What differences should I anticipate changing Tow vehicles

[Kent I]

I have been towing with a 5 sp.1997 Subaru AWD wagon and I am leaning to replacing this vehicle with a new, 2011 Toyota Tacoma , 4 cyl. 5 sp. 2 wd. The hp. are very similar but I will be losing the AWD. Will this make a big difference? The vehicle is also a daily driver for a short distance to work. comments? Any others towing with the Tacoma 4x2?

[Ian-Vicki]

Hi Kent,
I think the biggest thing to worry about is the weight of the extra stiff you'll be tempted to throw in the back of the PU.
Good luck and good camping.
cheers|
Ian

[Perry J]

I have been towing with a 5 sp.1997 Subaru AWD wagon and I am leaning to replacing this vehicle with a new, 2011 Toyota Tacoma , 4 cyl. 5 sp. 2 wd. The hp. are very similar but I will be losing the AWD. Will this make a big difference? The vehicle is also a daily driver for a short distance to work. comments? Any others towing with the Tacoma 4x2?

I had an 05 Tacoma, 4 cyl. 5 sp. and towed a 13' Scamp with absolutely no problems.
My home is surrounded by the Sequoia National Forest and most of my camping is in dispersed areas. My favorite camping spot is 23 miles up a FS dirt road. In the first 11 miles you climb almost 5000 feet.
I got lazy and now have an 07 4 cyl. Tacoma with an automatic transmission and tow a 16' Scamp with no problem. In addition to the trailer I haul my 628 pound ATV in the back on my truck.
I do have Air Lift air bags on the rear to eliminate the sag when I haul the ATV.
I do miss the 5sp. because it has more engine braking on downhill grades.
You can't go wrong with the Tacoma. I think in 2010 Toyota added a limited slip diff. to the Tacoma.
John

[Doug P.]

We have towed our Escape 19 with our Tacoma for a while now and it is great.
The one thing you might want to think about is the V6, it is great on fuel
and lots of power. We just got back to Prince George from Vernon and averaged
16.7 MPG and we loaded the truck down pretty good also.