Small flat towable trucks

Unfortunately I didn't know about the 4x4 4 down towing until after I bought my pick up so I installed a driveshaft disconnect. It is costly and you are heavily modifying your truck but it works fantastic.I only had problems with it once and that was due to it being dirty from a few years of non use.it is another option to consider but I agree the factory 4x4 is the best route.I had mine installed at Drive Shaft King off Buckey in Dallas. They did a fanstastic job . Here is a link to the device . If you have a two wheel drive Automatic is works very well.

http://www.remcodsc.com/driveShaft.php

Fire Up,
You start a list and the rest of us add to it. That is what forums are all about. You forget something and someone else mentions it. It is all cool!

Many people forget about Chrysler motors because they are the third wheel so to speak and have been troubled so many times. Their market share is nothing compared to GM or Ford so it makes sense that folks do not think much about them.

One thing that really bothers me about Chrysler is that when they get on to something good they dump it instead of making it better and more popular. They canned the Dakota which is a shame because it outclasses the ford and GM offerings in that model range... PLUS, they just looked cool before the last couple of years changes.

You made some great points and brought a lot of information to the discussion which is the most important part of it all.


I also want to note that my current campground neighbor found out the hard way that just because a truck has a manual transmission and it is set in neutral does not mean that it can be flat towed. He has a late model Chevy 1500 with manual transmission and burned up the transmission to the tune of 6500 bucks for new tranny, clutch and the works while flat towing it. The only way to flat tow his truck is to remove the driveshaft.

Deltamaster,
I often forget about the Dodge smaller trucks when it comes time for consideration of flat towable small trucks. I'm so used to so many folks using the Colorado and, Canyon. I guess I just see more of those, maybe.
Scott

prstlk,
I assure you that was not my intent. When it comes to trucks to be used as toads, be them larger ones, i.e. F-150 ('12 and newer), Chevy 1500, GMC 1500 and Dodge 1500 or, the smaller ones, Chevy Colorado, GMC Canyon and, as stated above, the possible Dakota by Dodge, are what I "NORMALLY" reference to.

I don't have a lot of info on the Ford Ranger other than, there is a need for the NTK kit, on SOME of the four wheel drive models because, there apparently are certain years that cannot use or, won't work with the NTK kit.

I rarely think about ANY two wheel drive truck as toad. I know that there's probably quite a few out there but, I just don't think about them. And that applies to trying to help folks on here to, I just forget about the 2WD models that work. Sorry.

Fire up, your post on Rangers may be confusing. The 5 manual is good to go. The auto may have issues by year.
jw

FIRE UP wrote:

Anyway, enough blabbing for now. To make your life simple, the easiest way out for you is the Chevy Colorado or , the GMC Canyon, both in the 4WD versions.

And yes, when the TRANSFER CASE is shifted into NEUTRAL, it does disengage the drive train, i.e. front and rear drive axles, from turning the gears etc, in the transmission. And that's exactly what you want.
Scott

You must have posted this as I was writing mine below.

I agree with everything you have written, however I just wanted to add the 1997 to 2014 Dakota to your list of easily flat towable mid-size trucks... IF they are 4X4 and equipped with the transfer case that offers the neutral position pin-button or the lever operated transfer case.

JimM68 wrote:
Always check the owners manual or read the directions as far as flat towing.

We have a 2010 jeep liberty limited that is flat towable and does not have a neutral position on the electronic transfer case selector. It does have a tiny button you can press with a ball point pen. A light flashes, it goes "clunk" and the neutral light lites up and off we go.
No idea if Chrysler used this transfer case in other vehicles.

I also had an 04 Dakota XLT that was towable, it had a knob with a neutral position for the electronic transfer case.

That is the same setup as in my '02 Dakota. That is the neutral position but in order to prevent accidental switching in to neutral they elected to use the pen-button.

I tow a 2002 Dodge Dakota Quad Cab SLT, 4X4 V-8 automatic transmission.

Before this I towed a 1997 Dodge Dakota standard cab SLT, 4X4 V-6 with 5 speed manual transmission.

Both trucks were listed for recreational towing and had instructions in the owner manual to set the vehicle up for flat (recreational) towing.

The '97 had a lever shifted transfer case so all I had to do was put the transfer case in Neutral, transmission in second gear and leave the key in the unlocked position.

The '02 has an electronic shift transfer case so the procedure is a little more complicated but does the job.

I believe that all Dakotas were recreational towable until the line ended a couple years ago.

I bought the '97 brand new... special ordered it through AAFES when I was stationed in Germany. I really like the truck but decided that two doors was a little cramped and opted for the four door version when I bought the '02. That was the only reason for buying a new truck. I would have kept the '97 until this day if it had been the quad cab version from the start.

Both are nice riding, relatively quiet and comfortable vehicles. The '02 has the 4.7 liter V-8 so it has a bit more power than the '97 which had the V-6.

Both tow well behind my rig. The '97 was barely noticeable until I got in to mountains where it naturally put a strain on the RV pulling up grades.

The '02 is slightly heavier but still under 5K pounds. On the flats it is barely noticeable but in the mountains it also pulls hard on the grades. Generally I am able to either keep up with or exceed tractor-trailer traffic in the mountains.

I would highly suggest purchasing the '97 and up Dakotas. They are a nice, comfortable, well built truck. They can haul a lot of weight and can tow as much as 6000 pounds of trailer.

I purchased the '02 used and fortunately the previous owner took care of it so the interior is in great condition. with 113K miles on the clock. The seat fabric is not even damaged or ripped.

Cons:
The front seat cushions flatten over time. After ten years of regular use the '02 driver seat cushion became flat and uncomfortable. fortunately the fabric is stretched on and held with clips that can be easily removed so the cushion can be replaced easily.

