Dinghy or two wheel trailer towing an AWD vehicle

[petefoss]

Originally Posted by 16ACE27

So if you can't trust the Owner's Manual published by the vehicle manufacturer, who are you going to trust?

I assume the issue you encountered with the Cherokee was discovered after people starting towing them (like the death wobble) which caused Jeep to issue changes to the Owner's Manual and engineer a fix.

This can happen with any new Technology. GM just issued a change to the new Blazer's Owners Manual regarding towing 4 down, Does that mean you can't "trust" their Owners Manual? Or does it mean you need to make sure you are looking at the latest revision to the Owner's Manual?

I would make sure you are looking at the online owners manual AND verify with a dealer that there have not been any bulletins about recreational vehicle towing

[abjbrtd]

Originally Posted by 16ACE27

So if you can't trust the Owner's Manual published by the vehicle manufacturer, who are you going to trust?

I assume the issue you encountered with the Cherokee was discovered after people starting towing them (like the death wobble) which caused Jeep to issue changes to the Owner's Manual and engineer a fix.

This can happen with any new Technology. GM just issued a change to the new Blazer's Owners Manual regarding towing 4 down, Does that mean you can't "trust" their Owners Manual? Or does it mean you need to make sure you are looking at the latest revision to the Owner's Manual?

Ford has updated all their electric steered vehicles owner manual that can be towed 4 down, I suspect GM have updated all of there's.

FYI: most if not all vehicles with electric steering need to have the ignition ON while being towed, death wobble .

[16ACE27]

Originally Posted by abjbrtd

Ford has updated all their electric steered vehicles owner manual that can be towed 4 down, I suspect GM have updated all of there's.

FYI: most if not all vehicles with electric steering need to have the ignition ON while being towed, death wobble .

Actually the Blazer change had nothing to do with leaving the vehicle on.

[dave5131]

Wow! Thank you. That is comforting and interesting to know. I see Jeep has a 2020 Compass Trailhawk. Would this vehicle have the same set up to flat tow? I like the picture of your set up too. Thank you! One last question. How much does your Jeep Cherokee weigh and is it a Trailhawk? Can the Limited be flat towed too? Sorry for all the questions. Best to you!

[MJC62]

Originally Posted by dave5131

Wow! Thank you. That is comforting and interesting to know. I see Jeep has a 2020 Compass Trailhawk. Would this vehicle have the same set up to flat tow? I like the picture of your set up too. Thank you! One last question. How much does your Jeep Cherokee weigh and is it a Trailhawk? Can the Limited be flat towed too? Sorry for all the questions. Best to you!

Towing a Compass see my post # 12, as of 2019 CANNOT BE TOWED.
Weight of Cherokee Trailhawk once again see post 12. (advertised curb weight 4000 lbs)
Cherokee Limited flat towing see post 18. Requires optional ACTIVE DRIVE II 4X4 system.
All this information is based on what Jeep had available in 2019 when we purchased our Cherokee Trailhawk, YOUR RESULTS FOR 2020 Model year may be different, Check with Jeep.

[Hurricane34J]

Originally Posted by dave5131

Wow! Thank you. That is comforting and interesting to know. I see Jeep has a 2020 Compass Trailhawk. Would this vehicle have the same set up to flat tow? I like the picture of your set up too. Thank you! One last question. How much does your Jeep Cherokee weigh and is it a Trailhawk? Can the Limited be flat towed too? Sorry for all the questions. Best to you!

I was considering selling my 2018 Acadia Denali. It is AWD and can be towed 4 flat in ground. It has a super easy procedure to tow. And I have a wiring harness and blue ox baseplate installed already. perhaps I'm not allowed to list this here but if you're interested let me know. I was going to make the decision on this in the next day or two. I live in Michigan. Also it is light at around 4000 pounds but you can look that up in the 2018 Sam's dingy guide.

[16ACE27]

Originally Posted by Hurricane34J

I was considering selling my 2018 Acadia Denali. It is AWD and can be towed 4 flat in ground. It has a super easy procedure to tow. And I have a wiring harness and blue ox baseplate installed already. perhaps I'm not allowed to list this here but if you're interested let me know. I was going to make the decision on this in the next day or two. I live in Michigan. Also it is light at around 4000 pounds but you can look that up in the 2018 Sam's dingy guide.

No problem talking about you toad for sale here. If fact, we have a classified area where you are welcome to list your RV related items for sale: like a fully set-up toad.

[powerboatr]

Originally Posted by abjbrtd

Ford has updated all their electric steered vehicles owner manual that can be towed 4 down, I suspect GM have updated all of there's.

FYI: most if not all vehicles with electric steering need to have the ignition ON while being towed, death wobble .

our 2016 expedition has EPAS steering and no key on , just neutral tow set through transfer case.



fords vary wildly through models, even though they all use the same EPAS technology. YES check the mangf website to get the most up to-date info, its like a moving target as of late

[JimD]

I used to Dolly and flat tow now I trailer tow.. And I added in an extra box and bike rack. I am under weight with both... I would look into that as well.

[Hurricane34J]

Originally Posted by 16ACE27

No problem talking about you toad for sale here. If fact, we have a classified area where you are welcome to list your RV related items for sale: like a fully set-up toad.

