Launch Ramp Issue with Toyota Tundra 5.7L, TRD no 4WD

[Maclin]

Re: Launch Ramp Issue with Toyota Tundra 5.7L, TRD no 4WD

I had issues with a certain (supposedly Premium) brand of tire on a FWD car recently. They had less than 5k miles on them when we got the car, they could not hold traction at all in the wet even with Trac control on. They actually split along the sidewall and had to be replaced. The car was TOTALLY different after that, I was amazed at how crappy the previous tires were in comparison.

Your truck should be entirely capable in this area as is. After my recent experience I would look at the problem from the tire performance angle.

 

[agallant80]

Re: Launch Ramp Issue with Toyota Tundra 5.7L, TRD no 4WD

I don't think its uncommn to get some wheel slip at the ramp. I always pull my boat off of the ramp with the truck in 4-High. Why put all of the stress on your rear u-joints if the truck is in 4X4 then it is taking some of the stress off of the rear. In your case with no 4wd you are just going to have to deal. Go very slow. it will help.

 

[marekli]

Re: Launch Ramp Issue with Toyota Tundra 5.7L, TRD no 4WD

Tires are new Dunlop Rover Hit Traction A rated, 275 65R16, also checked, it has traction control VSC OFF (default is on) and then there is a tow switch (think that is for cooling on the transmission when towing a trailer)...maybe need to familiarize myself a bit more with the override on the auto gear shift and traction control...I am still looking for information on the differential and slip...

TRD stands for Toyota Racing Development. The 07 with the tow package will have limited slip and 4:30 gears with a 6 speed auto..Mine will slip the wheel at the ramp sometimes but i am pulling 12000 lbs out.Tires will make the diff. in yours not having four wheel drive.

 

[jkust]

Re: Launch Ramp Issue with Toyota Tundra 5.7L, TRD no 4WD

Good tires do help tremendously. I'm only pulling a bit over 4k with my suv but some of the ramps are literally shocking as to how steep and poorly maintained they are. Our public ramps generally are on the crappiest part of the lake on the worst land. I've got all the tow related items on both my suv's and the only time the rears even use the locking differential is on sand at which point the fronts will receive power as well. I'm always hoping for a bit of slip just to get some use out of the A4wd or locker and make it feel like it was worth it. I think the fronts kicked in one time this year on one of the inexcusably bad ramps. I believe my tires and tongue weight are what make it so capable and rarely having the other accessories activate. The first thing to assist however is the locking diff...more capable than the limited slip diff as I have identical suv's but one has the locker and the other the limited slip.

 

[marekli]

Re: Launch Ramp Issue with Toyota Tundra 5.7L, TRD no 4WD

[not sure what the question relates to ..... there's no rollers on the deck, so probably bunk. QUOTE=jkust;4401841]OP, what kind of ramp are you lunching at? Shallow, deep. Are you using a bunk or roller trailer?[/QUOTE]

 

[marekli]

Re: Launch Ramp Issue with Toyota Tundra 5.7L, TRD no 4WD

nope

 

[Thalasso]

Re: Launch Ramp Issue with Toyota Tundra 5.7L, TRD no 4WD

What is the tow rating on a 5.7 Tundra?

LK

Mine is 10800lbs

 

[marekli]

Re: Launch Ramp Issue with Toyota Tundra 5.7L, TRD no 4WD

there' s a lot of numbers in the manual but 10.8k seems the onethat applys to my 5.5ft bed 5.7 L with towpackage

Mine is 10800lbs

 

[LippCJ7]

Re: Launch Ramp Issue with Toyota Tundra 5.7L, TRD no 4WD

The first thing I would try is the old two footed driving, I know its been suggested but I bet it solves your problem.

once your tires begin to slip and you know how it feels, don't let off the gas, apply brakes, lightly at first but gradually increase braking power and see what happens, I bet your rear end locks up (differential) and you stop slipping and gain traction, once you gain traction you can begin to release braking pressure but you will have to play with it somewhat to get up the ramp until you get up, remember getting your tires wet is tough, especially when people are pulling trailers up the very same ramp!

