Fortuner towing problems ?

[JJBotes]

Good evening

The Lord gave me a new Job, which also means a boost in the finance department. Thank you JESUS !!!!
So . . .
I’ve decided to buy a camping trailer, this will happen in Jan’13. This decision also led my towards considering to trade my KZ for a D4D Fortuner.
I only have a few payments left on my KZ, and if I trade it now, my instalments will stay the same. But then I heard some rumours that the Fortuners have safety issues when towing.
Is this true ?
What measures needs to be taken to sort out the problem ?
Or should I skip the fortuner and buy a Hilux ?

The fortuners in the price range are mostly 2007/2008 models.

[george]

I have not heard anything bad about the towing capabilities of a Tuna. On the contrary. A few of my friends have Tuna's which some of them use for towing and they think it is an awesome towing vehicle

[smokintyres]

Hi JJ,

have a look at this article: http://www.wheels24.co.za/News/General_ ... d-20080515

I'm sure this will answer your question regarding the Fortuner towing abilities.

Personally I'm a bakkie person, but it always depends on the personal needs. The towing capabilities will not affect your choice however.

Good Luck

[JJBotes]

Thank you George, its good news. Thank you Gernot, it does . . .

“So keep those tyre pressures up, use a drop plate on your 4x4 when towing and you should be arrive at your destination safely and mostly unaware that you have just towed something the size of a small house.”

I’m also more of a bakkie person, but I’ve considered the following:
1.I’ve never removed my canopy
2.The only time I load the rear to capacity , is when I go camping. Now I’ll be able to put the stuff in the trailer.
3. A Hilux in that price range tend to be more “used”.

. . . . . . But if I find a Hilux in good condition, with a alu canopy @ a good price, I’ll seriously consider it.

[Johan Kriel]

For peace of mind fit OME or Ironman shocks, or the suspension if the money allows, and there should be no issues when towing. Just make sure that the weight distribution on the trailer is correct, else it might push you round.

[JJBotes]

What I read somewhere, is that weight distribution on a trailer should be 40%/60% over the axel, but I don’t know which side should be the heaviest ?

[smokintyres]

The greater percentage weight should be on the vehicle side or else you'll end up with a similar instability problem as with the tow bar mounted too high.

Definitely seems like the Fortuner is the way to go for your purposes Hope you're not planning to tackle a lot of difficult 4x4 trails with the trailer in tow though? But I'm sure you did your homework on that too?

[Rooies]

I fitted Mikems coil pack and Bilstein shocks on the Fortuner and you cannot believe what a difference it made. Speak to Darrel here on the forum he will give you the right advice, I also got about 40mm of lift.

[pietpetoors]

Agree with Rudi, talk to Darrell. Do yourself a favor and call him and chat to him, you will then understand what the problem is and why another suspension will fix the problem. 082-656-4473

[Blackadder]

My understanding is that the weight on the towball should not exceed 40kg.

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[Rooies]

Maybe someone here can tell us more Thinus, I also read that somewhere.

[Rooies]

Maybe someone here can tell us more Thinus, I also read that somewhere.

[JJBotes]

Nope, not planning on doing any serious off-roading with the trailer, just towing it to campsites and a place on a friend’s farm where we like to camp.

I’ll definitely contact Darrell and include the suspension fix in my budget.

[Johan Kriel]

My understanding is that the weight on the towball should not exceed 40kg.

Sent from my GT-I9100 using Tapatalk 2

If you can't pick the drawbar up alone then its to heavy, so yes 40 to 50kg, and not much less than that either pending on the load in the trailer. For empty trailer you may not get 40kg.

[Blackadder]

Jou swaarste items moet op die as gelaai word...binne perke van die as natuurlik...die res van die gewig moet weerskante van die as versprei word tot so n mate dat die gewig op die ball nie 40kg oorskrei nie...ook nie te veel agter die as dat die sleepwa die sleepstang "optel" nie.

