Mountaineer as a capable towrig?

I looked in Mountaineergreen's sticky on the towing capacities, my vehicle's specs aren't exactly listed on the chart. It's a 2000 mountaineer 5.0 2wd with 4.10 gears. Based on the two weight capacities that fit closest to my vehicle i figure the towing capacity would be somewhere around 6000 lbs. Is this fairly accurate?

There's a chance i'd be renting a flatbed trailer or tow dolly to tow a 91 Explorer 4x4 lifted on 35" tires a couple hundred miles. I'm not sure of the vehicle's weight but i'm presuming it is not much lighter than my mountaineer. Adding the weight of the trailer or tow dolly (i'm not sure how much either one weighs), 2 passengers, 2 tanks of fuel, and any camping gear, i would again presume this would outweigh my mountaineer. To add to this, i've never towed with the mountaineer and it did not come with a tow package, although it does have a factory trans. cooler. In the jack compartment in the trunk there is a wiring harness which would be for towing. The explorer has a trailer hitch (not sure of the class, how do i find out?) which i could swap to the mountaineer. As far as the rental trailer goes, i don't know if it has brakes, and i'm presuming the tow dolly does not.

So based on all this info, would you guys recommend towing the ex with the mounty? I'd prefer the flat trailer over the tow dolly, but is either of the two possible? Would trailer brakes be absolutely necessary? I have some ideas about it but i'd like to hear from people that know more about towing.

 

[MountaineerGreen]

There was never a Mounty with a 5.0 and 4.10 gears from the factory, that's why it isn't in the charts....

I'd bet a dozen doughnuts its 3.73's- that is all I know of that they ever put in 5.0 equipped Explorers/Mountaineers.

It'd be within limits (barely) to tow your 91 on a relatively light trailer- I'd definitely use a flatbed with either electric or surge brakes. Make sure the hitch fits well, the bolts are tight and your trailer lights work. Go slow, allow extra time for braking and you should be fine.

My 2001 pulls up to 5k pretty well, wind resistance and braking are the only two things that give me trouble.

I'll soon be towing a 91 on 35's behind my Mounty

 

[mounty71]

There was never a Mounty with a 5.0 and 4.10 gears from the factory, that's why it isn't in the charts....

I'd bet a dozen doughnuts its 3.73's- that is all I know of that they ever put in 5.0 equipped Explorers/Mountaineers.

It'd be within limits (barely) to tow your 91 on a relatively light trailer- I'd definitely use a flatbed with either electric or surge brakes. Make sure the hitch fits well, the bolts are tight and your trailer lights work. Go slow, allow extra time for braking and you should be fine.

My 2001 pulls up to 5k pretty well, wind resistance and braking are the only two things that give me trouble.

I'll soon be towing a 91 on 35's behind my Mounty

You are right, and i just went back and reviewed the chart and this time i found my vehicle on there. Whoops, my bad! It came with 3.73 gears, i had 4.10s swapped in. BTW, the way i was guesstimating 6000 lbs. was by looking at a 2WD with 3.55 gears and an AWD with 3.73 gears. But i was a little low.

So the chart says 6820 lbs. is the capacity. Wow that's the highest load on the entire chart! So if i used a flatbed trailer, i would absolutely need to have trailer brakes on it? If i drove extra slow and extra far behind traffic ahead of me, would it be OK to drive without trailer brakes? If not then i wont do it. Would using a tow dolly (which is much lighter than a trailer but lacks brakes) be ok?

I've got to do some reading on trailer brakes...

 

[joecrna]

I don't think a rental flatbed will be light enough to keep it within specs. Often those are 2000lbs alone. Having said that, you still should be OK if the trailer has brakes. Preferably electric and not surge but those may be fine if adjusted properly. I don't however know what the 91 set up for offroading weighs of the weight of all your gear. You will be pushing the combined gross vehicle weight rating Im sure. Try to stay away from the dollie. Tempting because its cheaper, but not safe for you. If you had a Super Duty that would be fine but not with the mountaineer.

 

[Dannyboy]

Is it the best truck to tow. Nope, but will it work..yes.

First and foremost brakes will be necessary. If you understand the difference between surge brakes and electric brakes you will be much better off going into this.

You can easily tow a very large load, I drove my Superduty to Texas with a boat that weighed over 13,000 lbs and also moved out west towing my Explorer completely packed behind a Yukon on a uhaul surge brake trailer so I could imagine your Explorer behind your Mounty would be similar to these two situations. I have also gone 1,000 miles to Colorado with a Grand Cherokee V8 pulling an older Cherokee. He had electric brakes and used them pretty heavily going down the passes.

