Towing w/ Jeep Wrangler Unlimited?

[mangoneto]

I am shopping for a Jeep Wrangler 4 Doors. Has anybody towed with this vehicle? I have a 2004 23'xti, trips to the lake is about 30 miles with no very steep roads.

Any advice?

Thanks.

[oldjeep]

Aren't those only rated for 3500lbs?

[jetskipro550]

WDH and you're good to go

[jk13]

23' XTi--no way, not on a public street. Maybe in a campground 5mph just to launch, but that's about it.

[robbennett]

They are only rated for 3500 pounds. Your problems won't come from the power to pull it but the handling and stopping. If you have a lift on it then it's probably not good for 3500 anymore.

[Malibuzer]

I have a 2010 JKU and I am only pulling the boat a couple of miles. Usually just used for launching in our campground. It is no way a good tow vehicle. I am only towing a 20ft VTX as well. That is not enough vehicle for that boat. Now for getting in in and out of the water its fine. 4 low and it will pull stumps. Mine is a 6 speed manual.

Edited July 27, 2015 by Malibuzer

[Malibuzer]

WDH and you're good to go

Which WDH works with surge brakes?

[oldjeep]

Which WDH works with surge brakes?

There are several, but I think he was joking since the wrangler has no wdh rating.

[MalibuNation]

I live 2 miles from the launch on a residential road that is 25 mph which would be fine. But for normal towing it doesn't have a big enough foot print for that boat.

[BlastRlxi]

Wonder why the tow rating is so low compared to a grand Cherokee or similar vehicle. Doesn't the wrangler have a full frame and it should have enough power. If it's brakes, an upgrade there could improve it. Probably should be able to tow 5000 lbs. Just wondering what the limiting factor is.

[Falko]

I think the Wrangler suspension, given it is made for offroad latte runs, is a bit softer. I find with our XTi the weight on the tongue is more than a v-drive as the engine sits in front of the axles on the trailer. I think the Jeep's suspension would be a bit soft for the weight. Our XTi loads down the back of our Armada pretty easily, I can't imagine what it would do to the Jeep.

[BlastRlxi]

I think the Wrangler suspension, given it is made for offroad latte runs, is a bit softer. I find with our XTi the weight on the tongue is more than a v-drive as the engine sits in front of the axles on the trailer. I think the Jeep's suspension would be a bit soft for the weight. Our XTi loads down the back of our Armada pretty easily, I can't imagine what it would do to the Jeep.

Makes sense. I would think the aftermarket could help with this as well if someone really wanted to use it as a tow vehicle.

[Michigan boarder]

I have a 2014 JKU and pull around the Echelon Lx, single axle trailer. Dry weight in the Echelon is 2,650lbs (plus fluids), trailer is probably close to 750lbs. So I am right at or a little over the 3,500lb tow limit. I've towed it to Ann Arbor and back a couple of times, and it handles it well. Not sure how it would do with another 1,000lbs on top of it, seems like the boat/trailer would push the Jeep around a bit.

I did install the Airlift bags for the rear, and that made a VERY big difference. If my tongue weight is the standard 10% of the tow load, then I am at 350lbs. Without the air bags it squatted pretty good, and was sloppy. With the air bags it rides level and feels good.

So I agree with the statement on the suspension - it's not made to handle the tongue weight. 500lbs on that hitch would put a hurtin' on a stock JKU. So my suggestion is install the air bags ($100) and then see how it feels.

[Michigan boarder]

Also - I have 3:73 gears, most come with the 3:21.

[mangoneto]

Thanks for all replies, I really think owning a Jeep and driving to the lake would be a lot of fun...

[Michigan boarder]

Totally.

[Kmart25]

your boat weighs 3700lbs dry? That's a for sure NO.

You really don't want a wrangler anyways. I have one and here is my experience

they ride like crap

they burn gas like a big truck

extremely unsafe

can't tow much

and they break (JEEP= Just Empty Every Pocket)

So unless you plan on rock crawling there is really no way to justify buying one.

[oldjeep]

your boat weighs 3700lbs dry? That's a for sure NO.

You really don't want a wrangler anyways. I have one and here is my experience

they ride like crap

they burn gas like a big truck

extremely unsafe

can't tow much

and they break (JEEP= Just Empty Every Pocket)

So unless you plan on rock crawling there is really no way to justify buying one.

Guess it depends on what you are comparing it to.

Ride is fine unless you are comparing it to a car

They burn gas because they have the aerodynamics of a brick and usually big heavy tires

Unsafe? In what way? I can tell you that even the stock factory cages will hold up to some really ugly accidents

Towing - pretty standard for something with an engine that small and a wheelbase that short

Break - no more than any other old school solid axle vehicle.

Biggest knock against a new Wrangler to me is the purchase cost, they are insanely expensive.

Edited July 28, 2015 by oldjeep

[Michigan boarder]

Either you love 'em or you hate 'em. I get it that you don't like them Kmart, not trying to argue with you but I do look at it differently. Posting this for the benefit of the OP to get a different perspective.

They ride like crap - if you expect it to ride nicely. I expect it to ride like a Jeep. Love it. It is much rougher than a car, cuz it's a Jeep.

They burn gas like a big truck - yes, you are pushing a big rectangle down the road. Not good especially for a lot of 80mph trips.

Extremely unsafe - safer than a motorcycle. Doors off, top off, to me it's like riding a motorcycle, but the whole family can go with me. I do drive VERY defensively in it, like I would on a motorcycle. A side impact would be bad (like a motorcycle), so I drive a lot differently.

Can't tow much - I've towed everything I've wanted to so far (snowmobile trailer, boat, log splitter, bike hitch, etc.). All depends on your needs.

