I am moving cross-country next summer and trying to figure out how to get my stuff and my 2007 TCH across the country at the same time. For about $500 I can tow a 5x8 Uhaul trailer. For about $1800 I can drive a Uhaul truck and tow my TCH. Obviously I would prefer the cheaper alternative (towing a trailer), but I am worried about towing given the "not recommended" warning. I have not seen any posts on this site re: towing since 2008. Has anyone towed and had good/bad results since then?

 

Best I can find for the 2007 Camry Hybrid is 1000/1000 lbs. This is the way is was written on two sites. Not sure why not just 1000 pounds.

Most trailers are heavy so it would be very important to see if you can get a lighter trailer to use with the hybrid.

If you go with Penske or U-Haul truck, they do have a car carrier you can rent. Its a trailer that sits about a foot or so off the ground. It comes with ramps where you can drive you car up on it. That's the way I brought my '94 Corolla to New Mexico from Garland, Texas. Everything we owned was packed inside the 25 foot truck.

Both rent smaller trucks. Those larger trucks only get around 11 to 13 mpg when driving at 65, but that was in '99.
Penske offers a 'tow-dolly' where only the front wheels are off the ground. With penske the tow-dolly meets the requirements for the TCH where I don't think the U-Haul does.

Your tire size for the 2007 TCH is 215/60 R16 if you want to double check the penske tow-dolly listed recommendations. It shows yes for both the car carrier and tow dolly for this tire size.

web site below is for Penske's car carrier and tow dolly.

http://www.pensketruckrental.com/mov...tow-dolly.html

 

Towing a trailer puts some extra stress on the Hybrid transmission. If you do any towing. I suggest that you consider periodic drain and refills of the ATF and send out a sample of the used ATF for testing to check if the suspended wear materials are excessive. I have been doing this in my Prius (without towing) at 60k mile intervals (my third exchange/test will be in a couple of weeks at 180k miles) so I have a base line for comparison.

JeffD

 

I'm not planning to do any towing other than a one-time, four-to-five day move across the country. If the potential damage to my TCH is more than the $1,000 additional cost of towing it behind a Uhaul, I'll just do that.

 

I would recommend using a truck and tow dolly. When a manufacturer limits towing to something as little as 1,000 pounds, what they are saying is "we actually don't want you to tow anything, but the marketing guys said we had to list something as a towing capability."

Translated, that means nothing heavier than a couple of jet skis on a small trailer towed 10-20 miles to the lake. Cross country? No way I would do that, and considering the gas engine will be running nearly all the time, your mileage would probably be in the 20-25 MPG for the entire trip, not the 35-40 we are all accustomed to getting.

 

I think you're probably right, I'm better off pulling my TCH behind a truck. However, 20-25 mpg is a whole lot better than I will get driving a uhaul.

 

Yeah, the U-Haul will get worse mileage but your car will be spared the hard use. Also remember that the 1000Lbs is not a lot of weight when you subtract the weight of the trailer. Also, your trip will not be just on flat land. Any inclines/hills would put additional strain on the engine/PSD.

Good call on using the U-Haul.

 

A bit off topic but Penske is a lot better than U-Haul.

 

"U" is for U-Haul.
It's not for the Upper Class.

Yeah, "U" is for U-Haul.
And not for the Upper Class.

I got me a U-Haul.
And now I'm gonna haul my.................
.........................stuff.