Sequoia Tow Vehicle report

[Boonter Jeff]

I know the 2023 Sequoia was discussed when it came out.  Wondering if anyone in the group pulled that fairly expensive trigger and got one for towing an Oliver.  If so, wondering how you like it?

[ScubaRx]

A quick internet search on the specs places it somewhere just below the capabilities of a newer model 1/2 ton pickup and way ahead of a '92 Ford Ranger.

[John E Davies]

Unless you only travel with one other person you are going to find the cargo volume to be extremely lacking. Eventually the aftermarket will come up with a full length cargo floor going across the second row, but it hasn’t got there yet. You could pull out that third row and build your own platform, or commission a custom build…. But what a PITA to have to do it.

They need to offer a non- hybrid stripped model (no third row, no hybrid battery poking up out of the deck) for people who actually use the truck for other things than carrying a kid’s soccer team. Then they could add extra fuel capacity there to compensate for the big fuel economy drop. If you plan to tow a lot, you won’t get great mpgs with the hybrid anyway. I like a lot of the truck’s features, and hate a few, but would never buy the hybrid.

If you haven’t seen one in person, go to a dealer and take a close look. Compare the cargo area to a 2022 model with the IRS instead of the solid axle. I looked at a TRD Pro (my favorite) and was pretty darned depressed afterwards, and by the $80k sticker.….

John Davies

Spokane WA

[Boonter Jeff]

I was thinking of vehicle compromise where you could haul some grandkids one weekend and pull your trailer the next.  Good points above though.  Probably our Tundra with the maxi cab is still our best option.  I guess Grandpa could just stealth ride in the back on a sleeping bag with the dog.

[SeaDawg]

Maybe check out some of the vehicles in this article, below.

Honestly,  many of us,want a tow vehicle that does more than just tow. 

https://www.roadandtrack.com/rankings/g44424091/suvs-best-towing-capacity/

[Frank C]

There are a lot of opinions on tow vehicles, but a tour of any campground shows that the vast majority of people choose full size pickup trucks, 1/2 ton and up, as their tow vehicle.  And that’s because it’s about a lot more than just the rated towing capacity of the vehicle.   The payload (cargo) weight rating and tongue weight limits are important too, but as John mentioned above, also cargo volume (space) is a major issue.  We tried towing with large body on frame SUVs (a Ford Expedition EL extended length, and a Nissan Armada), and found that while the towing weight capacity and cargo weight rating was adequate, the bigger issue with the SUVs was not having enough space for all the things that go along on extended long camping road trips.  Things such as bicycles, outdoor rug, camp chairs, awning screen, folding picnic table, clothes drying rack, portable grill, Andersen jack buckets, leveling blocks, large rubber wheel chocks, X-chocks, portable solar panel, water filtration system, generator & gas can, portable waste tote tank, tools, some spare parts, roadside emergency gear, etc.  It’s all stuff we actually do use on trips, some folks can get by with less 🙂.  And a lot of the camping gear gets dirty/muddy at the campgrounds, so better to store that stuff in a truck bed than the carpeted/upholstered interior of an expensive plush SUV.  We finally ended up with an F-250 which meets our needs.   

[ScubaRx]

40 minutes ago, Frank C said:

There are a lot of opinions on tow vehicles, but a tour of any campground shows that the vast majority of people choose full size pickup trucks, 1/2 ton and up, as their tow vehicle.  And that’s because it’s about a lot more than just the rated towing capacity of the vehicle.   The payload (cargo) weight rating and tongue weight limits are important too, but as John mentioned above, also cargo volume (space) is a major issue.  We tried towing with large body on frame SUVs (a Ford Expedition EL extended length, and a Nissan Armada), and found that while the towing weight capacity and cargo weight rating was adequate, the bigger issue with the SUVs was not having enough space for all the things that go along on extended long camping road trips.  Things such as bicycles, outdoor rug, camp chairs, awning screen, folding picnic table, clothes drying rack, portable grill, Andersen jack buckets, leveling blocks, large rubber wheel chocks, X-chocks, portable solar panel, water filtration system, generator & gas can, portable waste tote tank, tools, some spare parts, roadside emergency gear, etc.  It’s all stuff we actually do use on trips, some folks can get by with less 🙂.  And a lot of the camping gear gets dirty/muddy at the campgrounds, so better to store that stuff in a truck bed than the carpeted/upholstered interior of an expensive plush SUV.  We finally ended up with an F-250 which meets our needs.   

Very well stated, Frank.

[SeaDawg]

And, some of us don't carry folding picnic tables, nor bikes, awning screens, massive tool kits etc, etc.

Some people camp a lot, in home state. Others travel a lot. Either way, what you carry depends on your own judgment. 

I think it's important to point out what you really should have, if you feel the need to carry a lot of gear. 

It's also important to recognize that some of us DON'T carry a lot, and don't "need" it, and don't need a huge truck. 

It all depends on our individual camping styles, and where we go. 

I've been super happy with my Silverado 1500 for over a decade, and it's my daily driver. But, my mom (88) now has a hard time getting into the cab, even with my smurf bars. I'm considering replacing it with an suv. (My husband's truck is way bigger,  and impossible for her.)

I'm watching the new , and used, offerings. I love my truck. And I can borrow an suv from my son-in-law, but that's cumbersome.  I hate change, but, hey, sometimes it is what it is.

Sometimes, we have to look ro the happy medium.

[rideandfly]

1 hour ago, SeaDawg said:

And, some of us don't carry folding picnic tables, nor bikes, awning screens, massive tool kits etc, etc.

Some people camp a lot, in home state. Others travel a lot. Either way, what you carry depends on your own judgment. 

I think it's important to point out what you really should have, if you feel the need to carry a lot of gear. 