Yeah I know traction control and all that BS, I have yet to find any artificial intelligence that can drive better then I can outside of an F1 race car, most of these things are suited for the every day driver that can't parallel park a volkswagen beetle.

 

[jkust]

Re: Launch Ramp Issue with Toyota Tundra 5.7L, TRD no 4WD

[not sure what the question relates to ..... there's no rollers on the deck, so probably bunk. QUOTE=jkust;4401841]OP, what kind of ramp are you lunching at? Shallow, deep. Are you using a bunk or roller trailer?

[/QUOTE]

Well with a bunk trailer, by design you have to float it off and back further in the water. With a roller trailer the truck wheels never touch the water and the trailer doesn't go in as deep. A roller trailer can allow even the worst excuse for a tow rig to do surprisingly good....a bunk trailer shows the tow vehicle flaws much more easily. I know first hand. The trailer type where ramp difficulties are concerned is part of the overall larger discussion.

 

[bruceb58]

Re: Launch Ramp Issue with Toyota Tundra 5.7L, TRD no 4WD

You aren't using an equalizing hitch by chance? I tow the boat in my signature with my 1/2 Chevy PU. If I have my bars set up with a little too much tension I will slip on certain ramps.

 

[marekli]

Re: Launch Ramp Issue with Toyota Tundra 5.7L, TRD no 4WD

seems like a good idea...I will include this in the tests I plan on doing out there the next few weeks. The last couple of times I simply stepped let off the gas when it slipped and tried a 2-3 times until it fnally caught onto the concrete.....really not something I like doing with the prospect of slipping on a slippery slope like during winter. One of the ramps was very slippery with bad growth but the second was intermediate, not good but also not that bad....

The first thing I would try is the old two footed driving, I know its been suggested but I bet it solves your problem.

once your tires begin to slip and you know how it feels, don't let off the gas, apply brakes, lightly at first but gradually increase braking power and see what happens, I bet your rear end locks up (differential) and you stop slipping and gain traction, once you gain traction you can begin to release braking pressure but you will have to play with it somewhat to get up the ramp until you get up, remember getting your tires wet is tough, especially when people are pulling trailers up the very same ramp!

Yeah I know traction control and all that BS, I have yet to find any artificial intelligence that can drive better then I can outside of an F1 race car, most of these things are suited for the every day driver that can't parallel park a volkswagen beetle.

 

[marekli]

Re: Launch Ramp Issue with Toyota Tundra 5.7L, TRD no 4WD

I use the equalizers when towing our bigger camper trailer but not with the boat. Tow handling of the boat is not an issue on normal roads and highways...so really haven't seen a need for those..

You aren't using an equalizing hitch by chance? I tow the boat in my signature with my 1/2 Chevy PU. If I have my bars set up with a little too much tension I will slip on certain ramps.

 

[marekli]

Re: Launch Ramp Issue with Toyota Tundra 5.7L, TRD no 4WD

btw, I looked through the manual yesterday a bit, it talks about VSC and LSD, however there is only one switch to deactivate VSC (vehicle steering control) "VSC OFF". Does LSD and VSC funtion independently or are they exclusive?....Sry if this seems a bit basic but I'd like to understand the systems while figuring out how to handle the hauling situation...

 

[marekli]

Re: Launch Ramp Issue with Toyota Tundra 5.7L, TRD no 4WD

looks like VSC is the system that takes care of traction problems in these kind of situations:

Traction Control (VSC/ESC):

Electronic stability control - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Limited slip differential (LSD)?:

Limited-slip differential - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

 

[smokeonthewater]

Re: Launch Ramp Issue with Toyota Tundra 5.7L, TRD no 4WD

keep your tires OUT of the water and the growth... use silicone spray lube on the bunks so the boat loads easily without getting the tires on the pig snot....

 

[delbellboy]

Re: Launch Ramp Issue with Toyota Tundra 5.7L, TRD no 4WD

I had the same issue with my Ram 1500 with hemi. pulling 7500 pounds at the ramp. I put a bladder in the truck bed with water for additional weight. Works great. Actually it is a blow up air mattress. When done I water my wife's flowers.

