Towing with 3rd gen Tacoma

[Explorer56]

Hi, i'm new to the forum. We've just ordered an E17B and our choice was determined based on trailer weight. We'd much rather change our order to E19 or E21 but the added weight is a concern. Tacoma's are not good tow vehicles, at least the 3rd gen isn't. But we do quite a bit of exploring and off-roading and its a superb vehicle for that. So we're keeping the Tacoma and now the task is to fit a trailer with it.

We like the Escapes simply because of the materials and workmanship. However they are on the heavy side, particularly because of the added second axle on the 19 and 21. I've not seen any other trailers in the 15ft-18ft range that have tandem axles. In order to stay with single axle, we've ordered the 17B.

Is there anyone who has towing experience with a 3rd gen Tacoma and an E19 or E21? I am certain that my 2017 Tacoma can pull these, but how well does it tow them? I've read reports of going into 3rd gear at 4000rpms at the sight of an incline. Also, what kind of fuel efficiency are you getting while towing?

We have a habit of traveling from BC to southern CA, Arizona and surroundings. Given the distance traveled, fuel economy becomes an issue, especially at today's prices. With our 2007 Aliner (popup) we've been getting excellent fuel economy and it weights about 2,400lbs, just a bit lighter than the E17B. Of course it's relatively low profile, with the Aliner roof as high as the roof of the cab on the Tacoma.

Anyone have any thoughts or advice?

[salmo7000]

I’m surprised no one has replied to your post yet, seems like there are quite a few here who tow a 19 or even a 21 with a Tacoma, and the same year as yours.

I don’t have a Tacoma so I can’t really answer your questions or offer advice, other than to suggest you might do a search on this topic, as it has been discussed a lot in the past. I’m pretty sure your truck would do a great job with a 17B though.

Best of luck!

[brroberts]

I know there are threads on this already with the pros and cons. I’m guessing that’s why not much response yet. Try typing Tacoma into the search box

[Doug2000]

I have had many Toyota's and regret selling the 2008 Tacoma after 10 years. I traded for a 4Runner and now have a Tundra.

The new Tacoma doesn't tow well. The torque is too high in the RPM range. The 4.0L I had towed my 2007 17B with ease.

The new generation of Escape trailers 2017 and up are heavier than the previous generation. My 2007 17B was way lighter than my 2020 19.

If it was me and I wanted to keep the Tacoma, I would look for a up to 2016 first gen 17B.

[Vermilye]

I towed both a 2011 17B & a 2017 21C with a 2016 Tacoma Off Road. It was OK with the 17, although while I loved the truck, my previous tow vehicle was a V6 RAV4 which I sometimes liked better as a match for the 17.

When I switched to the 21C I tried to keep the Tacoma, if fact, towed 9000 miles with it, but in the end switched to a F150 3.5 EcoBoost. Better mileage with the Ford, far more comfortable and no longer high RPMs and stopping at every gas station. I did love the Tacoma for off roading & parking lots, but it didn't work for me with the 21C.

[Explorer56]

Thanks so much everyone for your replies. The 3rd gen Tacoma has 2 overdrive gears, 5 and 6. With our current low profile Aliner we can tow on level ground in either gear. Once the weight/air resistance of a trailer causes you to switch down to 4th gear, the fuel economy will suffer significantly and it won't be a pleasant drive. Doug and Vermilye, did you find that you could not stay in 5th gear while towing with the Tacoma?

[Vermilye]

Originally Posted by Explorer56

Thanks so much everyone for your replies. The 3rd gen Tacoma has 2 overdrive gears, 5 and 6. With our current low profile Aliner we can tow on level ground in either gear. Once the weight/air resistance of a trailer causes you to switch down to 4th gear, the fuel economy will suffer significantly and it won't be a pleasant drive. Doug and Vermilye, did you find that you could not stay in 5th gear while towing with the Tacoma?

While it depended on the grade & speed, my Tacoma, when towing the 21, spent most of the time in 4th or lower.

I also forgot to mention that with the 21C, my Tacoma payload was overloaded by 150 - 250 pounds. With the F150 I have close to 800 pounds still available. I do carry lots of stuff...

[Rossue]

With respect you are quite possibly making a fundamental mistake: matching a trailer to your current tow. It really should be the other way around and unless you are both minimalists the 17B for extended trips can be quite the challenge.

