Get a tow bar and flat tow it, you should be able to pick up one used for the price of renting a tow dolly.
Can a Jeep be towed with one of these?
- Thread starter GregBelleville
- Start date
Get a tow bar and flat tow it, you should be able to pick up one used for the price of renting a tow dolly.
If it's only a once a year trip I would rent a car hauler from uhaul. A TJ will fit on there nicely and those auto haulers pull nice as well. Logic being if you are out wheeling and break something bad enough, you might not be able to flat tow it or car dolly it back home and are gonna need to trailer it. I gladly drag my car hauler empty to and back from a wheeling adventure, vs driving Jeep, wheeling it and something going wrong. Then I'm
stuck finding a way home to get the truck and trailer......spending the gas up front is almost like insurance.
stuck finding a way home to get the truck and trailer......spending the gas up front is almost like insurance.
Yes, tow bars are cheap, getting them attached to a front bumper and frame, not always as easy or cheap.
This is true, I saved a bunch of money on a collapsable tow bar I picked up used but then built a bumper to attach it to.
Yes you can, just do what it says in the owner's manual as if it would be flat towed. Mines a auto , when it hooked to my rv I put trans in neutral, shift TC into neutral, shut off engine, put trans in park, shut off key.
Exactly. Some think a dolly will cause damage to the transfer case by preventing the front driveshaft from spinning the front of the transfer case at the same rate as the rear driveshaft does to the rear of the transfer case.
And again as said above there are many of us who have installed manual hubs up front and we routinely drive on the street and highways with the hubs unlocked. That gives the same net effect to the transfer case as placing the front tires on a dolly does.
MountaineerTom
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I was thinking about buying a used U-haul dolly. They show this for the specs though.
- Max Load: 3,450 lbs. when towing a front-wheel drive vehicle, 3,900 lbs. when towing a rear-wheel drive vehicle.
When I ran the VIN number to get a build sheet, it listed my Unlimited as a curb weight of 3724 lbs. I know it’s over 4k now with bumpers, winch, etc on it.
- Max Load: 3,450 lbs. when towing a front-wheel drive vehicle, 3,900 lbs. when towing a rear-wheel drive vehicle.
When I ran the VIN number to get a build sheet, it listed my Unlimited as a curb weight of 3724 lbs. I know it’s over 4k now with bumpers, winch, etc on it.
You might want to check with Uhaul: When I picked up my LJ about 8 years ago in New Mexico, they wouldn't let me rent a car dolly or flat bed unless I rented a box truck to pull it with. I told them I had an F150 with tow brake hookup. Still wouldn't let me rent one.
The $60 uhaul rentals aren't too bad. The problem is trying to get back in time before being charged with another day. That, and their trailers are heavy (2.2k lbs).
Just for shits and giggles I went on U Haul’s site. They have you put in what you are towing with, in my case 19 F250, and what you will be towing, 05 Unlimited. They will not rent a tow dolly and only offer a trailer. The trailer is only $10 more than a dolly in my area @ $54/day.
In my manual the first thing stated is a warning not to tow with a front or rear wheel lift.
The benefit to trailering vs flat towing is that most states require supplemental braking on the towed vehicle which costs more than just buying a tow bar. With that being said I’ve flat towed my YJ thousands of miles with no issues. But if I get in an accident a lawyer would have a field day.
I tow my TJ on a trailer because I have one and I usually bring a quad or my golf cart.
In my manual the first thing stated is a warning not to tow with a front or rear wheel lift.
The benefit to trailering vs flat towing is that most states require supplemental braking on the towed vehicle which costs more than just buying a tow bar. With that being said I’ve flat towed my YJ thousands of miles with no issues. But if I get in an accident a lawyer would have a field day.
I tow my TJ on a trailer because I have one and I usually bring a quad or my golf cart.
cornfed
New Member
Thanks for your input. The issue I am having is a buddy says no way can you flat tow a chevrolet 231c transfer case. We have a trailer we used to tow behind a motor home, no problem. We traded the rv in on a new 5th wheel trailer. I can tow behind the 5th wheel in some states, Montana is home and can do here. The trailer w/Jeep is too much weight, I think the Jeep alone is ok, maybe 500lbs. over the 3k hitch on the rear of 5th wheel....
cornfed
New Member
I don’t know about towing behind a 5th wheel but if I did I would have a camera installed because the jeep would totally be in a blindspot and you could not see any issues until you saw the smoke and flames.
cornfed
New Member
Our 5th wheel does have a camera. The motor was nice for trailering the TJ. But it was a class A (wide) diesel pusher, the wife was uncomfortable on 2 lane winding roads. So here we are...trying to find out about flat towing our TJ with chev conversion, motor, trans and 231c transfer case
cornfed
New Member
The problem with most RVs is that they are built to the minimum standards possible. Put force on them the wrong way and they crush like an empty soda can.