Towing with a 200-series Toyota Land Cruiser (9 Viewers)

[WCDAVE]

Two and a half weeks traveling across the country from PA to UT and back - sad to say with a 2" lift and tire on top I averaged 8.9 MPG. If I was inclined to drive at more modest speeds, I could goose another 1-2 MPG out of the set up. Posted speeds were usually 65-70 with long, straight and untrafficked (safe) stretches, so hard to force yourself to go slow. (When not towing, my truck yields 12.0 MPG.) Was able to travel at 70-80 mph without any sway issues - obviously the faster you go the lower your safety factor vis a vis braking and emergency maneuvering, but that is the same whether towing or not. I won't go into how low the MPG rating was in 4LO offroad, but it was "less". A great experience though, so no complaints.

 

[prharper]

View attachment 3016173
Two and a half weeks traveling across the country from PA to UT and back - sad to say with a 2" lift and tire on top I averaged 8.9 MPG. If I was inclined to drive at more modest speeds, I could goose another 1-2 MPG out of the set up. Posted speeds were usually 65-70 with long, straight and untrafficked (safe) stretches, so hard to force yourself to go slow. (When not towing, my truck yields 12.0 MPG.) Was able to travel at 70-80 mph without any sway issues - obviously the faster you go the lower your safety factor vis a vis braking and emergency maneuvering, but that is the same whether towing or not. I won't go into how low the MPG rating was in 4LO offroad, but it was "less". A great experience though, so no complaints.

Nice trip! How you liking the new trailer compared to the last one?

 

[Artie]

View attachment 3016173
Two and a half weeks traveling across the country from PA to UT and back - sad to say with a 2" lift and tire on top I averaged 8.9 MPG. If I was inclined to drive at more modest speeds, I could goose another 1-2 MPG out of the set up. Posted speeds were usually 65-70 with long, straight and untrafficked (safe) stretches, so hard to force yourself to go slow. (When not towing, my truck yields 12.0 MPG.) Was able to travel at 70-80 mph without any sway issues - obviously the faster you go the lower your safety factor vis a vis braking and emergency maneuvering, but that is the same whether towing or not. I won't go into how low the MPG rating was in 4LO offroad, but it was "less". A great experience though, so no complaints.

I wonder how much of your mpg loss was from the stuff mounted in your roof. Aero loss from your Kimberly isn’t much since it sits at or below your LC hight. I get around 9 mpg towing go a similar size Conqueror, nothing is on my roof but I have a Dissent front bumper and the aero loss from the exposed tires is big.

Regardless, these things are thirsty pigs when you add an axle out back.

 

[NoClue]

odd, I average 10-12mpg towing my 2300lb trailer at 65mph. it's a 2016 with 4.30 gears at 35" mud tires.

 

[WCDAVE]

odd, I average 10-12mpg towing my 2300lb trailer at 65mph. it's a 2016 with 4.30 gears at 35" mud tires.

Gearing may help when towing, but 2300lbs is about half the weight of the Kimberley.

 

[WCDAVE]

Nice trip! How you liking the new trailer compared to the last one?

More $ buys a “nicer” trailer, but 3x heavier. We got ourselves into a situation accessing a camp site that was down a steep rocky grade. When we went to leave and got back to the climb, it looked a lot steeper and longer going back up than coming down. We obviously got out, but there was a minute there where I was thinking I was going to have to drain the water tanks to get up the incline. All in all, more room, more comfort and more weight.

 

[dcs111]

View attachment 3016173
Two and a half weeks traveling across the country from PA to UT and back - sad to say with a 2" lift and tire on top I averaged 8.9 MPG. If I was inclined to drive at more modest speeds, I could goose another 1-2 MPG out of the set up. Posted speeds were usually 65-70 with long, straight and untrafficked (safe) stretches, so hard to force yourself to go slow. (When not towing, my truck yields 12.0 MPG.) Was able to travel at 70-80 mph without any sway issues - obviously the faster you go the lower your safety factor vis a vis braking and emergency maneuvering, but that is the same whether towing or not. I won't go into how low the MPG rating was in 4LO offroad, but it was "less". A great experience though, so no complaints.

