Towing Experiences

Wow am i new to this. Just picked up a 2006 Jeep Liberty Renegade. Didn't have a week and the wife wants to drop $20,000 on a Travel Trailer.

I searched the site on tow capacities and understand my Jeep with the tow package can haul up to 5,000 pds. There is alot of threads on being able to haul shorter loads up to that wieght with some success but I'd like to hear some people's exerience with some longer units.

We're looking at a 26 footer with a dry wieght of 3600 pounds. Add another 1000 for cargo and the total wieght s/b around 4600. Am I crazy to try and pull a unit of this length with that weight or can it be safely done with the proper hitch, sway bars, brakes? Anyone had experience pulling a travel trailer of this length and weight? Love to hear from you good or bad.

Spooner,

I went through the same thing last summer. My fiance, upon hearing it would tow 5000 lbs, took that number and ran with it, lol... I was uneasy pushing it to the limit so I stated my preference to stay maximum 20' and 3000 lbs.

We settled on a Sun Valley RoadRunner 180 at 19.5' and 2700 lbs dry. We looked at a lot of trailers and this one just seemed right when we found it, we really like the floor plan.

It has electric brakes and I am using a Reese WD / Dual Cam Anti-sway setup, which makes a night and day difference.

We went from Toronto to Cape Cod, up to Nova Scotia and back home through Quebec this summer, about 3400 miles.

The Liberty did well, but I can honestly say I wouldn't want anything heavier back there. Maybe with a CRD. There was a thread recently on LOST about towing and some are towing bigger trailers with their CRDs.

http://www.lostkjs.com/forum/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=29299&highlight=

I didn't do a full accounting of fuel economy but tank to tank ranged from about 9 mpg to 13 mpg, depending on the terrain.

Hope that helps!

Dave

One thing you have to consider is the length. The wheel base on the liberty is ovbiously not that long. The longer you go on a trailer the worse the liberty handles.

Here is my expirence with more than you should pull.

I am a production manager in charge of a 32 foot racing sailboat line. I needed to get one of our boats about 15 miles down the road from our shop to the local yacht club. The only problem was the company truck was out of town. So of course I decided to take the rig with my liberty sport. The boat and trailer together weighed 4900 pounds about 9 feet wide with an fwd aft overhang for the mast of 52 feet. I had to leave our shop in 4wd to get up the hills and curves of our mile long drive to the main road. It did alright out the main road but I was slightly nervous of beating up my transmission.

When I got on the main roads i noticed very quickly that I could not drive over 45-50 mph as the trailer really started to make we wiggle back and forth and not just a little. I thought for a moment I was going to loose it so I slowed down to the fastest speed that I felt safe at which was 45.

I would pull one of the boats again from our new shop to the club because its 25-35 speed limit the whole way. But i will never go a long distance with a long trailer.

-Marc

Hope this helps you out.

I think you should stay within your 20 foot max and 3,000 pounds dry weight as you indicated. You are going to throw some stuff in that trailer add propane tanks, and fill the fresh water tank (probably have some grey water too) and you will be at 4,000 pounds before you realize it. Also, need to consider the weight in the KJ too as it counts toward your gross weight. (You will be hawling people and stuff in the KJ too). The travel trailer also has a big flat front end. (wind resistance).

I honestly havn't tried to tow anything like that, but I tow a 19.5 foot cuddy cabin boat and loaded it is about 4.000 pounds. The Kj tows it like it is not there and no problem at any speed but I keep it at 65 on the highway and watch my following distance. It doesn't sway at all. It has brakes and stops fine. But it is a boat and aerodynamic compared to a travel trailer. I have a large pop up trailer that weighs 2,900 pounds dry weight and probably an easy 3,500-3,800 pounds loaded and it tows that fine (it also has electric brakes).

I have the factory tow package. I lock out O/D on the mountain roads so it stays in drive and it is fine.

Dave

Dave said:

I think you should stay within your 20 foot max and 3,000 pounds dry weight as you indicated.

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Dave, those were my specs, not Spooner's but I agree anyways

- Dave

KeswickDave said:

Dave, those were my specs, not Spooner's but I agree anyways

- Dave

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You are correct........sorry for the mis-quote.

Dave

just wondering what sort of ball setups everyone is going with. I would preferably like to know about people with unlifted KJ's. I will be towing a boat this summer and I am about to purchase a ball setup.

especko said:

just wondering what sort of ball setups everyone is going with. I would preferably like to know about people with unlifted KJ's. I will be towing a boat this summer and I am about to purchase a ball setup.

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You need to clear the spare tire. I have 3 trailers and all are different so I have different drawbars depending on the trailer I am pulling. The boat trailer is high due to the large tire size on the trailer so a straight bar 12-14" works for my boat and the trailer is level when hooked up. It clears the tire and the hydraulic brake unit clears the KJ spare when I hook up. I went to a travel trailer place and tried a couple of different length drawbars to check clearance before I bought one. You don't want it too long as it reduces tongue weight capacity. I have the factory tow package with the hitch tucked under the bumper. If your hitch is aftermarket and sticks out further maby a shorter drawbar would work.

That is what I did anyway. Hope this helps.

Dave

Dave said:

You need to clear the spare tire. I have 3 trailers and all are different so I have different drawbars depending on the trailer I am pulling. The boat trailer is high due to the large tire size on the trailer so a straight bar 12-14" works for my boat and the trailer is level when hooked up. It clears the tire and the hydraulic brake unit clears the KJ spare when I hook up. I went to a travel trailer place and tried a couple of different length drawbars to check clearance before I bought one. You don't want it too long as it reduces tongue weight capacity. I have the factory tow package with the hitch tucked under the bumper. If your hitch is aftermarket and sticks out further maby a shorter drawbar would work.

That is what I did anyway. Hope this helps.

Dave

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Thanks for the advice, I have a Hidden Hitch so it is basically in the same area as where the stock hitch would be.

Any other suggestions? I have been thinking about possibly removing the spare when pulling the boat as well.

especko said:

Any other suggestions? I have been thinking about possibly removing the spare when pulling the boat as well.

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Yea, but why bother taking the spare off if you don't have to. Then you will either be running without a spare (not good) or find another place for it.

You have a nice looking Renne in your pic. Lets see, how about a roof basket, and put the spare in there?? Real nice Renne.

Dave

Ive got a two in drop but I also have a 3" lift.

Ive never had problem with the spare tire with my Draw-Tite hitch. It also extends on further than the stock hitch.

A month after we bought our KJ, we also wanted a travel trailer. We wanted all the conveniences of the large trailers so we opted for a large pop-up: the 14' Fleetwood Arcadia, 3250# UVW, 3950# GVW. One of the major factors in towing with a small vehicle is wind resistance. We felt this combination would be a safe tow.

While it towed great with brakes, sway bar and WD hitch, the addition of the Rusty's coil kit (med. wt. springs) and 10 ply tires has further improved the ride. It feels much more solid than before.

As for the hitch... I decided on the Hidden Hitch. The Draw-tite extends about 4-5 inches farther out (to clear the spare) but I did not want to compromise the departure angle for wheeling. It tows fine with the shorter receiver.