[SmichaelR22]

i have looked at tow bars for cj's that bolt to the front. They look rather rigid and im not sure i understand how they let you turn anything like a normal trailer. do the tires on the jeep just scrub a little and your not really supose to turn sharp?


any thoughts of people who have had good / bad experience with them, thanks in advance...

 

[JeepinYahoo]

I unlock the steering wheel by putting the keys in. Then the wheels turn freely when you go around corners.

 

[SuB8HaVeN]

I used one when I towed my Jeep. It is a PITA to install because the front bumper is made out of some seriously hard steel and is extremely difficult to drill through. Whenever I tow it I leave the keys in so the steering wheel is unlocked, and I make sure the transmission is in neutral as well as the transfer case. It takes turns pretty well as long as you don't cut it too sharp too quickly. Sometimes you'll hear the front tires chirping if you take a quick sharp turn but no harm...

 

[Mr.Crowley]

I tow my rig to the trails every month..I have the tow shackles up front and work pretty good...just had to hone out the pin braketts on the bar for the pins...Like said above unlock the steering wheel transfer and tranny in N for short tows,pull the rear DS for long ones....If you find that the wheels wander tie a bungie from the steering wheel to seat bracket...

 

[115616]

You will also want to avoid backing up for even short distances, as the front wheels like to turn almost immediately when backing up...

 

[RMeak]

I towed my '55 almost 500 miles home. Both the drive shafts were removed so I had no worries there, and the front wheels turned fine. The Jeep towed awesome, and it is definately how that rig will make it to the trail, on any drive farther than 15 miles. I bought a tow bar from Harbor Freight which was a very stout unit, easy to install the bumper brackets and easy to install the tow bar, best part is it only cost 50 bucks. Along with their(HF) magnetic tow lights the whole set up cost me less than $75 and I can have the CJ hooked up to the Durango in about 5 minutes ready to tow. X2 on the backing up.

 

[Javelina]

I towed mine back from Nebraska when I bought it, it'll track pretty good, but the jeep did get a little squirrelly above 60. I might have been able to go a little faster if I had a real tow vehicle with some weight to it like an HD pickup instead of the Mountaineer. All in all, it works pretty well, just don't expect it to tow like a something on a trailer, because it won't.

 

[92757]

In the UK the cops will lock you up and throw the keys away if they catch you towing a CJ on an 'A' frame. Somehow they manage to class it as an unbraked trailer. Over here you have to drag your CJ about on a trailer with a vehicle that is heavy enough and has enough grunt in it's braking system to stop the whole shooting match when the need arises!
I envy you your easy life!

 

[RMeak]

In the UK the cops will lock you up and throw the keys away if they catch you towing a CJ on an 'A' frame. Somehow they manage to class it as an unbraked trailer. Over here you have to drag your CJ about on a trailer with a vehicle that is heavy enough and has enough grunt in it's braking system to stop the whole shooting match when the need arises!
I envy you your easy life!

You know Nick, I can understand that, but as I figured my CJ only weighs just over 2000 lbs, and with a SUV, Dodge Durango, with a tow rating of over 5000 lbs...why add the weight of the trailer too. It makes just no sense, especially when a 81 inch wheel base Jeep tows just perfect behind that Hemi powered Durango. But local laws are local laws.

 

[67113]

Another thing to consider is to have the towbar as level as possible when hitched to the tow vehicle.
Also there should be limiters at the hinge point of the towbar on the bumper.
In a panic stop you don't want the towed vehicle to dive under or try to pole-vault over the tow vehicle.

It is all around best to pull the driveshafts, at least the rear. If you have lockouts on the front you can disengage those and leave front driveshaft connected.
Next best would be to have tranny and transfer in neutral.

Or go ultimate with a full floating Dana44 rear axle with lockouts on it also.

 

[Mr.Crowley]

dont forget safety chains from tow vehicle to jeep...there a must..

 

[SmichaelR22]

Thanks guys, a couple things were mentioned that i might not have thought of. I guess the only thing that would hold me back is my current truck probably doesnt have enough grunt to get the job done, but i feel better about not needing a HD monster to pull a full trailer or at least haveing two options.

 

[Rob55]

I use the Currie Tow shackles with no problems, as previous posts...get it as level as possible, unlock the steering, everything in neutral, pull the DS for long tows, I would add a light towing kit or wire your taillights to previous posts. Don't ever back up!!!

 

[SuB8HaVeN]

It shouldn't take too much of a truck to tow a CJ; they weigh very little as mentioned above. I towed mine with my dad's 04 F-150 with the 4.6L V8 and it did fine. I also towed my 87 YJ I used to have with a 3.0L V6 Ranger and it did fine as well, although Ford's 3.0L V6 doesn't have sh*t for low-end torque, so it struggled getting going and over hills...

 

[jayhawkclint]

...I figured my CJ only weighs just over 2000 lbs...

Is it missing a drivetrain or something? They weigh more than that. What model and year do you have?

 

[BESRK]

Is it missing a drivetrain or something? They weigh more than that. What model and year do you have?

I was gonna say.. about the lightest CJ I've seen was still over 3000lbs.. my old 71 CJ5 weighed 4500lbs with the D60/14Bolt and 42" tires...

 

[RMeak]

Is it missing a drivetrain or something? They weigh more than that. What model and year do you have?

Jayhawk, somewhere I had found that a '55 CJ5 came in just under 2500 lbs. I can not remember where, maybe in one of my many books at home, but some where. I could be wrong but seeing that me and my 5'2" wife push the thing around, up the alley and what have ya I would truely be surprised( I really mean truely) if it weighed more, but I could be wrong. Of course just about anything behind a Hemi feels light. But for me, a tow bar on the CJ works great.

 

[Fatman]

Hey BESRK, Do you see a problem if someone who owned one of your bumpers wanted to use the 3/4" clevis mounts to attach an adjustable tow bar?
I know the spacing 33" is a bit wider than most of the fixed tow bar setups 24"
Anything to look out for? The last thing I want to do is weld on addl atachments to such a nice bumper. :cheers2:

 

[Oily]

Anything to look out for?

Well I am no engineer but I have a thought. A tow bar has a certain geometry it needs to have to be a stable and safe device. I am thinking with a greater width you might need a longer length.

 

[Fatman]

I am no engineer either but i don't think 2.2 inches is going to make much diff?