Apparently I just toasted the 5 speed manual tranny in my '02 TJ . I set out on vacation flat towing my tj behind the motorhome . I put the transfer case in neutral and the tranny in neutral and went around 300 miles to our first stop and unhooked and drove the tj around 200 miles or so . Hooked the tj back up to the m/h and went around 300 miles , slept the night , and towed another 300 miles the next day to our destination . I unhooked the tj to drive around and do some sight seeing and I couldn't get the transmission in gear . Wouldn't go in any gear . When I tried to let the clutch out it would make bad noises . Sounded like it was broke really bad . I just hooked it back up to the m/h and towed it back home . I took it to a friend of mine that has a small repair shop and he pulled the tranny and opened it up and it looked like every bearing in the tranny had come apart . A real mess ! I have been trying to find out what went wrong and why . I have flat towed (all 4 wheels on the ground) a lot of different 4 wheel drive vehicles and always put the transfer case in neutral and the transmission in neutral and never had a problem until now . Since then , I have gotten bits and pieces of info here and there , but not one complete explanation that makes sense to me . All agree that the transfer case should be in neutral . One scenario says that the damage comes from the tranny output shaft spinning without sufficient lubrication and that starts the whole destructive process . To avoid this , I was told you can place the tranny in 4th gear to keep the output shaft from spinning while it is being towed and thus eliminate the no lubrication problem and therefor no damage will occur . I guess the most burning question in my mind is why would the tranny output shaft be turning at all with the transfer case in neutral ? Hopefully there is someone here that can explain this whole mess to me and convince me that there is a safe way to flat tow this vehicle . I sure would appreciate it ! Thanks in advance .
The only way the rear bearing gets lubed is from the input shaft turning, as in when the engine is running. Even though you put the t case in neutral, there is enough friction from the oil to spin the input of the t case, which turns the output on the trans, and being the trans input isn't turning, the un-lubed rear trans bearing seizes up, and eats up the others in front. Putting the trans in gear (and this also applies to automatics) stops he output of the trans and saves the bearings. Confused yet?
Transfer case in neutral and transmission in 1st, make sure your steering wheel is unlocked (key in and one click forward for many TJ's).... unless your owners manual suggests something different.
Just joined the forum and was wondering why 1st gear? Is it because it will provide the most resistance? Have a 95 Wrangler and 83 CJ. Same rules apply to the CJ as well?
Actually which gear doesn't really matter. The owners manual just says "in gear" Since you are trying to stop the trans from turning from the output shaft (rather that from the engine side) a higher gear would make more sense logically. I just put mine in second or third.
Thanks WD...Never read an owner's manual for a Jeep. Never thought I'd be flat towing one either. Older, wiser...have no desire to ride a mule several hundred miles any more. The CJ-5 on the highway is like a pissed off mule at that! Never hesitated when I was a kid, now my back and brain stem can't take it.
Good point...also the question about the CJ, the only difference from the Wrangler is lock-out hubs. Do you unlock them when flat towing, no owner's manuals.
If "our" Jeeps were to engage a gear while flat towing, would it be best to put it in 5th gear, so the RPM's wouldn't sky rocket immediately? I'm leaving next week, and thought if I put it in any other gear, while going 55mph down the highway, I might have big problems if there is a malfunction. With a V10 pulling my Jeep, I doubt I would feel anything failing behind me.
I travel full time pulling a 04 rubicon transfer case in neutral and tranny in 5th. I did forget to unlock the steering wheel and 15 miles later chewed all the lugs off my front tires. I have been towing mine for 23000 miles and only other thing I have noticed is my tires are wearing out unevenly.
I use JPi brand connectors that bolt directly to my Blackhawk Allterrain (and most other brands) and pins directly to my D ring mounts on my Poison Spyder bumper (or any other aftermarket bumper with 3/4" D ring mounts)
Purchased my jeep with the bar / bracket thingy for flat towing attached under the bumper already , have no use for it and it doesn't hurt it staying there . But does anyone know how many bucks I could squeeze out if I took it off and tried to sell it ?
just flat towed mine over 400 miles.. aired the tires up to 35 lbs to make rolling easier.. I was good up to about 65 mph, above that I got too much side to side motion too often.
left it in Park, no miles added to the odometer. worked pretty well overall, except for the gas mileage on my truck
Don't expect much difference most of the drag is aerodynamic plus dragging the weight up hills and trailer should not matter much.
The PO of my wrangler TJ had a full floater warn kit with full size locking hubs put in the rear 44 plus full size warn locking hubs on the front so for me towing is just unlock all four hubs and put 5 spd in gear and TC in 2H and only the hubs rotate
I'm on my second TJ, and have flat towed both. My procedures (similar to others):
--Transfer case in neutral (tested by putting transmission in gear and letting the clutch out).
--Transmission in 5th gear (to ensure engine RPMs are low if I should neglect to put the transfer case in neutral).
--Key in, turned to first 'notch' (steering lock off, but electrics not on).
I use a Blue Ox towbar and baseplate, plus a Brake Buddy auxiliary brake.
Three drinks from the well of experience:
1) I neglected to unlock the steering for towing once. As soon as I got to about 40 mph, it felt like the motorhome (35' diesel pusher, not a lightweight) had a flat tire or broken steering--pulled to one side dramatically. Pulled over and observed the Jeep front tires 'cocked and locked' to one side (probably happened when I turned onto the highway). Luckily I caught it before any damage was done.
2) After hooking up, I (now) always step back and do a walk-around:
-Hitch and all cables at the front connected, major bolts in place (see #3)
-Looking in the passenger window:
----parking brake off
----transmission in gear
----transfer case selector arm up
----key in ignition
----Brake Buddy installed and powered
This won't catch the smaller details (for instance, if you hung the key in the ignition but didn't turn it), but it will help if you completely missed a step (forgetting the key or leaving the parking brake on, etc.).
3) I do a walk-around whenever I take a driving break. Besides stretching the legs, it lets me check the vehicles. Paid off once, big time. The main bolt that holds the tow bar together (swivel bolt, allows the bar to rotate going over uneven roads, and applies 'pull' to the Jeep) had backed out about 1/2". If I hadn't caught it, I would been performing a Safety Chain test later that day. (Blue Ox fixed the problem under warranty.)
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