Tires and towing with my 2022 Limited

The tires on my recently purchased 22 Limited are not exactly what I believe are good for towing. They have a max inflation of 51PSI, and load rating for 2469 lbs. The Yokahama Geolandar XC all season. I've had a thought that Yokahama made a pretty good tire. This may be a good tire besides towing, but the towing I have always done until now, I have ran an LT 10 ply tire that rates max PSI of 80. And I would tow between 70 & 80PSI.

What are people towing RV's with our trucks running with factory size rims?

I have observed these tires are 32.5" tall and a little over 10" wide. My trailer has a max weight just at 7K lbs, its only a 27' North Trail. I recently pulled a 24' race ready enclosed car trailer with generator and tool box in front and a 1965 Chevy II Nova in it. I did air up to 49PSI on the tires for the trip. It was only a 102 mile trip each way (no Nova on the return). The truck felt just fine, although it's not my 2004 Excursion 2WD with a bulletproofed 6.0 Powerstroke. The Excursion is such a sweet towing machine, and has such an amazing ride to it. I bought the Tundra due to looking to travel more now since also recently purchasing the RV and needed a more reliable tow rig.


Thanks in advance for any thoughts,
Mike

 

If you use a tire that is the same as the OE tire for load range. And put another 5 psi in the rear when towing, it should be fine.

The lower payload capacity of the Tundra will ensure that you don’t overload the tires providing you stay in the payload range of the truck. What sort of tongue weight does the trailer have?

You might want to consider using a weight distribution hitch as well just to help return some weight to the front and help with sway.

 

I have always used weight distribution configuration, and a sway control also. I need to buy a tongue weight scale, but feel it is probably 750 or so.


Mike

 

Sounds like you are good shape, the Tundra is a towing beast! You will soon forget about that noisy stinky powerstroke!

 

To enjoy towing in your Tundra I would suggest 2 things.

1. Possibly getting a smaller trailer. It's only a half ton truck and something that is 27' long is a lot of sail for a half ton, IMO.
2. Stop trying to compare any gasser to a diesel. It's on par with wanting an ICE care to compete with an EV for acceleration. They are too divergent. Comparing them will only lead to disappointment.

 

I really love this Tundra. All the technology and the camera system is amazing. I still use my mirrors always, but confirm with the cameras. I will also say that when towing the car trailer last weekend, I was super impressed with the take off ability. This 10 speed transmission is amazing. Of course, now at post purchase I realize about the recall on the motors. I have always loved Toyota trucks from pre-Tacoma days. I had an 84, an 87 and now own a 95.5 Tacoma again (actually gave it to my son). I took off from traffic lights like there was nothing behind me. Now, I know these trucks ingest gas with a load behind them. But they don't hesitate the slightest. I remember pulling the car trailer with my friends Silveraaaado (lol) powered with their 5.3, and it struggled taking off and accelerating at 55mph. This thing just ROLLS!

I was just curious if people towing flt the factory tires were enough for towing.


Mike

 

The truck has to be able to perform to the trims capabilities on the factory tires, so you should be fine from a function/safety standpoint. You might get more a more stable feeling from a stiffer tire, but it is not required to tow within the limits of the truck.

 

I will say that is a concern for what I believe is a 4 ply tire. The RV is 27' from tongue to rear bumper, I understand that is how they are calculated. The box is like 24', like my car trailer but taller of course. I would expect this truck to be able to pull a 7K lb trailer with a 11K lb capacity, yes I have a wind concern for the walls. this camper is actually rated for a 1/2 ton tow vehicle. I definitely have the power for it, I am looking at stability.


Mike

 

I very much appreciate your inputs !

 

The factory tire is "sufficient" for towing within the rated specs of the vehicle.

However, IMO, they are not optimal. Every tire design and selection is made with compromises: traction, ride, handling, noise, tread wear, weight, fuel efficiency, cost, etc are factors to be considered. I'd posit that the majority of 1/2 trucks are glorified grocery getters, so OE's choose a smooth, quiet riding Passenger Car rated tire to sell them, and light, fuel efficient tire designs to meet CAFE standards. Traction, tread wear, and handling take a back seat. The BFG Rugged Fails that came factory on my '13 were hands down the worst tires I've ever driven on.

HD trucks, on the other hand, don't need to meet CAFE standards, just emissions standards. They are typically purchased by somebody looking to haul and tow (though that's becoming less and less the case anymore). So OE's choose the cheapest tire that meets the HD spec for towing and hauling; ride and handling are less of a concern because "it rides like a 1 ton truck". So they choose an E rated tire (or I think some 1 ton SRW trucks even have F rated tires).

So enter the guy that wants to tow with his 1/2 ton truck.

You get one side of the fence saying "It's just a half ton, what do you expect?! Stock tires are great for the meager amount of weight you can... errrr... SHOULD be pulling with your truck! E rated tires are overkill and waste of money! You're truck is gonna ride like crap!! If you wanna pull a real trailer, you shoulda bought a real 3/4 ton truck!"

And then the other side of the fence saying "I wouldn't pull a tricycle without E rated tires! P rated tires are Passenger car tires, and my truck is a truck! Why on earth wouldn't they put REAL tires on my REAL truck that pulls REAL trailers! What's wrong with a little overkill? Aren't you guys obsessed with safety factors already, claiming that my 10k lb tow rating is malarkey and we should stick to rules of thumb wherein I derate my tow cap to less than 5k lbs?"

So you have to find the happy medium. For me, I would never put a P rated 4 ply on my truck again. I haul stuff and pull trailers and have had several sets of tires on the vehicle in both 4 and 10 ply rating. I won't go back to 4 ply. E rated 10 ply tires offer much more than just increased load capacity - they come with a more robust carcass that is better at shouldering loads - even if it is the exact same load your P rated tire can haul - and absorbing road abuse; they have increased tread depth for a longer tread life and better traction in most situations, including dry pavement (comparing like compounds with tread depth being the only difference); they offer more ride tuneability via air pressure. Will they ride stiffer on a completely unloaded truck? Maybe. But folks typically don't buy the exact same tire in a p rated and e rated tire, so it's often comparing a shoddy p rated stock tire to a fancy new All Terrain E rated tire which his apples to pineapples.

I actually DO have the exact same tire in an E rated 10 ply on my tundra and a P rated 4 ply on my sequoia. The sequoia is a grocery-getter/kid hauler/road tripper/dirt road access/mobile that occasionally hauls the travel trailer. It excels at all of these things, but I still chose a p rated tire for weight and ride comfort. To be honest, the ride comfort is almost negligible between the two, but the weight is a little more noticeable. Towing, though, is quite different and where I really appreciate the stronger carcass of the E rated tire. But the use cases are different enough to justify the E rated tire on the tundra and the p rated tire on the sequoia.

One other little tidbit about P rated tires: they reach max load capacity at 35 psi - anything above that is for ride tuning only. I believe the factory door sticker on your truck says around 33 psi inflation pressure, meaning the factory tire is just about maxed out for load capacity.

I would upgrade to set of 10 ply E rated tires if you planning on towing. Just my opinion.