...... purchased new , it was a 4 speed standard shift (clutch) .
This truck's engine was one of the earlier 90 degree V6 motors , rated at 115 hp. and 175 lb.ft. torque .
Now looking at that V6's hp. and torque ratings from an earlier model auto , and comparing them to similar (and even higher rating numbers) for a modern 4 cyl. engine ... I can't see why the V6 should be considered stronger or more capable in any way .
The rear end gearing for my truck may have been a little lower than the Camry's passenger service gearing , but that I don't know for certain (just a guess truck vs, car) .
One would think that it was a very light duty truck , but quite the opposite was the reality . Because it was the GMC S15 instead of the Chevy S10 , it's suspension and brakes were considerably heavier duty . The only thing I changed on it were the rims and tires , and that was before it left the dealer's lot ... upgraded to 15" .
But just how much load could that little V6 deal with ?? After all it was going to be used full time for construction purposes and on often occasion it would have to haul loads greater than it's conservative 1700 lb. suspension rating .
I often made that little truck work like a full size to earn it's keep . It's little engine had no problem what so ever hauling a cube plus of cynder block (3000 lbs.) ... it towed a boat (1-4 times per week) from early spring until winter that weighed 3000 lb. (plus the trailer weight) ... so there's not a doubt in my mind that a 115 hp./175 lb.ft. engine has all that's needed to do a good (if not excellent) job of dealing with those weights and never complaining about it .
For the towing-launch and retrieve part , the truck handled that w/o any concerns at all (and you know boat ramps can get steep sometimes) ... when I layed cubes of block in the 7' bed , that did made it squat a little more than was fair to it . Cornering needed to be approached conservatively , and the front end felt a bit too light on the steering with those 3000 lb. loads . The rear springs eventually lost probably about 20% of their original luster , but I expected that at the least .
So basically what I'm getting at here is a strong running 4 cyl. with 140 plus hp. and decent torque of perhaps 150 lb.ft. should not even show any signs of concern just pulling a light trailer load of 1000 lbs or less . The weight is not on the auto's suspension , but I agree with posters that mention the tongue weight needs to be considered , and if nessasary adjusted properly so it's ballanced with the vehicals (Camry's) rear suspension needs ... a small tranny cooler is always a good idea for an AT that will be used for towing too .
I know the Camry is not a truck , but since it's only being asked to pull around a very light trailer load of 1000 lbs. or less (probably much , much less) ... I personally wouldn't give it second thought , it should be up to the task w/o question ... unless as said earlier this particular Camry is for some reason feeling weak and run out which doesn't seem to be the case about how you feel about it's present strength .
But given the choice between a truck and the Camry ... well like you string , I'd go truck just because they are usually heavier in the suspension dept. , but I'd never worry about the drivetrain of the Camry pulling that light trailer around .
ps., ... the little S15 pulled it's weight every day for 9 years , and was then retired to light duty service , later sold off and the purchaser ran it for ??? more years .
Eric Keep in mind that Subarus generally have more torque than most other four cylinder vehicles, especially at lower rpms. Gotta love those Subaru boxer engines
It’s no big deal Towing with a 4 cylinder car is fine. My Hyundai Elantra (2.0 liter, 4 cylinder) easily hauls a utility trailer, sometimes loaded with over 1000# of firewood or building supplies, on hilly New England roads. For that matter, I pulled the same trailer with my old Excel, which only had a 1.6 liter engine, again without problems. As with any trailering, you just have to be conservative, keep your speed down and leave extra room for braking.
You can get a Draw-Tite Sportframe hitch (Class 1 hitch) which is all you need for hauling kayaks. They’re reasonably priced and generally easy to install. You’ll also need a wiring kit that will tap into your existing brake and tailight wiring. It will probably take a couple of hours to get everything installed.
GVWR is the most important thing to consider here. The total weight that your vehicle is rated to tow/carry combined. If you’re towing a trailer and 4 boats, with 4 200 pound people, and 100 pounds of gear, you will probably be pushing that rating. If you are going to tow once in a while for local trips only, you will be fine, althought in addition to the excellent suggestions above about transmission cooler addition, I would swap out your standard brake pads with heavy duty pads. Braking is going to be a MUCH bigger concern than pulling. Make sure your tongue weight is correct. When hooked up, the rear of the car should not be squatting, and the trailer should be LEVEL.
you should be fine 1k with a modern 4 cylinder is nothing to worry about, 1k is a relatively light tow. People are reacting by thinking of the 4 cylinder of the past, the one in your camry should be perfectly fine unless you’re crossing the continental divide. In which case I might just get the transmission cooler.
I also had a nissan sentra, and a vw rabbit, towing a 1200# camper. It was a bit slow and required downshifts on the hills but other than that, no problems.
Did you carry boats on the roof a lot? Gear on a roof rack at highway speeds puts almost as much strain on an auto transmission as towing does. I knew lots of roadies who fried their transmissions at 60-80k miles - culprit was fighting all the wind resistance with bikes up top at 70mph…
don’t know about that Torque and Subaru are terms that I wouldn’t pair. The 98 Outback I drove was useless below 2500 rpms. Power band on that car reminded me of 2 stroke dirt bike.