We bought our first Escape- a used 2010 (2850 #'s wet)17B , towed it with a Murano which did ok, got an AWD Highlander which was great, all within the first six months. Probably had over 100 nights by then. Saw an ETI post about a 21 available and jumped. Then got a Full-Size SUV. Loving it ever since.

[Selkirk]

I thought it was ill-advised to tow in overdrive with an automatic period....even if the tow vehicle has sufficient power to do so. I had understood that doing so was was very hard on the transmission.

[Explorer56]

Originally Posted by Vermilye

While it depended on the grade & speed, my Tacoma, when towing the 21, spent most of the time in 4th or lower.

I also forgot to mention that with the 21C, my Tacoma payload was overloaded by 150 - 250 pounds. With the F150 I have close to 800 pounds still available. I do carry lots of stuff...

We don't carry that much extra gear, so that part would be ok I think, but towing in 4th does not sound like a fun trip.

Thanks for your reply Vermilye

[Explorer56]

Originally Posted by Rossue

With respect you are quite possibly making a fundamental mistake: matching a trailer to your current tow. It really should be the other way around and unless you are both minimalists the 17B for extended trips can be quite the challenge.

We bought our first Escape- a used 2010 (2850 #'s wet)17B , towed it with a Murano which did ok, got an AWD Highlander which was great, all within the first six months. Probably had over 100 nights by then. Saw an ETI post about a 21 available and jumped. Then got a Full-Size SUV. Loving it ever since.

Rossue you are making an interesting point here. There is a trade-off...we want to explore the canyons of Utah and Death Valley and need a capable 4x4. We also need to tow a trailer. Which is most important?

If we had a more capable tow vehicle there is no doubt we would go for the 21.

Perhaps we should look at the GMC Canyon diesels and see if there is a model that is ok off road. Thanks for your reply.

[brroberts]

Both the Canyon / Colorado and the Ranger are capable Escape tow vehicles. I’ve not read up on it, but the Gladiator also has a 7600lbs tow rating.

[tractors1]

I tow a 2014 21 with a 2013 Taco, 4L crew cab long box rated to 6200 lb tow, and do use overdrive on the flats with no problem. Mountains I'm in 4th. Zero problems, 14 mpg towing.

[Explorer56]

Originally Posted by Selkirk

I thought it was ill-advised to tow in overdrive with an automatic period....even if the tow vehicle has sufficient power to do so. I had understood that doing so was was very hard on the transmission.

Selkirk, thanks for your reply. We've towed our Aliner (2,400 lbs) plus gear down to the Mexican border from Canada several times. This was with a 2007 Colorado Z21 4x2. The torque converter locked into o/d almost all of the way except when going uphill. The truck had a tow package including a transmission cooler and I used a friction modifyer that was added to the transmssion fluid (B&G). The fluid still looked brand new afterwards.
The Tacoma also has a tow package with a transmission cooler. It still has the factory transmission fluid but I will upgrade it to the B&G product. Unfortunately Toyota chose to use a sealed transmission so you can't check the colour of the fluid.
Anyway, from my experience towing in o/d is ok on level ground but the truck will downshift anyway if it needs to.

[salmo7000]

Originally Posted by Explorer56

Rossue you are making an interesting point here. There is a trade-off...we want to explore the canyons of Utah and Death Valley and need a capable 4x4. We also need to tow a trailer. Which is most important?

If we had a more capable tow vehicle there is no doubt we would go for the 21.

Perhaps we should look at the GMC Canyon diesels and see if there is a model that is ok off road. Thanks for your reply.

Unfortunately, GM has stopped making the Canyon/Colorado twins with the diesel, as of this month. It still might be possible to find a new one, but I’d get on it ASAP. Or you could wait until the 2023 models are released. Although they won’t have the diesel, from the numbers I’ve seen, they will have higher torque, payload, horsepower, and tow capacity than either the current diesel or gas models. If I was in the market, for sure that’s what I’d do, along with looking at a Ford Ranger. A Canyon, Colorado, or Ranger would easily allow you to tow a 21.

But I still use the word “unfortunate” when saying the baby Duramax is no longer available, as the best part for me owning one has been fuel economy. I just returned from a 3-day trip and averaged 19.3 mpg towing my 19 in the mountains of Idaho. I know of no other tow vehicle/trailer combination that can match or beat that, except maybe the 3.0L Duramax in the Chevy 1500 and possibly the Dodge Ram Ecodiesel, both of which are still available. But these are full size pickups.

And of course there is the minor detail of the $6.00/gallon or so cost of diesel to consider. As much as I love the mpg, it doesn’t make those $120.00+ fill-ups any less painful!

