FWD Maverick bests RWD Tundra pushing ~7000 lb. tandem axle trailer

[Darnon]

As far as the battery issue, I watched some videos about the poor soldering connections on the harness going to the “high voltage” mega fuse.

That harness is neither high voltage or going to a fuse. It is low voltage and goes directly to a bus bar.

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[LSchicago]

really? i did not know that. no offense but is that documented in the manual or something like that? i've on had my 2023 for a month and have not yet noticed that reverse is always electric.

It probably is in the manual. I don't have my ordered truck yet, so no manual to read.

 

[colinl]

I get that it's only 250 feet, and I can't say for sure that I wouldn't have tried this.

But that's so much more than the hitch is rated for, and the truck, that I'd be a little worried about bending something. Plus you're pushing it rather than pulling.

 

[GPSMan]

I get that it's only 250 feet, and I can't say for sure that I wouldn't have tried this.

But that's so much more than the hitch is rated for, and the truck, that I'd be a little worried about bending something. Plus you're pushing it rather than pulling.

Ever pushed a car in neutral with your bare hands? I have. 200 pound individual pushing 4000 pound car.
It wasn't necessarily uphill but you get the idea, forces were not too great.
Also the trailer at the time had not much downward tongue weight either, which was probably why the RWD Tundra had trouble.

 

[GPSMan]

Ironically, it was a 2012 Tundra that towed the Space Shuttle.

Do you think the truck was "Space Shuttle Rated" in the manual?

Cheers! Check out the video:

 

[JimParker256]

A few years ago, there was a guy who went around the country proving how strong he was by towing a Boeing 747 about 50 feet across the taxiway, all by himself. Yeah, he was a big, strong guy, but it's really all about overcoming the initial rolling resistance when the item you're pulling in on wheels, and on a perfectly level airfield.

I once tried to tow my utility trailer (loaded to about 2500 lbs weight) on damp grass. It didn't matter that I had a 350 hp gas engine in my 1/2 ton pickup, nor that it was rated for towing up to 11,000 lbs or so... We just watched the wheels helplessly spin on that grass... My neighbor brought over his 15 hp tractor and pulled my truck out of the grass, with the trailer still attached. It wasn't even a struggle for the tractor... Massive torque, low gears, and ribbed tires for traction made it ridiculously easy.

Electric motors are known for offering the same torque at very low RPM as they do at high RPM, so the "electric-only" reverse in the Maverick should be a stump-puller - if you've got the traction to keep the wheels from spinning!

 

[James K]

My father in law has a 2018 RWD Toyota Tundra.

We tried to put a ~7000 lb. tandem axle trailer in the backyard. This involved going uphill, in reverse, over green lawn. It was mid-day, 2 or 3pm. The grass was green but not wet with dew or anything. The Tundra wouldn't do it. Excessive wheel spin over and over and started to tear up the grass.

Figured what the hell. Let's try the FWD HYBRID Maverick. It only would be 250 feet we need to move it, but uphill, in reverse, over grass.

Would you believe ZERO wheel spin and it pushed that trailer uphill in reverse on the first attempt?!

My only nuisance was the truck wouldn't "creep" at 1 mph. Had to be 2 mph. Because I was on a slope, at 1 mph and under it kept applying the automatic hill hold feature (brake applies). I can totally live with that.

Color the whole family here impressed. No one thought it would. But this is "The Little Engine That Could" in every respect.

(now if only I could get the 12v battery to stay charged! lol!)

I also own an Austin Healey Sprite and have no problem challenging corvettes to races as long as I get to pick the track. I love your story but the situation actually maximizes the Maverick FWD strengths while also maximizing the Tundras weaknesses.

 

[JimParker256]

I also own an Austin Healey Sprite and have no problem challenging corvettes to races as long as I get to pick the track. I love your story but the situation actually maximizes the Maverick FWD strengths while also maximizing the Tundras weaknesses.

