Towing Issues and Capability

I have a '19 Tundra 4x4 and a 22' toy hauler that weighs in at about 6,000 lbs dry (well within the stated towing capacity). When I hook the TH on the truck, the sag of the rear end is significant - to the point that I worry about damage to the suspension. I live in Colorado and go over a number of passes when I go out boondocking.

I have a couple questions.

1. Does anyone else have this issue with a similar sized trailer? I don't know if the toy hauler is balanced differently to have more weight on the tongue to counteract any weight loaded in the back.
2. Has anyone put airbags or an extra leaf spring to minimize the severe sag of the back end? Were you happy with the fix?
3. When I'm in the mountains, I'm averaging around 3,000 rpms and it will tick up to 4500 rpms going over the passes. Is this okay for the engine or am I putting too much strain on it?

Thanks for any input. I love the truck and it has been flawless for me. After my latest boondocking trip, I'm starting to wonder if I need to go up to an F250 to get a beefier suspension and higher towing capacity. Would love to not spend the money on a new truck but would also love not to kill my Tundra.

 

I’d look into RAS HD rather than air bags. Also, do you have a weight distribution hitch?

 

Used a weight distribution hitch rated for your tongue weight and trailer weight and set it up correctly. No need for suspension aids.

 

I do have a weight distribution hitch, which is one reason I'm surprised by how much it sags. I haven't heard of the RAS HD kit but will look into it. Thanks!

 

I have air bags on my F-150 and RAS HD on my Tundra. I much prefer the RAS. The airbags are kind of a PITA to adjust and tend to leak.

 

Then it's not set up right or it's not big enough for the weight you're carrying.

 

Do you have pics of the setup? Is your truck leveled or a TRD Pro? If it is, that exacerbates the sag.

IME, toyhaulers are tongue heavy until you put a lot of toys in the back. But as @Ruggybuggy said, a WD hitch that has been properly setup should help with the sag. But it won't eliminate the load placed on the rear suspension. I'd expect the rear axle to see at least 800 lbs of tongue weight from that setup (making assumptions here, but a scale will tell you what you need to know exactly). That will usually drop the rear about 2 inches.

That said, I run airbags. I don't like any appreciable sag in the rear when trailering.

 

Here's a picture of the setup. I'll definitely check in to the weight distribution hitch to see if it's appropriate.

 

1. Yes, toy haulers tend to be tongue heavy so they’re not rear heavy when you put your toys in them.
2. RAS HD fan here as well.
3. Those RPMs are no problem at all. The 5.7 was meant to do that. High RPMs do not overstress it.

I’m also curious how your WDH is set up. It should be moving a significant amount of tongue weight to the front axle of your truck and the trailer axles. Here’s a good pic I have posted before. This trailer is heavier than yours, but this shows very clearly what the WDH should be doing:
Upper left: Truck only
Upper right: Truck and trailer
Lower left: Truck and trailer with WDH (notice he’s back within axle ratings).

 

Couple of questions:

1. Are you sure about the 6,000 lb. weight of the trailer? That's pretty light for a toyhauler.

2. Who did the set-up of your WDH, you or someone else? (like trailer supply lot guy)
It's not uncommon for lot guys to not set them up as well as they could be.
You might consider re-doing the set-up on your WDH.

Yes, TH's are generally tongue heavy when empty so they're balanced with the weight of toys in the back. Even still, that's a lot of sag.

My little trailer is 5,500 lbs. and I run it pretty tongue heavy with full 45 gallon fresh tank.

I have a very similar truck... SSM '19 SR5 TRD with just an Andersen WDH and it sits pretty level when hitched up.

 

Thanks for posting this. Really good information. I may try the same thing with the scales to see what my weight distribution hitch is really doing for me. I'm not familiar with RAS HD but it certainly seems to have fans on this page.

 

Thanks for the reply.

1. Just double checked the weight and it's correct.
2. The guy at the dealership set up the WDH. This is my first trailer and the WDH is new to me. Pulled plenty of smaller trailers and a boat but just needed a ball hitch. I'll certainly look into the setup of the WDH and if it is sufficient for the trailer.

 

@Terndrerrr scale tickets illustrate the purpose of the WDH very well. Pay attention to the Steer Axle weight on each consecutive scale ticket: it goes from 3520 lbs without a trailer DOWN to 2980 lbs with a trailer but without a WDH. That weight didn't magically disappear - it was transferred to the Drive Axle (truck rear axle) along with the tongue weight from the trailer. In the third scale ticket, the Steer Axle went back UP to 3440 lbs - almost the same weight as the unladen vehicle, and weight was transferred off of the Drive Axle to the Steer Axle and Trailer Axles. That is what the weight distribution hitch does - redistributes the tongue weight AND the weight transferred from the steer axle BACK to the steer axle, as well as rearward to the trailer axles.

A good guesstimate of how well your WDH is setup is by looking at/measuring the front fender height of the truck before hitching up and after hitching up the trailer. It should remain approximately the same, which tells you that the weight is being well distributed. If setup aggressively, you can even transfer additional weight on to the front axle, but I usually aim to restore the front height, then assess from there. Also notice that in both pictures posted by @Terndrerrr and @SD Surfer the front fender height looks like a stock truck and the rear fender height looks close to leveled out with the front, but not sagging. One look at those setups and you can tell they are pretty well dialed in.

