Trailer towing

Towing a light load at slow speeds is probably OK. You could consider doing regular (30k mile intervals) ATF drain/refills if you tow heavier loads at higher speeds to prevent build up of metallic particles in the transmission fluid.

JeffD

 

I've been thinking about the same thing Greg. I'm pretty certain that if you have a relatively light weight trailer/load and are mindful of not driving excessively hard that there should be no problems. In particular I think if you are mindful of what routes you take and are able to avoid any particularly large hills or mountains then the ill-effects should be absolutely zero.

You're taking about a snow blower or a lawn-mower and in my case I'm thinking of like a windsurfer or a canoe. I mean it's hardly like we're going to be towing a car or a ton and a half of scrap metal or anything.

 

I have theories.

1) It is a heavy car with a tiny engine. there is less than 900 pounds of passenger and cargo capacity, and if you use it you can feel it trying harder to move.

2) The Prius gets a lot of it's effiecency from aerodynamics. adding a trailer is going to kill that.

3) The HSD transmission is unlike any other vehicle, engine torque is not directly tied to the wheels. Much of it goes through an electrical system which is not sized for towing.

4) In the Gen II, the chassis flexs so much that many owners add an under body brace. More loads will mean more flexing.

5) Perhaps the lawyers at Toyotas are spoilsports.


I would not put a lot of faith on 5).

 

Another theory is that Toyota didn't want to have to answer complaints about the HV battery getting discharged on a long uphill pull. See http://priuschat.com/forums/gen-iii-2010-prius-main-forum/60697-2010-prius-towing-2.html#post1269433 for more on this.

 

Light weight towing has not proved to be a problem for our Prius. We use a SportsRig trailer for our canoe, tandem bicycle, and to haul the occasional bulky item like plywood.

If you want to tow at high speeds for extended times, I recommend adding a ScanGauge so that you can monitor internal temperatures.

Tom

 

Towing limits are frequently less about what you can pull, and more about what you can control and stop. For example, imagine a worst case panic stop; down hill while turning, maybe in the rain. Put an extra 1000# behind your prius and the results might be very bad. Not only might you stopping distance be poor, but the weight could easily slide you sideways or boil your brake fluid, which I can tell you first hand is not a good situation. It's probably not good for the service life of the brake system either. Even a basic kid runs in front of the car panic stop could end badly if the car is overloaded.

 

Ding! Ding! MattFL is the most correct. Toyota cares more about the stopping and controlling part than the actual weight on acceleration. At least this is what they have always told me at truck training classes when asked about it.

 

I have used my Prius for towing my sailboat - the trailer and boat weigh about 750 lbs and I had no real issues. As others have said that the biggest issue is with stopping - I could definitely feel the weight of the trailer and boat pushing me as I slowed. It is not a big deal - you just need to be extra careful.

 

When I bought it I towed it about 150 miles - along Rt 95 from Connecticut to Mass. There were a few rolling hills, but it was fairly level so I can not speak to towing with big uphill or downhill stretches. Now that it is at home I only tow it a couple of miles at a time to the boat ramp. I think that a small utility trailer will be just fine even on longer trips or highways.

 

I have towed with a 4x8 trailer, when uses require, for nearly a year. I don't see/hear/feel anything different with the way the car operates. I do plan on changing the fluids more often than I would if I were not pulling, but that's just common sense. I have a Scangauge II and can obvious tell that the RPMs are elevated and the drag causes about 15 MPG loss. That means 30-35 MPG instead of 45-50 with my driving habits. I've had the RPMs higher just hauling body weight up the Smokey Mountains without the trailer. I have trucks that I could borrow from family, but I always have to ask myself do I want to fill up at 12mpg or 35mpg? I always use my trailer when the load is an acceptable weight. Most of the time you can barely tell there's a load back there. The only pain is having to take it off before I send it for service. I just don't want a visual notification that could cause me problems down the road. When service time comes I'll remove the hitch unless I can find a mechanic in my area that isn't Toyota.

 

I would love to be able to tow a small pop up or teardrop camper with my Prius. Has anyone else tried that and have any recommendations?

 

Take a look at http://priuschat.com/forums/gen-iii...iscussion/88330-towing-tear-drop-trailer.html over in the Gen3 technical forum.

 

If you remove the hitch, it will be obvious to anyone who looks under the car that a hitch was recently removed. If the issue comes up, just say that you use it for a bike rack.

 

I consistently pull a 5'x8' trailer weighing 1500 lbs with my 2011 Prius. I have 128,000 miles on it and have only done routine maintenance. Still original brakes! My hailing trips are over 350 miles. I set the cruise at 70 mph and still get 30+ MPG.

I do NOT recommend this to anyone because I don't want anyone blaming me for a decision they have to make on their own.

I get some crazy looks when I pass people pulling a loaded trailer behind my Prius