need towing advise

[L2R]

Hey guys,

A wrangler followed me home last night.
I plan to flat tow it behind the rv.
I have referred to Remco and used it as a guide for what I can tow and what I need to do it.

Wondering if others have used blue ox or if there is other brands that are good but less money. (i'm broke now)

Also, it needs nerf bars. Some that are pricey still get bad reviews where they start rusting after just a couple of months. So anyone with experience there would be helpful too.

I guess I will wonder over and join a jeep website but I don't know who's who over there and it takes time to learn that.

Here, I know those who post the most, are crazy - ass lunatics but you know your stuff.

Thanks for any advise. I will give you a like but I have no idea why!

 

[Alan_Vander]

i used this one from auto parts store quick disconnect for it then just bought some magnetic towing lights to sit on the back bumper for turn signals and brakes. i cant remember how much it was because that was 8 yrs ago. it came with the 2 mounts that bolted directly on front bumper and i added the chains myself. . but i guess it really depends on what wrangler you have. or what front bumper you have. but it was adjustable on the width.

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[Alan_Vander]

i think it was smittybuilt if i remember right it wasnt but about 129-150 bucks.

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[L2R]

remco wants 3k for everything, tow bar, light kit, plug in lights, brakes, and oil bath (electronic not splash like when things were cheap and didn't break!) Seems like a lot and willing to pay that if it makes sense, just not convinced all that is necessary.

 

[CASTRATE]

remco wants 3k for everything, tow bar, light kit, plug in lights, brakes, and oil bath (electronic not splash like when things were cheap and didn't break!) Seems like a lot and willing to pay that if it makes sense, just not convinced all that is necessary.

Please forgive me, as I haven't flat towed other than when a vehicle was broke down, but why is an oil bath needed?

 

[Alan_Vander]

remco wants 3k for everything, tow bar, light kit, plug in lights, brakes, and oil bath (electronic not splash like when things were cheap and didn't break!) Seems like a lot and willing to pay that if it makes sense, just not convinced all that is necessary.

not sure what size rv you have but i pulled mine with my duramax 2500. not even sure what the oil bath is for really. put it in neutral on t case everything will oil itself.even on the new models. only way i could see it needing an oil pump was if it was 2wd but even then you shouldnt need it on most. unless it is an automatic.then yeah bath would be a good choice or just pull drive shaft. but brakes on a wrangler arent needed being towed. unless your towing it with another wrangler . or a kia. now as far as the lights go depending on the year they make a plug where you unplug the rear trailer wires and plug in and it uses the jeep lights . only down side is got to swap the plug everytime. really depending on how often and how far your going to tow it really. couple times a yr couple thousand miles? probably just a basic setup would work just fine. but i cant see buying a 3k setup to tow when i can get a 16 ft trailer for 2k and just pull it that way.

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[Cyberjunk]

I tow a 2002 Chevy tracker behind my RV for the past 10 years. Use a blue OX tow bar and made the mount on the car. It is a 5 speed 4x4 so just leave it in neutral both cases and tows fine. Not sure if you want to go to the trouble of putting a second bulb in your tail lights and run the wiring to the front from your tail lights but it makes hookup easy as I have a connector in my grill I hook to.


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[Firemedic530]

We had a 2001 TJ and flat towed it some. I used the same Smitty bilt I bought for $145.00. I went into the driver's kick panel and spliced the wiring to the taillights with a 4 flat trailer plug. I put both ends on the jeep for normal use and ran a trailer wire through the firewall and stuffed it inside the front cross tube. I would simply plug it into the tow vehicle and the rear wire harness at kick panel and use the stock jeep lights. You put the transfer case in N and nothing in the drive train turns so no oiler needed. It was light enough we didn't worry about brakes either. Biggest problem was how dirty the jeep would get if it rained during the tow.

 

[JACKAL]

From Northern Tool you can get an Ultra-tow 5k tow bar for $100 and for another $40 you can get a plug and play wiring kit for the lights that fits OEM connectors (no splicing). Whether you decide you need additional braking is up to you (I say probably not) and definitely don't need the oil bath snake oil, just put transfer case in neutral and the differentials and transfer case will lube themselves in motion.

 

[JTW]

We had a 2001 TJ and flat towed it some. I used the same Smitty bilt I bought for $145.00. I went into the driver's kick panel and spliced the wiring to the taillights with a 4 flat trailer plug. I put both ends on the jeep for normal use and ran a trailer wire through the firewall and stuffed it inside the front cross tube. I would simply plug it into the tow vehicle and the rear wire harness at kick panel and use the stock jeep lights. You put the transfer case in N and nothing in the drive train turns so no oiler needed. It was light enough we didn't worry about brakes either. Biggest problem was how dirty the jeep would get if it rained during the tow.

