Car Towing Question

beezey

beezey

Active member
So I have a 1995 Grand Jeep Cherokee V8 5.2 cylinder and this kid wants me to tow his car back to Salt Lake City from Boise Idaho, he has a '86 Toyota 4 runner that we were planning on towing on a car dolly.

advice?
 
its gonna rape your jeep. like really. you might not have problems on the trip, but it will decrease the life of your car substantially.
 
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a 5.2L jeep can tow that. I mean obviously a diesel pickup would be nicer but a 4 runner probably weighs around 5000pounds? If you think about it that's around the same as a wakeboard boat and trailer. People who only move their boats a couple times a year can easily get away with a half ton truck or a v8 jeep. It's not gonna be nice but if you take it easy it will not harm the jeep. Hills are going to suck, be patient and nice to your transmission.

However one thing you must check is that the hitch is good enough.

Also if the car starts wobbling from side to side, slow the fuck down and turn around. It's rare but possible and like speed wobble on a skateboard it goes really bad really fast. This issue is much more common with negative tongue weight though. (like a camper with to much stuff behind the axle). You shouldn't have any issue with this towing a car.

And if your friend has a dolly It obviously goes without saying, but put the transfer case in neutral haha. Everyone has forgotten to at least once, you wont get far anyways lol.

But really people in the USA think that anything but a one ton diesel is useless for towing anything. If you go to europe you will see people hauling horse trailers with 6 cylinder trucks and stuff haha. I have towed a toyota celica with a 4 cylinder 4runner and it was fine.
 
a 5.2L jeep can tow that. I mean obviously a diesel pickup would be nicer but a 4 runner probably weighs around 5000pounds? If you think about it that's around the same as a wakeboard boat and trailer. People who only move their boats a couple times a year can easily get away with a half ton truck or a v8 jeep. It's not gonna be nice but if you take it easy it will not harm the jeep. Hills are going to suck, be patient and nice to your transmission.

However one thing you must check is that the hitch is good enough.

Also if the car starts wobbling from side to side, slow the fuck down and turn around. It's rare but possible and like speed wobble on a skateboard it goes really bad really fast. This issue is much more common with negative tongue weight though. (like a camper with to much stuff behind the axle). You shouldn't have any issue with this towing a car.

And if your friend has a dolly It obviously goes without saying, but put the transfer case in neutral haha. Everyone has forgotten to at least once, you wont get far anyways lol.

But really people in the USA think that anything but a one ton diesel is useless for towing anything. If you go to europe you will see people hauling horse trailers with 6 cylinder trucks and stuff haha. I have towed a toyota celica with a 4 cylinder 4runner and it was fine.
 
Your jeep can handle pulling the weight but its going to be really hard to control while driving. It will wear the hell out of your brakes and put a good amount of wear and tear on yours. If you do tow it make sure you take a good amount of money on top of gas.
 
5.2 is a great engine and capable of the task, just drive 55, slow up hill, and take it easy on that transmission, those are the scary things with those. other wise youll be fine. but take alot of money and be sure to say if anything happens to ur car during the tow, its on his dime. good luck, easy riding...
 
No problem, just will be slow going up any passes. Hopefully your trans in the Jeep is solid, this will be a nice test for it. The trans in the 5.2/5.9L Jeeps are notorious for grenading themselves. You should be getting more than just some gas money too!
 
First thing is first, DO NOT use a dolly. get a trailer from u-haul. you will probably need it anyway since the 4runner ways to much.

I wouldnt tow it. a lot of pressure on your jeep. I doubt you have a class 3 hitch put on it. you will need a drop bar with ball that can hold up to 10,000 #'s. your shocks arent that stiff so your front end will be up in the air which is not safe at all since you will loose braking power and your steering will be horrible.

 
i wouldn't do it. but if you're gonna do it, make sure you use your gears to slow down, go slow, maybe keep it in 3rd (on automatic trans) to prevent unnecessary shifting. check uhaul for some towing shit.
 
If his car is an all wheel drive make sure all four tires are off the ground when you tow it or shits gunna get fucked up, also if this has already been said, my bad didnt read just posted some information that probably isnt even right. I just heard that since i have an awd
 
Partially depends on what class of hitch you have, some pull more some pull less. If i were you I wouldnt. I have a lot of experience pulling shit. Just last month I had more than 5000 lbs in a single axle trailer with a 1500 and that was a well learned mistake.

There will be a lot of stress on the jeeps tranny, shocks, and leaf springs which could lead to some major problems.
 
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