Jeep Pulling the Centurion??!

I currently have a Jeep Grand Cherokee with the 4.0L inline 6 and also have a 2005 Air Warrior I was just curious if anyone has ever towed with this vehicle. This wont be the all the time tow vehicle just when i cant get my hands on the Expedition. Im not worried about getting to and from the lake just worried about getting the boat out of the water nd off the ramp and yes its 4WD. Any input is appreciated.

I have a Grand Cherokee Limited with the 4.7L V8 that I am using to pull a 2005, 21 ft, it is a struggle going down the highway. It's like the tail wagging the dog! For launching and loading make sure you use 4 wheel drive "low", it will help get off the ramp a lot easier.

I have a 96 jeep grand cherokee v8 and I too can really feel it back there when I'nm towing. I have a 22 ft centurion and It's my first tow, so I didn't know if that was normal. The only advice I can give is don't go too fast and give yourself plenty of braking distance. It takes a lot longer to slow down. As far as launching I had same concerns, my jeep is 4wd all time and I havent had any problems at the ramp yet. knock on my head. As soon as I can afford it, I'm getting a tahoe. Look at my thread "Tow vehicle"

The coil springs in the rear of the grand cherokee are very soft and they tend to bottom out. I had a 1998 with a 5.9L (the only year they offerred them), there was no issue with power but it bounced all over the place. I put airbags inside the rear coils and it helped a bunch. I also had one with a 5.2L and one with the 4.0, they all have adequate power but the 4.0 should only be run to about 60mph otherwise it's too hard on the engine and trans. Make sure you take it out of overdrive or the trans will overheat and spew tranny fluid all over the boat, my 4.0 did.

I had the 4.0 and it would barely pull my Moomba Outback. I ended up getting a Tahoe with the 5.7.

I pull a Centurion Lightning (used to pull a similar weight I/O) with a Chevy Astro 4.3L V-6 with limited slip rear differential. Ohio is pretty flat so it’s not real challenging for the tow vehicle. I’ve never had a problem pulling this boat or my old boat out of the water. She’s no speedster driving up the hill from the Ohio River valley in to Kentucky, but I’ve never had a problem.

I had a '98 Trooper with the 3.5. I knew it was back there but never had any real problems. Had to keep my foot in in on grades. Pulling it up the ramp in 4 high was never a problem, even on slippery ramps and boat loaded down with people. The X in the pic was ok but had the 4.6 and until I mad several upgrades to it was not the best tow rig. No problems with my '04 Titan.

Good luck with the 4.0 Jeep, My mom had one for a company vehicle and I felt that it was underpowered just for itself.

We used to pull my buddy's Moomba Mobius V with his Grand Cherokee (4L inline 6). It did okay on the highway, just don't expect to be able to pass anyone if you have too.

We did always dread pulling it out of the water, and if it would spin or not. His was a 2WD. A couple of times it took about 4 of us sitting on the rear bumper to get the traction needed. And on one occasion, we had to get a 'Yota to pull us out with a chain.

Even worse, one time, when loading the boat, he tried to stop going down the ramp. The brakes locked up and the whole rig started sliding down the ramp. Luckily, it stopped sliding.

This was my rig. I think after a few years it put some wear and tear on the Jeep but it always got us to the water. Getting it out was a task some times but well worth it.

I have a 2004 Cherokee with the 4.7 HO, I had a Timbren suspension kit installed for under $300. With this kit the Jeep tows better then the 2001 Durango I had previously. It is a pretty simple product and really doesn’t affect the stock ride when you are not towing.

http://www.timbren.com/

As long as you don’t have a lot of hills to climb you should be alright with out the torque of the V8.

Thanks for all the posts guys I was just worried about gettin in and out of the ramp, but I guess i could just throw it in 4 low if need be.

Mike~
I know what you mean by the coils in the rear theres a pic in my profile with my 2 1/2 inch lift and my jeep still sags a ton i cant imagine not having the lift.

Yeah, 4 low will pull practically anything out of the water!

I have a regular cherokee w/4.0L, tows my 20ft inboard just fine. It's a little on the light side, so I have to be careful when backing down the ramp not to go to fast or I'll get dragged a bit when I try to stop... Pulling out has never been a problem, and I've never had to put it in 4 low, I just use regular 4wd

I also have a '98 Grand cherokee w/5.2L V8. which tows a little better... didn't find a huge difference in power between the 4.0L and the 5.2L, mainly only noticable at speeds above 65mph.

Both sag in the back pretty good, looking into getting some airbags for the rear suspension.

I've also used my parents '00 Grand Cherokee w/4.7L, definitely a much better towing machine, more power, more stopping power, less trailer sway, etc...

As for trailer sway while towing, I used to experience this a lot towing with a single axle trailer (balancing it correctly will halp a lot)
I went with a tandem trailer on the new boat, and WOW, it makes a world of difference, no more sway at highway speeds, tracks stright as an arrow!

yeah I have the same problem with my 99 Infinit QX4 but it pulls the boat. ON the highway I put it to the floor and i can only get it up to 65 with OD off and it sags real bad....

Tyler, you may want to also try a raised draw bar to try and offset some of that sag, it looks like the tongue of your trailer is on a down slope you really want to try and get that to a level position.

Another thing is to shorten the draw bar by re-drilling the pin hole thereby moving the ball / leverage point closer to the rear axel of the vehicle.

Proper weight distribution is key.