TrailManor Owner's Forum - View Single Post

Mr. Adventure · 11-05-2011, 11:09 PM

Back to the original poster, maybe there's a manufacturing change that won't support a 500# rated hitch for a 2007 when they were available in the '04's, but I'd bet that the hitch manufacturers have just become reluctant to say things on stickers.

Regardless, ratings are guidelines based on broad assumptions, and this is a gray business rather than the black and white one a lot of folks would like it to be. Different manufacturers rate vehicles differently, and different TrailManor owners haul different amounts of stuff along with their TrailManors. Actual owner experience is very important. My Highlander is rated for 3500#, but because in my owners' manual the 3500# rating means there's really 3500# there for the trailer, there's actually about 4700# available for a payload and trailer between the empty weight of the tow vehicle and it's Gross Combined Weight Rating. Here's my actual numbers and the discussion thread that followed "What it really weighs": http://www.trailmanorowners.com/foru...ad.php?t=10652

I don't believe there is any big power problem with the Lexus/Toyota V6 power train for towing a 4000# TrailManor in the Rockies or elsewhere on the major roads, but in the boondocks you're on your own (that's the point, right?). There could be durability issues that go with extensive amounts of towing in the mountains. There have not been any Toyota V6/transmission failures reported here that I am aware of, in the mountains or elsewhere. If I lived in Colorado Springs I might own a truck like everyone else out there, but I wouldn't hesitate to visit with my Highlander and Trailmanor.

If I was going to do this with the Lexus 350, I would:
- Make sure the hitch receiver uses all six available mounting bolts, not just four which would be a major point of weakness and a sign of a lighter duty product.
- Always use a WDH because it reduces the loads on the hitch receiver bolts and keeps the trailer from unloading the front wheels (which would reduce braking and steering control).
- Keep an eye on all towing equipment.
- Drive conservatively when towing (you're a whole lot safer at 60 than you are at 70 in every recreational vehicle).
- Take it to the truck scale to get good weights. It's the only way to know what you're really doing.
- Remember always that safety is 90+% about how vehicles are driven and accidents are not nearly so often about how vehicles are put together.

11-05-2011, 11:09 PM	#16
Mr. Adventure TrailManor Master Join Date: Aug 2007 Location: Williamsburg, VA Posts: 668	Back to the original poster, maybe there's a manufacturing change that won't support a 500# rated hitch for a 2007 when they were available in the '04's, but I'd bet that the hitch manufacturers have just become reluctant to say things on stickers. Regardless, ratings are guidelines based on broad assumptions, and this is a gray business rather than the black and white one a lot of folks would like it to be. Different manufacturers rate vehicles differently, and different TrailManor owners haul different amounts of stuff along with their TrailManors. Actual owner experience is very important. My Highlander is rated for 3500#, but because in my owners' manual the 3500# rating means there's really 3500# there for the trailer, there's actually about 4700# available for a payload and trailer between the empty weight of the tow vehicle and it's Gross Combined Weight Rating. Here's my actual numbers and the discussion thread that followed "What it really weighs": http://www.trailmanorowners.com/foru...ad.php?t=10652 I don't believe there is any big power problem with the Lexus/Toyota V6 power train for towing a 4000# TrailManor in the Rockies or elsewhere on the major roads, but in the boondocks you're on your own (that's the point, right?). There could be durability issues that go with extensive amounts of towing in the mountains. There have not been any Toyota V6/transmission failures reported here that I am aware of, in the mountains or elsewhere. If I lived in Colorado Springs I might own a truck like everyone else out there, but I wouldn't hesitate to visit with my Highlander and Trailmanor. If I was going to do this with the Lexus 350, I would: - Make sure the hitch receiver uses all six available mounting bolts, not just four which would be a major point of weakness and a sign of a lighter duty product. - Always use a WDH because it reduces the loads on the hitch receiver bolts and keeps the trailer from unloading the front wheels (which would reduce braking and steering control). - Keep an eye on all towing equipment. - Drive conservatively when towing (you're a whole lot safer at 60 than you are at 70 in every recreational vehicle). - Take it to the truck scale to get good weights. It's the only way to know what you're really doing. - Remember always that safety is 90+% about how vehicles are driven and accidents are not nearly so often about how vehicles are put together. __________________ 2005 TrailManor 3023 2003 Toyota Highlander 220hp V6 FWD Reese 1000# round bar Weight Distributing Hitch Prodigy brake controller. "It's not how fast you can go, it's how fast you can stop an RV that counts."