Power loss while towing- 2013 Wrangler Sahara Unlimited

[Benbejammin75]

Hello!

Has anyone had this problem?

I bought a 2013 Wrangler Sahara Unlimited in January and I LOVE it, except for one thing. I bought it to replace my 1996 Grand Cherokee as the main tow vehicle for my tent trailer. It didn't have a hitch so I asked for one to be installed by the dealership I purchased it from. I did my research regarding tow capacity and my trailer falls well within the limits at about 2500 lbs, loaded. That was in the winter, and I didn't have chance to take my trailer out until May Long Weekend.

While towing, after about 1/2 hour of driving, the engine malfunction light came on followed by the Electronic Stability Control light, with an immediate loss of power- like 50% loss. We hobbled to and from our camping trip and I took it in to be looked at. They reckoned it was the Cam Shaft Sensor and replaced it, assuring me it the problem would be solved. During our next trip this past weekend, it happened again. I brought it to the nearest dealership in Fort Saskatchewan. They inspected it and couldn't find anything wrong. I was told to disconnect the battery to erase the error codes, which I did. On the way home it happened again and again and again. Restarting the vehicle restores power temporarily, until the light goes on again.  The odd thing is that it's also happened to me a few times WITHOUT the trailer.

Please, I'd be in your debt for any useful advice. The dealerships don't seem to know what the problem is. A 2013 Wrangler should not be struggling like this, and I'm considering getting my 1996 Grand Cherokee fixed up to be the tow vehicle again if the problem doesn't sort itself out.

Thanks for your help!

[jkrubi]

What code does it have? What have you done to fix it? What was the last thing you did before this started to happen?

[vantagetes]

Wheel speed sensor.

The really fun part with drive by wire is there are so many things that will trigger power loss (bad connection, throttle body, ABS, crankshaft sensor).

Most of them trigger the ETC light when they kill the power too.

[w squared]

Wheel speed sensor.

The really fun part with drive by wire is there are so many things that will trigger power loss (bad connection, throttle body, ABS, crankshaft sensor).

Most of them trigger the ETC light when they kill the power too.

I dunno about that on a JK. When I've had wheel speed sensor issues on my JK, it triggers the ESP light, but doesn't effect the engine. It will go through a couple short sessions of applying brakes selectively to different wheels while it tries to make sense of the wheel speed readings, and then it will just start sulking and turn off ABS and cruise control, with a consistent "ESP OFF" error light.