HDJ81 TD towing a built up 4Runner

[jasonmt]

Anyone ever told you that you go through a LOT of tires, BTW?

Somehow pulling the trailer on unbalanced 37" Iroks did not seem to be the best idea so the 35" BFG's went back on and I have a set of 35" X-Terrains kicking around because no one is stupid enough to buy them.

 

[MiniMan85]

Somehow pulling the trailer on unbalanced 37" Iroks did not seem to be the best idea so the 35" BFG's went back on and I have a set of 35" X-Terrains kicking around because no one is stupid enough to buy them.

That bad, eh? If they're up for sale, PM me their price and size so that I can spread the word to any friends that may be in the market for a street/light wheeling tire.

 

[MiniMan85]

Well, one big surprise yesterday; the day of the trip. The trailer from "Trailers Unlimited" is just a flat bed. They gave me a couple of chains to tie it down, but that was it.

In any event, I decided to make due with what they gave us and so we continued on. After loading the truck up, I tossed both transfer cases into low and 4L respectively. I first put the long chain through the loops in the back of the trailer and then around the rear bumper, connecting them back onto itself. I tossed the truck in reverse and pulled the chains tight, then chained up the front as best as possible given the resources. Probably not the safest way, but I figured I'd just check to make sure the truck wasn't being pulled off to the left side, due to the pull of the chain (attached only to the trailer's left side in the front), whenever we stopped.

I was a little worried about having the trailer sway around or worse, start a "death wobble", due to having the weight biased too far rear. So I decided to have the truck sit a bit further forward than it could've and run the tongue weight around 15% (est.). The tongue weight was great enough that the rear suspension compressed and the front was sitting at it's normal height. There were no problems with steering response around the worst of corners.

As things go, the trailer DID sway lightly once, but that was easily corrected by tapping the brakes (relatively hard) and then accelerating. Of course, the 'cruiser was underpowered for the size of the load it was hauling, so I generally drove with the truck in 3rd gear. On any light to moderate declines though, I'd toss the truck into OD and build up a bit of speed for the next light climb.

The truck has stock gears and 35's. This worked out (through measuring mile markers) to be 14% off. The average speed for the trip was around "95km/hr" which actually works out to be in the 110km/hr range. The slowest the truck went on the largest of inclines was "80km/hr" which works out to be around 91km/hr.

Every story is better with pictures, so here's one for looking:

 

[KliersLC]

I am glad you made it with no trouble.

Good Job!

 

[lt1fire]

off the subject but is that gtr yours???

 

[MiniMan85]

I am glad you made it with no trouble.

Good Job!

Thanks Kliers! I appreciate the high-res shots of the break in that UHAUL trailer that caused you to wreck too. Shame to see them being so negligent.

off the subject but is that gtr yours???

Yes sir it is. I just tossed her up for sale too.

 

[wussyPup]

I'm on 4:10's with 35's too. I'm hoping it works out to be a decent combination for cruising along the highway in 3rd gear.

Glad to hear that your trip was uneventful.

Remember that in 3rd gear your torque converter doesn't lock up (unless your valve body has been modified); a tranny cooler (not standard on the JDMs) and a ATF temp gauge can save a mess on the highway and a huge expense.

 

[MiniMan85]

Good info and advice! Thanks wussyPup.

 

[KliersLC]

Glad to hear that your trip was uneventful.

Remember that in 3rd gear your torque converter doesn't lock up (unless your valve body has been modified); a tranny cooler (not standard on the JDMs) and a ATF temp gauge can save a mess on the highway and a huge expense.

I am pretty sure that it locks up when you have the OD off. If it kicks down automatically, then it is not locked....well on my rig anyhow. I have no clue about what tranny the JDM rigs have.

 

[wussyPup]

I am pretty sure that it locks up when you have the OD off. If it kicks down automatically, then it is not locked....well on my rig anyhow. I have no clue about what tranny the JDM rigs have.

Hi Dan,

My 1990 HDJ81 came with a A442F 4 speed hydraulic transmission (I don't know when/if the HDJ81s got the electronic A442F or A343F).

My understanding is that (unmodified) the A442F will only attempt lockup while opeating in 4th gear; while in a lower gear becuase of kick down or gear selection the TC does not lock. This was used to explain the overheating and resultant damage that happened to mine while towing. I mistakenly thought I was doing it a favour by shifting into 3rd and keeping the speed around 80 km/h.

Lack of the 3rd gear lockup is a reason for replacing valve bodies with an extreme upgrade from Wholesale Automatic Transmissions

-Steve

 

[KliersLC]

Hi Dan,

My 1990 HDJ81 came with a A442F 4 speed hydraulic transmission (I don't know when/if the HDJ81s got the electronic A442F or A343F).

My understanding is that (unmodified) the A442F will only attempt lockup while opeating in 4th gear; while in a lower gear becuase of kick down or gear selection the TC does not lock. This was used to explain the overheating and resultant damage that happened to mine while towing. I mistakenly thought I was doing it a favour by shifting into 3rd and keeping the speed around 80 km/h.

Lack of the 3rd gear lockup is a reason for replacing valve bodies with an extreme upgrade from Wholesale Automatic Transmissions

-Steve

That makes sense. THe GM 700R4 works like that too IIRC. You guys don't have an OD button, just an extra gear position right?

 

[wussyPup]

That makes sense. THe GM 700R4 works like that too IIRC. You guys don't have an OD button, just an extra gear position right?

Correct, at least on my 1990 model. Here's a pic from before I bought it.

 

[MiniMan85]

Mine is the same way... yup.