95.5-2004 Tacomas & 96-2002 4Runners 4th gen pickups and 3rd gen 4Runners

Tacoma: What size ball drop for towing?

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Old Mar 10, 2004 | 08:51 AM
  #1  
bckpack's Avatar
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Tacoma: What size ball drop for towing?

I'm going to actually use my hitch for something other than recovery in a few weeks. I need to purchase a ball drop and ball. What sort of drop is everyone using as the Tacoma rear end is so high? Is a 4 in. drop enough? Also, does anybody have any experience with the ball drops that have poly bushings inside to absorb shock?

Thanks
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Old Mar 10, 2004 | 08:54 AM
  #2  
SLC Punk's Avatar
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From: SLC, UT
Originally Posted by bckpack
I'm going to actually use my hitch for something other than recovery in a few weeks. I need to purchase a ball drop and ball. What sort of drop is everyone using as the Tacoma rear end is so high? Is a 4 in. drop enough? Also, does anybody have any experience with the ball drops that have poly bushings inside to absorb shock?

Thanks
Depends on how high the trailer is.
I had a 4 inch drop on my 94 Ranger with a 3 inch lift on it. I was towing a small PVC trailer.
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Old Mar 10, 2004 | 09:11 AM
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Yeah, it depends on the height of the tounge of the trailer. I use a 4" drop with my 2.5" lifted 4Runner to tow my little 5'x10' utility trailer.
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Old Mar 10, 2004 | 10:18 AM
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From: Atlanta, GA
I use the 1" drop bar that came with the OEM tow package. At first I
though it would be too high but the boat puts so much weight on the rear
end that my truck rides level with the boat attached.

If I attached a trailer without so much weight, I would likely need about
a 4" drop.
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Old Mar 10, 2004 | 01:25 PM
  #5  
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From: Oregon
Smile

I had this question a month or two ago and couldn't find a straight answer. I wanted to get a hitch to carry around in my toolbox for those very rare instances when I need to tow something. I don't tow boats or anything, just the occasional odd utility trailor.

I checked U-Haul's website and it seemed that most of their trailers were good with balls up to 25" high (you might want to check that figure).

Also, for a while I kept a tape measure in my truck and secretly measured a lot of other people's hitch heights as I was cruising thru parking lots and what not. I'm pretty sure the vast majority had their balls at around 17".

I have 3.5" of lift in the rear of my Tacoma and got a 4" drop. That put me right at 17".
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