[tjwalker]

Originally Posted by Techno Duck

Thanks for all your input. I guess I'll start thinking about a more capable tower. Maybe a used F350 diesel, my friend just bought one, ne'er thought I'd like a turbo diesel pickup, but a great ride.

Now you're talking. An F350 diesel would be a great choice for towing your ride.

[lcarney91]

Why does everyone jump straight to a one-ton truck when a guy asks about towing 4-5000 pounds? Sure, an F350 Powerstroke would be a good tow rig, but so would just about any full-size truck with a V8. Most newer half-tons are "rated" to tow somewhere between 6500-11000 pounds. Back to topic, your XJ WILL tow 4000 lbs. It will not be easy on it though. I pulled my 3500 pound camper through the mountains last summer, even at speeds of 70+ and temps around 90. By no means was it good for my XJ, but it handled it. I have since bought a Dodge half-ton to handle my towing needs.

Here is an example of how my Jeep lived for a little over a year:

[Kettles]

Originally Posted by Deezelweazel

I have the slight feeling that trailer mounted overrun brakes are totally unkown in the US?
Am I right?
I wouldn't tow anything more than 1600lbs with a trailer without an overrun brake.

I think they call them surge brakes here. Not too popular I think, when you come to a stop it jerks alot. So the midrange trailers 1500-3500lbs usually are brake less in my experience. Then electric brakes for heavier. But having trailer brakes is a very good idea I dont know why most of our midrange trailers don't have them. I have owned 2 boats and my has uncle one, my friend has one, and my ex-uncle has one, none of which had any brakes, and they all are around 3000lbs.

And lcarney91, we didn't suggest a one ton diesel, the OP did. Tjwalker was just saying it would be a great tow rig.. and it would be, but that doesn't mean you NEED a f350 diesel. I just said a fullsize truck. A f150 would be fine (or equivilent), and a beater one can be had really cheap, atleast around here. (of course ford has two truck plants in Louisville, so there are alot of fords) so that is what I would suggest..

[rivalarrival]

Surge brakes aren't unpopular - lots of utility and boat trailers have them. The worst characteristic I discovered: when you lose braking traction in the truck, you lose ALL braking traction. In the meantime, you've become accustomed to a certain stopping distance because the trailer brakes are assisting. When the reason for you losing all traction is hard ice under water (due to a broken water main) these three factors combine to let you slide nearly 200 feet at about 3 MPH, through a red light and jack knifing into the next intersection.

Ask me how I know this.

[Jerry Bransford]

I've been towing for nearly 40 years and I towed several larger boats for many miles behind the '89 XJ I used to have. Yes, absolutely my XJ was rated for 5,000 lbs. It said so right in the documentation when I bought my brand-new XJ that had the factory tow package. Would I have actually towed a 5,000 lb. trailer with my XJ any distance on the highway? No frigging way, absolutely not.

That 5,000 lb. rating is only under perfect ideal conditions. My XJ's wheelbase and weight (lighter than my current TJ) made it marginal for even my 4,000 lb. boat. Heck I when I towed that same boat and then a newer 20' power boat even with our WJ with its larger V8 engine I wished I had a V8 truck. But with the XJ, I knew when I was towing to pray to stay out of any emergency maneuvering situation where that boat would have taken the XJ over... akin to the tail wagging the dog. Yes it may have been rated for 5K lbs. but having towed a lot of bigger boats behind a lot of different vehicles over that nearly 40 years, my XJ was adequate for 3500-4000 lbs. most of the time but it was right on the edge of being safe. And all of my trailers have always had either surge or electric brakes. A vehicle's actual tow limit, regardless of what the brochure says, is a combination of its official weight limit mixed in with a lot of common sense.

5,000 lbs? Well, officially yes... but in my personal opinion, I think that much weight capacity is from the marketing department wanting to help it compete against larger vehicles and definitely not from the Jeep Dept. of Common Sense.

[GregB_00XJ]

Originally Posted by Jerry Bransford

5,000 lbs? Well, officially yes... but in my personal opinion, I think that much weight capacity is from the marketing department wanting to help it compete against larger vehicles and definitely not from the Jeep Dept. of Common Sense.

