Best Tundra in the 2016 -2019 for hauling a 5,500 lb horse trailer / 520 lb tongue wt?

Researching Tundras in CA. I haul 2 or 3x weekly 2 horses & my slant load. Total weight is approx 4,800 - 5,800 depending which horses I load. Trailer unladen weight is 2,620.
MIGHT go Diesel, but really looking for longevity in a truck 300+ miles since I am buying used.
Horses are not like other load types - they shift, move, sway & truck has to be able to support it. Anyone haul horses w the Tundra and can recommend a type (Sr5, Limited, TRD, ) or particular year as best? Foothill area so definitely grades to climb.
Appreciate the insight!!

 

Regardless of the year, you'll likely want to swap out to aftermarket leaf springs or Roadmaster Active Suspension for load handling stability. I did both myself to keep the headlights in focus and have good handling when loaded and I load the truck heavy at times with zero issues. RAS makes a standard and HD kit and I went with the HD. Good luck with your research and truck search.

 

I'm about to vomit a bunch of info onto you. Prepare yourself.

• The Tundra trim levels are a lot more alike than different. Every single trim level can be had with the 5.7L V8, 4.3 gears, and 4wd.

• I would stick to lower trims in a double cab configuration. If you absolutely must have leather and heated seats, the Limited comes in a double cab. A crewmax will also get the job done, but it's just a heavier truck.

• If you go with an SR (bare bones work trim), it will NOT have the 38 gallon fuel tank.

• The next trim level up, SR5, may have the 38 gallon tank, but not always. SR5 trucks that have front bucket seats DO have the 38 gallon tank. If you come across an SR5 with a column shift and front bench seat, it has a 26 gallon tank. That's how you tell. All other trim levels (Limited, Platinum, TRD Pro, 1794) have the 38 gallon tank.

• Toyota deleted the external transmission cooler on the 2019-2021 trucks. They say it doesn't need it. We've only see a couple failures ever. 2019-2021 trucks don't have tons of miles on them yet, though. If you want to tow a lot with a 2019, they are not difficult to install. There are step-by-step videos on YouTube, and @Genuine Cooling Systems sells kits. If not having the cooler even reduces the transmission's life expectancy 20%, that's a problem for me, so I added one to my truck.

Once you have a truck, I would put LT tires on it (Michelin Defenders in the stock 275/65R18 size if it's a towing vehicle that will only see pavement) and Roadmaster Active Suspension (RAS), like @2mchfun suggested. That system made my truck ride like I have a rear sway bar, and I can still articulate when off-roading. RAS also helps a LOT with sagging under a load. The Tundra's stock rear leafs are made for articulating off-road so both rear tires stay on the ground; they will squat under lower tongue weight than you would think.

All said, this generation of Tundra is the most dependable truck on the road today, hands down. A couple of simple mods (those LT tires and RAS), and you're good to go.

I would also search the forum (upper RH corner) for trailer brake controllers. Lots of guys who tow frequently have upgraded from the stock unit.

 

/\ /\ all about right provided said truck hasn't been modified yet. Buying used, who knows, it's possible someone put a 46 gal aftermarket tank in the SR and so forth. So, really you could look at a few in public and talk to the owners to get a firm grasp on what exactly you are looking at before you buy or attempt to modify. Good luck! Also enjoy that saddle time, so much fun!!!

 

WOW this is exactly what I was hoping to learn
THANKS!!!!!!

 

what springs did you go with?

 

With that amount of weight you are into weight distribution hitch territory.

 

Excellent compilation! What '19-'21 Tundras have had tranny failures? I missed them if they were discussed on Tundras.com.

 

I have a 2018 SR w/8' bed. I bought it specifically for towing my Jeep on a trailer. I added the TRD rear sway bar and Helwig helper leaf springs. The 5.7 has more than enough power to get the job done. The only time I wish it had a little more juice is when I'm towing in the mountains. It still has plenty of power but the transmission has to drop down a gear to maintain 70-75 mph up some grades. The biggest pain is the driving range while towing. At 200 miles I need to start looking hard for a gas station. I just ordered the Transferflow 46 gallon tank to fix that problem. It was/is a pain in the butt to pull into a gas station that was not set up for trucks with trailers. Hopefully with the added range I will be able to make it to more RV/Truck friendly gas stations.

A added benefit to the SR is its all vinyl interior. My dog travels with me almost everywhere and he sheds a ton when in the truck. I purchased a battery powered leaf blower that pretty much removes all the hair from inside the truck. Plus it doesn't hold stank like a cloth/carpet interior.

 

2019 TRD Pro transmission failure @ 19k miles

2020 SR5 20k miles (post #84 includes his service ticket writeup)

2021 transmission failure (Reddit guy, shy on details)

 

First One: Tranny crapped out at 19k miles with pretty light duty, towing <3k pounds occasionally. The owner indicated he was meticulous with his maintenance. Nothing indicates it was due to overheating of the transmission. I don't see this as any different than any other model year where the tranny just fails. I have no doubt that there have been similar tranny fails (though not many) with older trucks with the original cooler.

Second one: Not a ton of info. He tows regularly, for work, drives in S4, and tranny failed.

Third one: Agree with you - not much info.

The second one is the situation I would be most concerned with. But out of all the '19-'21 Tundras being used as work trucks on farms, towing, etc., this is all we've heard of?

My truck is having the tranny/front & read diff, transfer case serviced today (scheduled maintenance/PM). I will be checking on the state of the fluids.

 

Dobinson's 5+2 HD packs. Not cheap, but no complaints whatsoever.

 

Thank you. I am leaving in 4 hours to go look at campers and am getting ahead of sag and what not. I am not interested in lifting my truck (yet) so this thread caught my attention

 

Maybe I should add that I used Ironman greasable bushings and shackles for those who want to copy/ use a known solid solution.