Moving up from a pop-up

[VectorKing]

Hi everyone. We have had a pup for 12 years and are ready to upgrade. I've just retired and my wife works part-time. We plan to travel and we are thinking of getting a TT. The tow vehicle would be a 2001 Toyota 4Runner 4x4 V6. It lists the GVWR as 5250#. I've just started looking but it seems to me that the most TT we could get would be a hybrid. We definitly want something with a slide. We looked at a 2005 Aerolite Cub 236 yesterday. It was very nice. Anyone have ideas that we should consider? Thanks.

[NLOVNIT]

Hey there VectorKing. Welcome to iRV2.

I know one of our longtime members, Jim Slifka (aka Superslif) has a 236 Aerolite Cub that he pulls with a Toyota 4-Runner. I know he & his family LOVE that model Cub. He'll be the one that'll know & will probably chime in here when he gets online.

Lori-

[VectorKing]

Thanks Lori, I hope your friend does chime in.


1996 Coleman Santa Fe
2001 4Runner 4X4
Judy and Bentley (the wife's dog!)

[Superslif]

Yes, this is him. Lori is right, I would be the one to ask. We too had a 99' Toyota 4-Runner (V-6) that we pulled a Coleman pop-up with for 6 years. In 05' we were going to look at another Coleman, but once we popped our heads into a Aerolite Hybrid we were sold. We knew we were going to be buying a 05' Toyota (V-8) 4-Runner which has a towing cap of 7200lbs. Having camped 250+ nights in our 05' Aerolite (#236) were 100% happy. I can say your V-6 Toyota is not going to tow the #236 Aerolite. I would say I'm at about 4500lbs. loaded and I travel light. Having also towed a pop-up with our 99' (V-6) 4-Runner, I could not see it handling that much trailer with a V-6. I'm going to say the #236 is a super floorplan. The counter space is as large as you will find in a 24' trailer. With the small sofa slide it really opens up the trailer. And the cabinets are everywhere. Remember the 05's and newer Aerolites are 8' wide. The older Aerolites were 7-1/2' from model year 04' and older.

Here is a album of our set-up Toyota & Aerolite #236

[VectorKing]

Thanks Jim forthe info. I wasn't sure whether or not we had enough tow vehicle. Seems like we might be cutting it a little too close. Could you give a rough guess about what weight trailer we could comfortably pull?
We don't really want to change vehicles, but I guess we might need to.
Thanks again,
Kevin, Judy and the dog
SW Ohio

[NLOVNIT]

Check in your 4-Runner for a GCVWR (gross combined vehicle weight rating) sticker. That minus the 5250 will give you approx what you can tow. Rule of thumb is take 80% of that number & use that for the GVWR (i.e. loaded) number for the TT you're looking for.

I see by your last post you're in OH. Sorry I missed that before. When you get a chance, check out the North Central & Pond Piggie (regional group - Jim & I are part of the OH members of that group) Forums for campouts. Most of us camp in the NE OH or W PA area but are up for going anywhere. We'd love to have you join us. Sometimes it's just one of us posting where we'll be & others join in, other times we make plans for a larger group campout. If you post when you'll be camping somewhere, others might join you or just stop in to say "hi".

Hope to meet up w/ya.

Lori-

[VectorKing]

Jim, maybe you can help me with my math!! My owners manual lists the GVWR as 5250#. The GCVWR is 9200#. The maximum gross trailer weight (trailer weight plus cargo) is 5000#.
Do these numbers mean that the max weight for the 4Runner is 5250, if the 4Runner is maxed out, that would mean the max I could tow would be 3950#?

I don't know what the 4Runner weighs without passengers and cargo, guess I need to get it weighed and work from there.

Thanks,
Kevin, Judy and the dog
SW Ohio

[Superslif]

GVWR The total allowable weight for the vehicle, including fluids, options, hitch, cargo,and trailer hitch weight. So that 5250 number will include a driver of 150lbs and 100lbs of fuel in the tank. Now we know you would like to bring your wife too right? and dog. So that 5000 is the max for what you can tow. Remember I had a 99' V-6 4-Runner (4x4) which had the same drive line. It had the 183 HP V-6 and 217 lb.-ft & a max hitch weight of 500lbs. Where as the 05' 4-Runner (4x4) I have now has a 272 HP V-8 and 330 lb. -ft and max hitch weight of 750lbs or 1050lbs with a weight distribution hitch. The dry hitch weight of the #236 Aerolite is 315 which is very light for that length of trailer, but I know loaded I'm over 500......I do have a set-up where I put a hitch on the back of the trailer to carry 3 bikes, so that counter-balances some weight off the front of the trailer.

Quote:

I don't know what the 4Runner weighs without passengers and cargo, guess I need to get it weighed and work from there.

My 99' Toyota brochure says the v-6 (4x4) (SR5) weighs 3930lbs

So you take the GCVWR is 9200# minus the 3930lbs and 150lbs for the driver and 150lbs for fuel. And that is where your getting what is left to tow (around 5000lbs)

My V-8 weighs in at 4500lbs. I should know 4-Runners I had a 90, 99 and now a 05. But it sad to say the 2010's no longer have V-8's. back to only 4' and V-6's.....

So to sum this all up....I just can't see pulling the #236 with only a V-6. In my opinion the 01' has a softer suspension that what I have on my 05' The V-6 was fine for pulling a pop-up that weighed like 2500lbs loaded. And you would be over on you max 500lb hitch weight. You might be able to help that with a weight -dist hitch, but your pushing it.

[Superslif]

We do travel in the mountains of Western PA. and Northern PA. VT. and down to Myrtle Beach.....There are a few places in PA. where I wouldn't be caught dead without a V-8. Case in point. Last summer entering the excess road to the Ohiopyle State Park in SW PA. There the hill, it's only 1/2 mile long, but very steep. My V-8 screamed going up the hill. In hindsight, next time I'll come in from another way. There was no way a V-6 would climb that hill with a #236.

Last summer there was a guy pulling a large tt (28' to 30') with a older v-6 4-Runner. The trailer was one of those older models so you know it had to be pushing 6000lbs +. He said he was pushing 3800 RPM's on the freeway. He was way over-loaded.....

I would have to say with my V-8 towing the #236 on the freeway I can keep the RPM's to about 1800 on the flats. And I get 12 to 12.5 MPG. It will stay in over-drive. If I see a small hill I'll pop it out of over-drive to let the tranny do it's work where it feels it needs to be. In town as a daily driver I average 17 city and 23 highway with cheap gas. When used to tow I'll bump it up one octane to get that better MPG. So I'll use a midgrade gas while towing.

[VectorKing]

Well we went ahead and got the 2005 Aero Cub 236 yesterday. We looked at quite a few TTs and HTTs new and used and just really liked the Cub. I realize that we are sorta pushing the limits of our 4Runner. The trailer does have a nice WDH with it though, that should help.
Now its time to get a brake controller. I'm looking at the Prodigy. The problem with that is the specific harness for the 4Runners is for model years 2002 and newer. I've got a 4 pin plug right now and just bought an adaptor to get to seven pins. Unfortunately there are only four wires from front to the hitch. I called one place and they said it might take two hours to refit, at $96 per hour!
Does anyone have any ideas?
Thanks