This is new to us, and I'm looking at several different used Wranglers. My question is, if the Jeep has been lifted or the tire size has been upped, are they still towable?
I have a Samurai (baby Jeep) that I lifted a total of 6 inches and put on larger tires...We have "toad" this for many miles (over 10 thousand now) and we have not had any problems caused by the lift. The only draw back has been that the front tires seem to ware very fast. The alignment has been checked and the only way I could get the ware to slow up some was to adjust toe closer to 0 than spec. called for. Its better now but still wares faster in front when "toad" than when driven. I rotate my tires after long trips to try to keep up on it. With the cost of larger 4x4 tires that might be an issue you would like to think about before you buy one.
As long as you can keep the tow-bar plus or minus 4 inches of level.
DeWayne & Judy
04 3810 Dutch Star
ISL 370
Frank's autoformer
01 Sahara Jeep-toad
F 374382
It is hard to kiss the lips at night, that has chewed your butt all day long!
There is nothing in the lift area, or tire size that is going to keep you from towing a Jeep Wrangler, whether it is a YJ(87-95), TJ(97-06), or JK(07-Up). You just have to make sure as stated earlier that there isn't a big difference in the attachment heights. The tow bar needs to be level.
Larger tires require more effort to start and stop however. Depending on what your going to be towing with, and if your going to use a supplemental breaking system those are things to consider.
One last point. If the Jeep has been modified in the differential area that is going to be a concern for it as a Toad. I found this out luckily without any damage to any vehicle. If it has a locker installed in the front axle it will tow much differently than without a locker installed. (depending on the locker choice also). So when they are making the sales pitch if it is a jacked up rig, and they say, that it already had lockers installed, you may want to reconsider using this as a toad. Spider gears work much better up front than lockers. I have to pull my front drive shaft in order to tow my YJ.
Well we found our dinghy: an 03 Wrangler and she's sweet. Now I have two questions.
First, there is a very informative thread here on towing 07+ Wranglers, and it seems a given that you need to install a towplate on the Jeep (Blue Ox). However, in the video that came with the Jeep, they show the towbar being connected directly to the Jeep's bumper. Is the tow plate necessary?
Secondly, we'll be out in Arizona, Utah, and Colorado this summer for 4+ weeks. Is there a good source to find offroad trails (maps) in that area that grade them as novice (us and our non-lifted Jeep) or otherwise?
There are some folks that attach the tow bar brackets to the bumper. Personally I wouldn't trust the stock bumper to take the stresses of towing. We bought Roadmaster XL brackets. They mount below (and flush to the front of) the bumper on the frame rails. In my opinion the frame is a much sturdier and safer place to attach tow bar brackets.
As for off roading there are hundreds of novice trails in Utah, Colorado, and Arizona. There are several good books on the subject written by Charles A. Wells. We have 3 of his books, "Guide to Arizona Backroads & 4-Wheel Drive Trails", "Guide to Colorado Backroads & 4-Wheel Drive Trails", and "Guide to Moab UT Backroads & 4-Wheel Drive Trails".
He categorizes trails and backroads as "Easy" "Moderate", and "Difficult". Each trail has a complete description of length, sites along the way, and a complete description and location of any difficult parts. Any stock 4 wheel drive Jeep Wrangler is capable of the most difficult trails in any of his books. The more difficult ones require some experience and may not be suitable for a novice.
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