[Rossue]

Is it true Stellantis dropped the diesel because of their own Dieselgate?

[lonewolfjb]

Originally Posted by Explorer56

Hi, i'm new to the forum. We've just ordered an E17B and our choice was determined based on trailer weight. We'd much rather change our order to E19 or E21 but the added weight is a concern. Tacoma's are not good tow vehicles, at least the 3rd gen isn't. But we do quite a bit of exploring and off-roading and its a superb vehicle for that. So we're keeping the Tacoma and now the task is to fit a trailer with it.

We like the Escapes simply because of the materials and workmanship. However they are on the heavy side, particularly because of the added second axle on the 19 and 21. I've not seen any other trailers in the 15ft-18ft range that have tandem axles. In order to stay with single axle, we've ordered the 17B.


Is there anyone who has towing experience with a 3rd gen Tacoma and an E19 or E21? I am certain that my 2017 Tacoma can pull these, but how well does it tow them? I've read reports of going into 3rd gear at 4000rpms at the sight of an incline. Also, what kind of fuel efficiency are you getting while towing?

We have a habit of traveling from BC to southern CA, Arizona and surroundings. Given the distance traveled, fuel economy becomes an issue, especially at today's prices. With our 2007 Aliner (popup) we've been getting excellent fuel economy and it weights about 2,400lbs, just a bit lighter than the E17B. Of course it's relatively low profile, with the Aliner roof as high as the roof of the cab on the Tacoma.

Anyone have any thoughts or advice?

We towed our 2017 Escape 19 with a 2008 Toyota Tacoma and it towed it fine. The 2008 had the 4.o motor not the 3.5 which I think is a better motor but not that much difference. It did lag a little when in the California Sierras at altitude but we just took it easy. I like the dual axel on the 19. We had and a liner with single axle and had a blow out it was very scary!

[AKCamper]

We are towing our 2016 Escape 19 with our 2017 Tacoma and although you have to run the engine to a higher RPM to get the tourque out of the 3.5 it does ok. We get about 11-12 MPG towing in hills and as long as it doesn’t bother you to run the engine at 4000 RPM on steep hills (redline is 6000) it does alright. 60 MPH seems to be the sweet spot to tow at for me. I normally tow with the ECT button pushed and in drive until I get into hills. We love our Tacoma although a bigger rig would tow it better. I got about 15 MPG the other day on a flat stretch towing. With a F-150 with the eco boost you could keep it in drive and probably would get better mileage towing.

[Explorer56]

Originally Posted by salmo7000

Unfortunately, GM has stopped making the Canyon/Colorado twins with the diesel, as of this month. It still might be possible to find a new one, but I’d get on it ASAP. Or you could wait until the 2023 models are released. Although they won’t have the diesel, from the numbers I’ve seen, they will have higher torque, payload, horsepower, and tow capacity than either the current diesel or gas models. If I was in the market, for sure that’s what I’d do, along with looking at a Ford Ranger. A Canyon, Colorado, or Ranger would easily allow you to tow a 21.

But I still use the word “unfortunate” when saying the baby Duramax is no longer available, as the best part for me owning one has been fuel economy. I just returned from a 3-day trip and averaged 19.3 mpg towing my 19 in the mountains of Idaho. I know of no other tow vehicle/trailer combination that can match or beat that, except maybe the 3.0L Duramax in the Chevy 1500 and possibly the Dodge Ram Ecodiesel, both of which are still available. But these are full size pickups.

And of course there is the minor detail of the $6.00/gallon or so cost of diesel to consider. As much as I love the mpg, it doesn’t make those $120.00+ fill-ups any less painful!

Thanks Salmo7000. You gave me reason start checking on the Ranger. I had never considered it a serious contender but the numbers are indeed amazing. I called GM today to inquire about a 'baby duramax' and found out, as you wrote, that they are discontinued. They had one at the lot but it was pre-sold. Interesting comments about Colorado/Canyon and their new upcoming engines. We have time. Our completion date is in June '23 so we need to make a final decision regarding 17/19/21 in February.

Unfortunately there are no models of any kind on the lots to take for a test drive. I could look for a used Ranger and try it out assuming that a new model would perform likewise, then order a new one. This may be a path to follow. Or simply choose the trailer we want, as per Rossue's suggestion, then see how the Taco performs and decide at that time which way to go. Thank y'all for your kind comments and all this helpful information!

[brroberts]

The Ranger is also going through changes for “23.