Dialing in your setup can seem somewhat tedious as it is a bit iterative, but once you figure it out, you just have to set it like that every time and you are good to go. What WD hitch did you go with?

 

It's hard to tell from the picture but it appears your WDH is all out of whack. I know it's a PITA but if you don't already have the manual for the hitch, get one and read it carefully and once you understand it completely, set the hitch up correctly. It seems dealers are clueless.

 

The tongue weight of that TH is probably putting you way over your payload/GVWR. That's the other factor you need to consider when choosing a trailer, besides towing capacity.

 

I'd be willing to bet the set up is wrong. Dealership guys are famous for this.

The good news is that setting them up while it can be time consuming, is not very hard. I'd suggest doing it yourself from square one.
What brand WDH is it?

 

Just looking at your setup, it appears the WDH is not setup correctly. Get the instructions for your hitch and follow the steps to get it dialed in. Then verify with scales if needed. A tape measure is usually sufficient to get the hitch properly adjusted.

 

Is this loaded with toys in the back? Like someone said previously, toy haulers are tongue heavy without a load in the back. You will need to learn how to adjust the WD hitch accordingly.

 

In response to a couple of questions:

1. I double checked the weight on the website, not scales.
2. I don't have, but will get, the manual for the hitch. A picture is below - looks to be specked correctly, assuming the tongue weight is under 1,000 lbs. Brand is Curt.
3. The rig isn't loaded with any toys (in the picture from an earlier post). We got this because we were able to get a king size bed that raises up and down. May get toys in the future, but nothing now.
4. I'll try to get the tongue weight from scales this week. I certainly want to avoid being over the GVWR. Should have researched more thoroughly prior to purchase (bad on me).

 

...and thanks to everyone for your input. I'm on a learning curve with lots of this and it's been really helpful!

 

Sounds like you need to invest a grip of cash into some toys in order to safely balance out the tongue weight of the toyhauler. Four or five KTM 500 dirtbikes should do the trick.

 

I like the way you think!

 

Yep, just tell the wife "It's a safety thing Honey."

 

I'm beginning to think this is a significant issue. With a payload max of around 1600 lbs, it's pretty easy to hit that number when loading up for a week long getaway.... If the tongue weight is 15% of the trailer, that's 900 pounds off the bat. throw in people, generator, tonneu, hitch, cooler, full gas tank, etc..., I think I'm over 2000 pounds easy. I'm sure it's probably "okay" to do, but doesn't make me feel very comfortable driving around.

 

I also don't think your Limited has 1600 lbs of payload. What does the sticker inside the driver's door say?

 

Ugghh... I hate to tell you this 'cuz I feel like I'm pouring salt on the wound, but where are you getting that 1,600 lb. payload number?

If it's from a website, brochure, or anywhere other than the sticker in your driver's door jamb don't believe it.

"Max payload" is marketing hype and no actual trucks ever achieve that in the real world.

I'm guessing if you look at the sticker in your driver's door your trucks payload rating is gonna' be between 1,250 and 1,350 lbs.

My '19 is 1,260 lbs. You gain a few pounds with your double cab vs. my CM, but you lose that with Limited trim vs. my SR5... Sorry.

 

6k lb dry? What model is it? And what does it weigh loaded for a typical trip??

You'll need to experiment with how your trailer is loaded, but if it were say 7500 lb loaded up, I would aim for 900 lb of tongue weight. The upside to it being a toy hauler is you can put everything in the back, and it won't overload the rear of the trailer. You want more than 10% tongue weight. 900 lb would be 12% of 7500 lb.

I'd bet there is a sweet spot in there where it will work a LOT better than the pic you posted above, especially with a properly dialed WDH. You just need to experiment.

 

Ouch - 1300 lbs. Explains the sag... as well as possible improper setup of the WDH.

Looks like new toy hauler or new truck at this point. Going over Colorado mountain passes with an overweighted truck doesn't seem like a good idea. That kind of weight overage can't be good in the long run. Too bad - love the truck. I just looked at the towing capacity and foolishly thought everything else lined up. May be looking at F250 or F350 at this point.

Thanks for pointing this out. Should have done my research a bit more thoroughly. Hope someone will learn from my mistake...

 

As @Terndrerrr mentioned, I'd explore your loading scenario more, first. Being a toy hauler, it is weighted tongue heavy. See what some hitch adjustment and loading more weight in there rear of the trailer does; normally loading to the rear of the trailer isn't a great idea, but that's how toy haulers are designed and is preferred for them.

Looking a little more closely at the hitch setup, the spring bars aren't parallel with the trailer tongue. You have some hitch head adjustment to get them more parallel once loaded up. Look at the other two pictures of setups here on the thread - you will see the bars close to parallel (one is an anderson hitch and uses chains instead, but they are also close to parallel with the tongue). I'd start there. Find a buddy that knows how to set them up, or follow a guide on the tube of yews. I'm sure you can get some improvement from the current setup.