Calgary Jeep Association
4x4 Related Groups => Tech Talk => Topic started by: 2grand4u on October 26, 2009, 07:57:42 PM
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just wonder what is involved, i know it;s a good idea to take the drive shafts off and such but do you need to leave the key in the ignition so the wheels turn or do you lock the steering, may seem like a dumb qustion.
and would 97 grand cherokee brake handle it or should i mod them.
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just wonder what is involved, i know it;s a good idea to take the drive shafts off and such but do you need to leave the key in the ignition so the wheels turn or do you lock the steering, may seem like a dumb qustion.
and would 97 grand cherokee brake handle it or should i mod them.
i towbar my XJ out tranny in N tcase in N and key turned 1 click forward to have the steering unlocked... i used a 4.3L/Manual tranny 4wd GMC sonoma and worked fairly well lagged a bit but was bad for stopping and such
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Yup. No need to pull shafts.
Tcase N
Tranny N
Steering unlocked.
Keep you towbar as flat as possible to avoid your tires turning opposite direction than u.
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If its auto, Transfer case in neutral, transmission in Park or in Gear
It is manual, Transfer case in neutral, transmission in 1st gear.
Steering wheel must be unlocked too.
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I've done lots of towing with differnt rigs. Mostly my XJ when it was on 31s behind my truck/camper.
Law for Alberta states that the tow vehicle must be twice the weight of the vehicle being towed. Here's why, vehicles on tow bars have no hitch weight and no brakes and 4 wheels that want to go straight. There is no weight transfer to the tow rig to keep its back end planted.
With the camper on my 3/4ton diesel truck everything was great, I had enough weight on the rear axle to keep the XJ in line. Without the camper everything was fine as long as the roads were good and I didn't try any sudden lane changes coupled with braking but I did rarely and carefully. Here's why:
I towed a friends CJ to my place to do some repairs. '92 Dodge 3/4ton diesel 4X4, empty box pulling a CJ on 35s. Hit some heavy rain along the way and when I tried to slow done and do a right turn off the highway it started to jack knife on me. Fortunately it was a wide turn with no one in the oncoming lane so I was able to countersteer, punch the throttle, snap it staright and take the corner wide.
A Grand Cherokee is not heavy enough to flat tow any 4x4. Yes the towed vehicle maybe within the ZJ rated towing specs but those specs assume a 10-15% weight transfer onto the back of the ZJ to keep its back end planted and also that any trailer it tows over 3500# would have its own brakes. ZJ brakes SUCK!
Get a trailer or tow dolly with brakes.
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Get a trailer or tow dolly with brakes.
Words of wisdom. I've been driving vehicles towing heavy loads (at the same gross or even heavier than the tow vehicle) when he trailer brakes failed. It can get VERY sketchy. I would be hesitant to tow something without trailer brakes unless the tow rig was +/- twice the weight if the towed unit.
A tow dolly with trailer brakes would save you a lot of grief.
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A Grand Cherokee is not heavy enough to flat tow any 4x4. Yes the towed vehicle maybe within the ZJ rated towing specs but those specs assume a 10-15% weight transfer onto the back of the ZJ to keep its back end planted and also that any trailer it tows over 3500# would have its own brakes. ZJ brakes SUCK!
I hope commancherunner sees this....
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I hope commancherunner sees this....
I was thinking the same thing
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why he wasn't towing with a ZJ.......................
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no, he was towing a ZJ with his XJ, an even lighter vehicle, towing a heavier rig.
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I think the ZJ was on a tow dolly though. pretty sure i saw that seeing as i was sitting on my arse while the tow truck driver stripped the bolts on my rear driveshaft cause 'he's not allowed to let me take it off due to insurance purposes' pfft.
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would 97 grand cherokee brake handle it or should i mod them.
No and No.
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no, he was towing a ZJ with his XJ, an even lighter vehicle, towing a heavier rig.
So lemme get this straight. Using an XJ, to flat-tow a ZJ, that has a spool in the rear?On the highway nonetheless. That can't be a good thing?
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So lemme get this straight. Using an XJ, to flat-tow a ZJ, that has a spool in the rear?On the highway nonetheless. That can't be a good thing?
I wasn't there, but this is the sort of thing that strikes me as having the potential to be substantially worse than using a dead cow as an RTI ramp. :o
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iroks dont' fit in dollies ;) apparently. whatever whats done is done, nothing a 5 finger discount at PNP cna't fix...... lots of 8.8s there..... just helping people towards their swap by taking off the driveshaft ;)
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you know i find this funny people are getting involved the wornt even at the event and if you where concerned why didnt you take a look before you start putting people down and what they drive. and how did comanche runner get into this when 2grand4u was asking a qustion.
