Towing with a Highlander SUV

Hi I have a 2002 Highlander with a 3.0 V6 and we are thinking of picking up a 2720Sl. Anyone out there tow with a Highlander now ? If so is there enough power with this engine ? and how does it handle in the mountains ?

We have an '02 Highlander V6 and would not consider towing with it. Power is OK, but it has a short wheelbase and is rated to tow only 3500 pounds with the towing package. Sorry the news isn't better...although I would be interested in hearing from someone with actual experience towing with the Highlander.

[Mr. Adventure]

The Highlander wheelbase is not appreciably shorter than the Toyota 4 Runner and a lot of other vehicles with great towing experience reports in this forum (107 inches). Your owner's manual shows a full 3500 pounds above the Gross vehicle weight in the Gross combined weight rating for towing (with the towing package). That said, the tongue weights are on the heavy side so you need the hitch receiver with the highest rating you can find, care in how you load the TV & trailer, and a weight distributing hitch, of course. The 2720 SL and the 3023 are about the same weight and tongue weight, and I probably would not tow anything bigger than these with a Highlander.

People out West camp differently than the rest of us, since they have lots of great places to go on government land in the boondocks, while the rest of us usually have electric and water hookups. If I may generalize from about 100 posts here, it sounds like a weekend TrailManor trip to the boondocks weighs at least 500 pounds more than a weekend trip to Williamsburg. So it's possible that you might want more tow vehicle if you plan to spend a lot of time dry camping in the desert or the mountains.

One member of this forum (Geoffrey Card) towed a 2619 to Alaska and back last year and reported a great TrailManor towing experience with his Highlander.

This is what TrailManor has to say, and their recommendations sound great to me:
A few more notes about tow ratings:

Tow ratings for vehicles should be described as “general guidelines”. Actual towing limits depend on towing speed, highway grades, elevation, desired acceleration, miles towed per year, tow vehicle loading, frontal area of trailer, sway resistance of trailer, etc.

TrailManor provides uniquely easy towing per pound due to the very low wind drag and the very stable ride resulting from axle placement.

Light duty towing of a well-balanced trailer a few hundred pounds above the rating is much safer than towing a lighter, poorly balanced unit with a tendency to sway. Also, towing an upright trailer with large frontal area at highway speeds can damage a transmission even if the trailer weight is below the tow rating.

Adding options, batteries, gear, fluids can increase loaded weights as much as 1000 pounds above the base weight of a specific trailer. You should add 500- 1000 pounds to the base weights to estimate the actual towed weight.

Based on feedback from our owners, we provide the following model guidance:

MODERATE TOWING CONDITIONS
Mostly low altitudes, only occasional steep grades, part time service, normal highway speeds - Models 2619 through 3023 need at least 3500 pound tow rated vehicles and Models 3124 through 3326 need 5000 pound ratings.

SEVERE TOWING CONDITIONS
High mountain towing, full time service - all models will perform better with at least 5000 pound rated tow vehicles.

Thank you for this info. We do plan on many long take our time trips in 2 years at retirement. I'll check out the 2619.

Eddieoh Menifee, Ca.

I have an RX330 and I'm planning to get the 2720 Silver Ed. From what I have read here, it seems I'm pushing it to the limit. I checked out the 08 Highlander from the dealership today and the Gas model is rated at 5000lbs and the Hybrid is the same at 3500lbs. The GVWR is about the same for both but the Hybrid is 500lbs heavier and the 3.3 has less torque and hp so maybe this explains the drop in capacity but I can't imagine that it would be a 1500 difference.

I was told that the new Hybrid stiill shares the same chassis as the Camry, Avalon, RX330 and the Sienna. That being said, why are the ratings so different between the RX350 and Highlander 08? They have the same engines and HP rating and the RX is lighter overall?

I also saw a nice 05 Land Cruiser for slightly less than a new Highlander. Of course for towing I prefer the LC but the 19mpg on the sticker bothers me.

I did some math and assuming that the difference is about 5mpg on the highway. It translates to about 0.15 per mile more to run the LC. So I'm talking about $15.00 more every 100 miles.

Has anybody have any experience with the Highlander 08 with 5000 lbs cap?

Keep in mind that everyone has their opinions, I think people have successfully towed with a Highlander and I'm sure if set up correctly you will be able to as well. Sometimes I think people try to justify their huge SUV or Full size truck purchase to themselves when responding to posts on rv boards (the same is true on boards about towing boats, etc). Enjoy the great MPG when you're not towing and go with the Highlander remember not only does it cost you an extra $15 every 100 miles to go with the Land Cruiser but it also continues a tradition of excess that we have established in this country, together we can all decrease demand for foreign oil and help strengthen our country and economy. Even if it is $0.15 at a time.

[Mr. Adventure]

An important question is "Where do you live?" The mountain people face more severe towing conditions than us flatlanders who just visit places at 6000+ feet once in awhile. The Highlander/Lexus is within spec unless you load up the trailer and tow vehicle with lots of gear (40 gal of water, generators, heavy hobbies, all terrain vehicles, mountain climbing accessories, etc.).

Are you planning to camp in camprgrounds with electric and water hookups, or are you going to use your TrailManor as a base camp in the boondocks many miles from civilization?

I would try this for awhile with the Lexus, taking it easy at first, and then decide about whether you need a bigger tow vehicle after you have a couple thousand miles of towing experience.

Recommendations:
- A weight distributing hitch is mandatory.
- The hitch receiver should be rated at least 500#.
- Don't put heavy loads in the front of your trailer or the very back of the Lexus.
- I prefer to inflate my tires to the max sidewall pressure when towing, which gives a steadier road feel than the 32psi the tire shops default to.

Let us know what you decide!

[roned2]

I am a new 2008 Trailmanor 3214KS owner towing with a 2008 gas Highlander. I have limited experience with towing but so far I have found no problem towing with the Highlander. I pulled the trailer home from Ohio to north of Toronto. We plan on going west next year so we will see how it handles the mountains. My guess is that it will be fine but slow in the mountains. Good luck with your choice. We love our Highlander and our Trailmanor. We are currently getting about 15-17 mpg while towing.

roned2,

The 2008 Highlander Gas is rated at 5000 which should be a good tow vehicle. As of now, I'm wife wants me to get the Highlander Hybrid to replace the 2001 "lemon" Town and Country. The problem is the tow rating of that model is exactly the same as my RX.

We live in GA and go to North Carolina and want to drive along the Great Smoky Mountains. But I wont do that until I have good towing experience with it.

[grill-n-go]

I'm not sure about this maybe someone else can confirm. The "regular" '08 Highlander has an automatic 5 speed transmission while the Hybrid has one of those "CVT" type transmission. I'm under the impresion that the CVT type tramsmissions generate a lot more heat than the regular automatic transmission. This may be one factor contributing to the reduced towing capability of the hybrids.