Towing with a Wrangler?

[DANR]

I have a 99 Wrangler that stays at the cabin. It would be nice once in a while to be able to use it to tow the boat so we could drive a car up instead of the SUV. It doesn't have a hitch and I don't want to invest in one unless I am sure it will handle it. We have an 1850 Sportfish with a 150 2 stroke outboard. I am not too concerned about the power because it would never go more than 10 or 15 miles. I am worried about the hitch weight and whether the Jeep suspension could handle it. Has anyone done something similar?

[highlife4me]

Wranglers aren't really made for towing. Rated to tow 2000 lbs with a hitch weight of 300 lbs. You might be ok with a smaller boat but I wouldn't recommend pulling a bigger boat like yours at highway speeds.

[Powerstroke]

Thats a 1500lb boat dry weight from the info I could find. You'd be well over 2000 lbs for sure with fuel, gear etc.

Its a 2000 pound rating or 2500 pounds if its got the 4.0L engine. Either way, the vehicle would be maxed out by your boat. It will be able to tow something that big around if you're only moving it on your land, but if you plan on hitting the roads, I would say no. That boat will overpower your jeep and you will lose everything if you get in an accident.

On top of that it would be a huge PIA to launch and land the boat with that rig.

[DANR]

Thanks guys. I heard what I thought I would

Dan

[SkunkedAgain]

The tail would wag the dog. My dad convinced me to let him tow my old 1985 16' Fisher with a 35hp motor. The boat pushed his new Wrangler all over the road. I wouldn't go much over 35mph with that boat, let alone an 18ft sportfish with a big motor on the end.

Trade the Wrangler for a hunter's special or something similar and you'll get to drive your car.

[ammoman16]

I used to tow a 16' Fisher Deep V with an 85hp outboard with a Wrangler and that was absolutely pushing the limits of the Jeep. Simple answer to the question is use a different vehicle.