Towing My Yj..question

[nailer341]

i'll be towing my jeep to the mountains.. what do i need to know? i'll be using a tow bar.just put it in neutral and go?
thank you...:p
by the way, i have a lock right w/ posi lock cable up front, and open dif in rear if this makes a difference...

[sas87yj]

the ownwrs man says to put transcase in neutral and tranny in any forward gear. i play it safe and drop both shafts.

and don't forget to unlock the steering wheel :)

[ukjeeper]

Kinda. There is 2 schools of thought on this one.
1) The year of Wrangler you have should have a transfer case (np231) that has the oil pump on the output shaft. This means that as long as the rear drive shaft is turning, the T-Case is being oiled.
2) You should disconnect the rear driveshaft from the rear axle, and fasten it out of the way while being towed. Reason is explained below

Personally i have gone with the first idea, i have flat towed my '89 for hundreds of miles without a problem. The trick is to pull up, and connect to, the tow vehicle (RV, truck, SUV), get all hooked up, then turn off the engine, put the TRANSMISSION in first, and the T-CASE in neutral. DO NOT put the T-case out of 2 Hi until the engine is off, or the vacum will kick in and the front Driveshaft will turn while towing. Which can cause the t-case to overload. (remember all the warnings about running in 4 wheel drive on hard surfaces)

HOWEVER, the danger with the stock 231 T-Case is that neutral, is not a real neutral. Its more of a "space" between the 4 high, and 4 low positions. It HAS BEEN KNOWN to jump into gear while towing, causing the T-Case to explode. There are kits which will allow the T-Case to be put into a "true" neutral.

I think you can tow with a 231 T-Case, just be aware of what CAN HAPPEN.

[wcjp]

Don't pull the rear driveshaft unless you have a SYE. When a stock rear driveshaft is pulled the transfer case will leak. The SYE will cure that problem.

[DH350]

Originally posted by wcjp
Don't pull the rear driveshaft unless you have a SYE. When a stock rear driveshaft is pulled the transfer case will leak. The SYE will cure that problem.



What he said. I have flat towed my YJ from here to Moab,sonora mexico, and arizona. Unless you have a sye pulling the rear shaft will cause leakage out the rear of the transfer case. Not good.

[nailer341]

now i'm getting confused....
first, my front drive shaft is always spinning (lock right locker)
second, i've done away w/ the vacume actuator, and went to the posi lock cable.
that's the front....
the rear is stock.
transfer case is model 5
dis connect? or dont disconnect?

[ukjeeper]

dis connect? or dont disconnect?

I'll make it simple. If in doubt, disconnect!

As far as SYE/non SYE, just remove the 4 bolts holding the REAR of the driveshaft to the rear axle, then wrap duct tape around the ujoint to stop the cups falling off. Then strap/bungee the driveshaft up, out of the way, you can leave the front attached to the rear of the t-case. Just make sure the drive shaft will not make contact with the spinning part of the rear pinion, that will ruin your day!
Same with the front.
However, just to clarify. I had a Tru-trac in front too. The front shaft spins. Thats OK. You have the t-case in neutral (remember my above post?), so there will be no binding. I still believe you will be ok with the rear D Shaft attached. If you are not sure yet, follow my instructions above. (attach tow to both vehicles, turn off engine, trans in 1st, tcase in neutral) tow for a few miles. touch the TCase, if there's heat, you may just wanna pull the shafts for long trips....

Disclaimer, if its F's up, i never knew you :D

[the brother-n-law]

A minute or two and eight 5/16ths bolts will undo both the front & rear drive shafts at the diffs so you can bungee or zip tie them up out of the way. With the driveshafts disconnected you can be completely confident that you can't do any damage to your tranny and/or t-case.

[kutyafal]

A question along these lines also. Which is easier on the tow vehicle: flat towing or towing on a trailer with trailer brakes on both axles. I'm planning to tow my YJ with my V8 Grand and so far was thinking of getting a trailer with dual axle brakes. Would there be any brakes hooked up if flat towing? Is there a way to activate the towed vehicle's brakes? I'm concerned about stopping 4000lbs with marginal stock Grand brakes...

[Jeeper]

I've Flat towed my '90 YJ with my 99WJ on many occasions. I also had a posi-lok and locker up front. You WILL need to pull the front drive shaft as the locker will produce a plowing effect in corners essentially whipping the back end of your tow vehicle around. I don't care if the posi lock is engaged or not, it will happen.

As far as the rear shaft, I always left mine connected.

Jeeper

[JJH]

You could try something like this
http://www.aemfg.com/Brakes/index.html

I have no experience with this type of brake system, but I think I will get something like this when I get a tow vehicle.

[RatherBeJeeping]

Originally posted by Jeeper
I've Flat towed my '90 YJ with my 99WJ on many occasions. I also had a posi-lok and locker up front. You WILL need to pull the front drive shaft as the locker will produce a plowing effect in corners essentially whipping the back end of your tow vehicle around. I don't care if the posi lock is engaged or not, it will happen.

As far as the rear shaft, I always left mine connected.

Jeeper


Jeeper beat me to it. With that front locker you're going to bind your t-case, I fought with mine more then a few times. I finally put a 2LO in the t-case when I did a SYE since the Neutral setting on our t-cases doesn't disconnect the driveshafts like you'd think it does. Disco the front driveshaft at the axle and tie it up to the frame.

[nailer341]

thank you all for yor replies..
i'll be disconnecting the shafts and tieing them out of the way....
thanks again:p