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Old 12-07-2022, 08:44 PM   #1
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4WD lifted Cherokee Dinghy

Hi all,

Just covering my bases here. Does anyone have any experience flat towing a vehicle that is lifted? I’m looking at Cherokees with 2-4 inch lift. I can’t foresee any issues, and I’m pretty well versed in the flat towing practice. Just not sure about towing something with a lift kit. Concerns, tips, warnings all welcome

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Old 12-07-2022, 09:55 PM   #2
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Originally Posted by Blindboyb View Post
Hi all,

Just covering my bases here. Does anyone have any experience flat towing a vehicle that is lifted? I’m looking at Cherokees with 2-4 inch lift. I can’t foresee any issues, and I’m pretty well versed in the flat towing practice. Just not sure about towing something with a lift kit. Concerns, tips, warnings all welcome
The only thing you need to check on is that the towbar is nearly level, like within 2 degrees of level. if it is not then you need to get a hitch extender to make up the diferance.
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Old 12-08-2022, 03:56 AM   #3
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I found this. Seems like I may have a chance. I assume the necessary tow bar height is where they meet the baseplate? So as long as the baseplate keeps the tow bars in the safe zone, I should be good. Agreed?
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Old 12-08-2022, 04:02 AM   #4
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And this: is anyone using this or something else to drag a lifted vehicle around?
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Old 12-08-2022, 06:54 AM   #5
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I have an adjustable hitch I used for towing our previous Grand Design trailer... no longer needed. I'm selling it cheap... REALLY want it sold! Must be picked up in Ohio, because it's too heavy to ship. If interested I'll get details and pics. Although it's likely much more than you need, as this is a weight distribution hitch.
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Old 12-08-2022, 11:43 AM   #6
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I used one of these with the omni. The Roadmaster attachment page is correct, 3" maximum. It's easy to figure though. Measure the height of the base plate attachments on the toad. Measure the receiver hight on the motorhome with the motorhome at travel height. That means level surface, not on jacks, suspension at ride height if air type suspension and loaded for travel. Get the Hi-low hitch receiver adaptor that gets the bar near level. Adaptors ain't cheap but doing it right isn't either. Pic is what I used.
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Old 12-08-2022, 01:25 PM   #7
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All this depends on the height of the receiver hitch on the MH and the height of the baseplate on the TOAD. if the difference between the height of the base plate and the height of the Hitch is greater than the towbar manufacturer specifies as acceptable then you need a high/low adapter like the one shown above.

As for the towbar I strongly suggest you get a non-binding towbar like the ones shown in this link. Roadmaster INC is not the only game in town so shop around for the option that best meets your needs.

https://www.roadmasterinc.com/produc...ars/index.html

Finally, be sure to get some type of braking system for the TOAD. many if not all states and Canada require breaks on a towed vehicle.
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Old 12-08-2022, 02:49 PM   #8
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Originally Posted by chunker21 View Post
I used one of these with the omni. The Roadmaster attachment page is correct, 3" maximum. It's easy to figure though. Measure the height of the base plate attachments on the toad. Measure the receiver hight on the motorhome with the motorhome at travel height. That means level surface, not on jacks, suspension at ride height if air type suspension and loaded for travel. Get the Hi-low hitch receiver adaptor that gets the bar near level. Adaptors ain't cheap but doing it right isn't either. Pic is what I used.
And get the high low adapter rated for the maximum weight of your hitch. Don’t think you can tow 8000 pounds with a 5k high low just because your hitch is rated for 10k. Took quite some time for me to find a high low adapter rated at 12k or higher. Found one rated at 20k and it was expensive ( over 300.00).
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Old 12-08-2022, 03:37 PM   #9
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We flat tow a Bronco 2 inch lift on 35 inch tires.
We use the Roadmaster with 6 inch rise. Roadmaster has 10,000 pound rating. Many others are far less.


This is the riser (or drop if you reverse it) that we use but in the one shown is 10 inch. They make several different heights.
https://www.amazon.com/Roadmaster-04...31230860&psc=1
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Old 12-08-2022, 04:22 PM   #10
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Base plate and tow bar

