Towing 2 XJ's

[lobsterdmb]

I already have one XJ and am aquiring a 2nd for the girlfriend. I have and f-250 as a tow rig and was looking to haul both of them. Looking for opinions on trailer size/setup as well as any advice from someone who has hauled 2 jeeps.

 

[XTrmXJ]

Get a 5th wheel, measure to jeeps end to end and go shopping

 

[lobsterdmb]

The f-250 is diesel btw

 

[Jerms]

never towed 2 at once, but i can tell you from my experience of towing vehicles, a few things. Trailers are rated at weight levels. My particular tralier is a low deck 7K pound car hauler. trailer itself is 1200lbs. so i have a useful load on the trailer of 5800lbs. now my jeep is heavily moded, so i figure (never weighed it) it is between 4000 & 4500 lbs. so when loaded on my trailer it has a little bit of useful load left for gear and supplies.

What you have to take into consideration is GVW of the trailer that you want tow and the weight that you are going to put on it compared to the empty weight of th trailer.

For instance i have rented a few trailes before i bought mine. Once i rented a 20' flat bed with an 8' wide deck to tow jeep with (only thing trailer place had) that trailer had a gvw of 10K but it was very heavily built. the guys at the trailer place said that it was about 3000lbs empty, and i belived them once i pulled it you could tell it was there, unlike my little 1200 lbs car hauler.

so getting to the point here,

even though i'm sure that i probably could have fit two jeeps on that 20' flat bed i'm positive that it would have over loaded it, had the jeeps been the same weight as mine. and when trailers are over loaded things just aren't safe. braking becomes a problem and tires are over loaded its just something to be avoided at all costs. also want to make sure that you don't exceed the GVW of your truck. my trucks GVW is 16K truck and trailer, so my truck is 5600 lbs with a full tank of gas and the wife in the passenger seat, add trailer 1200 Lbs and jeep 4500lbs and 500 lbs of supplies and gear and i'm at 11800 lbs. well below my trucks limit, but if i were to add another jeep and a heavier trailer than i might have a problem.

Just my .02 and experience

Jerms

 

[What Rd]

Your truck will handle two XJs fine, just make sure it is ready to tow by considering the condition of the brakes, cooling system, and all filters and fluids - especially the tranny fluid.

You'll be better off with a gooseneck than a tag. Your truck can handle a greater load over the rear axle than it can hanging below the bumper. Plus, it'll turn and handle more easily. A tag will do the job fine, but as long as you're shopping, get a gooseneck. I pulled two XJs behind my '03 2500 Duramax/Allison on a 30-some foot tag without any trouble whatsoever.

Measure the overall length of the two rigs (with some room between them and to account for future upgrades such as a rear-mounted spare or new winch bumper, etc.) and then weigh them as well so you don't guess low or unnecessarily high. Then shop for a trailer with the dimensions and load capacity you need. Insist on brakes on both axles and remember to plan for a box somewhere on your trailer (usually on the tongue) to carry all your tie-down straps, blocks, etc.

Good luck.

 

[yellowxj]

ditto...and I think fold up ramps are nicer than having to drag ramps out to load and unload...I'm tired of that...but make sure the fold up ramps are able to be held securely in place and not flop back and forth on chains...you'll see what I mean

 

[Brian Carpenter]

What do you all like with trailer brakes?
Surge vs electric.

 

[Gerr]

What do you all like with trailer brakes?
Surge vs electric.

I personally like electric brakes. i like how they apply when you use the petal and not based on momentum. I have had both systems and they both do work pretty well

 

[yellowxj]

electric on every axle...

 

[What Rd]

electric on every axle...

with an electronic controller