Jeep GC and TT Towing Assistance

[3HappyHicks]

Hi all I'm new to this forum and the travel trailer thing. We just bought a Winnebago Micro Minnie with a weight of 3010 and I have a 2011 Jeep Grand Cherokee V6-Pentastar 290hp 3.6L engine. I bought a WDH/sway bar so I believe my tongue weight can be 350-400lbs based on the trailer weight, but with the WDH hitch does that increase my tongue weight allowance? I also bought the extra trailer brake controller for the inside of my jeep.
My jeep has a GVWR of 6500lbs, GAWR FRONT: 3200lbs and GAWR REAR 3700lbs. From what I have found my payload is 1240.


My question is basically this- we are traveling from CO to Moab in a couple weeks and I want to make sure my setup is good to go. I feel like it is adequate and if I take my time and go slow I should be able to manage this. Thoughts, recommendations, suggestions welcome.

Please and thank you in advance.

[avoidcrowds]

HappyHicks, I towed 2 trailers with my 2014 Grand Cherokee diesel, 7,200 lb tow rating. More torque, and about the same HP as your GC. They were TrailManors, so low-profile, about 3,500 lbs. Towed in strong winds with no problems, up to the Eisenhower tunnel, either direction, no problem.

I then got a normal trailer, 23', which weighs 5,700 lbs. Still way below tow rating. Problem was, I only had 1,030 lbs of cargo capacity in the GC. 660 lb tongue wt, 75 lb WDH, left 295 lbs for wife, myself, and our cat. No cargo. Plus, it dogged to 30 mph coming up the west side of the Eisenhower Tunnel approach.

Started towing, and any wind pushed us around a lot. Adjusted WDH multiple times, had axles aligned (were not out of alignment, but one wheel was loose), and not much improvement in towing. Towed in a strong (40 mph+) crosswind, and would only go 50 mph. Faster was really unstable.

Consensus with all I consulted was that the GC has too short of a wheelbase for the trailer. Traded GC for an F150, and my towing experience improved drastically.

All this to say, be very careful in strong winds. Don't plan to put much weight in the Jeep, as you don't have cargo capacity to spare.

Good luck! I hope your experience with your combination is better than my experience was.

Oh, and don't even think about going through Aspen to get to Moab. 1) you still will go through Grand Junction, so doing the dip to the south makes no sense. And 2), you can't take a trailer over Independence Pass. Wouldn't want to, even if they allowed it. Go I-70 the entire way, to the Moab turnoff.

[3HappyHicks]

MFL- I checked the tires today and they are all at tire pressure on the tires. I’ll check the tow rating.

[MFL]

Make sure your tire max rating, fits with the 3800 GVWR, and also know tire max rating is at full psi, as indicated on the sidewall. Otherwise, seems good to go, enjoy your trip.

Jerry

[3HappyHicks]

Update-

I went to a weigh station and here are my numbers.

Jeep and Trailer- 8480- max 10,400- still need to add more passengers/dogs(+500)
Trailer Alone- 3500- 90% loaded- Trailer GVWR-3800
Jeep alone- 4980- here's where my additional 500 will go for passengers

Tongue weight- 480- Max allowable for my comfort 550- for hitch 600.

So if all my research and diligence proves correct, I will be good based on numbers with this setup. And I also have a little room for more tongue weight, and an additional 300lbs for trailer GVWR which seems to equal to about what I feel safe for tongue weight.

Thoughts. Suggestions. Ideas. Thanks for all your input!

[drsteve]

It sounds like it will be close on payload, but you should be OK as long as you go easy with the cargo.

[librty02]

3HappyHicks wrote:
drsteve so I weighed the tongue weight of the trailer today and it weighed 400-partially loaded. I'm pretty strong- all 110lbs of me, but I don't think my hitch is quite 100lbs- I can lift it myself and get it into my hitch receiver of my Jeep alone. But anyhow I get where you're going.

Also, I drove it on the highway today at about 75mph and didn't have any drag whatsoever. I also went up and down a few hills-albeight not the mountain passes I'll be traveling soon, the Jeep did really well, and didn't dog and shifted nicely. I had a friend with me who has been towing TT for only 2 years- but he said it felt good, and no real tug, and that it seemed to brake and stop nicely.

So I did have a question about tongue weight vs overall weight. When I weighed the tongue- it weighed in at approx 400lbs, can I add weight/cargo to the back of the trailer? Or is my ONLY allowable additional weight the 500ish lbs for passengers and cargo IN the truck?

