Recommended Truck Tow Vehicles

Thanks for info on ragmopp and MudDog. On the Sienna I had to do all of the wiring myself to install the Prodigy. It was a real pain and I wanted to avoid a complete redo. It sounds like it is a piece of cake to install into the factory harness on the Tacoma. Great news. I have a buddy who has a Tacoma so he is going to let me do some test driving with it.

[Wavery]

Originally Posted by M&M Hokie

Thanks for info on ragmopp and MudDog. On the Sienna I had to do all of the wiring myself to install the Prodigy. It was a real pain and I wanted to avoid a complete redo. It sounds like it is a piece of cake to install into the factory harness on the Tacoma. Great news. I have a buddy who has a Tacoma so he is going to let me do some test driving with it.

I see that the 2010 Tacoma is available with 4x4 Double Cab 140.9 in. WB Base V6. It's also available with a short bed 127" WB. I would recommend the longer WB. Check the Tow Rating.....Cars.com says 3500# but I don't think that includes the tow package. Not all Tacoma's are created equal. Trying one model may not be a good representation of another.

Here is a list of the available models:
---------------------------------------------
Common standard equipment for all styles

4x2 Double Cab 127.8 in. WB PreRunner V6 $23,675 $21,694
4x2 Double Cab 140.9 in. WB PreRunner V6 $24,175 $22,152
4x4 Double Cab 127.8 in. WB Base V6 $25,870 $23,706
4x4 Double Cab 140.9 in. WB Base V6 $27,250 $24,971
4x2 Access Cab 127.2 in. WB Base $19,380 $17,973
4x2 Access Cab 127.2 in. WB PreRunner $20,140 $18,678
4x2 Access Cab 127.2 in. WB PreRunner V6 $21,595 $20,027
4x4 Access Cab 127.8 in. WB Base $23,215 $21,531
4x4 Access Cab 127.8 in. WB Base V6 $24,770 $22,973
4x2 Access Cab 127.2 in. WB X-Runner V6 $25,460 $23,613
4x2 Regular Cab 109.4 in. WB Base $15,345 $14,373
4x2 Regular Cab 109.4 in. WB PreRunner $16,230 $15,203
4x4 Regular Cab 110 in. WB Base $19,305 $18,085
http://www.cars.com/go/search/detail...e&aff=national

[ShrimpBurrito]

FWIW, wiring the controller into my Sequoia took all of about 15 minutes. Physically mount the controller with screws, route the wire, plug in the harness to the existing factory-supplied connector (using vehicle-specific aftermarket harness someone else mentioned), and you're done. Piece of cake.

Dave

Thanks for the info on the F150's guys, as much as I like the Tacoma, I can't imagine it gets much better gas mileage then the F150. Plus the F150 hauls more and has more room. Hard decision. I'll try and drive them this week and see if I have a preference.

Originally Posted by ShrimpBurrito

FWIW, wiring the controller into my Sequoia took all of about 15 minutes. Physically mount the controller with screws, route the wire, plug in the harness to the existing factory-supplied connector (using vehicle-specific aftermarket harness someone else mentioned), and you're done. Piece of cake.

Dave

On my Sienna, I had to install the class 3 hitch receiver, route brake and charge lines from front of vehicle to back, tap into brake pedal switch circuit to drive the brake controller, install extra harnesses in the Sienna brake lights to drive the brake/turn signals. Then I discovered that backup lights weren't included in those extra harnesses so I had to remove the whole back hatch panel to find a good spot to tap into that circuit and route that too.

It took "slightly" more than 15 minutes. LOL

My F150 5.4 came with cls IV hitch and fully wired. The integrated brake controller works so well that I hardly notice the trailer. The 6 spd with tow mode is a definite plus. Tranny temp guage is standard. 5th and 6th are both ovdrive. Mileage is as good as you can get with vehicle of this class. Much quieter and smoother than my previous 09 RamVan 2500. Highly recommend it or a similarly equipped competitor.

I have an '05 Tacoma with the tow package and 6 speed manual (5' bed). I tow our '02 3023 with no issues in the Rocky Mountains and only on the steepest of slopes did I ever have to leave 4th gear (Roger's Pass), and it was only for a few seconds. Gas mileage doesn't change much when towing unless you have a heavy foot and are trying to be quick off the line.

We bought our TM in Utah and immediately after taking ownership, turned right back around and drove straight back to Alberta through the night. Going up and down the various mountains, passes, hills, straights, etc... I could barely tell we had a trailer attached.

It should be noted that you do need a weight distribution hitch to tow the full 6500lbs, but I suspect you already have one.

With regards to the Prodigy brake controller, I opted to buy the $10 Toyota harness so that I didn't have to do any wire splicing. It was truly plug and play and the hardest part of the installation was deciding where I wanted to put the controller mount. I ended up screwing it into the door of the change cubby. It's just enough out of the way of my clutch leg that I don't hit it, but still within reach if I wanted to manually engage the trailer brakes or make adjustments to the boost, etc... while towing.

At the end of the day, I've been pretty happy with my truck and its abilities towing the TM. I'd recommend it, particularly if gas mileage isn't much of a concern for you. I will admit that the new Ford's are certainly appealing, as are some of the newer GM models, particularly with the huge rebates being offered as of late. Larger cargo capacity, better mileage, similar pricing, etc... I'll stick with my Toyota for a few more years at least... =)

Jeremy

[SCBillandJane]

You will see in my signature that I chose a full size truck when we bought our Trailmanor. I get an average of 14 to15 mpg towing. I have had a high towing in Florida of 19 mpg while going 45 mph to a low of 11 mpg in Alaska where it took 7 hours to go 120 miles on the Top Of The World Highway.
I knew that sometimes there would be more than two of us on long trips. The back seat of the Tacoma size truck is not comfortable for an adult on a long trip in my opinion. On the other hand, a full size truck is not fun to drive or park on a daily basis in the city. Since my truck sits at home most of the time when not towing, milage and big size are not as important as comfort, extra power, and safety.
My truck has the trailer towing option which I recommend for any brand of truck. That option often gives you things like a heavy duty battery or a more powerful alternator to help run your lights and refrigerator while traveling. A wiring harness was included with the option and there is no problem hooking up a prodigy. Check to see if the mirrors allow good vision. With the towing option, my Tundra has excellent mirrors. Check the turning circle to see how quickly it will turn to let you back into that camp site. If your wife will also be towing, have her sit in the trucks to check for comfort and ability to see with out having blindspots.
All tow vehicles are compromises. I wish you luck in choosing the one best for you.

The TM was in garage storage since September until last weekend when we resumed camping. It was a great time in Los Padres National Forest but I finally decided that we are going to step up from the Sienna. The wife and I are opting for a 2010 Tundra DoubleCab 4x4 5.7L V8 with the tow package. I expect I will be satisfied with its performance compared to the Sienna.

Just to put a nice bow on this thread, we finally took delivery on the new tow vehicle. We opted for the off road package which includes the tow package instead of just the tow package. I can't wait for the first camping trip later this month. I haven't decided yet if I plan on continuing to use the WDH but I certainly don't "need" to. I love this rig