Towing Question - Corolland: the Toyota Corolla Forums

Hey folks,

New to the forums here (I'm Andy by the way). I did some searching on here and I did manage to find a little help with my towing woes, but I figured I would ask my question directly and see what comes of it.

I have a 2008 Corolla S with around 133,000 miles on it. I am wanting to get a trailer to tow my kayak on just because it is easier than throwing the kayak on top and denting the roof (learned from experience). I want to get this:

Tractor Supply Company 4 x 6 Utility Trailer, 1,750 lb. Payload Capacity, 2,000 lb. GVWR

You can see the actual sales page here:

http://www.tractorsupply.com/en/store/carry-on-trailerreg%3B-4-ft-w-x-6-ft-l-mesh-floor-trailer-1700-lb-payload-capacity

According to the specs, the trailer is about 111 inches long from the tongue to the rear and weighs about 250 lbs by itself. My kayak is a pretty extensive fishing version so it weighs around 70 lbs by itself. So that would be 320 lbs total. For good measure, let's say I will have 80 lbs of gear too. Therefore the overall amount being towed is 400 lbs.

Is this something my Corolla could handle?

If anyone else tows kayaks/canoes with their Corollas, then I would love to see your setups as I am open to new ideas. Also, is there a hitch setup you guys have used and loved?

Any help is greatly appreciated default_smile

~Andy

Welcome to the forums!

That would be no problem for the Corolla. It has a max trailer tow rating of 1500lbs. As for hitches for that sort of job - pretty much any would work. Curt, Hidden Hitch, UHaul, etc. - all would work. Just get the appropriate hitch with the receiver that you need. A good web resource would be www.etrailers.com - if anything, they would list a number of different options for car and give you a good ballpark price estimate on what the total layout will be.

I have one for my 8th gen Corolla (Hidden Hitch) and usually have to tow something atleast once a year. Most weight on the trailer I had was about 800lbs - car could handle it no problem, just have to anticipate long grades and stopping distances. With this level of load, don't really need anything fancy, trailer wise. My trailer looks almost exactly like that one - minus the railing around the perimeter.

Your 9th gen is a little heavier and has a little more power than my 8th gen - so you shouldn't run into any issues. Just have to watch cross-winds on the roads - even with a load secured low on the trailer - cross-winds can cause the car to go a little wonky, steering wise. Not any different that any other tow vehicle, but given the Corolla is so light, it can get bounced around a bit - slowing down helps tremendously.