Towing a jeep

[jpcoll01]

Everything in life is a trade off I suppose.  Finally made a long-time dream came true and bought a used Class C last fall. We are having a blast traveling in it (not full timing, weekends and vacations) but have noticed the need for a car when we get to our location.  We do a month out west each summer and usually rent a jeep for some rock crawling or mountain passes (depending on where we are). I have read that a jeep is pretty easy to tow. I used the search function and found some threads similar to this and have noted some of the suggestions for brake systems, tow bars, etc. Seems to me all that wil cost about as much as a dolly, is there a reason to go either way?  Understand that I am asking for opinions so don't hesitate to share your thoughts. Also considered selling the RV and getting a truck/5th but we would miss the TV, etc for the kids while driving. 

[Chad Heiser]

Towing four down is much simpler and logistically easier than towing with a dolly.  When you use a dolly, you need to find a place to store the dolly, both when at your campsite and when at home, not using the RV.  You cannot back up with a dolly or a four down towed vehicle more than a few feet.  If you find yourself in a situation where you have to back up, it is more difficult to remove the Jeep from the dolly than it is to disconnect it from a tow bar.  If you have an integrated (permanent) towed braking system installed in the Jeep, hitching up and unhitching is very short work.  Even with a removable braking system it will be less work than connecting a dolly and then getting the Jeep on the dolly and strapping it to the dolly.  These are my opinions based on my experience.

I currently tow a Jeep Wrangler Rubicon behind my 5th wheel when I need to.  I use a Blue Ox tow bar that mates to my off road bumper with no need for an additional tow plate.  I installed an Invisibrake system in the Jeep that is completely hidden and out of the way so it does not interfere with normal use of the Jeep and does not require any additional set up or breakdown when going from Towed to normal driving.  The tow bar stays mounted to the rear of my 5th wheel.  The only connections I have to make to tow the Jeep are to pins to connect the tow bar to the Jeep bumper, two safety chains, a trailer plug to pass light and brake signals to the Jeep and a break away cable to activate the Jeep brakes if it somehow becomes disconnected from the 5er.  I then place the transfer case in Neutral.  This whole process is well under five minute to complete.

[AFchap]

I have done both:

In my opinion ...

- Dolly is the best choice if you will be towing different vehicles.

- Four down is he best choice if you will be towing only one toad as it is easier to deal with AND you don't have the extra vehicle (dolly) to deal with/maintain/etc.

[fly2low]

Agree with both

I also tow a Rubicon.  Roadmaster tow bar and Air Force One for brakes.  Hooking and unhooking in under 5 minutes

[Weiss]

I have a Rubicon & have towed both four down & on a trailer.  Four down is so much easier & more convenient.  I have a Blue Ox tow bar & the M&G Engineering braking system - highly recommend the M&G.  Simple & easy to use.

[lockmup68]

dual axle trailer, brakes on both axles. Can still be backed up and adding full brakes is important. Must make sure your MH can handle the load.

[Jimalberta]

A trailer makes it so you can back up but it means having an extra item to store at your site. It also makes it cumbersome to use the toad for a quick exploration of your surroundings for the purpose of finding a site. (I do this a lot). I can disconnect my Jeep and drive it away in less than a minute.

as far as the Jeep goes...unless you are doing serious off roading I prefer a Jeep Cherokee. The Grand Cherokee I have has much more comfort than the Wrangler style and is almost as good for off roading. Just my opinion. 

[Britcon]

Sounds like you are into off-roading a bit.  If you have a lifted Wrangler, you can install a " rock bumper " with attachments for a tow bar, rather than going to a baseplate installation.

We towed a Wrangler for 3 years using a blue ox baseplate, readybrute elite towbar / brake setup.  Super easy to install / hookup on the Wrangler.

Problem with towing a trailer or dolly is storage on site. Many RV Parks require them to be dropped at a separate storage area.

[SKP073615]

On 3/14/2017 at 7:05 PM, jpcoll01 said:

Seems to me all that wil cost about as much as a dolly, is there a reason to go either way?

Be aware that all 4WD Jeeps that I know of cannot be towed on a dolly.  Some of the Jeep drivetrains cannot be towed on a dolly or 4-down.  Make sure to look in the owner's manual of any model being considered for information on recreational towing.

