Quote:
Originally Posted by dougmarlow
...We stuck with the hybrid and have been very happy with the combination...
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I've always wondered about durability of the CV transmission that's part of the Hybrid package, and figured that the transmission could be the reason the late model Highlander Hybrids are rated 3500 instead of 5000. Thanks for posting your experience, because I doubt much has been written about towing with a hybrid.
Moving on to Steppy's subject, the 4-Runner is probably a better tow vehicle than a Highlander just because it's a little bigger and built a little heavier. But you pay a little for that in annual gas mileage as well as on the sticker, too.
I just did a quick look and did not see a V8 on the Toyota site, but the v6 in the 4-Runner has 270hp. This is pretty good considering, for example, that Ford puts a 310hp v8 in the Expedition which has a curb weight more than 1000# more.
Ms. Adventure has suggested once or twice that I'm driving a couple mph's too fast relative to what it might say on a sign, but this doesn't happen when we're towing. Since horsepower need increases with the square of your speed, and given that speed correlates with all the bad things about towing (reaction distance, stopping distance, transmission durability, gas mileage, etc.), I keep a careful lid on towing speed compared to my solo self. My trailer tires and the owners' manual assume my speed stays under 65 when towing, and so do I.
My favorite 17% grade is too curvy to want to go any faster, but the Adventuremobile can tow the TM and still hold 40. Together, the TV and TM have 1.5 times the torque per pound than the Ford v-10 motorhome I had a decade ago. So I'm not seeing a need for more engine in my Highlander.
My numbers from the truck scale are here:
http://www.trailmanorowners.com/foru...ad.php?t=10652