If possible try to get the base plate the same brand as tow bar. Mine are Blue Ox and I don't need adaptors to hook up. The dilemma I have now is my new Ram 2500 diesel doesn't yet have a BO base plate although it's supposed to be out any day. Demco and Roadmaster both make a baseplate that is available but the adaptors either for the base plate, or tow bar ends add considerable cost. Next trip that I'll use the Ram as toad is in February so I have time to wait out the supply issues. My Jeep Gladiator has BO base plate and no issue so next weeks trip I'm good. Another issue with the Ram, I'll have to put the Hi-low back on for it. Ram bumper/baseplate somewhat higher.
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Old 12-08-2022, 05:19 PM   #11
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Thank you all so much for sharing and helping. Awesome info, and I feel much more confident about getting this done. I’m a happy guy right now!
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Old 12-09-2022, 03:40 AM   #12
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You have received good info about the adapters and tow bars. We tow a Wrangler JKUR with 4" lift and 38's. Tows great.
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Old 12-09-2022, 06:20 AM   #13
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You have received good info about the adapters and tow bars. We tow a Wrangler JKUR with 4" lift and 38's. Tows great.
Now that sounds awesome! Got any pics?
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Old 01-11-2023, 11:44 PM   #14
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So I have just discovered that the young man whom I bought the XJ from was misinformed. My Jeep’s 2” lift is actually a 4.5” lift. Of course I’m stoked about that, but it doesn’t help much the flat towing aspect. Just creates more height to adjust for between tow bar and baseplate.
As they stand now, a baseplate center will be about 24” and my hitch center at 15.5”. The hi-low will get me that 10” difference, but now I’m thinking about an off-road bumper with D rings. This would put me up around 30”. I have yet to find a hitch adapter that will give me 15” of added height. Am I just getting out of hand here? It seems like all this adapting and adjusting is creating weak points in the physics of towing.
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Old 01-12-2023, 12:12 AM   #15
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So I have just discovered that the young man whom I bought the XJ from was misinformed. My Jeep’s 2” lift is actually a 4.5” lift. Of course I’m stoked about that, but it doesn’t help much the flat towing aspect. Just creates more height to adjust for between tow bar and baseplate.
As they stand now, a baseplate center will be about 24” and my hitch center at 15.5”. The hi-low will get me that 10” difference, but now I’m thinking about an off-road bumper with D rings. This would put me up around 30”. I have yet to find a hitch adapter that will give me 15” of added height. Am I just getting out of hand here? It seems like all this adapting and adjusting is creating weak points in the physics of towing.
They are; hence the height difference restriction. Those excessive hitch adapters put quite a torque moment on the hitch which it is not designed to handle at full rated load. Just asking for trouble.
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Old 01-12-2023, 02:34 AM   #16
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Do not forget the Motor home frame either. The hitch might be able to handle 8000# but the frame might not be able to handle the normal tongue weight for an 8000# hitch. On my old motorhome I had a custom hitch extension made so that I could carry four bikes on a bike rack total weight was maybe 200# but that plus the extra torque from the extra length of the extension bent the hitch mounting points downward. You will run into a similar problem if the hitch adapter is too much different than a level connection. On my stock Jeep Gladiator Rubicon, the baseplate location, just below the front bumper, provides an attachment point that is exactly the same height as the receiver on the motorhome. If I got an after-market front bumper with integrated tow attachment points the attachment point would be about 10" 12" higher. Also consider that the Dring loops are rated for recovery use only, not rated for flat towing. if you go that route then you need to buy a bumper that is engineered to have properly rated tow brackets installed.
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Old 01-12-2023, 02:49 AM   #17
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I found this. Seems like I may have a chance. I assume the necessary tow bar height is where they meet the baseplate? So as long as the baseplate keeps the tow bars in the safe zone, I should be good. Agreed?
Yes and they have receiver attachment that step up or down 4 inches. We have one for our Aria and Jeep. It is a male/female connection and our tower (Roadmaster) slides right in.
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Old 04-30-2023, 05:59 PM   #18
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Ok, so here’s the update
Finally got everything installed and setup. Beautifully level, and seemingly ready to travel. Until we made our first turn. We executed a right hand turn and the Jeep front wheels decided to turn left. I was watching this happen from the road walking alongside to see that everything was operating properly. I was able to jump in the Jeep and straighten the wheels, but it happened at the next turn. I stopped at this point and unhitched the Jeep.
Possible elements causing issue: please weigh in.
1. Although I just had an alignment done, they did say it was not 100% aligned due to the 33” tires and 4.5” lift. It’s pretty well aligned when I drive hands free to test.
2. The steering is a little loose, but we were doing under 10 mph in a parking lot. I would think it should track nicely in that condition. The steering wheel does move around a bit while driving, but nothing compared to death wobble or bump steer.
3. The bars on my NSA RBE 2 are really tight. The arms move smoothly in and out, but pulling the bars apart is really tight when opening from stow position to tow position. I can’t imagine that this is a problem since they should not be moving once connected anyway.
4. The lift and tires are just too much for being flat towed.
Any feedback is greatly appreciated. I’m getting close to the end of my rope with this Jeep, and would love nothing more than to have this setup work out.
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Old 04-30-2023, 06:05 PM   #19
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The lifted jeeps I have seen have all been trailered so sorry no ideas.
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Old 04-30-2023, 06:06 PM   #20
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Originally Posted by Blindboyb View Post
Ok, so here’s the update
Finally got everything installed and setup. Beautifully level, and seemingly ready to travel. Until we made our first turn. We executed a right hand turn and the Jeep front wheels decided to turn left. I was watching this happen from the road walking alongside to see that everything was operating properly. I was able to jump in the Jeep and straighten the wheels, but it happened at the next turn. I stopped at this point and unhitched the Jeep.
Possible elements causing issue: please weigh in.
1. Although I just had an alignment done, they did say it was not 100% aligned due to the 33” tires and 4.5” lift. It’s pretty well aligned when I drive hands free to test.
2. The steering is a little loose, but we were doing under 10 mph in a parking lot. I would think it should track nicely in that condition. The steering wheel does move around a bit while driving, but nothing compared to death wobble or bump steer.
3. The bars on my NSA RBE 2 are really tight. The arms move smoothly in and out, but pulling the bars apart is really tight when opening from stow position to tow position. I can’t imagine that this is a problem since they should not be moving once connected anyway.
4. The lift and tires are just too much for being flat towed.
Any feedback is greatly appreciated. I’m getting close to the end of my rope with this Jeep, and would love nothing more than to have this setup work out.
Because the tail swing of the coach pushed the jeep left initially. It would have followed if you had waited.

Adding, there does become a point when doing modifications to a vehicle that it can't be used for other purposes. Same as someone taking their 2/3 or 1T truck, putting lift kit, balloon tires and creating an unstable platform for 5th wheel towing. Some things don't work. My Jeep toads are bone stock.
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