Another towing thread....sorry...

[tom.mary.glad]

If you don't tow or not interested, no need to read.

I'm not an experienced tower so be gentle.

I have the following:

• 2021 Sport with max tow (7650 lb tow capacity when stock)
• V6 gasser
• 3.5" lift
• 37" tires
• regeared to 4.88
• light setup - just a few skid plates, factory steel bumpers, winch, AL trifold tonneau cover. Not a overlander setup. I did have a jack, heavy toolbag, Thor's lighting air compressor, cordless tools, and some moving dollies in the bed. Plus me and my wife with small luggage.

I just towed a 6 x 12 enclosed U-Haul trailer with furniture in it from St Louis to Dallas. It got up to 101 F outside. My WeighSafe hitch said I had about 200 lbs of tongue weight. U-Haul says the trailer weighs 1920 lbs empty. Engine coolant, oil and transmission temperatures were all good. Max trans temp of 201 F, max coolant about 225 F I think, max engine oil about 233 F.

I honestly don't know how any of y'all tow anything bigger or heavier than this. I could not maintain above 60 mph on the hills in southern MO. I did use manual shift mode and stay mostly in 6th and sometimes 7. Downshifting to 5th on the hills. I couldn't get rpms above 4500. It seemed like the little V6 just couln't put out any more power. And accelerating onto the highway it didn't want to shift from 3rd to 4th, then 4th to 5th. It was screaming upto 5000 rpms.

Did I do something wrong? Or is the pentastar just that weak? I doubt I'll ever tow again after this experience but I'm open to any feedback the experience towers have.

Thanks

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[ChrisNLA]

If you don't tow or not interested, no need to read.

I'm not an experienced tower so be gentle.

I have the following:

• 2021 Sport with max tow (7650 lb tow capacity when stock)
• V6 gasser
• 3.5" lift
• 37" tires
• regeared to 4.88
• light setup - just a few skid plates, factory steel bumpers, winch, AL trifold tonneau cover. Not a overlander setup. I did have a jack, heavy toolbag, Thor's lighting air compressor, cordless tools, and some moving dollies in the bed. Plus me and my wife with small luggage.

I just towed a 6 x 12 enclosed U-Haul trailer with furniture in it from St Louis to Dallas. It got up to 101 F outside. My WeighSafe hitch said I had about 200 lbs of tongue weight. U-Haul says the trailer weighs 1920 lbs empty. Engine coolant, oil and transmission temperatures were all good. Max trans temp of 201 F, max coolant about 225 F I think, max engine oil about 233 F.

I honestly don't know how any of y'all tow anything bigger or heavier than this. I could not maintain above 60 mph on the hills in southern MO. I did use manual shift mode and stay mostly in 6th and sometimes 7. Downshifting to 5th on the hills. I couldn't get rpms above 4500. It seemed like the little V6 just couln't put out any more power. And accelerating onto the highway it didn't want to shift from 3rd to 4th, then 4th to 5th. It was screaming upto 5000 rpms.

Did I do something wrong? Or is the pentastar just that weak? I doubt I'll ever tow again after this experience but I'm open to any feedback the experience towers have.

Thanks

You only have 260 TQ at around 4400 RPM to work with.

That's a lot of truck, and a lot of trailer all at once.

That's just what the motor is capable of.

And yes, accelerating you'll see plenty of 5,000 RPM. It needs to get into what little torque it has.

With winch, skids, tools, luggage, dollie, and two warm bodies, and the tongue weight you'd probably ate through most of your payload capacity. Then big ole tires and the truck way up into the wind.

 

[Jrgunn5150]

Nope, that's pretty much how it tows.

Hills in Northern Michigan are smaller than from TX to MO, but I would have to slow down on the larger hills to keep my oil temps in check. Lot's of rpm, not much beyond 6th gear, even geared down to 4.88, just did the same thing in higher gears lol.

 

[tom.mary.glad]

You only have 260 TQ at around 4400 RPM to work with.

That's a lot of truck, and a lot of trailer all at once.

That's just what the motor is capable of.

And yes, accelerating you'll see plenty of 5,000 RPM. It needs to get into what little torque it has.

With winch, skids, tools, luggage, dollie, and two warm bodies, and the tongue weight you'd probably ate through most of your payload capacity. Then big ole tires and the truck way up into the wind.

Thank you. Good info.

 

[ChrisNLA]

Since I'm sure everyone loves that we keep bringing up the Colorado, it can drag a 6,800 pound trailer up a 7% grade at 60MPH with a little bit of pedal to spare.

Can't fit 37's under it though

 

[tom.mary.glad]

If you don't tow or not interested, no need to read.

I'm not an experienced tower so be gentle.

I have the following:

• 2021 Sport with max tow (7650 lb tow capacity when stock)
• V6 gasser
• 3.5" lift
• 37" tires
• regeared to 4.88
• light setup - just a few skid plates, factory steel bumpers, winch, AL trifold tonneau cover. Not a overlander setup. I did have a jack, heavy toolbag, Thor's lighting air compressor, cordless tools, and some moving dollies in the bed. Plus me and my wife with small luggage.

I just towed a 6 x 12 enclosed U-Haul trailer with furniture in it from St Louis to Dallas. It got up to 101 F outside. My WeighSafe hitch said I had about 200 lbs of tongue weight. U-Haul says the trailer weighs 1920 lbs empty. Engine coolant, oil and transmission temperatures were all good. Max trans temp of 201 F, max coolant about 225 F I think, max engine oil about 233 F.

