I towed a loaded down 12x6 UHAUL Utility trailer (the open style one without ramp) 225 miles (450 miles round trip although it was unloaded on return) I had approximately 2710 lbs in the trailer/back of truck. I pulled this with my 2002 Double Cab 4x4 TRD Off Road which is Supercharged, I also have 3 inch suspension lift, and 32" tires. Any other vehicle data you would like I can give you. I pulled the trailer with a DeMello Off-Road Wrap around bumper which is made of 1.5" .120 wall tubing (it says on their site that it is rated for
"Off Road" use only because of the cost of having it certified) (disclaimer: I am not responsible for any actions you take regarding the use of this bumper for towing, I am just noting that it can be done), and a Draw Tite Adjustable draw bar. My total GVW was 8830 lbs. with me in the truck so I was really close to the 9000 lb GVWR (170 lbs actually). Below I have posted my weights and transmission/coolant temps with weather data for the days that the trailer was loaded and pulled and then unloaded and pulled back. I had
some major rear sagging, but the truck returned to normal after trailer removal and resettling. The only major issues that I encountered was the higher than expected transmission temps, this was probably due to the high ambient temp. There was one decent that the trailer was pushing me a little but I managed to keep it under control. the elevation change was from about 4000 ft to around 7000 ft. I averaged around 10-14 MPG and driving at around 55 miles per hour it took around 5.5 hrs one way. I did keep the transmission OUT of OVERDRIVE, except for a mile or two after I restarted when fueling (this was not uphill and I did not experience any hunting that I noticed) I inspected the transmission fluid after trip and it does not seam burned. I have a B&M 70264 transmission cooler and HD fan clutch, using Valvoline
MaxLife Synthetic ATF. I did notice some pinging when I was ascending some hills and the truck was really getting into the throttle (I think I did right by towing with Cruise Control on for mostly the long flat stretches and trying to not leave it on in the mountains, if not UH OH!) (I don't have my URD 7th injector installed at this time). Photos below show the trailer attached to the truck at the destination, the back of the truck had a generator (approx 150 lbs), tool box (approx 150 lbs), spare tire (approx 40-50 lbs), and a set of tires for my civic (approx 80lbs).

Here are the weights...
Empty (truck & trailer): 5920 lbs.
Full: 8680 lbs.
Trailer Weight (empty): 1,730 lbs.
Truck Weight (empty): 4190 lbs.
My Weight: 150 lbs.
Load Weight: 2710 lbs.
Truck/Trailer/Me weight: 8830 lbs.

Here is the weather/temp data...
ATF Temp Max: 224 °F (this was at 14:00 on Aug 21th, which was the time of the highest temp 94.5 °F)
ATF Temp AVG: 175-185 °F
Coolant Temp Max: 231 °F
Coolant Temp Avg: 180-205 °F

Weather data for 8/21/10:
As of 10:40 PM Current: High: Low: Average:
Temperature: 83.3 °F 94.5 °F 71.9 °F 83.1 °F
Humidity: 43% 62% 27% 42%


Tabular Data for August 20, 2010
Time Temp. Dew Point Pressure
Towing started at approx 2030 from origin
20:10 90.0 °F 55.0 °F 29.87in
20:17 88.0 °F 55.0 °F 29.65in
20:23 88.0 °F 55.0 °F 29.87in
20:33 84.0 °F 55.0 °F 29.87in
20:43 84.0 °F 57.0 °F 29.88in
20:54 84.0 °F 61.0 °F 29.90in
21:15 82.0 °F 61.0 °F 29.69in
21:23 82.0 °F 61.0 °F 29.91in
21:34 81.0 °F 61.0 °F 29.92in
21:44 81.0 °F 61.0 °F 29.93in
21:55 81.0 °F 61.0 °F 29.94in
22:09 81.0 °F 61.0 °F 29.94in
22:15 79.0 °F 61.0 °F 29.72in
22:23 79.0 °F 61.0 °F 29.95in
22:33 79.0 °F 61.0 °F 29.95in
22:43 79.0 °F 61.0 °F 29.96in
22:54 79.0 °F 61.0 °F 29.96in
23:09 77.0 °F 61.0 °F 29.97in
23:15 77.0 °F 61.0 °F 29.75in
23:22 77.0 °F 61.0 °F 29.97in
23:32 77.0 °F 61.0 °F 29.97in
23:43 77.0 °F 61.0 °F 29.97in
23:53 77.0 °F 61.0 °F 29.96in

Tabular Data for August 21, 2010
Time Temp. Dew Point Pressure
0:14 63.4 °F 56.0 °F 29.87in
0:29 63.0 °F 55.0 °F 29.87in
0:44 62.3 °F 55.0 °F 29.88in
0:59 61.7 °F 55.0 °F 29.88in
1:14 60.9 °F 55.0 °F 29.88in
1:29 59.8 °F 55.0 °F 29.88in
1:45 59.2 °F 55.0 °F 29.88in
2:00 58.4 °F 54.0 °F 29.88in
2:15 58.0 °F 54.0 °F 29.88in
2:30 57.7 °F 54.0 °F 29.89in
2:45 57.7 °F 54.0 °F 29.89in
3:00 56.6 °F 53.0 °F 29.89in
3:15 56.4 °F 53.0 °F 29.89in
3:30 56.3 °F 53.0 °F 29.89in
3:45 55.7 °F 53.0 °F 29.88in
4:00 55.8 °F 53.0 °F 29.88in

Down for the night at 0330 destination, Resumed towing to storage unit at approx 1130

10:00 86.1 °F 56.0 °F 29.67in
10:30 87.4 °F 58.7 °F 29.67in
11:00 88.5 °F 58.1 °F 29.67in
11:30 90.6 °F 57.6 °F 29.67in
12:00 92.0 °F 57.0 °F 29.67in
12:30 91.9 °F 57.8 °F 29.67in
13:00 92.8 °F 56.8 °F 29.66in
13:30 92.7 °F 56.7 °F 29.65in

Trailer unloaded and back on road for return trip at approx 1400

14:00 94.5 °F 56.4 °F 29.64in
14:30 93.8 °F 55.8 °F 29.64in
15:00 92.3 °F 59.9 °F 29.64in
15:30 89.1 °F 58.7 °F 29.63in
16:00 90.0 °F 53.5 °F 29.62in
16:30 91.4 °F 52.7 °F 29.62in
17:00 90.6 °F 61.5 °F 29.64in
17:30 86.9 °F 57.5 °F 29.64in
18:00 88.0 °F 56.1 °F 29.64in
18:30 84.9 °F 56.5 °F 29.63in
19:00 84.5 °F 53.8 °F 29.64in
19:30 83.7 °F 53.9 °F 29.66in

Arrived at origin at approx 1930

20:00 84.4 °F 53.8 °F 29.67in
20:30 84.8 °F 57.8 °F 29.69in
21:00 84.2 °F 58.6 °F 29.70in
21:30 83.3 °F 58.5 °F 29.71in

Note: THE JACK WAS NOT SUPPORTING THE TRAILER

 

U-haul actually let you pick up the trailer with your aftermarket bumper? Or did you pick it up with another vehicle?

 

They did, said nothing about it.