know how much the Slee sliders weigh but I am sure they are considerably more than the stock running boards. At least that weight is located close to the ground.

I didn't mean to suggest that any of these mods are bad. I just thought it was an interesting data point. I may take a close look at my gear. When towing the trailer much of that will shift to the trailer and loaded in the rear to optimize the tongue weight.
 
Only 6800lb, thats a lightweight compared to here in Aus!

The average fitted out truck here for overland touring is 8500-9500lb all set to go, people on board.

And yes, aftermarket suspension will make it much easier on the car, nicer to drive etc when loaded.
 
Ha ha! I've spent some time down under. You mates aren't exactly the cautious type. At least not the ones I know. But you also have a lot of experience with these beasts so I definitely respect your views and insight! I have been considering a minor suspension upgrade this Spring. Looks like I'll be scheduling an appointment with the folks at Slee.
 
Do you need stronger suspension? That requires more questions to answer. How does it drive currently? What is your ride height compared to a stock rig? Are u hitting the bump stops a lot? A set of airbags may be the way to go if u feel u need more support. Then u can air them up accordingly depending on the load u got for the day.
 
I did the front and rear ARB bumpers/sliders before I did the suspension...BIG mistake. Immediately parked it in the garage and got on the phone with Kurt for a suspension upgrade, then off to the tire shop for some hardier rubber. She weighs a bit more, but now can handle it.
 
If o do a suspension upgrade it will be in part for the modest lift and for a couple hundred more #s of support in the rear for those few times I tow. I'll see how that works before considering air bags.

As for how it rides now, it does about a bit when I go through Tips on highways and has bottomed out a couple of times. But I am also currently using tires that I only have 34 psi in them. And their size is the same as stock. When I get home from this trip I will be putting my E-rated, slightly taller KO2s back on. Then we'll see how that feels before I make a decision on a suspension and lift.
 
Regarding psi, I'm running at 48 with much better results that 36.
 
I use 34 on my 265/60 R18 Nokian Hakkapaletas (which I have on now). The are rated the same as the stock tires so I keep them close to the stock PSI recommendation on my door frame. When I put the 285/65 R18 E-rated KO2s on in a couple of weeks I will have them at 42. (All measurements "cold".)
 

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