• Hi Guest!
    You can help ensure that British Car Forum (BCF) continues to provide a great place to engage in the British car hobby! If you find BCF a beneficial community, please consider supporting our efforts with a subscription.
    There are some perks with a member upgrade!
    **Upgrade Now**
    (PS: Subscribers don't see this gawd-aweful banner
Tips
Tips

Towing with a Jeep Grand Cherokee.

Share this page

W

William

Darth Vader
Offline
My sister is moving from Los Angeles to Nashville in the fall, and we've been trying to figure out how to move her stuff. She doesn't have much in the way of furniture (sofa, smaller sofa, and bed. Other than that, clothes and odds and ends). It'll cost something like seven grand to rent a truck for the one way haul.

She also has a '99 Grand Cherokee with the six cylinder motor, and it was suggested to us that she get a hitch installed and rent a trailer, which would be far cheaper than a whole truck. The six cylinder is rated to-I believe- 5000 lbs, which should be plenty for her stuff. As far as I know her Jeep does not have a factory towing package.

If we go through with this-and it's still at the idea phase-what else would we need to look into? Brakes? Trans cooler? Selling all the furniture in LA and buying new in Nashville? I tried surfing Jeep forums but they all seem focused on off-roading, which is not what we're after.

-William
 
William,

I have towed about 4000 lbs with my cherokee, same 6 cyl, for three states.

Aftermarket Tow Bar rated at 5k lbs, without a problem.

Patrick
 
I tend to agree with Patrick on this one. While I've never owned a Cherokee - I have heard a lot of good stuff about the Jeep Inline Six.

So as long as it's just a small trailer (<5000lbs of stuff) the Jeep should handle it just fine. Bout the only place you're going to have problems is in the mountains on steep grades.

Just go over the vehicle like you said & check everything. To start I’d perform a complete tune up and check the brakes. Next I’d check the rear differential, the tranny fluid, replace the oil and flush & replace coolant. Also be sure to check the condition of the radiator hoses when replacing the coolant – because if anything is going to fail – this’ll be when it’s going to let go.

Good luck!
Bret
 
Any time you are working any Auto Trans hard. Towing, racing, ETC. It is always a good idea to have a good quality trans cooler installed. Burnt Trans oil means slipping clutches, slipping clutches means debris in the oil, debris means clogged filter and possibly blocked or partialy blocked passages causing inadequate pressures in vital areas causing slow and/or rough shifts resulting in MORE clutch slippage. inadequate oil pressure in the clutch packs means slipping clutches, JUST A VICIOUS CYCLE leading to failure of the trans or components.
If it were me, I would instal an oil cooler and change out the fluid {complete flush not just a pan change} and filter before beginning your trip.
Im sure the jeep will do the job of towing a trailer where you want to go.
A Trans cooler and complete trans service is just a little insurance that you will get there without having to put another $1,800 in a rebuild trans before you get there.

Just M.H.O.
Kerry
 
Kerry's got a great point. Chances are if it doesn’t have a factory tow package then it probably doesn’t have a trans cooler. But it wouldn’t hurt to look under the vehicle just in case.

If not – it’d be a cheap investment considering the alternative.
 
/bcforum/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/iagree.gif I installed a trans cooler ($25) on my minivan (FWD) with a 5k lb hitch. I've towed 3k with it and didn't have a problem as long as the bulk of the weight is well over the trailer axle.
 
I had a regular Jeep Chreokee 6 and towed my Tiga all over N. Cal for 10 years, when I moved to NM, towed a boat full of stuff and the jeep absolutly loaded and have towed my Healey to San Antonio, TX and more all with no problems. It did have a tow package. I just sold it a while ago with 226K miles. That engine is and was great! Just change the trans oil and you will be fine.
 
Thanks for the pointers, everyone! We've never done any towing before, usually using box trucks. But towing a trailer would be so much easier than having two vehicles to marshal for such a long trip.

I figure we'll either find a shop in L.A. to fit the hitch and other assorted stuff, or maybe see if her local dealer can fit the original factory tow package. It's too bad that the Jeep's in California and not here. There's a great Jeep dealer in Geneva that specializes in all manner of Jeeps, and did all Sister's work when she lived here.

That place always has all kinds of older Jeeps on the lot. They had a beautifully restored early Wagoneer in the showroom for a while a coupla years ago. Right now they have a sweet AMC-era Wrangler on the lot that's also been well restored and suitably beefed up for offroad work. Come to think of it they work on all AMC cars as well-they have an Eagle SX right now, and I've seen all manners of AMC Spirits, Concords, and Hornets there.

-Wm.
 
Generally, when you tow with a modern auto trans car, try to keep it from going into "lock up" mode.

Some cars have a lock-out button (like our Protege') while my Freestar Minivan has "4th gear" positon. Some cars have an "overdrive" postion for convertor lock up.


When I tow the Spridget out to Pittsburgh (~2700 lbs with trailer) I keep the van in "third" the entire trip and stay under 65 mph. I still get around 20 mpg, so it's no big deal. I haven't put a trans cooler on (yet), but I've checked the tran oil with a portable temp sensor and it was fine. When towing, it helps if you take off easy and try to roll up to traffic lights rather than a full stop (if possible).
 
I have a 01 cherokee which I specifically bought for towing (hey, I know it's no truck but it was cheap). The inline 6 is the original AMC design which has been a champ for decades now. That's the least of your worries.

You want to install the trans cooler (I put one on with a knife and cresent wrench in under an hour), make sure the fluid is clean/fresh and throw a tow bar on there. Now, I don't know how the Grand handles the uni-body "frame" rails, but just let a shop do it for you. What a nightmare it was to get mine off the donor jeep at the yard and onto my relatively clean jeep. Additionally, the wiring package might need to be run from the front, it all depends on which wiring loom you got at the factory.

Finally, replace your brakes before the trip. That's really the limiting factor on these models and having fresh pads/shoes is crucial. Heck, depending on her braking habits, they might have to be replaced immediately after she gets in too.

As aero suggested, stay out of over drive except for the flats, otherwise you should be fine.

Ben

PS. I tow with mine with almost 190k miles
 
Back
Top