You should be fine as long as you don't go crazy adding weight inside the jeep for the haul. Remember that 400lbs of dead tongue weight plus whatever the weight distribution hitch weighs (btw which wdh did you choose to use?) most are 80 lbs avg. so you are up to 480lbs but with the weight being distributed per the rules of physics on avg 15% of that tongue weight also goes back onto the trailers axle. Meaning that 480 total tongue will put 408lbs onto the Jeeps axles and 72lbs back to the trailer.

[librty02]

Boomerweps wrote:

librty02 wrote:

Boomerweps wrote:

librty02 wrote:

Tyler0215 wrote:
55 is OK on highways, not the interstates where the speed limit is much higher. Most interstates are 65 mph to 75 mph. Traffic moves much faster. Do you really want to be a rolling road block going 20 to 30 mph below the travel speed?
20 to 30 under is just as dangerous as 20 to 30 over.

Where I am in Pa the law for a vehicle towing a trailer is 55 max even on Interstates that are posted at 70. Me personally I set the cruise around 62 even on a Interstate with the speed limit being up to 75 and have never had an issue in over 50k of towing. Let them go around you who cares.

Lot of incorrect info posted on the various websites supposedly compiling data for towing. One site says 55mph max speed whining towing in PA. Same site also says brakes are required on ALL trailers. PA Law says brakes at 3 K# GTWR. I reviewed PA actual laws before and reviewed again since your post. Posted speed limit in PA is the speed limit UNLESS special signage says otherwise, towing or not. BTW, 7mph over the speed limit is where points would be applied and make it worthwhile for cops to stop you for points plus fines. Where is a 75MPH zone in PA? Haven't seen that yet. Law sites still state 70mph maximum speed. Then again, other sites still list 65 ;(

You better look at the PA DMV pdf's a little closer as that is where it states 55 for any vehicle towing a trailer that is NOT registered commercial. I didn't mean a 75 in Pa but other states do have them that I have traveled through and I still keep the cruise at 62. Absolutely no reason to do 75 80 mph pulling a trailer with your family in tow.

Could you please give me a link to the PA DMV PDF you are referencing? What is the issue date?
I've searched and searched and can't find it.
Law.justia.com lists the laws. 2017 Pennsylvania consolidated statutes, Title 75 Vehicles, charter 33, section 3362 . It says what I said.
Www.outdoorsy.com lists 70mph.
Drivinglaws.aaa.com states rural interstates 65mph. I suspect that hasn't been updated for a while. Www.doityourselfrv.com states 55mph and ALL trailers require brakes. Really wrong and out of date.
Added note: PA MINIMUM speed is 15 mph under the posted speed limit except in an emergency to move the vehicle out of traffic.
Not trying to be a Richard head, just like to nail down the rules. I don't mind being corrected, always open to new knowledge.

Sure when I get the chance to look in my phone for the document again I'll get the link to it and post it. I hope it is still in there if not I'll find it again. It was not from any site it was in the Pa DMV laws themselves not just a website stating false info.

[MFL]

3HappyHicks wrote:
drsteve so I weighed the tongue weight of the trailer today and it weighed 400-partially loaded. I'm pretty strong- all 110lbs of me, but I don't think my hitch is quite 100lbs- I can lift it myself and get it into my hitch receiver of my Jeep alone. But anyhow I get where you're going.

Also, I drove it on the highway today at about 75mph and didn't have any drag whatsoever. I also went up and down a few hills-albeight not the mountain passes I'll be traveling soon, the Jeep did really well, and didn't dog and shifted nicely. I had a friend with me who has been towing TT for only 2 years- but he said it felt good, and no real tug, and that it seemed to brake and stop nicely.

So I did have a question about tongue weight vs overall weight. When I weighed the tongue- it weighed in at approx 400lbs, can I add weight/cargo to the back of the trailer? Or is my ONLY allowable additional weight the 500ish lbs for passengers and cargo IN the truck?

The good news, it sounds like your Jeep can handle that trailer, as tested. Your payloads are going to have to stay on the light side, as your Jeep, and your trailer are both lacking the ability of a heavy load. It appears your TT has only a single 3,500 lb axle, and a empty weight, just over 3K. Your TT cargo capacity is listed as 800 lbs, which your Jeep has to carry part of this in tongue wt. I think things will work out for your trip, but do load both Jeep and trailer, with wt saving in mind.

Drive safe, enjoy your trip!

Jerry

[drsteve]

3HappyHicks wrote:


So I did have a question about tongue weight vs overall weight. When I weighed the tongue- it weighed in at approx 400lbs, can I add weight/cargo to the back of the trailer? Or is my ONLY allowable additional weight the 500ish lbs for passengers and cargo IN the truck?

You can add cargo to the trailer, but do not deliberately place extra weight behind the axles in an effort to reduce the tongue weight. Too light a tongue can cause sway. Been there, done that, and it ain't pretty.