Yep - horses for courses! In the mid-70's, I owned a VW Karmann Ghia. Mechanically, other than having a slightly lower center of gravity, it was basically a VW Beetle. Mine was "well worn" to say the least, and had severely oxidized red paint that looked more "orange" than red... A totally unimpressive car, and rightfully so. I think I paid $650 for it.

The guy in the dorm room next to me had a brand new Dodge Coronet "Super Bee" and was incredibly proud of his car. It was GO-MAN-GO orange with the white "Super Bee" stripes, mag wheels, and super-wide tires. Of course, it had the requisite Hemi engine, which had been "hopped up" (his words). He often claimed that he could beat anybody, anywhere, in any car with his Super Bee... I got tired of his incessant bragging, so I publicly accepted his challenge, provided I got to pick the road. He knew what I drove, and started laughing immediately.

Well, I took him into the mountains of E Tennessee, and my "course" was a tight, curving road that ran along the banks of the Little Tennessee River. I told him the road was way too narrow to allow for actual passing, so the challenge was to run the road twice, once with him in the lead and me behind, and see how close I managed to stay to him by the time he got to the end of the course. Then we would reverse the order and run the course the other way, he would "try to keep up." Again, he laughed...

When we did the first run, he pulled away from me on every tiny little straight, but I would reel him back in through the next series of turns. Since there were WAY more turns than straights, I was right on his tail when we got to the end. On the second run, I pulled away through the first series of turns, and lengthened the lead (despite his faster acceleration on the straights) as the course went along - to the point he could no longer even see me ahead of him.

Then there was a long-ish straight (maybe 150 yards?) about 2/3 of the way through the course where I caught a glimpse of him in the rearview mirror as I entered the next series of turns, but that was the last I saw of him. By the time I got to the end of the route, I was almost a minute ahead.

At his request, we each had the other guy's roommate with us to verify the results. His roommate - tired of the incessant bragging - took absolute delight in retelling the story of just exactly how the "Super Duper Bee" lost a race to a Volkswagen...

 

[GPSMan]

I'll bet anyone $100 I can break a wood ruler in half with a paper napkin in 10 seconds or less.

 

[Automate]

I get that it's only 250 feet, and I can't say for sure that I wouldn't have tried this.

But that's so much more than the hitch is rated for, and the truck, that I'd be a little worried about bending something. Plus you're pushing it rather than pulling.

All Maverick hitches are class 3 and therefore rated for 8000 lbs. as far as bending. https://www.curtmfg.com/types-trailer-hitches

 

[colinl]

All Maverick hitches are class 3 and therefore rated for 8000 lbs. as far as bending. https://www.curtmfg.com/types-trailer-hitches

One would generally use the lower rating of either the truck or the hitch. The hybrid is only rated for 2,000 pounds but a Maverick using that same factory hitch could be rated for 4,000 pounds.

That's what I meant about being nervous it might bend. Not the hitch failing, the unibody frame of the truck bending.

 

[GPSMan]

One would generally use the lower rating of either the truck or the hitch. The hybrid is only rated for 2,000 pounds but a Maverick using that same factory hitch could be rated for 4,000 pounds.

That's what I meant about being nervous it might bend. Not the hitch failing, the unibody frame of the truck bending.

And the bodies are the same.
So again; no concern here.

 

[Automate]

One would generally use the lower rating of either the truck or the hitch. The hybrid is only rated for 2,000 pounds but a Maverick using that same factory hitch could be rated for 4,000 pounds.

That's what I meant about being nervous it might bend. Not the hitch failing, the unibody frame of the truck bending.

There is no difference between the unibody frame around the hitch between a 2k Maverick and a 4K Maverick.

F = ma
Force = mass X acceleration

If you accelerate the vehicle very slowly then the forces on the vehicle will be very small.

 

[GPSMan]

^What he said.^

 

[AznMav]

But the Tundra is more reliable.

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