JollyGreenGiant

First of all hi to everyone on the forums, i am new to this forum talk.

Well...I have a 1997 Jeep Cherokee manual trans that has 290k, 31" Trxus MT, 6.5" lift,Homemade front and rear bumpers, Chrysler 8.25 rear end(not to sure about the gears. Dont know how to find out), class 3 hitch.

The issue - I was going on a road trip 7 hrs away and i was pulling a trailer with a quad and our stuff and two 3 month old babies. I could not get over 100kmh. But with out the trailer i can reach 140kmh no problem. I took the bike off and i could drive 90-105kmh and thats pedal to the floor. Also when i have to drive up a hill on the highway i have to drop down to 3rd or 4th just to make it up the hill. The trailer is a 6x10 with a wood deck and 10"walls. I made it to the inlaws but a 7 hr drive took me almost 10.5hrs. i had to leave my quad there because i did not want to make that drive again with the babies and it taking that long. I have to make that drive again on the 15 of this month. The combined weight of all our stuff, the trailer, the bike cant be anymore than 1300lbs.

I know from reading the differnt forums and post that the jeep should be able to do that with no problems at all. If anyone has anything i can do to help me out with this issue that help me so much.
I just dont know where to start fixing the problem. The things i was told was bad injectors, plugged cat, plugged fuel filter. i just dont know where to start. or if those would even affect it. Help please.

1976Mustang

What size engine do you have?

Most likely your trailer + cargo (Mostly the Quad) are causing major drag from the wind hitting it.

Bbasso

check the bearings and brakes on the trailer.

1976Mustang

lol i was gonna mention that, but i figured the trailer would be smoking if it caused THAT much drag. Still i good idea to check though, and also make sure the tires ain't rubbing on the bottom of the trailer. Don't forget to keep the fact that the rear of the jeep would dip down under acceleration, changing the angle of the trailer in mind.

sthon

Not much info given... I'm assuming you have an I6 so you probably have 3.07 gears with the manual transmission. Your best bet would be to regear or swap axles to something with 3.55, 3.73, or 4.10.

Also if you don't know or can't remember when the last tuneup was do it now. A full tuneup, oil, oil filter, check/replace diff fluids, air filter, fuel filter, spark plugs, plug wires, etc. If the cooling system hasn't been serviced recently inspect/replace all of it. Thermostat, water pump, hoses, fan clutch, radiator etc. If you don't have a transmission cooler you're going to want one if you're towing.

sthon

Heh, nevermind. Or have fun trying to install one on a manual transmission.

XJ.89.Limited

I hate to thread jack, but I've never seen anyone quote their own quote before, haha.

As far as the towing goes, I agree on what the guys said. Do a tune-up and check for things that could create drag. I wouldn't hurt to actually weigh all the cargo too. If it's close to 2000lbs, you're gonna have a fun time pulling it. High mileage will also take an effect. An engine can only produce peak power for so long before it just gets too worn out. My 235k mile 89 definitely is past it's prime. I still have decent power, but not too super.

djb383

Tall tires and lift can easily kill towing performance.

JollyGreenGiant

Well I can't check if the tires are rubbing until I get to my inlaws again but I Will check when I get there and as far as bearings go my brother who owns the trailer said he had to replace the bearings last year so...
As far as engine I have inline 6 and had all the fluids changed befor I left the first time ( oil(high mileage synthetic), diff's, coolant, power steering, ect...) new plugs, wires, cap and rotor about 5 months ago.
With the tires only having 31" tires really make a difference if so would it help if I put my stock tires back on just for the drive. I don't really ever tow anything until now but would it help if I put a tarp or something over to lesson the drag

Bbasso

Sure you can, if they were rubbing the tires would be all scared up.

1976Mustang

Yes, putting the stock size tired back on would help. The bigger the tires are, the more torque it takes to get them turning.

1976Mustang

And the bottom of the trailer would have no paint/black marks