Topic: towing my wrangler

[rcrovo1]

Hey guys,
about to make a big move from sc to ky and am renting a moving truck. unfortunatley i dont have the luxury of another driver so i will be towing my precious jeep behind the truck and wnated some opinions. there are 2 options for towing...a dolly (which just lifts the front two wheels) and a trailer for the whole vehicle. they say that thte dolly is for front wheel drive vehicles only and a 4 wheel drive needs the trailer. the dolly is around 100 bucks cheaper so i would like to do that of course. sooooo..... my question is whether this is safe to do or not (towing using the dolly lifting the front two wheels). i am thinking that if i drain the transfer case and remove the rear drive shaft everything will be good. i have and open differential in the rear and if the driveshaft is removed the only internals moving when towing is the differential. what does everyine think? btw it is a 95 2.5l on 33's w/ 4 inch lift, open diffs. thanks in advance
bobby

[SMC4WD]

I would like someone with more knowledge to answer this one, but....

The NV231 Transfer Case oils as it turns.  I don't think that it needs power to oil itself.  Jeep is a very popular vehicle to be towed for that reason.

So someone please correct me if I'm wrong, but I thing that towing it with a dolly, and not having to disconnect anything should be fine.

[Jesse-James]

I had this question before, the best answer I got is you can put the transfer case in nuetral to tow with the wheels down. However because of the off chance a U-joint has problems, T-case pops into gear etc. I was told to remove the straps on the rear yoke and strap it up SECURELY out of the way. For an extra 100.00 I personally would rather have the peace of mind on a long trip and use a full trailer. A full trailer with brakes will be nicer to tow as well.

[SMC4WD]

Plus...  you'll have all that added space of inside the Jeep to put more things.  If the doors open without a problem (while on the trailer), then you can put in convenient things.  Like dog food or bowl, ice chest, etc.

[YJmechanic]

you should be fine to tow it in neutral but again it would be safer to remove the drivshaft and also for $100 bucks I would just get the trailer.  Also you said drain the t-case which I understand but wouldn't it just be easier to strap up the shaft and not worry about leaks?  Then again I would just go for the full trailor because I would stop every five miles and check with the dolly, and I'm completely serious because I towed mine with a dolly and did stop constantly to check it and made me crazy.

[Bounty Hunter]

All Jeep owner's manuals for 231 equipped vehicles strongly warn against towing with either axle off the ground and the other on the ground.  I disconnect and tie up my rear driveshaft when using a dolly just for this reason, simple insurance.

[rcrovo1]

thanks for all the input. i will be leaving this friday to make the trip and will more than likely just use the dolly. i dont see how there would be any strain on any driveline components if i remove the rear driveshaft. i think im gonna go ahead and remove it completely and draint he transfer case (2 quarts of atf isnt hard to replace). that way i wont have to worry whether i tied the driveshaft up to the frame secure enough or not the whole trip. ill still have the jeep to hold things for transport as well. wish me luck i guess. thanks again
bobby

[Jeffy]

thanks for all the input. i will be leaving this friday to make the trip and will more than likely just use the dolly. i dont see how there would be any strain on any driveline components if i remove the rear driveshaft. i think im gonna go ahead and remove it completely and draint he transfer case (2 quarts of atf isnt hard to replace). that way i wont have to worry whether i tied the driveshaft up to the frame secure enough or not the whole trip. ill still have the jeep to hold things for transport as well. wish me luck i guess. thanks again
bobby

One of the problems with the YJ 231 is that is doesn't have a true Neutral unlike the TJ.  I'm not sure why they did it this way.  Although as long as the output shaft turns, it wil turn the oil pump.

I'd besure to plug the hole if you're going to remove the driveshaft.  Once you remove the yoke straps the whole thing will slide out.  Maybe find a cap that will it the opening then tape/strap it into place.

[Bounty Hunter]

One of the problems with the YJ 231 is that is doesn't have a true Neutral unlike the TJ.  I'm not sure why they did it this way.  

How is that?  The internals are nearly identical minus the synchronized hub.

[Jeffy]

The notch for Neutral is different I believe.

[Bounty Hunter]

The notch in the sector shaft?  I'll have to compare the two.

[rcrovo1]

well made it safe and sound. ended up using the dolly, draining the tc and removing the driveshaft. put everything back together yesterday and all seems to be fine. only issue i had with the dolly is the straps that secure the front wheels almost didnt fit. the 33's were almost to large for the straps to fit around. anything bigger and they definitley would not have fit. other than that...worked like a charm. thanks for the input and advice.
bobby

[lostjohn]

I'm wonderjng what all the fuss is about, I have flat towed my 97 TJ since it was new, many thousand of miles behind my motorhome, with zero issues.  Transfer case in nuetral and transmission in gear. Only problem I ever encountered was when I forgot to unlock the steering and chewed some tread off my new BFG 33x10.50 AT's. Automatics may be different, but with a 5spd flat towing is safe and simple.

[rcrovo1]

very true, no stink about flat towing a 97 but the transfer cases from the 95 (jeep in question from original post) does not have a true neutral setting... which was the reason for the stink.

[Bounty Hunter]

very true, no stink about flat towing a 97 but the transfer cases from the 95 (jeep in question from original post) does not have a true neutral setting... which was the reason for the stink.

I don't believe the stink, flat-tow my '95 YJ all the time with no problems.  I don't believe there is a difference in transfer cases between the '95 and '97, sounds like hype.