It's also important to recognize that some of us DON'T carry a lot, and don't "need" it, and don't need a huge truck. 

It all depends on our individual camping styles, and where we go. 

I've been super happy with my Silverado 1500 for over a decade, and it's my daily driver. But, my mom (88) now has a hard time getting into the cab, even with my smurf bars. I'm considering replacing it with an suv. (My husband's truck is way bigger,  and impossible for her.)

I'm watching the new , and used, offerings. I love my truck. And I can borrow an suv from my son-in-law, but that's cumbersome.  I hate change, but, hey, sometimes it is what it is.

Sometimes, we have to look ro the happy medium.

Yep, agree.

Our 1/2 ton 2022 SR5 Crew Cab 3.4L twin turbo non- hybrid Tundra towing our LE2 does a fine job for our needs. The Crew Cab Tundra does a good job when Grandchildren visit, too.
 

On a camping trip last week on the way to the campground decided to weigh the rig. We always weigh with close to a full fuel tank, two souls on board, and empty black/grey/fresh tanks except for full 6 gallon hot water heater.

This trip we took our normal camping gear in the pickup bed with golf clubs, gear, and cooler in the back seat area.  We played a neat mountain course on this trip, too.

CAT scales weights Tundra and Ollie connected last week.

TV steer axle 3080 pounds                                    
TV Drive axle 3560 pounds                 
Trailer axles 4460 pounds                            
Rig Weight  11,100 pounds

Normally tongue weight is around 480 pounds how we normally load, did not disconnect TV this time to see tongue weight on this trip. The ready to camp weight of our LE2 is under 5,000 pounds.

2022 SR5 Crew Cab Tundra Maximum Weights

GVW 6990 pounds                                         
GAWR Max front axle 4,080 pounds         
GAWR Max rear axle  3,860 pounds         
TWR Trailer Max weight 11,400 pounds      
GCWR Combined TV/Trailer 17,250 lbs

Edit added document:

[ScubaRx]

2 hours ago, rideandfly said:

...Rig Weight  11,100 pounds

The ready to camp weight of our LE2 is under 5,000 pounds.

 

The dry weight of our Oliver on our delivery day was 10-15% more than your camping weight.

Our entire rig weighs almost 19,000 pounds ready to camp.

[rideandfly]

That’s lots of weight. Our Ollie empty weight was lighter than yours when new.

Our Ollie does not have factory solar, it only has one 100AH lithium battery, the Ollie spare tire is transported in the truck bed, and we have much smaller LP tanks installed than all Ollies come with.  
 

With different CAT scales weighing our rig over the years, weights posted are accurate. 
 

Saw the tool chest you keep in the TV, I keep a small 5 pound tool bag for repairs along with another  5 pound kit for PEX repairs. 
 

 

[jd1923]

10 hours ago, Frank C said:

There are a lot of opinions on tow vehicles, but a tour of any campground shows that the vast majority of people choose full size pickup trucks,..

I'm with Frank. You have an Elite I, get a half-ton truck. The Elite II requires a 3/4-ton truck, certainly if you plan to drive mountain passes. Get a Diesel and save $$ in fuel costs across country, 

My weights are in the middle. 13,220 lbs. truck and trailer, with fresh tank full and another 35 gal in the truck bed (yes, life out in the SW requires 580 LB in water, try that in an SUV), Truck alone was 7220 LB on 8800 GVWR, and our Oliver weighed right at 6000 lbs. We have room in both. If we were to go on a 4-week trip, I could see adding another 1000 lbs. I like these numbers. We had a class-C RV and were always fighting 14K LB GVWR.

Just got a truck toolbox on Craigs. It's deep and can hold our Coleman grill with its stand, trailer jack, a jack stand, emergency triangles, all my tools and more. These are the kinds of things you may need. Check out my new layout. The small toolbox is for camping/cooking equipment. Toolboxes and water tank will be mounted soon, each is evenly spaced out, so lawn chairs and the like can fit between. Also, there is room for 8 FT lengths of lumber (where you see the scrap wood), for if I have to get supplies.

One thing that may be hard to see in the pic, is the back half of the 8 FT truck bed is still empty! 😊 

[rideandfly]

On 9/24/2023 at 11:02 PM, ScubaRx said:

The dry weight of our Oliver on our delivery day was 10-15% more than your camping weight.

Our entire rig weighs almost 19,000 pounds ready to camp.

Checked our Ollie's original yellow tag, RV Trailer Cargo Carrying Capacity in the closet. The original empty weight of our LE2 #75 was 4860 pounds with a cargo capacity of 2140 pounds. Our ready to camp weight is under 5000 pounds with empty fresh/grey/black tanks, with full 6 gallon water heater reducing Ollie's weight by placing the spare wheel/tire in the pickup bed, replaced two group 27 batteries with one Lithium 100AH battery , and replaced original LP tanks with smaller tanks. Our style of camping will not work for all campers here, but works great for us. Our entire rig weighs in at 11,100 pounds with a 2022 Tundra TV during our last camping trip with the trailer tongue weight fitting within the 9% to 11% of trailer weight as required by the Tundra's operators manual.

The latest generation Toyota Sequoia has the same engine as our Tundra, but the new Hybrid Sequoia has more torque/HP than our non Hybrid Tundra. Previous comments in this thread are valid when interior space of the  Hybrid Sequoia is compared to 4 door Crewcab pickup's available storage space. Our Tundra has plenty of power for our style of camping, but as mentioned above, I understand why some folks here need a HD truck for LE2 towing duty.  HD trucks are not required for towing an LE2 Ollie safely if care is taken with overall weight management and complying with TV operators manual. I have not towed through any western US mountain passes yet with our current Tundra, but someone here recently posted in another thread about towing their LE2 with a 2023 Tundra through +10,000' mountain passes without any issues.