Newbie to towing with question

MNGeeks61 wrote:
You didn't mention if that Liberty is factory or has the upgrades (tranny cooler, etc) on it.

I had a Suburban that was rated for 5500 lbs and I towed a 4500 lb (dry) 25 ft TT, with accessories, on flat ground, with myself and my wife. Total weight would easily be around 5200-5400 lbs. After about 2 trips in the summer (150 miles each), tranny died. I did not have a tranny cooler on it. This was back a few years in one of the hottest summers MN had.

On my Dodge Ram 3/4 ton, we put in the tranny cooler, and it had the towing and snow plow packages added. I towed a 6800 lb (dry) 29 foot trailer with that and again, we got fairly close to max at around 8200 lbs. The difference was that a WD hitch on that one helped. Any hills were less than exciting though.

Also the Liberty is kind of short wheelbase so it depends on how comfortable you are when it's all loaded up. A slight breeze could make you ... less comfortable.

Yes the Jeep has a Tranny clooler on it.

I would be worried driving that combo. I bet you are way over your cargo capacity with the hitch weight. I wouldn't touch anything but a pop-up with that TV.

You didn't mention if that Liberty is factory or has the upgrades (tranny cooler, etc) on it.

I had a Suburban that was rated for 5500 lbs and I towed a 4500 lb (dry) 25 ft TT, with accessories, on flat ground, with myself and my wife. Total weight would easily be around 5200-5400 lbs. After about 2 trips in the summer (150 miles each), tranny died. I did not have a tranny cooler on it. This was back a few years in one of the hottest summers MN had.

On my Dodge Ram 3/4 ton, we put in the tranny cooler, and it had the towing and snow plow packages added. I towed a 6800 lb (dry) 29 foot trailer with that and again, we got fairly close to max at around 8200 lbs. The difference was that a WD hitch on that one helped. Any hills were less than exciting though.

Also the Liberty is kind of short wheelbase so it depends on how comfortable you are when it's all loaded up. A slight breeze could make you ... less comfortable.

Not enough TV. The Jeep may be a nice vehicle, but that short and light of a vehicle could make for a really scary ride if you encounter any wind or even a semi passing you. It's towing rating is based using a flat bed trailer with the weight in sand bags placed on it. Totally different from towing a TT.

If that 3980 is what the trailer weighs now, you need to figure on adding another 800-1000 lbs not including water. Propane, pots/pans, clothes, food, etc all adds up. If you pack light you could be at +500 lbs bringing the total weight to around 4500 lbs, very close to your tow ratings. Don't forget that about 13% of that weight, or around 600 lbs, is going to be on the hitch, so you need to account for that when you pack the Liberty also to be sure you are the GVWR of the vehicle.

Best thing to do is bring it home, pack it up, and head to the scales and see what everything really weighs, then you can see how close you are to ratings. Just a guess on my part but I think you will be shopping for a bigger vehicle to tow with soon.