Loaded up for camping. Now we’re overweight.

It was a tough call on the F-250 and F-350. I did a ton of research and for what I needed the F-250 worked, and came in the configuration I wanted. If I was in the “Go Big or Go Home” mindset, I’d get a 1-ton diesel and possibly DRW. I agree with @ColoradoTJ - diesels are working trucks meant for big time towing. They’re expensive to buy and maintain.

I needed a truck to haul more than a scoop of dirt and not worry about payload. I unknowingly hauled some dirt a while back way over payload. It was only a scoop which was a little over a yard of soil and I afterwards I got curious and did some research - way over payload with just a single scoop of dirt.

 

Nope, A company the size of Toyota, this is just crumbs off the table.

 

Yup. Half ton trucks aren't super work horses, and the Tundra is operating off needs/standards fron over a decade ago. It's definitely behind the times on payload, but I'm not sure an F150 would have done much better with dirt. If I need to move dirt it'll be rarely, and I know people with a dump trailer and a diesel.

 

My 07 LBZ Duramax was my daily driver. It's still on the road with over 200k. Oil changes, fuel filters, brakes and normal maint and wear items. Not counting the 2000 electrical work when mice ate wires and cooked my ECM. 15 ish round town, 18 -20 on the highway ( unloaded). Haul or pull anything you could throw at it. The best truck I've had to date( don't get me wrong, I love the Tundra). I didn't need a diesel, but I wanted one. If you want payload and pulling power, diesel is the only way to go, and it didn't kill me to use it as an every day vehicle.

 

Nice move on making 3k profit but you just threw out the long-term reliability by switching to a domestic 3/4 ton IMO ..

I'm in the same situation with my 19' Cm , but I will not sacrifice the reliability by trading off my tundra for a domestic , this is the entire reason I switched to Toyota , owned multiple ford ,Gm and Ram in the past 10-15 yrs , all of them had their share of major issues and ended up being money pits. A few of my buddies own older 2007 - 2010 tundra with over 300k on them with minimal cost , zero drivetrain problems , just maintenance and fluids .

When I tow my camper , I'm aware that I'm most likely over payload by a few hundred pounds , it doesn't worry me . I believe Toyota is underrating these trucks with their payload #'s

 

I love how everyone with internet access, a Tundra and a heavy trailer is somehow smarter than the engineers working for the largest automotive company in the world.

 

imagine a marketing department with this pitch to the boardroom:
“Guys, here is our idea, let’s intentionally advertise less capability than our competitors”

 

What are the primary concerns about an overweight Tundra? If suspension sag, can this be overcome with upgraded leaf springs? If braking distance, can this be overcome with upgraded brake pads and lines?

 

No argument on the reliability.l, that is surely a difference maker. I wasn’t going to be a few hundred pounds over, I was going to be way over towing and the Tundra just wasn’t going to cut it. It’s dangerous and not safe.

 

This is true. If anyone thinks the Tundra can haul/tow way more than what it’s rated for safely, they should ask why then Toyota wouldn’t just up the posted weights to be more competitive?

My F-250 has a 3120 LB rated payload. Using the Tundra way of thinking I surely could load 5,000+ pounds and be just fine.

 

Out West, I’ve seen a million tundras with bumpers, sliders, tents, and presumably armor underneath. Even more Tacomas. There’s no way all of those trucks aren’t grossly overweight. I mean, I’m overweight and you’d have no idea because it's all in the cab and under my retractable cover.

To be honest, I can’t believe how well this big fat pig did on some of the trails and access roads.

 

https://activesuspension.com/products/toyota-tundra-1999-2020-hd

 

Helper spring, don’t make ur rig tow and haul more

 

There are so many expo tacoma rigs driving around loaded with armor/look cool instagram gear/ camping accessories. They have to be far over payload

 

I just did a road trip/move from the PNW to SD last week. Fully loaded I weighed in at 6980lbs, w/ full tank but w/o passengers.
So add another 475-500ish for two adults and two dogs. Meaning I was travelling right at 7500lbs. The unloaded weight after the trip was 6060lbs, so I was carrying 920lbs of stuff, plus myself, my wife and the dogs, so call it 1450lbs of payload.
No sag and no weirdness, although the truck didn't like some of the larger/steeper mountain passes.
Averaged 15.7mpg over 2500 miles with lots of stop and go, lots of hills, some trails, and too much idling (it was super hot and we had dogs), which is better than I was expecting.

For reference this is what I was carrying:
On the truck:
Valhalla's front and rear cat plates, oversized AT tires, spray in bedliner, and a Softopper

For the trip:
Queen Ikea mattress
Truck tent for Softopper
All of our camping gear in two Pelican cases
EZ Up and two folding chairs
65qt Cooler
Tool box
Plywood dog platform for the back seat
Rockymounts hitch mount and two mountain bikes
Plus a bunch of stuff I wouldn't normally take camping, but since we were moving it had to come along, ie a shotgun, a rifle and three pistols, plus a bunch of ammo, another Pelican case with a full computer setup and extra cloths, valuables, etc, and a bunch of other odds and ends that were stuffed anywhere I could fit them.