Really nice setup!

 

[linuxgod]

For those who want to relocate your trailer wiring plug into your bumper, I may have a solution for you. I just did this on my steel bumper, but I think with a little effort you could do this to the factory plastic too.

One of the issues with relocating the factory trailer wiring harness is that it's quite deep, and there aren't many places with sufficient depth for it to fit where it's not hitting the frame, or mounted so low that you'll take it off if you drag your bumper. Fast forward to a newer type of trailer plug that Curt makes which is shorter because it utilizes as USCAR socket on the back side. I can measure precisely but total depth is about 3", as opposed to ~5-6" that is normally required. I drilled a hole and wired this to a normal 7-pin trailer plug, then just inserted that into the existing factory trailer socket. To give me more clearance I moved the factory socket way up high, though I suspect you could find a place to secure it even if you still have the spare underneath.

I'll be curious to see if anyone else tries this with a factory bumper. My RLC is steel and is probably an inch or two deeper than the Toyota tupperware, but I'd bet there's enough space to fit this solution in the factory bumper.

Instructions I wrote up on the RLC installation are below, but would apply to any installation, you'd just need to find the right spot.

 

[eatSleepWoof]

For those who want to relocate your trailer wiring plug into your bumper, I may have a solution for you. I just did this on my steel bumper, but I think with a little effort you could do this to the factory plastic too.

One of the issues with relocating the factory trailer wiring harness is that it's quite deep, and there aren't many places with sufficient depth for it to fit where it's not hitting the frame, or mounted so low that you'll take it off if you drag your bumper. Fast forward to a newer type of trailer plug that Curt makes which is shorter because it utilizes as USCAR socket on the back side. I can measure precisely but total depth is about 3", as opposed to ~5-6" that is normally required. I drilled a hole and wired this to a normal 7-pin trailer plug, then just inserted that into the existing factory trailer socket. To give me more clearance I moved the factory socket way up high, though I suspect you could find a place to secure it even if you still have the spare underneath.

I'll be curious to see if anyone else tries this with a factory bumper. My RLC is steel and is probably an inch or two deeper than the Toyota tupperware, but I'd bet there's enough space to fit this solution in the factory bumper.

Instructions I wrote up on the RLC installation are below, but would apply to any installation, you'd just need to find the right spot.

View attachment 3034104

That is a great freaking idea! And so simple!

I've been wanting to relocate the existing connector for years, but am constantly putting it off knowing the pain that will be involved in finding a new mounting location. A smaller, aftermarket connector will make life much easier.

Come to think of it, it may be even simpler to use a pre-built 7-pin trailer extension cord and mount that in the bumper cover!

 

[linuxgod]

That is a great freaking idea! And so simple!

I've been wanting to relocate the existing connector for years, but am constantly putting it off knowing the pain that will be involved in finding a new mounting location. A smaller, aftermarket connector will make life much easier.

Come to think of it, it may be even simpler to use a pre-built 7-pin trailer extension cord and mount that in the bumper cover!

I have a ~2' extension, but even trying to turn the 7-wire cable the damn thing is like 5.5-6" deep. It's really hard to find one that is less until I ran into this solution

 

[eatSleepWoof]

I have a ~2' extension, but even trying to turn the 7-wire cable the damn thing is like 5.5-6" deep. It's really hard to find one that is less until I ran into this solution

I'm going to give it a shot with my '14 LX. Just ordered these parts:

1. Hopkins 40974 Multi-Tow 7 Blade and 4 Flat Connector; this is identical to OEM plugs on the Tacoma, Tundra, etc. Seems to be very low profile.
2. Hopkins 40985 Universal Multi-Tow Harness Connector; this plugs into the above connector and has 7 wires that need to be connected to the vehicle.
3. Reese Towpower 74127 Plastic 7-Way Flat Blade Trailer End Connector; I'll connect the wires from item 2 to this male connector and plug it into the OEM hitch wiring.

