anybody tow lightweight buggys with a cherokee?....pretty sure i could keep the trailer and buggy weight under the towing capacity but wonder about stopping the trailer and safety in general...
ive got a 4.0 5spd 98 and would like to keep it since its been such a solid truck...if anybody tows samurai's or anything of the same weight id like to get some feed back

I've towed a yj on a pretty light "utility" trailer behind a '99 4.0/auto. It did it but it wasn't the most fun and I don't want to have to do it again. Tow rating is 5k but I think 3k would be pretty decent behind one. You don't need a crew cab diesel but I would definetly take it for a test tow before comminting to one as a tow rig. One of our budies is going to try towing a flatty buggy behind his next year but on a pretty heavy trailer, i'm guessing it won't work out so well.

Make darned sure you've got electric brakes on that trailer. XJ brakers are marginal to begin with.

Secondly, if you've got a stock 98 5spd XJ, you've got 3.07 gears. Towing, those gears are gonna suck. Easiest and cheapest way to to get there is to head to the junkyard and completely replace those axles with junkers from an automatic XJ.

BTW, the official tow rating on a 5spd XJ is 2,000 lbs., not 5,000 lbs. The higher rating only applies to automatic XJs.

thanks for the info about the gears and other info on the swap

Just noticed that I forgot to list the gears you're looking for at the junkyard.

4.0l XJs with an AW4 have 3.55 gears in the axles. Should be pretty easy to come by and not a whole lot of money. Make sure you get axles to match your ABS, or lack thereof.

If you're considering going to 31s on your XJ, look for axles out of a 2.5l 4cyl XJ, some of them came with 4.10 gears.

I wouldnt recomend that for a tow rig

I used to use a MJ to tow a Datsun Z on a dual axle trailer. No breaks on the trailer. Stopping was so so. But the I6 couldn't go to fast.

Thats crazy the wheel base is to short and track to narrow for my liking.

i wouldnt want to tow anything with a cherokee

thanks for all the replys...was looking for people who have actually tried it...
chixjeff~ where did you find the tow rating for the 5spd tranny?

I have towed with my 4.0 Auto Cherokee. Not any vehicles, but tent trailers and RV's. It worked ok, but wasn't great. Just a bit short on power mostly. It handled just fine for me and wasn't too tough to drive, but just not enough rig.

thanks for all the replys...was looking for people who have actually tried it...
chixjeff~ where did you find the tow rating for the 5spd tranny?
It's right in your owner's manual.