Front ball joints go bad after about 70K miles and are a pain to replace because they are installed with cold rivets that must be cut off to remove the upper ball joints. Lowers are pressed in and held with a ring clip so are easier to replace.

PAINT!!! both the '97 and the '02 developed clear coat peeling. Mostly confined to the upper surfaces such as the roof, hood and top of the fenders. This is a difficult situation to remedy and looks ugly. The only way to correct this is to remove the OEM paint down to the primer or metal.



I really like the Dakotas, especially the '97-'04 models. In 2005 they sharpened all the angles which gave it a more angular look instead of the rounded look of the older models. I did not like that as much but other folks do.

I liked the interior design of the '97 better than the '02 just for personal taste. It looked better to me. The '02 interior is nice enough but dis more flattened and spartan than the curvacious nature of the older model. The difference is that the door pockets in the '02 are a bit larger and deeper . Other than appearance there is little else different.

Of note:
The rear seat of the quad cab models are quite spacious and can accommodate three average adults, shoulder to shoulder. Leg room in the back seat is about average... about the same as a typical mid-size sedan. The front seat accommodates two adults and if it is equipped with the seat that has the flip down center console it can accommodate three if the person in the center is not too big... is about the size of Jackie Kennedy.

Always check the owners manual or read the directions as far as flat towing.

We have a 2010 jeep liberty limited that is flat towable and does not have a neutral position on the electronic transfer case selector. It does have a tiny button you can press with a ball point pen. A light flashes, it goes "clunk" and the neutral light lites up and off we go.
No idea if Chrysler used this transfer case in other vehicles.

I also had an 04 Dakota XLT that was towable, it had a knob with a neutral position for the electronic transfer case.

Thank Fire Up, so should I say Scott and Karla

I’m going to forward your reply to my local Ford dealer (he will give me best trade for my F-350) so he has a good starting point for making recommendations. I can’t tow right away due to the break in period, but as soon as I can I want the right truck.

The one thing I have learned in that being flat towable primarily mean that there is a position where the wheels rolling down the highway are NOT forcing the transmission to turn and burn itself up. I don’t trust those special transmission pumps, any failure costs a transmission!

Again, thanks for a great reply

Sandy & Shirley wrote:
We just traded our 37’ Everest fifth wheel for a 37’ Georgetown class A. We did not trade our 2002 F-350 with the 7.3L because we still need a truck once in a while and the dealer would not give us a proper trade. We don’t need an F-350 dually for our normal small tow jobs and we want to be able to flat tow something behind our Class A, so we are looking for a small truck that can be flat towed.

Our max weight is 5,000 so we are looking for 4,500 curb weight. Our research shows that the newer AWD trucks can’t be flat towed without an extra pump to keep the transmission cool. As we understand it we will need a 4WD with a shift lever to switch from 2WD to 4WD with a Neutral position between the two drive modes, and we have to insure that the neutral position completely disengages the transmission from the wheels.

So, can anyone help us make a list of the proper trucks to look for?

Thanks in advance for any help

Sandy & Shirley,
Well, towing a small truck as you can read here, is done by many. And, many don't need a "Four Wheel Drive" truck (of any size) for their daily driver or, useful deeds etc. But, in the design of transmissions and gears and bearings and all that technical stuff, there are precautions that must be taken to insure that there is no damage, as a result of flat towing a vehicle, i.e. small truck, or any vehicle.

The smaller trucks, as in Ford Ranger, Chevrolet Colorado, GMC Canyon etc. are NORMALLY flat towable, IN THE FOUR WHEEL DRIVE versions. The Ford Ranger has some restrictions which, I'll get into in a minute. But, the Colorado and Canyon have no restrictions.

Toyota, as I know it, and, based on the Dinghy Towing Guides of all years, is NOT FLAT TOWABLE in any of it's trucks, 4WD or 2WD. That is of course unless things have changed very recently.

Fords "Ranger", in the Four Wheel Drive version, can be flat towed ONLY, if what's called an "NTK" kit has been installed and, modifications to the engine/transmission controlling units has been done by a Ford tech. And, NOT ALL YEARS of that Ranger will accept the NTK kit. Incedentally, an NTK kit is, Neutral Tow Kit. It's a very simple kit. It primarily consists of a fancy LED icon and bracket that is mounted at or, under the dash someplace in clear view of the driver. It has a light and an "N" on it.

Then, once that is installed in the truck, the truck is then "re-programmed" so that the electronically shifted transfer case, places the gears in that case, into a NEUTRAL position.

Now, a small word on "Transfer cases" They call them transfer cases because they "transfer" the power, from the transmission, to both front and rear drive axles. And, normally there are at least four positions in the selector.

1. 2WD = Two wheel drive
2. N = Neutral
3. 4WL = Four Wheel drive "low range" = lower gears for lots of power
4. 4WH = Four Wheel drive "High range" = all four wheels pulling but, in a higher gear range for things like sand running, snow running etc.

Now, there are manual shifting transfer cases which, have shifter sticking out of the floor, usually with a knob on the end showing those letters etc. listed above.

Or, there are ELECTRONICALLY shifted transfer cases. Those most often, have a knob or, set of buttons on the dash that indicate the icons and or numbers, listed above.

But, there are also electronically shifted ones that DO NOT SHOW THE "N" or, NEUTRAL POSITION. If, they don't show the neutral position, then GENERALLY they are not flat towable. But, there's always exceptions.

Anyway, enough blabbing for now. To make your life simple, the easiest way out for you is the Chevy Colorado or , the GMC Canyon, both in the 4WD versions.

And yes, when the TRANSFER CASE is shifted into NEUTRAL, it does disengage the drive train, i.e. front and rear drive axles, from turning the gears etc, in the transmission. And that's exactly what you want.
Scott