Goon44

Well, camping trip was a hit. My family had a blast. My daughter caught butterflies and fishes. We played in the Lake Michigan surf. Ludington State Park is a wonderful place and recommned it to all. Overall towing went pretty well, Like I said, this SUV is very similar in weight and engine as Tundra. Got overall MPG for 8 - 10 depending on speed and grade. But the shifting was little wierd. When I press on gas, I did not get typical immediate downshifting. My guess is that the computer is trying to outsmart me by messing with shifting. I expected to get similar RPM for same speed and it was not the case either. Many times, I wonderered why isn't this downshifting or upshifting. I really wish I could change the driving mode to RWD. But as you all know, it is all time AWD. Although I used load leveling hitch, I am sure RWD would have been more efficient. I wish GX had tow mode. THis is a lease so I can't put transmission cooler on it. I might buy it off next year. If I do, I will probably put it on. Only time i felt little uneasy was when I was going from one high way to others. Because I had to change lane, I was going fast and turning at same time. Softer suspension of the GX made it somewhat scary. Breaking was no problem and was really smooth. I had proportional break controller with minimal boost. My towing experince made me realize how stupid tow rating is. I think the profile of the towed vehicle makes just as much impact as its weight. Last year, I was towing about 3,300 pound with a Ford Edge with 3,500 pound tow rating. Because it was low profile collapsible trailer, i hardly felt it was there. Because of higher profile trailer, there is no forgetting that trailer is there with current setup. thanks for the well wishes..

Well, got my new 2012 GX 460 two weeks ago to mainly tow my camping trailer. My camping trailer weights close to 6,000 pounds and 30 ft long. I did not want to drive a truck or Expeditiion size SUV as a daily driver just because I need to tow something heavy 5-6 times a year. I hooked it up to the trailer last weekend for the first time. I also installed a proportional break controller and load leveling hitch. When I was reserching for tow vehicle I kept running into people who say " you must get pick up truck to tow" But nobody could ever tell me why to my satisfaction. So that is why I eneded up with GX 460. GX tow rating is 6500 pound. GX weights within few hundred pounds of a typical truck. This truck's engine is pretty much same as 4.6 liter Tundra engine. Load leveling hitch wold take care of soft coil suspension. But with the camping trip coming up this weekend, I am still pretty nervious. I guess that is what I get for not following conventional wisdon. I discussed this with a car guy at work and he thought that only weak link would be the transmission. I guess I just have to drive slowly. If you see a graphite GX 460 towing a 30 ft camper trailer and going no faster than 65 mph. That would be me and please be patient with my driving.

2012 Gunmetal color GX 460 with Navi and remote start. Sold my beloved 2005 LS 430 to get this . Still having LS withdrawl. Not really a truck guy but I bought it so I can pull 6,000 pound camping trailer. One thing LS could not do was pull trailer. Still waiting out break in period before I can hitch up the trailer. Kind of nervious whether GX can do a good job pulling that trailer. Will find out next weekend.