I guess this is all to say I don't see how anyone is packing that much stuff for just a simple camping trip.
If I was not moving and just going camping I could have easily shed about 4-500lbs, maybe more, leaving me plenty of room on my payload cap. If I were pulling a trailer a lot of that stuff would be inside, further reducing the payload on the truck.
I think a lot is being made of the Tundra's low payload capacity, but for normal 1/2 ton use I just don't see how you'd need so much stuff with you that you go over the GVWR. Maybe watch an episode of Tiny Homes and then lay all your stuff out on the driveway and go through it and see if you really need all that stuff with you on a camping trip. My guess is you could easily shed some weight and be just fine.

If you're planning to pull a boat or trailer then as long as the tow itself is not a huge pig you should be able to put most of that stuff in the trailer and have room to spare on both the payload and combined weights.

 

Very true, and the LBZ was the best diesel ever made IMHO. If the winter salt didn't do its damage, no matter how hard I tried to stop it, I would still have it now. I look out my window and see it in my neighbors driveway, she's still pulling a mini -excavator and his toy hauler !

 

Hopefully not the same engineers who deleted Dual HVAC Controls, Lighted Ignition Rings, Amber Flashers/Signals, Dual Glove Boxes, Sliding Consoles, Transmission Coolers,Lights In Door Bottoms,Storage in Crewmax and Driver's Side Grab Handles on SR5 models!

 

The reality is that it is not really overweight. There are so many safety factors built into the suspension, axles, frame etc. that you can safely load a lot more than what is advertised.
There are however 1. lawyers involved, and 2. the Tundra is a light duty truck. Everyone saying they should upgrade the payload, should realize that though it is possible, it will put it in 3/4 or 1 ton classification and that is not what most Tundra owners want.
Also, the rest of the world have Hilux (Tacoma sized), Nissan Frontier, Isuzu etc. that are 1-ton trucks. I grew up on a ranch in South Africa and we loaded 1.5 tons on those Hiluxes all the time. Everything under the Tundra is beafier than a Hilux, so there is no way that loading camping gear and a family is "really" putting it over the limit. By that I am not suggesting that you should load it up all the time since technically it would be illegal to do so, but it is more on paper than it is a technical thing.

 

Most of those sound like accounting decisions, rather than engineering decisions and, other than the transmission cooler, don't have anything to do with the capability of the truck (other than making it lighter to increase payload ).

 

Being over payload and / or towing capacity MIGHT be “safe” and the truck may be perfectly capable. However, should something happen on the road and there is an accident, there isn’t a lawyer in the world who couldn’t prove some type of fault by the operator regardless of situation. The advertised towing and payload capacities protect the truck manufacturer from being held accountable for any type of functional failures and place them strictly on the operator. In legal terms they probably DO underestimate the totals but it is actually to protect them AND the owner of the truck.

When I insured my camper, the company stated in a disclaimer that it would only be applicable if towed within recommended specs of the tow vehicle……

 

Indeed. Some minivans (eg. Toyota Sienna) have more 'payload' capacity than a Tundra.

Yet try putting a few bags of mulch in that minivan and then talk to me about how the vehicle handles - the thing is almost scraping the pavement. 1300 lbs in a Sienna vs 1300 in a Tundra is like night & day.

 

THIS! You aren't the only one on the road or even in your truck. Don't drive over the limits, it's selfish, ignorant, unsafe and illegal.

Most here don't seem to care or think like this though. They buy a trailer that's too big or a truck that can't tow/haul enough and drive it anyways.

 

I don’t quite understand the people who will pay thousands of dollars in mods / upgrades to equip a half ton truck to tow a trailer that is too large or exceeds weight capacities. They put air bags, compressors, heavy duty leaf springs, heavy duty shocks, better tires, etc……..when all that money could have put them in a 3/4 ton truck that would safely tow the trailer they wanted. Sure it won’t be a Toyota but it would be much safer……

 

I would add to this by investing in using a good diesel treatment every time you fuel. I have customer that have had zero issues after putting them on a additive regiment and blows my mind that the companies other terminals haven't adopted the same. Depending on which one you go with, it only adds pennies to your fuel cost, but can save you thousands down the road.

 

Howes is an auto include for any diesel IMO.

 

Absolutely true. Nothing to do with the truck's capability but plenty to do with too much power given to Toyota's beancounters, especially when the "big 3" increase features every year, without making phony "safety reason" excuses, like Toyota did for deleting the driver's side grab handle.

 

Exactly! I just hauled about a 1,000 lbs of “stuff” in my F250 and it didn’t even flinch. My Tundra would have sagged a couple inches. At least on this trip I didn’t break down either.