They break - mine has been great so far, 2 years and 36k miles and zero issues. And I've gotten on it a bit from time to time in the sand dunes and across frozen snow drifted lakes.

Stuff you didn't mention:

- Top off & doors off is a great experience (again, akin to the motorcycle)

- There is a lot of aftermarket stuff to do to them, the sky is the limit (fun to mod)

- Easy to work on (trim is simple, carpet, etc.)

- Handles very well in the snow, sand, mud, rocks, etc.

JMHO.

[Kmart25]

Guess it depends on what you are comparing it to.

Ride is fine unless you are comparing it to a car

They burn gas because they have the aerodynamics of a brick and usually big heavy tires

Unsafe? In what way? I can tell you that even the stock factory cages will hold up to some really ugly accidents

Towing - pretty standard for something with an engine that small and a wheelbase that short

Break - no more than any other old school solid axle vehicle.

Biggest knock against a new Wrangler to me is the purchase cost, they are insanely expensive.

Well before spouting off I probably should of asked if it was going to be a daily driver or fun car. Bottom line is, it's not towing a 3700lbs dry xti

But I do want to argue for the sake of arguing

In my experience of ownership, it rides rougher than any car, suv, or truck I have ever owned. (loud too)

The gas thing, absolutely, and that's why I listed it as a con. You don't get the towing power or truck bed, but you burn gas like crazy. (related to him wanting to tow with the vehicle) Plus there is no storage, so any gear he has is going in the boat and making it heavier.

Unsafe? well the doors are paper thin(if they are even on), and their crash ratings are all "acceptable, marginal, and poor"

Ford explorer and Honda ridgeline have 4.0l v6 and both rated to tow 5000lbs

Mine has 120k miles and I can only speak from experience that mine has problems, and my other vehicles do not. Maybe mine was a lemon but i wasn't the inventor of the JEEP accronym by any means either.

I didn't mention doors off is awesome, kind of a pain in the butt in my opinion but obviously I'm a whiner

Tons of aftermarket stuff, I would love to buy one of those jeep truck conversion kits, they look awesome.

Handles great offroad/mountains

and yes they are very easy to work on

That being said they are very fun hobby vehicles, I love driving around town with the top off/doors off, but I would not buy one to tow or use as a DD. Maybe op has commuter car too, either way if he needs something to tow a 3700lb xti, it's not a wrangler. 30 miles is a decent amount of travel too. I assume he would be towing at freeway speeds and I could not imagine even attempting that in a jeep.

I saw one for sale for 106k, blows my mind what they are going for now.

[oldjeep]

Well before spouting off I probably should of asked if it was going to be a daily driver or fun car. Bottom line is, it's not towing a 3700lbs dry xti

But I do want to argue for the sake of arguing

In my experience of ownership, it rides rougher than any car, suv, or truck I have ever owned. (loud too)

The gas thing, absolutely, and that's why I listed it as a con. You don't get the towing power or truck bed, but you burn gas like crazy. (related to him wanting to tow with the vehicle) Plus there is no storage, so any gear he has is going in the boat and making it heavier.

Unsafe? well the doors are paper thin(if they are even on), and their crash ratings are all "acceptable, marginal, and poor"

Ford explorer and Honda ridgeline have 4.0l v6 and both rated to tow 5000lbs

Mine has 120k miles and I can only speak from experience that mine has problems, and my other vehicles do not. Maybe mine was a lemon but i wasn't the inventor of the JEEP accronym by any means either.

I didn't mention doors off is awesome, kind of a pain in the butt in my opinion but obviously I'm a whiner

Tons of aftermarket stuff, I would love to buy one of those jeep truck conversion kits, they look awesome.

Handles great offroad/mountains

and yes they are very easy to work on

That being said they are very fun hobby vehicles, I love driving around town with the top off/doors off, but I would not buy one to tow or use as a DD. Maybe op has commuter car too, either way if he needs something to tow a 3700lb xti, it's not a wrangler. 30 miles is a decent amount of travel too. I assume he would be towing at freeway speeds and I could not imagine even attempting that in a jeep.

I saw one for sale for 106k, blows my mind what they are going for now.

106K? Aftermarket Hemi conversion and D60's?

[Raimie]

I have a 2011 Rubicon Unlimited. Ride is very nice for an SUV and with the freedom top on, its pretty respectable for NVH/Wind/Tire Noise.

I am up to about 70k miles. Have not had any issues. Its my daily driver. I get about 17-18mpg, which is acceptable to me.

The unlimited has a lot of storage. I was actually very surprised at how large the cargo area was. I have an aluminum hitch carrier that I use to haul gas cans or coolers if I need a little extra room. Its no smaller than a typical small SUV though (ie explorer)

Towing - snowmobile trailer with a couple quads on it... no problem. Much more than that, use a proper tow vehicle. The 4:10 gears & V6 motor will not serve well for towing heavy loads. I have used it to tow my sportster and had it handled fine. I would not attempt to tow a v-drive with it.

I put a 2.5" lift on it at Christmas. Still rides very nice and only a slight increase to road/wind noise is noticable.

All-in-all great vehicle. Looks cool, has a lot of features if you want em (heated cloth seats, auto start, power everything...) plus you get random people waving at you throughout your drive, reminding you that its ok to be kind to strangers once in a while...

The only issues with mine is the minivan motor. I would love to do a v8 conversion someday... the 2012+ have a much better V6 motor....

[Michigan boarder]

Also don't forget - they hold their value better than anything. Like, ANYthing.

[Kmart25]

106K? Aftermarket Hemi conversion and D60's?

http://seattle.craigslist.org/tac/ctd/5126352081.html

is this real life?

[Pnwrider]

http://seattle.craigslist.org/tac/ctd/5126352081.html

is this real life?

Must be how they're able to sell their other cars for such great prices!