Will share an update when I get a chance to set this up.

 

[linuxgod]

I'm going to give it a shot with my '14 LX. Just ordered these parts:

1. Hopkins 40974 Multi-Tow 7 Blade and 4 Flat Connector; this is identical to OEM plugs on the Tacoma, Tundra, etc. Seems to be very low profile.
2. Hopkins 40985 Universal Multi-Tow Harness Connector; this plugs into the above connector and has 7 wires that need to be connected to the vehicle.
3. Reese Towpower 74127 Plastic 7-Way Flat Blade Trailer End Connector; I'll connect the wires from item 2 to this male connector and plug it into the OEM hitch wiring.

Will share an update when I get a chance to set this up.

The one concern I had was if the plug moves a lot could it crack the plastic bumper. The bumper is pretty thick and tough though as I found trying to cut mine, so that may be a non-issue.

If you have any concerns get a piece of steel or aluminum, drill a 2” hole in it, cut it to fit behind the bumper, and then mount the plug with that as a “base” behind the bumper to distribute the stress

 

[eatSleepWoof]

The one concern I had was if the plug moves a lot could it crack the plastic bumper. The bumper is pretty thick and tough though as I found trying to cut mine, so that may be a non-issue.

If you have any concerns get a piece of steel or aluminum, drill a 2” hole in it, cut it to fit behind the bumper, and then mount the plug with that as a “base” behind the bumper to distribute the stress

Yes, a metal mounting plate behind the bumper cover crossed my mind!

 

[linuxgod]

Yes, a metal mounting plate behind the bumper cover crossed my mind!

Pics when you're done please. Technically I don't need them but I'm very curious now what I could have done.

I measured my setup this morning and the Curt USCAR-to-7pin plug plus the USCAR wiring harness was 3" deep including turning the wiring. So if you end up short on space behind the bumper, drop the ~$30 on Amazon and buy the parts I listed.

 

[eatSleepWoof]

Yes, a metal mounting plate behind the bumper cover crossed my mind!

Thinking about this some more... The frame can still move independent to the OEM bumper cover, right? So I should not have the backing plate (if I use one) attached to the hitch/frame behind it... right?

 

[linuxgod]

Thinking about this some more... The frame can still move independent to the OEM bumper cover, right? So I should not have the backing plate (if I use one) attached to the hitch/frame behind it... right?

Correct. All you'd possibly want is a plate behind the bumper skin to distribute any flexing/movement forces from the plug across a large section of the bumper skin... otherwise your plug is typically just held on with 4 little bolts. Basically from outside-to-inside (or rear-to-front) it's just a sandwich of 7-pin plug with 4 bolts, bumper skin, metal plate, washer and nut. Shouldn't touch the frame at all

 

[eatSleepWoof]

Correct. All you'd possibly want is a plate behind the bumper skin to distribute any flexing/movement forces from the plug across a large section of the bumper skin... otherwise your plug is typically just held on with 4 little bolts. Basically from outside-to-inside (or rear-to-front) it's just a sandwich of 7-pin plug with 4 bolts, bumper skin, metal plate, washer and nut. Shouldn't touch the frame at all

Right, thanks for confirming.

The plug that I ordered mounts in a different way; rather than using bolts, it "clips" into an opening that I'll have to cut in the bumper skin. Depending on the thickness of the material those clips are designed to hook on to, it may not be possible to use a backing plate. But time will tell. The bumper cover's curvature may also introduce some challenges for a backing plate. I'll figure something out!

 

[eatSleepWoof]

And here we go:

Details are all in this post.

 

[OBXDreamer]

I cut the plastic molding around the towing area so that I could keep the plastic piece in place while towing… Brian L.

 

[dcs111]

I cut the plastic molding around the towing area so that I could keep the plastic piece in place while towing… Brian L.

View attachment 3053873

How does access to the safety chains work?