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;D :P lmfao my xj towed my grand just fine the only time i even felt the weight of my grand was going up hills the inline 6 has more the enough tork to tow iam pritty sure jonhyc sew me leave mclean with little to no problem towin it ;D :P
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I hope commancherunner sees this....
what does this mean?
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It always "works fine" till that one day you get cut off or get caught it bad weather and then you get an education on how things in motion like to stay in motion.
I have a tow bar setup for my ZJ in case in breaks down and needs to be hauled back, but I don't PLAN to use it, just as an emergency back up.
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An XJ with the 4.0 I6 has a max tow capacity of 5000lbs. that is with a proper weight distributing hitch and the toe prep package. Flat towing a ZJ that is 1500lbs more than the max weight is just asking for trouble. Adding a lift and bigger than stock mud tires wont help the situation any either.
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what does this mean?
i assume it means that the info Clay provided earlier that flat towing does not take into consideration weight distribution and therefore means one can tow LESS than what is stated for the vehicle.
You got lucky. But as many threads on many 4x4 sites regarding the Darwin approach to towing would suggest...its only when you will crash yourself and HOPEFULLY no one else .
What you are doing is wrong.
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u talk like I don't know that is y I'm planing on buying a 3/4 ton or 1 ton to tow my grand ya Ur right I did get lucky I wouldn't recommend towing like I did if u don't know what Ur doing in my case I do know what AM doing i used to tow full grain wagons/flat deck wagons with a load of hay on them/ grain augers / pretty much anything of the farm equipment sort that needed to be towed from Field to Field I towed with my Comanche back home.......... with that kind of experience I think I can say I know what I'm doing............. I'm a farm boy not a city boy.................
and that the end of that............
thank u very much..................
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u talk like I don't know that is y I'm planing on buying a 3/4 ton or 1 ton to tow my grand ya Ur right I did get lucky I wouldn't recommend towing like I did if u don't know what Ur doing in my case I do know what AM doing i used to tow full grain wagons/flat deck wagons with a load of hay on them/ grain augers / pretty much anything of the farm equipment sort that needed to be towed from Field to Field I towed with my Comanche back home.......... with that kind of experience I think I can say I know what I'm doing............. I'm a farm boy not a city boy.................
and that the end of that............
thank u very much..................
i do not doubt your experience...on the farm.
But doing farm activities in the CITY negates your experience :D
Anyways, glad to know you are getting a proper tow rig. :)
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what does this mean?
I was hoping that you would see this post to reevaluate your thinking when it came to towing your rig.
It is not how powerful, or how much torque the little I6 can dish out, it is CAN YOU STOP SAFELY WITH YOUR SET-UP? Key word is SAFELY.
And, yes I was there, Scott/Kerri.
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(http://128.83.80.193/scarysteering/scary159.jpg)
This guy probably drove to town "safely" along a road with many turns.....doesn't mean what he's doing is "safe".
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That reminds me of the time I was towing my XJ out to Waiporous. I had had an off and on problem with death wobble on the XJ but thought I had fixed it. Hadn't occured in quite awhile. We were heading to camp on the Hunter Valley Road and not far past the Waiporous Valley road wife looked in the truck mirror and screamed the wheels is coming off the Jeep! I checked my mirror and the tire on my side looked like it was coming off as well.
Pulled over and upon checking things I found the lower track bar bushing completly gone(as in missing) as well as the lower bolt. As well the lower bolt hole in the axle mount was seriously elongated. Apparently DW had started up while I was towing it and completly trashed the TB. However with the camper on the truck and the rough road I never noticed it till I actually saw the axle in the mirror trying to exit out from under the Jeep.
I unhooked the tow bar and tried to drive it off HWY40. Wouldn't start, apparently the shaking was SO bad it rub through my power cables for my winch and shorted out the battery. You should have seen the sparks when I tried to boost it before I realized what was going on!
In the end I had to leave the Jeep in the ditch on HWY40, drive back to town(fortunatly I live in Cochrane), pull the TB off my spare parts rig, buy a new battery and some cables, then go back out and drill a new hole in the lower TB bracket with a cordless drill and install all the new parts in the rain. Good thing we took off early on Friday. All so we could camp out in the rain all weekend and do two really muddy trails.
So does anyone still want to flat tow? :P Sometime ask me about my adventures with the $200 homemade tow dolly and how well it worked with my XJ on 8" of lift and 36" tires...... THAT was fun.... :o
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hey Clay, have any interesting stories about towing with a 200$ homemade tow dolly and how was it with you XJ on 36s?
;)