I honestly don't know how any of y'all tow anything bigger or heavier than this. I could not maintain above 60 mph on the hills in southern MO. I did use manual shift mode and stay mostly in 6th and sometimes 7. Downshifting to 5th on the hills. I couldn't get rpms above 4500. It seemed like the little V6 just couln't put out any more power. And accelerating onto the highway it didn't want to shift from 3rd to 4th, then 4th to 5th. It was screaming upto 5000 rpms.

Did I do something wrong? Or is the pentastar just that weak? I doubt I'll ever tow again after this experience but I'm open to any feedback the experience towers have.

Thanks

To add to the “fun”, this morning when I went to return the trailer, on cold startup the engine ticked for a few seconds. I typically have a little noise on cold startup but this was different. I hope the stress from towing didn’t get my cam and lifters.

 

[GuzziMoto]

The Pentastar 3.6 V 6 needs to rev to make power. If you don't rev it out it won't make the power.
My past experience is to manually shift AND try to keep revs up with as little throttle as I can use. That helps keeps temps down, although it sounds like your temps were fine.
Your Gladiator has an advantage over our JKU, basically the same engine but you have a better eight speed trans that makes it seem like it can tow more. Honestly, with our JKU we would tow a 3,500 lb RV trailer 2/3s the way across the country and back, through the rockies. That was a struggle. Going through Missouri, that was pretty easy. But everyone has their own standards about towing. Some think they should be able to tow at the same speeds they drive when not towing. While others slow down and are fine with slower speeds.
My own take is I went with a diesel Gladiator, because while the actual tow rating for the diesel is lower than the rating for the gas V6, the massive amount of additional torque the diesel has makes it better at towing what it is rated for in my opinion. But you know what they say about opinions....

 

[tom.mary.glad]

Nope, that's pretty much how it tows.

Hills in Northern Michigan are smaller than from TX to MO, but I would have to slow down on the larger hills to keep my oil temps in check. Lot's of rpm, not much beyond 6th gear, even geared down to 4.88, just did the same thing in higher gears lol.

How much does that weigh? What mpg do you get?

I got 11 mpgs.

 

[tom.mary.glad]

The Pentastar 3.6 V 6 needs to rev to make power. If you don't rev it out it won't make the power.
My past experience is to manually shift AND try to keep revs up with as little throttle as I can use. That helps keeps temps down, although it sounds like your temps were fine.
Your Gladiator has an advantage over our JKU, basically the same engine but you have a better eight speed trans that makes it seem like it can tow more. Honestly, with our JKU we would tow a 3,500 lb RV trailer 2/3s the way across the country and back, through the rockies. That was a struggle. Going through Missouri, that was pretty easy. But everyone has their own standards about towing. Some think they should be able to tow at the same speeds they drive when not towing. While others slow down and are fine with slower speeds.
My own take is I went with a diesel Gladiator, because while the actual tow rating for the diesel is lower than the rating for the gas V6, the massive amount of additional torque the diesel has makes it better at towing what it is rated for in my opinion. But you know what they say about opinions....

I just don't feel comfortable at 5000+ rpms... the engine is just screaming.

 

[DylanM]

Aerodynamic drag is your main enemy here. Big tires, suspension hanging farther out in the breeze due to the lift, plus a trailer with a perfectly vertical flat front. Couple that with your typical modern NA engine design that's limited on torque in low to mid-range revs, and it's easy to get an underwhelming towing experience.

 

[ChrisNLA]

I just don't feel comfortable at 5000+ rpms... the engine is just screaming.

Short stroke motor - she's built to sing.

But I understand, it's just not easy to listen to.

 

[Jrgunn5150]

How much does that weigh? What mpg do you get?

I got 11 mpgs.

4500, 8 mpg

 

[tom.mary.glad]

If you don't tow or not interested, no need to read.

I'm not an experienced tower so be gentle.

I have the following:

• 2021 Sport with max tow (7650 lb tow capacity when stock)
• V6 gasser
• 3.5" lift
• 37" tires
• regeared to 4.88
• light setup - just a few skid plates, factory steel bumpers, winch, AL trifold tonneau cover. Not a overlander setup. I did have a jack, heavy toolbag, Thor's lighting air compressor, cordless tools, and some moving dollies in the bed. Plus me and my wife with small luggage.

I just towed a 6 x 12 enclosed U-Haul trailer with furniture in it from St Louis to Dallas. It got up to 101 F outside. My WeighSafe hitch said I had about 200 lbs of tongue weight. U-Haul says the trailer weighs 1920 lbs empty. Engine coolant, oil and transmission temperatures were all good. Max trans temp of 201 F, max coolant about 225 F I think, max engine oil about 233 F.

I honestly don't know how any of y'all tow anything bigger or heavier than this. I could not maintain above 60 mph on the hills in southern MO. I did use manual shift mode and stay mostly in 6th and sometimes 7. Downshifting to 5th on the hills. I couldn't get rpms above 4500. It seemed like the little V6 just couln't put out any more power. And accelerating onto the highway it didn't want to shift from 3rd to 4th, then 4th to 5th. It was screaming upto 5000 rpms.

Did I do something wrong? Or is the pentastar just that weak? I doubt I'll ever tow again after this experience but I'm open to any feedback the experience towers have.

Thanks

Pic for reference

 

[White Eagle]

Its a funny subject. Reality hits sometimes and the reason folks dat tow drive F250’s, 2500’s or higher.

 

[WilldWilly]

Since I'm sure everyone loves that we keep bringing up the Colorado, it can drag a 6,800 pound trailer up a 7% grade at 60MPH with a little bit of pedal to spare.

Can't fit 37's under it though

But to be fair it has a lot more torque, and it is down low from 1500 rpm to 4000 rpm. I guess when you can't have 37s, you still need a superpower.

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