Towing capacity of a 2004-2009 prius

I have had a hitch for three years. Tow utility trailers and my 475 lb sailboat plus trailer regularly. No problem. I won't tow our 1900 lb camper except a few miles, slowly. Big demand on the drive system and and brakes have much more work to do with a trailer and load over 1,000 lbs. I think of 1,500 lbs as a limit if there aren't too many hills or high temps.

 

Whoa--I wouldn't even think about doing this. That's a lot of trailer for a car that is not intended to tow at all. We have an 18' open bow in the family--about 2200 lbs with the trailer, and it's a pretty good workout for the body-on-frame 4runner we use. You definitely know it's there. It increases stopping distance dramatically and some of the jounces on highway bumps are pretty scary. Boat trailers have the axle(s) pretty far back and although resting tongue load is still fairly light, the forces the boat trailer puts on the hitch while going over bumps can be pretty severe. It's enough to cause a loss of control, even with a vehicle rated for twice the towing load.

I really hope you reconsider. I've heard the Highlander Hybrid is a nice tow rig, and it's rated to tow a fair bit. Please don't use the Prius, for your own safety and the safety of others.

 

I regularly tow a caravan at around 2240 lbs without problems, but the maximum gross weight for the van is actually 2360 lbs . This van also has a large frontal area "wind resistance". I tow at sensible speeds "maximum 50 mph on normal roads 60 mph on motorways" and have climbed hills up to 1 in 5 (20%). Fuel consumption has averaged at 49 mpg UK gallons. I tow with a hitch weight of 130 lbs.
The car is a 2008 at 110,000 miles, and the outfit is shown below.
While certainly not the best tow car I have driven in the last 50 years, it is by no means the worst.




John (Britprius)

 

done laughing, towing a boat is serious, launch ramps etc. wet/steep inclines etc. hauling leaves 2 dump probly ok. if you r going 2 do it at least try 2 balance as much as possible with your car. briprius rig looks kewl but euro stuff is made for smaller cars/tite spaces. seriously.

 

Toyota who designed and built the car says NO TOWING, I wonder why?

 

i could see the plate, but no brake lites is legal?

 

No picture.

John (Britprius)

 

That doesn't seem very logical, lol. I'd change it.

I'm not sure of gen II transaxle fluid change details, would think it's similar to gen III. Maybe gen II owners can chime in, provide some links/info?

 

I would change it for a number of reasons. The fluid in the Prius transmission does three actions.
(1) Lubricates all the bearings and gear train.
(2) Acts as a coolant transfer medium.
(3) Acts as an insulator for the High voltage winding's on the mg's.
The fluid if not changed carries round metal particles from the ware in process. These in the long term can damage the bearings and winding insulation as well as making the oil more conductive to the high voltages used in the transmission. The oil looses it's viscosity over a period of 30,000 miles. Proven by oil analyse on many occasions here on PC.

John (Britprius)

 

I'm thinking the OP should phone his insurance company and check if they cover him considering Prius is not approved to tow anything.
I do have an 18 feet boat myself and the boat/trailer combo is over 3000 lbs loaded with fuel and gear. I would be especially concerned about prius pulled into water on steep wet and slippery boat launch.

 

The Prius isn't made for towing, but it depends on the weight of the load and the grade of hill. I don't think it would be hard to tell if your Prius is balking at the load. Test it out (gently) for awhile, and there's your answer.

 

I understand that cars sold in Europe and Australia have more allowance for towing compared to USA.
So, John, what is the official towing capacity for Prius in UK?

 

The same as the US zero. I do not know the regulations in the US as far as brakes are concerned as some comments have been made that braking when towing is very poor. In the UK if a trailer is over a given weight it must have it's own braking system. In the case of the caravan that I tow the caravan brakes stop the car better when towing than when the car is solo.

John (Britprius)