That’s exactly what I would do!!

 

[L2R]

We had a 2001 TJ and flat towed it some. I used the same Smitty bilt I bought for $145.00. I went into the driver's kick panel and spliced the wiring to the taillights with a 4 flat trailer plug. I put both ends on the jeep for normal use and ran a trailer wire through the firewall and stuffed it inside the front cross tube. I would simply plug it into the tow vehicle and the rear wire harness at kick panel and use the stock jeep lights. You put the transfer case in N and nothing in the drive train turns so no oiler needed. It was light enough we didn't worry about brakes either. Biggest problem was how dirty the jeep would get if it rained during the tow.

I like that a lot. Just have to figure out which wires to splice.
And I saw front shields for keeping rain and rocks from the rv kicking up. I may have to find something to make a heavy mudflap that extends clear across the bumper of rv. thanks for the suggestions everyone.

 

[L2R]

not sure what size rv you have but i pulled mine with my duramax 2500. not even sure what the oil bath is for really. put it in neutral on t case everything will oil itself.even on the new models. only way i could see it needing an oil pump was if it was 2wd but even then you shouldnt need it on most. unless it is an automatic.then yeah bath would be a good choice or just pull drive shaft. but brakes on a wrangler arent needed being towed. unless your towing it with another wrangler . or a kia. now as far as the lights go depending on the year they make a plug where you unplug the rear trailer wires and plug in and it uses the jeep lights . only down side is got to swap the plug everytime. really depending on how often and how far your going to tow it really. couple times a yr couple thousand miles? probably just a basic setup would work just fine. but i cant see buying a 3k setup to tow when i can get a 16 ft trailer for 2k and just pull it that way.

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So rumor has it that rear ends and u joints just sat in bath of oil for the last 100 years. Haven't looked but guessing utvs and atv's still do. I know my golf cart does. Somewhere along the way, cars started going to electronic pumps. As time goes by, the number of cars using them has gone up to where Remco recommends it on almost all the newer (last 10 years?) vehicles. Some vehicles, (CRVs maybe) has been popular because later models didn't require the kit to keep oil on them.

I haven't decided if they are just selling stuff or not but they have the reputation of knowing their stuff more than most people working at a dealership. Thus, this thread to sort thru it.

 

[Alan_Vander]

So rumor has it that rear ends and u joints just sat in bath of oil for the last 100 years. Haven't looked but guessing utvs and atv's still do. I know my golf cart does. Somewhere along the way, cars started going to electronic pumps. As time goes by, the number of cars using them has gone up to where Remco recommends it on almost all the newer (last 10 years?) vehicles. Some vehicles, (CRVs maybe) has been popular because later models didn't require the kit to keep oil on them.

I haven't decided if they are just selling stuff or not but they have the reputation of knowing their stuff more than most people working at a dealership. Thus, this thread to sort thru it.

on the jeep its still splash on front and rear diffs and transfer case. u-joints are grease. so just toss it in neutral and the transfer turns but the output shaft for tranny doesnt turn but the chain and oiler on the transfer does.
if it was 2wd and auto then id probably say get the oiler. but id just pull the drive shaft and tie it up under the vehicle and put a dummy u joint in the yoke to keep bolt holes clean.
only thing im not sure about is if the newer models neutral on transfer case still locks it in 4wd. but even if it does for flat towing would be fine either way.
for a piece of mind leave the jeep in park on an auto and put the transfer in neutral rear output shaft on trans wont turn at all.

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[elkaholic]

Jeeps TJs, JKs, and JLs are all flat towable if they have a manually shifted transfer case. The owners manual will describe the process required.

All you will need is a tow bar, lights, and a braking system. I always ran a four trailer wiring from front bumper to rear bumper then made up a light bar of boat trailer lights mounted to angle iron which was then mounted to a trailer ball mount. I would connect the light bar to the wiring I ran along the frame at the rear and connect the other end of the harness to an extension that linked the RV to the Jeep that I kept zip tied to the tow bar. I hate cutting factory wiring harnesses ...


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[Firemedic530]

I like that a lot. Just have to figure out which wires to splice.
And I saw front shields for keeping rain and rocks from the rv kicking up. I may have to find something to make a heavy mudflap that extends clear across the bumper of rv. thanks for the suggestions everyone.

On our older TJ it was easy. The left kick panel only had the 4 wires to the back. With heat shrink connectors on both sides of the trailer plug, I wasn't worried about the wires spliced inside. I haven't looked at our JK since I don't plan on ever towing it.

 

[L2R]

great info guys. thanks