Pulling a trailer with a fj80 (1 Viewer)

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I am looking at a pop up tent trailer, but before I buy will my 80 pull it?
I have a 1991 fj80 with 4.88 gears and j`s other then that it will be pretty stock , the trailer weighs 1290lbs with a hitch weight of 115lbs will I be able to pull this saftley?
 
noah91fj80 said:
I am looking at a pop up tent trailer, but before I buy will my 80 pull it?
I have a 1991 fj80 with 4.88 gears and j`s other then that it will be pretty stock , the trailer weighs 1290lbs with a hitch weight of 115lbs will I be able to pull this saftley?

My 92 FJ80 have pulled 3500lbs trailer (w/ brakes) without diffculty at 50MPH, just underpowered. I used to have a pop up trailer weight around 1000lbs and it was a piece of cake as for handling.

Your's should be fine but again use your judgement on all towing factors.

Regards,
 
I'm kinda new here so I'm not to sure what engine your 91 came with, but my 96 80-series pulls 5500-6200lbs all day long with no problems.


Tommy
 
Even though this is a light trailer, I'd still get a trailer brake setup. Should help with your drums in the rear. I towed a 2,000 lb popup with 4.56s and did fine. She struggled a little at higher elevation but that was it. Good tow vehicle and no trailer sway what so ever. I wished I had a trailer brake in the popup though!

Ali
 
I pull a motorcycle trailer that occationally has my toolbox on it as well (approx 3200 lbs.). For the most part it does ok, hills of course are slower but on the flats it does well. I baby the brakes and use the OD switch to help slow down with no worries. With just the bike on it comes to ~1400 lbs and there are no issues. If the wife ever gets a bike I may add brakes to it just to add a little extra safety. All in all go for the trailer, just don't be in a huge rush to get where you're going.
 
I pull a 30' camper that has a GVW of 6000lbs with a weight distributing hitch and a pretty advanced brake controller. The only thing is the engine is a bit under powered but that helps to keep you out of trouble. With that being said, I don't think I ever went under 45mph going up steep grades, even with keeping the rpm low. If I wanted to rev the engine, it would do easily 55mph up the same hills.

The weight of a FZJ80 and the 4 wheel disk brakes make towing a breeze.
 
Noah,

You may know this, but be advised most of your replies came from people towing with the newer 4.5L twincam 6 whereas you have the much less powerful pushrod 4.0.

DougM
 
A tent trailer pulled by your 3FE shouldn't be a problem. The weight seems low enough that you shouldn't notice it much.

I'd think the 4.88s should help too.

I have a 97 with a 1FZ engine -- pulling my tent trailer (a bit heavier than yours) was a little strain on my set up only when going up sustained hills. Then again, I'm a little underpowered with my oversized tires and stock 4.10 gears.
 
I did it. And even worse than what you are doing. I did it with stock gears. I pulled it all the way to Moab once and even further to Ouray, Colorado. I could keep up with most traffic. Trailer brakes help a lot. I think my Cruiser actually had better braking with the trailer on it. If you want to give it a try you are welcome to try tow my tent trailer.
 
The 80 series chassis is suited to dead-weight tow up to 5,000 lbs (US rating). you are limited (within that range) by engine out-put and available braking capacity.

The boat in this photo weighs right at 3,700 lbs and the total combined gross weight approaches 11,000 lbs.
fullload.jpg
 
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Just as a note:

The European tow rating for the FZJ80 is 3.5 metric tons or 7700 lbs. I am not absolutely sure, but I think they have the same drivetrain set up as ours. Think the biggest difference is the Europeans were willing to go slower while they tow.

Toyota rated them lower for the US just so people don't whine about how slow they are compared to our pick up trucks with a huge V8 or diesel. (Even the Landrover Discoveries and Range Rovers from the 90s have 3.5 ton tow rating, and they certainly did not have any more power or beef than the FZJ80).

Jule
 
Jule,

Toyota rated them lower in the US because they know US drivers are careless and US attorneys love to sue Japanese mfrs, not to avoid any whining.

DougM
 
IdahoDoug said:
Jule,

Toyota rated them lower in the US because they know US drivers are careless and US attorneys love to sue Japanese mfrs, not to avoid any whining.

DougM


Damn good point DOug.
 
Yeah I second everyone so far. I've pulled a 4,000lbs of trailer before, with only surge brakes and it was fine. This was in a raging blizzard too traveling 300+ miles. I have a '92 on 33's with stock gearing. I wasn't breaking any speed records and I was taking my time as well, but the truck surprised me how well it pulled it.

I've also pulled cars on car haulers before with no brakes without any problems. You just have to respect braking distance a bit more, but it was cake. Keep in mind I'm living at practically sea level though and don't have to deal with many sustained grades.

fa456b2d.jpg
 

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