I purchased an 04 Gearbox last year and am still learning about it. Crawling underneath I've spotted around 700lbs of steel bars welded between the rear frame rails. The info on these trailers is somewhat limited but it seems the tongue weights on a majority of Toyhaulers were excessive and I'm sure this weight was added to compensate. My plan is to remove the bars and try carrying something actually useful such as a welder, air compressor and underside tanks, possibly add a hitch and carry my dualsport on the rear of the trailer. It's killing me knowing I'm hauling 700lbs of completely useless weight. Other thoughts are moving the batteries to the back, possibly under the floor.
I've seen a new toyhauler that has a hatch in the rear floor area for storage, I carry a couple hundred pounds of tools and parts that would fit in that location fine.
Lack of storage is a big pain for me in this Trailer and it's a 30 footer. When is someone going to realize we don't need 9' of head room and make a basement model Toyhauler. I'd love to have my chairs, spare gas cans, helmets, tools, firewood etc all under the floor and easy to get to.
Anyway, I just wanted to share these thoughts to see if anyone had done anything similar. I've searched for awhile and can find very little info on people doing any mods to their trailers.

 

Be careful removing any steel from under the floor, this is usually added for floor strength not counter balance. We had the same problem (storage). I solved this by buying an ambulance at an auction. Never unhook it from our toy hauler. Ford PS diesel has plenty of power and OMG at the storage. And the best part is you never have to unload one tool or anything when you get back home. Just an idea.

 

You adjust tongue weights by where you position yor ATV on the trailer. I have a ATV?Sled trailer for my Mini van, if the ATV is on the front of the trailer a person could not lift the trailer off the ball of the van,if the ATV is on the back of the trailer the trailer would pop off the ball of the Van on its own if it was not locked down.

You have to know where the sweet parking spot is on the trailer.

Our group also has a large dual axle trailer that can haul 4 ATVS end to end. we put the heavy machines on the rear and the lighter ATVs towards the front. Let the trailer,s axles carry the weight not the truck's.

 

i've also seen folks buy the public transportation "rigs" and convert/remodel the inside to fit their needs. they're mostly powerstrokes.


hey, HMT, how about a pic of your ambulance? wow, never thought of that.
like stated earlier, be wary about cutting up floor braces. trailers are designed that way and not just thrown together.

 

Thanks for the replies. I should post a picture of the bars. They are not structural but instead in a cluster at the utmost rear of the trailer. Five 3" solid steel bars with 1" tack welds.
Jaster, I really like the ambulance idea but already have my tow vehicle of choice.

 

Do you have a fuel station on yours? Could be if you don't that they're there for the models it was added to.

Could be wrong. If the wife was here, I know I'd be.

 

I've got a dual tank fueling station. I hear you on the Wife.
The amount of bars were probably different depending on trailer configuration and installed options.
With regard to loading, I'm fairly aware of where I place my vehicles. I lived through one nightmare ride when a friend loaded my old flatbed trailer with a sandrail and toys. The tail wagged the dog and after we came to a stop with the rail hanging by one strap in a ditch he said "this happened last time I loaded it this way" !!!
Tongue weight empty is somewhere between 1500-1800lbs

 

Here's a picture of the Toyhauler

 

gosh dang that's nice, and big.......heck, i prefer 5th wheels. but man alive, that sucker is huge!. very nice though..i hear you on the tow vehicle of choice. i was just throwing that out there for what it was worth......

 

Is it possible that the previous owner welded those under there b/c he didnt always haul something in it and was looking for that weight? I would think that if you are sure that someone added them after the fact, and that you are towing with some weight in the garage, you should be good to remove them. The other guy may have been a bit short on *** with his truck and was looking to lighten hitch weight! Good luck with whatever you choose!

If what you decide to do doesn't work out, just contact me and I will trade you even up for a 1964 pop-up covered in racing stickers that I have around! It is a beauty...will keep heads turning just like yours does!