"Max" towing our camper

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Yeah, I don’t know that may have been another issue all together. The '16 JKUR is the 6 Speed manual transmission as I honestly just find them enjoyable to drive. 6th gear was pretty much out of the question for most of the trip though. That was a big part in why I ordered the new gladiator Rubi with an auto. I've read/heard great things about the new (to us old wrangler folk at least) 8 spd auto. That and getting the auto over the manual almost doubles the tow rating in the gladiator.

Yeah, so I don’t know how the JKU 6 speed is, but the gearing in the JLU 6 speed is goofy and I recall test driving it and thinking I was fine going 70 on the highway in 4th gear just by sound. This is after driving stick for 10 years or so. Then I looked and realized I had two more overdrives to work with. The gearing for the ZF is for real and makes it awesome.

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[Astephan1284]

Yeah, so I don’t know how the JKU 6 speed is, but the gearing in the JLU 6 speed is goofy and I recall test driving it and thinking I was fine going 70 on the highway in 4th gear just by sound. This is after driving stick for 10 years or so. Then I looked and realized I had two more overdrives to work with. The gearing for the ZF is for real and makes it awesome.

Yea that'll change with what gears you have in the axles too. I had 3.21s in my previous JKU sport S before re-gearing it and it could do highway speeds in 4th gear without really much of an issue. But the JKU Rubicon I have now with 4.10s in it will rev pretty high in 4th. Towing a trailer only seemed to amplify this issue. 6th never had enough power and 5th could work on flat but anytime i was going uphill it was down to 4th or sometimes even 3rd and just listening to the motor run at high revs.

 

[PackerBacker]

Yea that'll change with what gears you have in the axles too. I had 3.21s in my previous JKU sport S before re-gearing it and it could do highway speeds in 4th gear without really much of an issue. But the JKU Rubicon I have now with 4.10s in it will rev pretty high in 4th. Towing a trailer only seemed to amplify this issue. 6th never had enough power and 5th could work on flat but anytime i was going uphill it was down to 4th or sometimes even 3rd and just listening to the motor run at high revs.

Got it. Well, for full clarity, the JT doesn't have any issues in my mind towing at 70mph, but it never really ends up in 8th in the ZF transmission. I think I'm mostly in 6th gear at the most and will occasionally end up in 4th/5th for a bit to get up to speed again or handle a hill. I haven't gone camping for a few weeks, but I think in 6th gear I'm just under 3k RPM which doesn't bother me towing going 70. If the temp were to change, then I would feel differently, but it still keeps having everything below normal temperatures.

 

[futzin']

#PackerBacker, does this sound about right to you?

So I loaded this up with my 4wheeler, a couple of coolers, and most of my gear/weight that would ever be in the thing. Towed it around for a while on 2 lane and interstate with the Pentastar in our 2015 Durango Citadel AWD to try to get a sense of how a JT would do. Tow rated at 6200 lbs. Truck was empty but for me. No weight distribution hitch. No sag. Trailer weighed in at 4440 lbs, per Pilot scale. Durango specs are 5100 lbs weight, 3.45 gears, 120" wheel base, 295 HP.

Actually, it felt pretty good. Much better than our 25' camper that I occasionally tow 2 miles at a time. (Camper is heavier and has more tongue weight.) I shifted manually with the paddle shifters. I anticipate shifting manually with the JT as well. There was no sway; was very stable. I ran 65 - 70 mph on the interstate, mostly in 6th gear. Fairly level, though. Downshifting was a must on the upgrades, but it responded well when shifting down. Fifth gear was sufficient, went to fourth once. Got 12 mpg.

My gut tells me that the JT Rubicon should tow this trailer similarly. But the boxiness of the Jeep, and the increased air against the trailer frontage won't help. Thinking/hoping the 4.10s and longer wheel base will offset. Wondering how the Rubi suspension will respond vs. the Rango.

So do you guys think this was a reasonable test in lieu of actually hooking up to a Gladiator?

 

[PackerBacker]

#PackerBacker, does this sound about right to you?

Sounds right to me. I can only assume that the Durango has the same ZF 8 speed that the JT has? If so, the 6th gear comment is in line with my experience. (And yes, I end up going into the auto-stick setting when it wants to fight between 5th&6th gear -- I force it into 6th and deal with a little slower acceleration when I'm up to speed) I use the WDH since i have it, and because I've found that my camper is about the heaviest single axle camper you can get and that single axles are a lot more squirrelly and do more teeter totter action than tandems.
You mention no sag -- I have hooked up my camper without the WDH in a level-ish parking lot and measured the suspension and found that it sagged about 1 1/2" in the rear but it wouldn't concern me since the front didn't really go up at all (no floaty steering feel) and the rear dropping just makes the truck look level since the JT naturally rides high in the rear (I'm sure in preparation for up to 1700lb payload in the bed).
I haven't driven a Rubicon to see how the suspension is, but I hear that it's slightly softer and that the A/T (or especially M/T) tires may feel a little more soft/wobbly for steering. I have read that people get used to the Rubicon handling and if this is your DD you shouldn't be too freaked out towing with it.
Bottom line is that if you're comfortable towing the 4 wheeler trailer with a Durango with 3.45s and a lower tow rating and the same engine, that the slightly longer wheel base, solid rear axle, 4.10 JT should be similar or even an improvement.
PS - Think of the JT boxiness as just taking on more of the aerodynamic drag of the box of a trailer being pulled anyway

 

[futzin']

Like that last part!

Thanks. I really should have said: no significant sag. My 25' travel trailer (without WDH) does make the Durango squat some. The propane tanks & Murphy bed make it front heavy. I can choose how I load the cargo trailer.

Appreciate the feedback.

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