Thanks. I was initially responding that I have an AWD that I tow 4 wheels down.. but that led to maybe an advertisement! My issue for the next few days is that we have 6 inches on the ground and still falling now so I can't get any "pretty" pictures of the car!!! Michigan problems.

[IDguy]

Originally Posted by abjbrtd

Here's a link to the 2019 MotorHome magazine dinghy towing guide, the 2020 edition will be published in April. They have a lot of PDFs about towing.
https://www.motorhome.com/download-dinghy-guides

Tow dolly + awd = No.
You won't find many if any Asian car/truck/SUV that are 4 down towable, Subaru 0, Toyota 1, Nissan a few Kia Hyundai 0.

Ford and GM have several, most of their small awd suv are ok.
Jeeps 4x4 with ADII are ok, we tow a Cherokee.

Good luck with your search.

But if you get a Cherokee older than 2019 you also need a wiring kit to prevent death wobble. Fixed for 2019 or newer.

[IDguy]

Originally Posted by abjbrtd

Ford has updated all their electric steered vehicles owner manual that can be towed 4 down, I suspect GM have updated all of there's.

FYI: most if not all vehicles with electric steering need to have the ignition ON while being towed, death wobble .

No issues w 2019 and newer Cherokees w ADII. Tow with ignition off. They redesigned steering hardware.

[IDguy]

Originally Posted by petefoss

I would make sure you are looking at the online owners manual AND verify with a dealer that there have not been any bulletins about recreational vehicle towing

Right. My dealer was clueless that the 2019 Cherokee didn’t need the kit, so I had him install as part of the deal. The hard copy manual that came with it says you need it.

I learned you don’t need it by time I was ready to tow so have never used the kit. It tows very nice.

The updated online manual deleted the requirement.

[AndyT1183]

Originally Posted by dave5131

I've read through all the threads here and was hoping to find an answer to my question. I even looked at the 2019 Good Sam Guide to Dinghy Towing. for the past 5 years I two wheel dolly towed my 2015 Kia Forte with no real issues. I'm looking to purchase a 2020 small AWD SUV. I like the Kia Sportage. Unfortunately that is not on the list for 4 wheel towing. My question is: Can you two wheel dolly tow an AWD car? I overheard a sales person at the Buffalo Auto Show mention you can't. I would really like to go to 4 wheel towing as it is easier connect/disconnect. Thank you in advance for your help!

If in doubt go to the service dept and talk to them. I did and they gave me the correct answers.

[16ACE27]

Originally Posted by AndyT1183

If in doubt go to the service dept and talk to them. I did and they gave me the correct answers.

Then you were lucky. Too many horror stories from people who relied on verbal information from the dealer, both sales and service, and found out later they were not given truthful information. What's your recouse if that happens and you are stuck with a vehicle that is now unfit for your intended use?

If in doubt, look in the owners manual. That is the manufacturers WRITTEN guidance on the suitability of the vehicle for use as a towed vehicle.

Written overrides verbal in all situations, just ask Judge Judy!

[Becie]

Originally Posted by dave5131

I've read through all the threads here and was hoping to find an answer to my question. I even looked at the 2019 Good Sam Guide to Dinghy Towing. for the past 5 years I two wheel dolly towed my 2015 Kia Forte with no real issues. I'm looking to purchase a 2020 small AWD SUV. I like the Kia Sportage. Unfortunately that is not on the list for 4 wheel towing. My question is: Can you two wheel dolly tow an AWD car? I overheard a sales person at the Buffalo Auto Show mention you can't. I would really like to go to 4 wheel towing as it is easier connect/disconnect. Thank you in advance for your help!

I found this site helpful for choosing a dinghy: https://www.blueoxtowbars.com/ Good luck.

[16ACE27]

Originally Posted by Becie

I found this site helpful for choosing a dinghy: https://www.blueoxtowbars.com/ Good luck.

Just because a towbar is made for a particular vehicle does not mean the vehicle manufacturer has approved the vehicle for use as a towed. It may require modification such as a transmission fluid pump or a drive shaft disconnect in order to tow it without damaging it.

[Badmanrick]

If you are looking for a good tow vehicle then any Jeep with a two speed (hi/lo) 4 wheel drive system can be towed 4 down. If you are looking for a smaller suv then a compass or Cherokee should fit the bill. These vehicles have a neutral transfer case disconnect and automatic transmission. Jeep death wobble has been eliminated.
I just purchased a new Thor Hurricane 34j and a new Jeep Grand Cherokee Summit. I am very happy with this setup. You hardly know the toad is there.

[nautiquecowboy]

I use a dolly and pull a small convertible pulled it all over the place never had any trouble long as you got air in the tires. Keep your bearings greased that's easy enough. The only way to go in my opinion. If I was to ever pull with 4 down it would be with a Jeep with a transfer case. Also on another Thread about broke again it turned out to be my converter.

[vkb]

For those of you, who have not read the other threads regarding towing...
we have a Jeep Wrangler TJ 2door, 3250 lbs … so easy to tow , 4 down, (transfer case in neutral, transmission in 3rd gear)…
Blue Ox setup is amazingly easy (for 2 seniors !!)

looking forward to warm weather and MORE HAPPY CAMPING !!

K