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[JJBotes]

Went and tool a Hilux 3.0 D4D / Brand new 2.5 D4D & a Fortuner for a spin . Took some pics of my Hilux to see if I can get her sold for a little more than I got offered for a trade in. But I just couldn’t post the add. So I gave myself some time to think and cool down, took another 2.5 D4D for a spin and thought about things some more.

The D4D’s are really really really nice, but not worth selling my KZ and making debt for SO . . . . .

. . I think I just got “married” to my Hilux. So she’ll be getting the care and extras she deserves. Mikem suspension and SAC intercooler being first on the list. . . . . .

On the Trailer side – The echo4 and the Conqueror Conquest were making my think box tick overtime, but I told the sales person from Conqueror Witbank to put a SOLD sign on a very good condition used Conquest today. She’ll be mine before the 14th of Dec.

[Family_Dog]

I think your decision to hold on to what you already have was a very wise decision!

The new shape Vigo Hilux is something like Windows Vista - if you've got one, you use it but you constantly yearn for the good old solid-bodied IFS that you once had!

(Pop-corn eating time, I guess...)


-F_D

[Polarbear2008]

JJ so how was th honeymoon? (Getting married and all!) LOL!

Jokes aside, I also think you made a wise choice - sticking with what you have/know/trust.

If looked after, your KZ will giveyou good service. I frequently tow an Echo 3 trailer with mine - we toured in June in NAM for 3 weeks and I will not sell her for the world! Especially after the workshop foreman at Swakopmund Toyota said to me that he recons that they beat the Vigos hands down for longlasting and build!

[MORNE]

Ek ry gereeld met my broer wat sleep met sy Fortuner. Hy het n 2010 D4D met n vol old man emu suspensie. Hy sleep n offroad trailer , soms sy Penta en gereeld sy dubble wiel Exculsief Jurgens.
Al wat ek kan se is , hy het genoeg krag en is lig op diesel. Maar as hy oor 100km/h gaan raak dit gevaarlike , die voertuig is onstabiel en swaai heeltyd rond. As hy dieselfde goed sleep met sy Prado is dit n plesier en voel jy dit skaars. Ek sal nooit met n Fortuner sleep nie , en ek is n groot Toyota fan.

[warthog]

I bought Forest ('Tuna V6 4X4) in Dec 2008. Fitted BFG's all around and OME shocks on back.

Towed a real heavy off road trailer through Botswana and Namibia to Epupa Falls and back over Van Zyl's Pass and via Swakop- 6 500 kilo's.

Towed an Imagine Comfortvan off-road caravan via Zim and Zambia to Serengeti and back - 10 000 kilo's on some of the worst imaginable roads.

In spite of wheelbearing on trailer seizing on Nam trip and one of the 2 bolts breaking off on the Imagine's hitch(which I drove with for at least 4 hours on a really, really bad road) I've only once - when deep ruts in a road in Tanzania pushed me around - felt remotely uncomfortable towing with Forest.

Anyone who tows anything weighing more than 750 kg's faster than 100 k/h should have his head examined.

m2cw.

[born2boost]

I tow my race car with a braked double axle trailer weighing about 1.6 tons combined....I can cruise easily at 120kmh with no issues....not sure if the difference is in the trailer ?

I don't quite understand the 40kg on the towball rule? Surely my trailer must be exerting more than 40kg on the towball? How can I measure exactly?

[CasKru]

The general rule of thumb is if you can pick up the nose of the trailer its fine.

AFAIK the limit is usually 70kg. This is to protect the mounting points on the vehicle

Tapatalk

[pietpetoors]

To test it, load the trailer the way you will load it, then connect the hook to a "trekskaal" (what is this in Inglish?) and pick it up with the scale. It will show you the mass which will be exerting on the two bar

[JJBotes]

Dankie manne

Ek gaan die trailer volginde naweek haal. Sal hom dan laai toets sodra ek met hom by die huis is. (kan nie wag nie)

[Family_Dog]

Or use a bathroom scale. Nose weight should lie between 70-75kg, no more, no less.


-F_D

[Ralphlo]

I have towed quite extensively with my Fortuner and its great, I have had no problems at all