Towing my JKU behind a motorhome

rich67

Caught the Bug
I am planning on bringing my JKU along on a vacation and have heard so many different ways to tow a JKU I honestly have no idea who to trust. I have a 2013 JKU with a manual transmission. Do I leave the transmission in neutral or leave it in gear? Do I leave the transfer case in neutral as well? Some people say to leave the tranny in 1st gear. Don't want to mess up anything on a 5,000 mile road trip....
 

hinrichs

Caught the Bug
Hopefully stizzy chimes in on this, I would think he knows better than anyone how to do this :thumb:
 

bkac

Caught the Bug
I am planning on bringing my JKU along on a vacation and have heard so many different ways to tow a JKU I honestly have no idea who to trust. I have a 2013 JKU with a manual transmission. Do I leave the transmission in neutral or leave it in gear? Do I leave the transfer case in neutral as well? Some people say to leave the tranny in 1st gear. Don't want to mess up anything on a 5,000 mile road trip....

I have a buddy that does this a lot. I'm pretty sure t-case in neutral, key turned once to unlock steering wheel, battery disconnected, and basically tranny won't matter at this point, just leave it in neutral. 99.9% sure this is correct. Hopefully someone else can chime in. You'll probably notice some wear on the front tireS.
 

jedg

New member
JK_b/c_yolo has it pretty close. This is per the user manual, this is from my 2011 manual on page 52

The transfer case must be shifted into N (Neutral), automatic transmission must be shifted into PARK, and manual transmission must be placed in gear (NOT in NEUTRAL) for recreational towing.

I believe if the transmission is left in neutral it can damage it.

• Bring the vehicle to a complete stop, turn off the engine and press and hold the brake pedal.
• Shift the automatic transmission into NEUTRAL or depress the clutch pedal on a manual transmission.
• Shift the transfer case lever into N (Neutral).
• Start the engine and shift the transmission into REVERSE.
• Release the brake pedal (and clutch pedal on manual transmissions) for five seconds and ensure that there is no vehicle movement.
• Repeat the previous step with automatic transmission in DRIVE or manual transmission in first gear.
• Turn OFF the engine and leave the ignition switch in the unlocked OFF position.
• Firmly apply the parking brake and shift the transmission into PARK or place manual transmission in gear (NOT in Neutral).
• Attach the vehicle to the tow vehicle using a suitable tow bar and release the parking brake.
• Disconnect the negative battery cable, and secure it away from the negative battery post.
• Refer to your Owner's Manual on the DVD for further details.
 

Utah_Jay

Member
I flat tow behind my coach all the time. Your steering wheel doesn't lock on that year I believe so no need to leave the key in the ignition. Put in first gear and transfer case in neutral. Do not tow with your transmission in neutral. On my 07 I have to pull the IOD fuse or it will put miles on my Jeep while being towed, but....I also have to leave my key in or my steering wheel will lock. I don't think you will need to worry about this on your '13 as long as you don't have the key in the ignition.
 

rich67

Caught the Bug
I flat tow behind my coach all the time. Your steering wheel doesn't lock on that year I believe so no need to leave the key in the ignition. Put in first gear and transfer case in neutral. Do not tow with your transmission in neutral. On my 07 I have to pull the IOD fuse or it will put miles on my Jeep while being towed, but....I also have to leave my key in or my steering wheel will lock. I don't think you will need to worry about this on your '13 as long as you don't have the key in the ignition.

Thanks Jay...exactly the answer I was looking for. :thumb:
 
Top Bottom