Any of you guys tow alot with your XJ?

[krimax]

I am considering buying a full on trail rig and trailer, but do not have a truck to pull it right now. What I do have is my 4 door 2001 XJ. The max towing capacity listed in the owners man. says 5000 lbs. My question is am I going to be wrecking my rig pulling around the other and trailer? Are there somethings I can do to enhance the towing capacity? I have already thought about putting in a 3 row rad and tranny cooler. I also plan on adding airbags in the rear to level the load out. What else would be a good idea? Thanks for any help provided guys!

 

[j99xj]

The XJ is a good puller for small stuff but if you are towing at or near the 5000 lb capacity you are going to learn really quick that the XJ is a lousy puller.

This is NOT because of a lack of power, but lack of stability and braking ability.

Towing extended distances you should be at 55 mph or slower.

An occasional run up to 65 mph is ok, but I wouldn't go much more than that.

 

[krimax]

The XJ is a good puller for small stuff but if you are towing at or near the 5000 lb capacity you are going to learn really quick that the XJ is a lousy puller.

This is NOT because of a lack of power, but lack of stability and braking ability.

Towing extended distances you should be at 55 mph or slower.

An occasional run up to 65 mph is ok, but I wouldn't go much more than that.

Oh yeah, thanks for reminding me. I have a D44 that needs to go in and it will have disc brakes, plus I was gonna upgrade the front with the Vanco setup. Stability is an issue? Thicker roll bars help there?

 

[skydizzle]

buy you a 1 ton for the tow rig and build the xj into the trail rig

 

[krimax]

buy you a 1 ton for the tow rig and build the xj into the trail rig

I won't need to turn my XJ into a trail rig as I may be stealing Caglezxj's rig. Well, not really stealing it, but as close as I can get! And if you wanna pay half for a 1 ton rig, then I will consider it. Now do you have anything beneficial to post?:looser:

 

[skydizzle]

haha i was jk but anyways as far as stability goes the shorter wheelbase of an xj is a downfall but like stated above it depends on what you are towing. and as far as the 1 ton, im still waiting for mine lol.

 

[krimax]

haha i was jk but anyways as far as stability goes the shorter wheelbase of an xj is a downfall but like stated above it depends on what you are towing. and as far as the 1 ton, im still waiting for mine lol.

Yeah I know, I was just messin with you too. I would have an F-250 powerstroke right now if the guy hadn't backed out of the deal, but that's how it goes sometimes.

I would be towing a trailer with a built XJ. Full exo cage, Dana 60s, and 39.5 Iroks with beadlocks....HEAVY!!! Don't know if my current XJ is up to it.

 

[skydizzle]

yeah im probably just going to find a 3/4 ton burban or truck (90s) with a big block for my tow rig.:dunno:

 

[Wa Woody]

As already stated the XJ has the power for towing - it's the stopping that's the issue.

A good rule of thumb I use:

If your tow weight is half the weight of the rig doing the towing it's time for trailier brakes.

Trailier brakes and load stabilization if the tow weight equals the tow rig.

A larger tow rig when the tow weight is twice the weight of the original tow rig.

The curb weight of the XJ is around 3200 lbs, so I would say trailier brakes for sure and trailier stabilizer bars would be helpful. Good Luck

Woody

 

[BigG]

I don't have any experience towing a trail rig, but my 96 XJ has towed a fully loaded U-Haul 6x12 trailer several times between Austin, TX and Gunnison, CO. Two day trip traveling 65-75 when the speed limit permmited. This on a stock vehicle with a tranny cooler and a class II 1 1/4" hitch. Never had a problem with pulling or stopping (the 6x12 has trailer brakes). The odd thing is, U-Haul won't give me a 6x12 anymore, only a 5x10. Different excuse every time: too short, too light, wrong hitch. And they'd give a 5x10 to my dad's TJ, which is lighter and shorter.

 

[krimax]

Thanks for all of the help guys. The trailer does have brakes and dual axles, so should be pretty stable. I think it would survuve until I could get a real tow rig.

 

[jeepinwi]

Once you get a heavy trailer behind an XJ, you'll find out how weak the rear springs are. Just a couple hundred pounds of tongue weight makes my rear end sag pretty bad. I am very happy with the brakes on my 99 XJ, and can stop with a 2500 lb trailer very quickly. For a trail XJ, I'd only pull it behind another XJ using a 2 wheeled dolly. I would never consider pulling it on a flatbed trailer. The trail XJ will probably weigh over 4,000 lbs, and a flatbed trailer will be close to 2,000. Get a bigger tow vehicle.

 

[Stumpalump]

Thanks for all of the help guys. The trailer does have brakes and dual axles, so should be pretty stable. I think it would survuve until I could get a real tow rig.

Good plan. If you want a deal on a good tow vehicle find a 97 or 98 Chevy/GMC 1 ton with the 6.5 diesel. This engine has a bad reputation from it's older days but the 97-98 have the bugs worked out. The reputation remains and people can't hardly give them away. Offer like 3000 for one with just over 100k miles if it is spotless. The new car lots get them on trade and wholsale them off for dirt.
Tall jeeeps are heavy and have a lot of wind drag so the bigger the tow rig the better. I sure don't miss the days of white knucking it down the road in a half ton truck. I towed a jeep from Little Rock to the smoky mountais with a 76 chevy half ton on a 14 foot trailer with no trailer breaks. I had chest pains when I got home and I was only 33. I finaly went to the doctor and they said it was stress. It cleared up when I got a real car hauler trailer and a 1 ton truck.

 

[natep1]

I do quite a bit of towing with mine, mostly short distance (less than 15 miles), up to about 5k lbs (give or take a few) and I don't have any issues.
I have a 2K, auto, 4wheel disc w/adj. proportioning valve, air lift airbags, permacool trans cooler with fan, brake controller and a 4.6 stroker.
The airbags were the best thing I have done for towing.
I wouldn't recommend using the XJ for long distance tows but, set up right shorter tows should be just fine.
HTH