Just traded my 96 xj for a 96 zj. Wondering how good they are for towing. I am debating towing a 3000lb car with it cross country on a dolly. I need to do a lot more research but I was just wondering what you guys thought.

 

I6 or v8?

 

Sorry v8

 

make sure the dolly has electric brakes and youll be fine. the V8 is rated to tow 6500 pounds. leave yourself more room to stop and try not to make any sudden moves. and turn overdrive off so you dont burn up the trans. when taking off from stop lights, i found it helps to start in 1st gear and shift it up manually. just dont expect good gas mileage

 

I tow pretty regularly with my 5.9 ZJ. A tranny cooler is the only thing I've added. They have plenty of power, thats not the issue, the biggest problem is the shorter wheelbase. Just use common sense and it'll be a great tow rig.

 

thanks for the input guys. ya, definitely not expecting good gas mileage but should i add a tranny cooler to it? guess it would only help...

 

If your ZJ has factory tow package, then make sure the tow dolly has electric brakes as stated. The brake wire should be in the driver's side kick panel taped off. My own experience towing a 1990 XJ 4 door on a dolly. No brakes made stopping interesting, leave lots of room. That was an unplanned event, and I towed it about 250 miles. The I6 did just fine, but brakes on the ZJ are barely good enough for the ZJ alone. Just don't be in a rush.

 

If your ZJ has a factory tow package, you should have an aux trans cooler already. If the hitch was added later, you'll definately need a trans cooler. Ditto on the electric brakes. If your ZJ isn't equiped with electric brakes, you can install an after-market unit with a separate control lever designed for travel trailers and boats. That way you can save the ZJ's brakes a lot. Also, when towing at night, turn on the towed vehicle's parking lights.

If you add a separate trans cooler, make sure you include the radiator's trans cooler as well. This will warm the tranny on cold days.

 

Rather than risk killing the towed vehicle battery, try a set of these...

 

Yeah! That'll work!