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How much can it tow

Discussion in 'Gen 3 Prius Technical Discussion' started by douglasjre, Aug 15, 2024.

  1. douglasjre

    douglasjre Senior Member

    Joined:
    Sep 13, 2008
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    Location:
    Orlando, FL
    Vehicle:
    2010 Prius
    Model:
    ----USA----
    I tow w my turd gen Prius(s) regularly. Here's the limits and abuses/concerns:

    I use a Kuat bike tow hitch and put two bicycles on the back. You won't even notice it except your fuel economy drops to 30mpg. I usually get 35. I have a heavy foot and we have high speed limits here...

    I use a 5x8 utility trailer that I removed the tailgate from so that I can improve my fuel economy when towing it. I can put two motorcycles on it and do 79 mph all day long even through the hills of Gainesville, Florida. I will tell you that you will suck the battery down on the uphills in Gainesville and this heats up the battery pack. It's better to not use cruise control in these situations so that you can maintain a steady state on the batteries. This keeps them cooler allowing more. Regen when it comes time to use the brakes and it preserves battery life.

    I tow a 4,500 lb boat. When doing so in Florida and temperatures up to 94 Fahrenheit where we have flat terrain I can achieve 65 mph. At this speed. The engine is redline the whole time and eventually the high voltage system goes into a protective limp mode limiting me to 80% power. This happens after about 15 minutes at full throttle. When I get to the boat ramp I can achieve full protective mode where the car stops charging the 12 volt system and then it stops charging the high voltage battery. It throws warning lights all over the dash and I have to shut the car down because there are so many alarms beeping that I think it's going to blow up. One time. I pulled a 4x8 enclosed trailer with around 4,000 lb in it. So the total combined weight was probably 5,000 lb. I got the system so hot. I could smell burning electrical wires but the car has still worked fine for 100,000 mi since then.

    So hopefully this helps you understand the limits of what you can do with your car and what the consequences will be. Yes all the Priuses still work and they both have over 250,000 mi. For some reason I haven't destroyed them yet doing this. Don't recommend it though. Drive safely and use at your own risk.

    Oh, and by the way, since you're stopping distances will likely be more than doubled if you don't have an engineering degree or work as a mechanic or a CDL truck driver, please don't do this on public roadways. Since you're likely to hit somebody. You cannot appreciate how long your stopping distance will be and you are probably going to be unsafe.

    Edit :: I use 0w40 mobile one and have read the oil pressure on the back of the engine. I wouldn't try any of this with 0w20
     
    bisco likes this.
  2. Tombukt2

    Tombukt2 Senior Member

    Joined:
    Nov 29, 2020
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    Location:
    Durham NC
    Vehicle:
    2009 Prius
    Model:
    Base
    And I've destroyed two generation threes very sparingly using a f l o e 5x8 plastic aluminum trailer that weighs all of 299 lb soaking wet and empty. So I would certainly never try any of these antics The car would be destroyed in one afternoon apparently. I'm glad you've had so much luck I would almost feel more comfortable trying this with a second gen Not being in Florida and not even attempting the 65 miles an hour I would be happy doing 50 55. Was any of those weights other than a single big bore Italian scooter and a bicycle or something like that which is barely 900 lb $4,000 or any of that nonsense forget it wouldn't even attempt it but I'm glad you have so I don't have to oh no you're working the thing as hard as a military Jeep.
     
  3. Higgins909

    Higgins909 Member

    Joined:
    Apr 15, 2018
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    Location:
    Texas
    Vehicle:
    2010 Prius
    Model:
    III
    I tow with my 2010 with 203k miles and a 1,000 lbs boat and trailer, supposedly. I also have oversized AT tires. I get about 32mpg not towing, 16-20 when towing. 0-60 is about 25 seconds. I've probably towed this boat around 3,000 miles now. Towing increases oil burn, if you got that. I did a B12 piston soak recently and it may have solved it completely.

    I've been running 10w40 for a while and after that B12 piston soak, I upped it to 20w50. All Castrol GTX syn blend. I've got some other 5w30 blend oil that I'm going to put in, before winter. 10w40 survived 16F but 30F is better.

    Your range goes to about 160 miles. Bring a extra 5 quarts if you plan to go far, mainly if you burn oil. Probably going to have to top off every fillup. I've cruised 90 miles to the lake at 70 mph no problem. Of course, the engine is happier at a slower speed. Can roll with the big rigs in the right lane doing 65~ if you want. Better mpg and less oil consumption if you do.