[GrandpaKip]

You have roughly 500 pounds for the Jeep. You can add weight to the camper until you hit the gross weight rating for the camper. But you are also adding to the tongue weight when adding to the trailer.
Figure about 1 pound of tongue weight added for every 8 pounds of cargo added.
So, if you add 240 pounds of stuff in the camper, 30 pounds of that is added to the tongue. And that will decrease your working payload to 470 pounds.
When I did was to load the camper like we were going camping, then went to the scales. That way most of the guesswork is done with and you have real numbers to work with.

[3HappyHicks]

drsteve so I weighed the tongue weight of the trailer today and it weighed 400-partially loaded. I'm pretty strong- all 110lbs of me, but I don't think my hitch is quite 100lbs- I can lift it myself and get it into my hitch receiver of my Jeep alone. But anyhow I get where you're going.

Also, I drove it on the highway today at about 75mph and didn't have any drag whatsoever. I also went up and down a few hills-albeight not the mountain passes I'll be traveling soon, the Jeep did really well, and didn't dog and shifted nicely. I had a friend with me who has been towing TT for only 2 years- but he said it felt good, and no real tug, and that it seemed to brake and stop nicely.

So I did have a question about tongue weight vs overall weight. When I weighed the tongue- it weighed in at approx 400lbs, can I add weight/cargo to the back of the trailer? Or is my ONLY allowable additional weight the 500ish lbs for passengers and cargo IN the truck?

[drsteve]

3HappyHicks wrote:
Found it! It says 1050 ??

That means that after subtracting the tongue weight of the TT, which when loaded will be about 450-500 lb, and the hitch itself, which is about 100 lb, you have roughly 500 lb left for you, passengers, and cargo in the truck.

[Overlandr]

3HappyHicks wrote:
Hi all I'm new to this forum and the travel trailer thing. We just bought a Winnebago Micro Minnie with a weight of 3010 and I have a 2011 Jeep Grand Cherokee V6-Pentastar 290hp 3.6L engine. I bought a WDH/sway bar so I believe my tongue weight can be 350-400lbs based on the trailer weight, but with the WDH hitch does that increase my tongue weight allowance? I also bought the extra trailer brake controller for the inside of my jeep.
My jeep has a GVWR of 6500lbs, GAWR FRONT: 3200lbs and GAWR REAR 3700lbs. From what I have found my payload is 1240.


My question is basically this- we are traveling from CO to Moab in a couple weeks and I want to make sure my setup is good to go. I feel like it is adequate and if I take my time and go slow I should be able to manage this. Thoughts, recommendations, suggestions welcome.

Please and thank you in advance.

After reading your post and the many well intended posts, I registered so I can share my actual experience with you towing a Jayco X20E hybrid with a 2011 JGC Limited that had a factory tow package installed, brake controller 3.6L Pentastar engine, 5 speed auto transmission with 18" wheels. The Jayco X20E Hybrid was 3850 lbs dry, 350 lbs tongue.

We started off with a Husky WDH and 600lb round bars. The first couple of times on the road was literally white knuckle. We were getting pushed around every time someone passed, and if it was a transport truck, it was an effort not to get pushed out of my lane. Any little wind that hit us from the side felt like we shifted sideways as well.

So I took it into a specialist in the trailer industry and had him look at my setup (https://www.canamrv.ca/blog/category/hitch-hints/) and as a result made some changes. First they found that the tongue weight was actually closer to 540 lbs and the 600 lb bars were not doing the job. Those got changed to 1000 lb bars, and we put two sway bar controls on the WDH. Plus they added a shorter custom shaft which brought the trailer in closer to the vehicle. That completely fixed the problem of getting pushed around on the road. Andy also suggested a lower profile tire if we needed to tighten things up a little more. (we stayed with the 18" tire as things were now fine).

Then we took off for a 5,000 km round trip from Ontario to Nfld and back over 3 weeks. I would not recommend the cruise control. The five speed has a hard time in 5th gear at 2100 rpm keeping the speed up to 100 Km/hr. A small hill while in cruise was downshifting me as low as 3rd and hitting 4 to 5K rpm. The sudden rev is alarming, so we turned off the cruise. So if you want to travel at 100 Km/hr or 60 Mile/hr you will have to stay in 4th gear and keep the revs up to 3000 rpm. It moves along nicely then, and you will still get 12 to 13 mpg. For the larger hills just keep it at the 3000 rpm and let the downshifting happen. It pulls nicely up any incline, just don't push it for speed. Keep it at 3000 rpm.

I hope that helps. Since then we have upgraded to the 2017 JGC Overland, V6 with 8 speed and pulling the Coachmen Apex 215RBK like it is nothing and having lots of fun. Stay safe out there.

[3HappyHicks]

Found it! It says 1050 ??