Anyone else encountered this?

One day not long ago I went to rent a small 8 foot utility trailer from U-Haul. They looked up the Jeep Cherokee and it came back that it wasn't a strong enough vehicle to tow a small 8 foot utility trailer. I guess my question is this, I know with it being a unibody construction and all, but are these things really not safe for towing? And if they are safe, what is the limit for towing? I was shocked when they guy told me this and wouldn't let me have the trailer!

i know some people who tow boats with their xj's, i would expect a cherokee to be able to tow an 8 foot trailer.

Make sure you've got a tranny cooler if you're going to tow anything.

Other than that, the XJ should be able to tow the trailer...just go to a different company.

With a class III hitch a cherokee with a 4.0L is rated to tow 5000 lbs. Tell the boys at U-Haul they got their info wrong.

tupton said:

With a class III hitch a cherokee with a 4.0L and automatic transmission is rated to tow 5000 lbs. Tell the boys at U-Haul they got their info wrong.

Click to expand...

2,000 pounds for the manual. U-Haul errs on the cautious side and has a whole list of vehicles that can't tow their stuff. Try renting anything to go with a Ford Explorer after the rollover debacle of 1999...

Jim www.yuccaman.com

Yeah, there's been a few posts about U-haul and their tow vehicle requirements.... they have a "rule of thumb" that the tow vehicle has to weigh a certain amount above both the trailer weight and it's cargo combined. Certainly, U-haul is just playing it safe.

I've seen guys from Michigan tow their XJ's on the standard tandem axle 16' car trailer behind a Grand Cherokee and a Dodge Durango with no problems.... but neither of them said it was an easy, stress-free ride.... especially over the mountains.

Basically, if you need to rent a trailer, go somewhere other than U-haul.

EDIT: For those that wanna read up on U-haul's requirements, here's the link to their trailer/vehicle specs - just click on the trailer size you're wanting to use and scroll down to see the minimum requirements:

http://www.uhaul.com/trailers/

Uhaul woulndt rent me a trailer when I had a wrangler with a soft top said they dont rent any trailer if tow vechile is a rag top.

Yep, you can thank a now dead, moron for that. She was pulling one of the tandem axle 16' trailers with a YJ, and ended up rolling over on the interstate. The state police said that the tow vehicle was too light for the trailer, plus the load. Now, you can't even rent a small trailer pretty much unless you show up with a 1/2 ton or larger truck. I can agree to a certain extent with U-hauls' policy, however, it does get carried away, I feel. This is one of the things that you get, however, with "free-enterprise" business. They own the company, so they get to make the rules....

I just recently had Uhaul install a class III hitch on my '00 XJ. It is tow rated for 5000 Lbs in the manual, after all. I flat-towed a 3100 lb Jeepster 300 miles to my home in Houston a week ago, so I figure an 8' trailer should not be a problem...

92xjdean said:

One day not long ago I went to rent a small 8 foot utility trailer from U-Haul. They looked up the Jeep Cherokee and it came back that it wasn't a strong enough vehicle to tow a small 8 foot utility trailer. I guess my question is this, I know with it being a unibody construction and all, but are these things really not safe for towing? And if they are safe, what is the limit for towing? I was shocked when they guy told me this and wouldn't let me have the trailer!

Click to expand...

damn it dean!You just had to take the scorpion avatar(joking)
Too bad your in MO I have a 6ft trailer I'm selling for $185

I have towed alot of trailers and vehicles but I was towing my parts jeep home with my XJ and it gave me hell. I believe it had to do with the lift on my Jeep and the parts jeep weighing the same as what was towing it. I had it on a dolly and everytime I went to turn it wanted to push my ass end around. Thank god I only had to go about 4 miles with it. Has anyone had this type of problem with a lifted XJ.

go to a private uhaul dealer.. not like the main stores, but like the little gas station outfits. they'll rent you anything.

PS: screw uballs. horrible company.