Another towing thread....sorry...

[FC1]

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[DylanM]

And speaking of towing up 7% grades, love the ecodiesel.

 

[Labswine]

My set up...'20 Overland, stock (ordered 5/19, delivered 7/19). Trailer: 27' Vantage Sonic SN220VRB, 5,100 lbs with all we want or need, ~500 lb tongue weight, BlueOx WDH, Tenkonsha Primus IQ brake controller. Hitched up no WDH, 1 1/2" drop in rear. Hook up the WDH, only 3/4" drop. Shift manually, cruise at 65 MPH in 7th at around 2,100 RPMs, drop to 6th or 5th on occasion to maintain at least 55 MPH on grades, RPMs around 3K in 5th. Mileage: 10 through the Poconos in NE PA going to New York, 13 towing to coastal areas on the east coast...yeah, beaches. Handles my trailer very well.

 

[IRAH]

Its estimated you loose 3.5% power per inch you go up. Max tow gladdies roll out with 31.5" tires stock.. If you run 37's, that's 5.5 inches, or a 20% power loss just to turn those tires.

Likewise, you've regeared to compensate for the larger tires and make up for the loss, but the Gladdy is still a loud towing rig. Loves to rev high and that's what it is- it will still do the job, but sing the entire time it does it.

I suppose despite my earlier threads the gladdy isnt the perfect tow rig, and its arguably not the best offroader. It doesnt have the best payload (ok some dont) and its not got the biggest bed.
Its not the best at style (debatable) and certainly not the most fuel efficient, but where it shines is that its pretty good at all these things.

The jack of all trades, but not a master of anything in particular. That's why its great.

 

[FC1]

That’s some good looking camping rigs

 

[RudeJeepin]

Pic for reference

The Grouch looks good.

On another note. You'd want more tongue weight if you were to tow again. 10% is bare minimum, and that's of the loaded trailer weight. 10 to 15% is recommended tongue weight.

 

[Janster]

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

….and another reason why they have those run-away truck ramps on the highways. What goes up, must come down!!

 

[ChrisNLA]

….and another reason why they have those run-away truck ramps on the highways. What goes up, must come down!!

In the test it did ok going down as well. They come with trailer brake controllers when you get a towing package.

Unlike our trucks

 

[tom.mary.glad]

The Grouch looks good.

On another note. You'd want more tongue weight if you were to tow again. 10% is bare minimum, and that's of the loaded trailer weight. 10 to 15% is recommended tongue weight.

I agree but I had the front packed side to side and didn’t want to stack on top of my parent’s 60+ year old furniture.

 

[Stan H]

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.

Nah sometimes after a stressful run when the oil is thin it will do that the next morning just let it warm up before ya drop into gear.

 

[LouisvEarlleJT]

Only thing I'd add is that towing is kind of like cruising, it's not about speed. Get comfortable at 60 (which, as you found, is about all it'll do) and enjoy the scenery.

That's how I have towed even with a full-size truck. Too much that can go wrong at speed to risk trying to fly with all the other non-towing vehicles.

 

[WhereInTarnation]

I’m sorry. No matter how hard I try I consider the Gladiator wishful thinking as a tow vehicle. I love mine, but when it comes to towing I use a vehicle that’s made for it. And get twice the fuel mileage pulling a weight that maxes out a Gladiator.

 

[willys 41]

This is the way I tow. With my 2025 f250 diesel I can do 80mph at 7000ft altitude 7% grade pull 9000lbs. Before I had a 2020 f250 6.2 gas. same hill struggling to do 40 to 50mph.

 

[tom.mary.glad]

Nah sometimes after a stressful run when the oil is thin it will do that the next morning just let it warm up before ya drop into gear.

Thanks for this feedback. I did AI chat and same info came back...it is likely a one time startup noise, recommend monitoring to see if ticking becomes repetitive on startup. I don't drive much so have not restarted yet. Fingers crossed.

 

[Sandman 4x4]

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

I don’t think you have done much wrong, but the worst is the 37” tires, that I’m sure if using the original wheels adds at least 20 lbs each, that take power to spin up to speed, more than 4:88 will provide. Spending all that $$$$ for re-gearing you should have use 5:88 or so. Manual shifting does help from trans hunting, but the computer is just doing what it needs. I suggest you drive on a Cat Scale as you will be traveling just to see what your curb weight with one adult and full tank weighs. With the extras you have I bet you’ll be at least up to 5,500, where my stock everything Sport S is just under 4,960 with my wife and I. Jeep give your Gladiator a CGVWR of 12,300 or so, that’s allowed for everything under your control. Truck, all gear and passengers, weight distribution hitch, trailer ready to go. Full tank of gas. DOD you keep the original tires? If so it’s highly recommended you get a second set of alloy wheels and stock sized 245/75-17 HT tires, not LT but P rated is all you’ll need. Good luck.

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