Towing with a Highlander

[tanman4]

Have any of you ever towed a PU with a Toyota Highlander?  It is rated at 3500 GVWR and most of the PU's we are looking at getting are well below this rating loaded.  I am concerned because every picture I see of a PU has a bigger TV than a Highlander.  Any suggestions to this newbie would be appreciated.

[wynot]

Have any of you ever towed a PU with a Toyota Highlander? It is rated at 3500 GVWR and most of the PU's we are looking at getting are well below this rating loaded. I am concerned because every picture I see of a PU has a bigger TV than a Highlander. Any suggestions to this newbie would be appreciated.

When we were looking at replacing our minivan with another TV, I found out the Highlander only had a 3500 lb tow rating (same as our minivan), so we never looked at it.  A Highlander (if I understand correctly) is a Camry on steroids, so it is not a framed vehicle, a crossover vehicle and similar to most FWD minivans.  Also how the 3500 is determined is another factor, as at least some of the Japanese vehicles' tow ratings are based in addition to a loaded TV.
 
Only words of caution I would say is that I believe most of us (definitely including me) have a lot more in our campers loaded than we realize or want to know.  We have a Utah, that I am sure is at least 3,500 lbs, and I don't want to know if I am overloaded, because we have driven it this way for 5 years.  If I had a tow rating of 3,500 lbs (like we did with the minivans), I might worry more.
 
There's no denying that it is far more preferable to tow with a TV that has a 7,700 lb tow rating vs one that maxes at 3,500.  Much better acceleration, and braking performance.

[SpeakEasy]

We tow with the V-6 all-wheel-drive Highlander. Our popup is about 2000 lb unloaded, and I estimate about 2800 or 2900 loaded. The Highlander tows like a champ!

The only thing you're going to want to watch is the amount of weight you carry in the Highlander itself. You've only got about 950 lb. capacity, and the weight of the trailer tongue will take about 250 of that. Passengers will take most of the rest. Most of your gear will have to go into the camper. Figure on that when you are calculating weight capacities.

[abbear]

You need to be careful when asking about towing with a particulat tow vehicle on a trailer site.  You'll get answers all over the place.  The only ones that count are from those who tow with your tow vehicle.  SpeakEasy has given credible testimony as to the ability of the Highlander.  I would recommend that you do a google search to find the Highlander forum and go see what they say.

That said - you need to be very familiar with the rules Toyota lays down for towing.  How does what you carry in the vehicle affect the tow rating?  How much does the trailer really weigh?  The more you know about your vehicle and what Toyota recommends for towing the better job you'll do picking out a popup that won't make you worry.

Good Luck.

[esclark]

You need to be careful when asking about towing with a particulat tow vehicle on a trailer site.  You'll get answers all over the place.  The only ones that count are from those who tow with your tow vehicle.  SpeakEasy has given credible testimony as to the ability of the Highlander.  I would recommend that you do a google search to find the Highlander forum and go see what they say.

That said - you need to be very familiar with the rules Toyota lays down for towing.  How does what you carry in the vehicle affect the tow rating?  How much does the trailer really weigh?  The more you know about your vehicle and what Toyota recommends for towing the better job you'll do picking out a popup that won't make you worry.

Good Luck.

Aabear brings up a great point!  Check to see if there is a Toyota Highlander forum.  When we were buying our camper about one month ago people had all sorts of opinions about if we should tow with our Odyssey.  I went to the Oddy Clud forum and got vehicle specific information from current owners.  Do a google search and check if there is one.  I bet there is.  Best of luck!