[justRich]

In my case, the primary reason for four-down is the additional weight on the truck's rear axle.  
I'd need a weight distribution type hitch and probably still be over-weight on the axle(s).

 

[Ronbo]

I am currently setting up my jeep to flat tow. I am purchased a Blue Ox tow bar for $200. I ordered a rough country front bumper so I can use d ring loops to connect the tow bar to. The ones I ordered are made from 1/2 in steel. I want to install an incisivrake, but have to source one first. If I have to pay retail, I will buy it in Oregon, no sales tax. Molar makes a working harness that plugs into the jeep wiring so I don't have to run wires and diodes to the tail lights. 

[Chad Heiser]

2 hours ago, Ronbo said:

I am currently setting up my jeep to flat tow. I am purchased a Blue Ox tow bar for $200. I ordered a rough country front bumper so I can use d ring loops to connect the tow bar to. The ones I ordered are made from 1/2 in steel. I want to install an incisivrake, but have to source one first. If I have to pay retail, I will buy it in Oregon, no sales tax. Molar makes a working harness that plugs into the jeep wiring so I don't have to run wires and diodes to the tail lights. 

I basically did all the same thing,s to my Jeep.  My bumper is a Smitty Bilt, but it works great with the Blue Ox tow bar and adapters.  I installed the invisibrake myself.  It was technically not difficult to install, but since it was my first one, I did it slowly over a weekend.  It came out great.  I am very happy with it.  I also installed the plug and play harness for the lights at the same time.  It has all worked well and I am very happy with it.

[Ronbo]

Where did you tap into for the brake lights that trigger the invisibrake?

[Chad Heiser]

3 hours ago, Ronbo said:

Where did you tap into for the brake lights that trigger the invisibrake?

It was almost a year ago when I did this, but I tapped into the new plug and play harness I added.  It has four wires that run from the front of the Jeep to the tail lights.  These are the wires you wire into your front plug that then connect to the tow vehicle with an umbilical cord.  One of these is a brake signal, one is left turn, one is right turn and one is ground (typical 4 blade flat trailer connector wiring).  I tapped into this brake light wire.  The invisibrake has a signal wire that goes forward from the module to the front of the Jeep also.  This wire sends a signal to an indicator light and buzzer in the tow vehicle to let you now the invisibrake has activated and if it stays on too long, the buzzer goes off.  Now you have five wires at the front of the Jeep to get across to the tow vehicle.  Most people use a 4 pin flat trailer plug and a separate standalone signal wire between the tow vehicle and the towed.

I used a 6 pin trailer plug on the front of the Jeep.  I ran the invisibrake signal wire to the fifth pin.  I ran a wire from the sixth pin direct to the Jeep battery with a fuse in line to allow the tow vehicle to put a charge into the Jeep battery while going down the road.  I have a dedicated plug on the tow vehicle for this set up because I didn't want to connect a separate invisibrake signal wire each time I hooked the Jeep up.  This plug is wired differently than my standard 7 pin RV plug to match up to the way the Jeep receptacle is wired.  I know this means I can't have anyone else tow my Jeep because their trailer plug won't match my Jeep plug, but I am fine with that.

[Ray,IN]

On 3/26/2017 at 7:34 PM, Britcon said:

Sounds like you are into off-roading a bit.  If you have a lifted Wrangler, you can install a " rock bumper " with attachments for a tow bar, rather than going to a baseplate installation.

We towed a Wrangler for 3 years using a blue ox baseplate, readybrute elite towbar / brake setup.  Super easy to install / hookup on the Wrangler.

Problem with towing a trailer or dolly is storage on site. Many RV Parks require them to be dropped at a separate storage area.

Link to offroad bumper with integrated tow bar brackets; rh4x4.com    It also has the plate for a wench.

[Ronbo]

The problem with the blue ox base plate is it hangs down below the bumper and frame. When rock crawling around Moab it would be bent every which way. It would also hang on the rocks and inhibit movement. 

[fly2low]

I have the Rockhard bumper mentioned by Ray, IN.  Works great.  Put a Warn winch in the bumper as well.