 

[jkust]

Re: Launch Ramp Issue with Toyota Tundra 5.7L, TRD no 4WD

My experience is with GM's. The stability control is an independent system and the traction control is another while the limited slip/locking differential (one of my suv's has the LSD while the other has the more effective locker) function is mechanical built into the differential itself. I believe Toyota went with the apparently less effective computer controlled LSC (meaning the differentials are open diffs and the stability control computer deals with slippage). To sum up then for both my suv's I can turn off the stability control then hold that button down and the traction control will shut off as well. You can't just turn the traction control off without turning the stability control off too and the lsd and the lockers are mechanical and therefore can never be turned off. That means I can go old school with no computer systems and just the mechanical differentials doing what they do if I am in the mood for some fun. I always think of Toyotas as more sophisticated than GM's and so have got to think you can shut the systems off individually as well. For my other vehicles that I've towed with that only had traction control...keeping traction control while pulling out of a ramp simply meant the brakes were applied to the spinning wheel and took any momentum you had away instead of sending power to the wheel with grip. Stability control is substantially more complex than just traction control by itself.

 

[marekli]

Re: Launch Ramp Issue with Toyota Tundra 5.7L, TRD no 4WD

off WIKI (on the 2007 models and up): The Tundra also includes as standard: an electronic automatic limited-slip differential (Auto LSD), Vehicle Stability Control, traction control, electronic brakeforce distribution, brake assist, anti-lock brakes and tailgate assist.


I will spend more time working through the manual but it seems a bit confusing with only 1 Button (VSC OFF) on the dashboard and 3 systems to deal with "vehicle stability control (VSC), "traction control" and "limited slip differential" (LSD).....on top of that in my manual it says to activate LSD you need to press the VSC OFF button.....

My experience is with GM's. The stability control is an independent system and the traction control is another while the limited slip/locking differential (one of my suv's has the LSD while the other has the more effective locker) function is mechanical built into the differential itself. I believe Toyota went with the apparently less effective computer controlled LSC (meaning the differentials are open diffs and the stability control computer deals with slippage). To sum up then for both my suv's I can turn off the stability control then hold that button down and the traction control will shut off as well. You can't just turn the traction control off without turning the stability control off too and the lsd and the lockers are mechanical and therefore can never be turned off. That means I can go old school with no computer systems and just the mechanical differentials doing what they do if I am in the mood for some fun. I always think of Toyotas as more sophisticated than GM's and so have got to think you can shut the systems off individually as well. For my other vehicles that I've towed with that only had traction control...keeping traction control while pulling out of a ramp simply meant the brakes were applied to the spinning wheel and took any momentum you had away instead of sending power to the wheel with grip. Stability control is substantially more complex than just traction control by itself.

 

[marekli]

Re: Launch Ramp Issue with Toyota Tundra 5.7L, TRD no 4WD

ok, I dove into the manual once more...Toyota's systems are quite confusing, like I say there are 3 systems VSC, traction control and then LSD, by default traction control and VSC are on, LSD is activated when you hit the VSC OFF button. I read the section again, that's what you need to do to turn on LSD on 2WD models from 2007 up, i.e. turn off VSC and traction control, although that seems a bit counterintuitive...

My experience is with GM's. The stability control is an independent system and the traction control is another while the limited slip/locking differential (one of my suv's has the LSD while the other has the more effective locker) function is mechanical built into the differential itself. I believe Toyota went with the apparently less effective computer controlled LSC (meaning the differentials are open diffs and the stability control computer deals with slippage). To sum up then for both my suv's I can turn off the stability control then hold that button down and the traction control will shut off as well. You can't just turn the traction control off without turning the stability control off too and the lsd and the lockers are mechanical and therefore can never be turned off. That means I can go old school with no computer systems and just the mechanical differentials doing what they do if I am in the mood for some fun. I always think of Toyotas as more sophisticated than GM's and so have got to think you can shut the systems off individually as well. For my other vehicles that I've towed with that only had traction control...keeping traction control while pulling out of a ramp simply meant the brakes were applied to the spinning wheel and took any momentum you had away instead of sending power to the wheel with grip. Stability control is substantially more complex than just traction control by itself.