Good point but no I did not carry too many times a kayak at speed with it. Plus only the reverse gear failed so I’m still not sure why… I could drive forward just fine but I’d better plan not to have to back-up -
Kayak hauling has mainly been the duty of the '02 Prius and I can tell I’m getting a 5-10 mpg hit on the highway… But its transmission is completely different so it does not matter there.
Suby did well pulling Pulled an 800lb trailer behind a 1998 Subaru Outback out to the west coast and back (Vermont). Put in a transmission cooler before I left. No problem. Traveled on the flats at usual highway speeds. Lots of downshifting in the mountains but the car still runs well 3 years later.
go for it I’ve towed two 600 lb harleys on an open single axle trailer with my 1990 camry. Once to arizona and back and twice to florida. I live in ontario canada.
I’m wondering if the 1000lbs you mentioned is not gross weight of trailer and contents, but maximum tongue weight.
I had no problems at all. Still averaged around 28 mpg. Make sure you have a proper hitch and safety chains etc. You will feel the weight behind you to some extent and you need to allow extra time to accelerate and for braking. A good quality trailer makes towing much easier also.
That 1,000-pound tongue weight you are suggesting is for vehicles in a whole other league. Here's a description of Class III trailer hitches that can be found on lots of different websites, with my own comments added here and there:
"Class III hitches are weight carrying (WC) and also are weight distributing (WD) hitches depending on the vehicle and hitch specifications. Not all Class III hitches are rated to be both. ... Class III hitches used as weight carrying is rated up to 5000 lbs. gross trailer weight (GTW) with a maximum trailer tongue weight (TW) of 500 lbs. ..."
Note that this is normally the most heavy-duty hitch application you will see on pickups and large SUVs in the 1/2-ton class.
"... Hitches that are used for weight distributing are rated up to 10,000 lbs. gross trailer weight (GTW) with a maximum trailer tongue weight (TW) of 1000 lbs...."
Note that this setup is almost never used with any vehicle less rugged than a 3/4-ton truck. Though 1/2-ton trucks can "get by" with such a load, it's not a good match-up and is well outside manufacturer specs (read "overloaded").
"... This style of hitch typically uses a 2" square receiver opening. The use of a ball mount and hitch ball of the same rating or higher is required. To use the weight distribution side of the hitch a weight distribution system is required. Class III hitches attach to the vehicle frame only."
There's no place on a Camry that's strong enough to mount such a hitch. You will never see a Class III hitch on a Camry or similar car, and will never see one pulling the kind of trailer that has the kind of tongue weight your are thinking of.
Trailer weight, not tongue weight The OP said the trailer weighs less than 1000 pounds. That’s not tongue weight, it’s gross weight. The tongue weight will be much less.
After manitou described how easy it was to pull his Harley cross-country (which was quite believable) he suggested something that was not correct: "I'm wondering if the 1000lbs you mentioned is not gross weight of trailer and contents, but maximum tongue weight." Rather than just tell him he was mistaken, I provided some details to make it clear just how huge that tongue weight would be, since he wouldn't have been wondering such a thing if he were picturing the scale of the situation.
Just as you do, I position my posts to show who I'm replying to. Further, I wouldn't have said that kind of thing to the original poster after posting once to him, and once to someone else, that there won't be any trouble at all pulling the kind of trailer he's talking about.
Cars, Trailers and Insurance I have seen the following information on the web before and I have directly asked salesman if this is true and some didn’t not deny it.
That is if you are operating a vehicle that isn’t rated for towing or are towing a trailer that exceeds the manufacturers towing rating on that vehicle and then you have an accident while towing, your insurance company will consider your policy null and void plus you might be personally held responsible for the bill for all damage to other vehicles or private property that is involved in the accident.
I’m asking if this is true as I don’t know if this is a fact, but thought it might be something to be possibly aware of.
towing I used to tow an 1800lb Starcraft Starmaster 6 trailer with my '89 4cyl Ford Topaz(and we all know what GREAT cars they were) with little problem, but first I took it to the trailer dealer and asked what I needed.
Here’s what I did- changed the 195 thermostat to a 190 (allows it to open earlier for more flow),
Added a 10,00lb tranny cooler (Keeps the transmission temps down, especially on hills),
Replaced both front and back brakes with the best semi-metallic pads I could find (run cooler and don’t fade as much as standard ones),
replaced the rear struts with the heaviest ones I could get, and bought a class 2 hitch (frame mounted not body mounted),
changed the oil and fluids frequently and ran 10w40 summer and 10w30 winter (higher viscosity oils don’t thin out as much when hot)
That car towed the trailer for 8 years until I got rear-ended and no longer trusted it, and I finally got rid if it in 2004 (with original engine and tranny) at 340,000km (almost 220,000 mi) because the body started to fall off
A few tips- if it’s got overdrive, downshift to drive both up and down hills, it saves the brakes going down and increases the revs going up,
keep an eye on the temperature gauge- back down your speed if it rises too high,
anticipate any changes in traffic, you’re twice as long and twice as heavy as you’re used to,
swing wider on your corners- the trailer will tend to turn tighter than the car,
And the most important-MAINTAIN both the car and trailer in tip-top shape- your life and others may depend on it
Exceeding manufacturer’s ratings… …could be construed as negligent operation, so even if your insurance company doesn’t negate your policy, you could be found at fault in an accident arising from loss of control of your vehicle and/or the trailer. It may be possible to operate outside the limits safely, but you’re probably on your own if you do.