Well put...

I agree, at 50% of rated capacity (or a little bit more) my XJ tows excellent. Would I want to go above 3500 LBS, no. I don't think it is advisable to go to the rated tow capacity of ANY vehicle. Use the "common sense" laws, not state/provincial laws or the vehicles manual. If rated to tow 5000 pounds, keep it to 75% MAX and you will tow that day in day out safely and happily for years to come.

Oh and in Canada (BC at least) any trailer over 2500 pounds MUST have an active braking system i.e. electric/hydraulic/surge brakes. As a side note on surge brakes, I hear that they suck hard for backing up unless you are captain smooth on the gas?

Hooked up for towing...

[justanotherjpr]

With a WDH, trailer brakes, and a rear disc conversion kit, I think you'd be OK if you took it easy, but you'd be better off with something heavier. The 4.0 will pull all day long, but at the end of the day, the XJ was designed as, and is, a light weight vehicle.

FWIW, I have towed a 2001 Explorer Sport on a tow dolly and it stopped just fine without trailer brakes. I did not have a tounge load since it was a tow dolly, but I did have to move the weight. The Explorer has a D30 swapped in an 33" tires. I had (at the time) 33" tires and 3.55 gears. It moved and stopped without issue. However, I kept it under 55mph. YMMV.

Edit: As you can see, there was no WDH (no tounge load) and no 'trailer' brakes.

[Jerry Bransford]

Originally Posted by Gman_VIMB

As a side note on surge brakes, I hear that they suck hard for backing up unless you are captain smooth on the gas?

You are correct. My boat trailers all had surge brakes and I couldn't back any of them up any useful amount. Surge brakes usually come with a big cross-bolt that is inserted into the top of the mechanism that prevents the brake mechanism from actuating while backing up. Without that bolt inserted, I really couldn't back my boat up at all.

[XJmaine97]

I tow my '69 Grady White behind my '97 sport, its probably around 5000lbs w/ 15 gallons (30 gallon tank). its a bear of a tow and I would never tow it more than 20-30 miles. The XJ has the power but going down hill is a little hairy and I don't know what would happen if I had to stop quick behind some nut.

Just my two cents.

[Techno Duck]

Was just thinking out loud about the F350. I think I may go with a newer grand cherokee. I prefer SUV over pickup anyhow. Hate to have to bother selling the XJ now, what a reliable daily ride thts actually relativley fun to drive.

[GregB_00XJ]

Yes,
I would probably go with the Grand with a V8 if I was going to tow anything heavier than what we have now. Since we just bought the tent trailer new, I imagine we will have this for at least 5 or 6 years... and I just spent a bundle on the lift etc so...

F350 Diesel would rock, but I too lean towards the SUV. My last vehicle was a Dakota Extended Cab, miss it sometimes, but most of the time you are hauling around a lot of empty space.

[rivalarrival]

Originally Posted by Techno Duck

Was just thinking out loud about the F350. I think I may go with a newer grand cherokee. I prefer SUV over pickup anyhow. Hate to have to bother selling the XJ now, what a reliable daily ride thts actually relativley fun to drive.

If I already had an SUV, I'd keep it and go with a heavy duty pickup, just to expand the capabilities of my fleet. Kinda hard to put a fifth wheel on a Suburban without some major mods.

Of course, it's kinda nice to be able to haul 8 people and a big-*** boat with one truck...

[98GooseXJ14]

jeeps are rated at 5000 lb towing but you do need brakes on the trailer for that much if you plan on stopping.

[Techno Duck]

Keeping the Jeep is an idea, frankly they aren't worth much to make selling worth while. But that would leave me with 3 cars and a trailer. No space for everything. I work offshore in month long rotations so I usually keep everything at my parents place when I'm at sea. Don't want to have the driveway at my parents filled up with all my crap .

[Kevin108]

I spent 350 miles with around 1,600 lbs behind me yesterday. It's going to be too much for an XJ. Not only is stopping an issue but the short wheel base makes things a lot less controllable. Even a small trailer can exert a lot of leverage on our little rigs.