1. Yes, you need brakes, no exceptions, electric would be best but you would need to add a towing commander in your truck.
2. If the trailer whips side to side you need to move the load forward
3. If the trailer bounces up and down you need to move the load back.
4. Find the sweet spot and see how it reacts, get comfortable.
5. Monitor your gauges, especially tranny, keep it under 55 and you should be good to go.
6. If using surge brakes understand that going downhill can be a challenge, the trailer tounge is baically like your foot and your hitch ball is like a brake pedal, as force applies you will get some braking.
7. Get those rear tires in the tow rig nice and stiff to help with body roll.

If it was me, I'd do it, but understand I probaly have close to 100,000 miles towing under my belt. Many miles have been white knuckled and I'm glad to have the proper setup now.

 

[mounty71]

I just looked at the wiring harness that came with my mountaineer, it's a 4-pin harness and looking at the directions i think it is just for lights on a trailer. This would likely be the one and only time ever towing with the mountaineer, so i don't feel like spending a hundred bucks on a trailer brake controller. That's why i was thinking the tow dolly would work, i figure it is light enough that its extra weight wouldn't make a difference, and the cost for rental is cheaper than a trailer. Joecrna, what's unsafe about the tow dolly? Is it not stable enough for a load that is just as heavy as the tow vehicle? And dannyboy, you say brakes are necessary. Does that sentence pertain to a trailer or to a tow dolly as well?

 

[joecrna]

The tow dollie lacks brakes. Brakes are a must. Our Explorer based vehicles are very underbraked to begin with. I tow well beyond the recommended limit with my Ex but it is very modified and the trailer is perfectly balanced, has good sway control and good enough brakes to stop itself.

You must be planning a run to the desert. As a one time deal, I can understand your desire to keep your towing investment down. Towing will be easier if you keep your speed down (55mph) like Danny said. Remember, U-haul will be reluctant to rent to you.

Some people would say rent the trailer, hook it up and don't worry. If you make sure you have some sort of brakes (electric or in this case surge) and keep following distances looong and speeds low, you should be OK. Don't think its going to be easy though. Leave early, take your time and double check everything.

It is recommended that no trailer equal the weight of the tow vehicle. But, as I said, I exceed this often. Always using the best equipement though.

 

[mounty71]

Well no matter what, i will not be getting any trailer brake controller, for a one time deal it isn't worth it to me. I'd still consider the tow dolly for this one time and drive slowly and cautiously. I am in fact planning a trip to the desert in a couple weekends which is why i was inquiring. It will be the explorer's first trip out on an untested suspension setup, and while i am optimistic it'll be ok, you just never know, and i will of course need to make it home at the end of the weekend. I just need to weigh the risk of breaking the explorer off road vs. breaking the mountaineer on road.

 

[turboexplorer]

I have pulled a 2005 Pontiac Vibe and a 1993 Toyota Camry on a tow dolly with mine to Salt Lake (300 Miles). Mine is a AWD 5.0L. It did fine at 65-70Mph. But that explorer probably has 800-1000Lbs on what I pulled. I could feel the weight back there but it did fine, just give PLENTY of room for stopping and be real careful and use the tranny to help you on downgrades Happy towing

 

[Dannyboy]

It is recommended that no trailer equal the weight of the tow vehicle. But, as I said, I exceed this often. Always using the best equipement though.

Where is this recommended? Several vehicles have ratings of 6,000-10,000 lbs, none of what weigh that much.

Matt, a 4-pin will only be for lights, you will need a 7 round to make that work with brakes. Surge brakes require no additional wiring, the "surge" and inertia change the braking. Some rental places (nations rent, u-hual) typically rent them for that reason.

What in your suspension might not make your truck drive home? Would it be easier/cheaper to pack spare parts than the extra gas/trailer rental/insurance deductable when you jackknife your Mounty on a hill and put it in a ditch???

 

[Tbars4]

...AAA can always tow you home...

...It's cheaper and last a whole year, rather than one trip..

 

[mounty71]

Where is this recommended? Several vehicles have ratings of 6,000-10,000 lbs, none of what weigh that much.

Matt, a 4-pin will only be for lights, you will need a 7 round to make that work with brakes. Surge brakes require no additional wiring, the "surge" and inertia change the braking. Some rental places (nations rent, u-hual) typically rent them for that reason.

What in your suspension might not make your truck drive home? Would it be easier/cheaper to pack spare parts than the extra gas/trailer rental/insurance deductable when you jackknife your Mounty on a hill and put it in a ditch???

Haha, you got me there danny, can't beat that logic. And ted, i forgot my family upgraded our AAA to 100 miles of towing covered, so i'll just drive the ex out there. Thanks for all the help everyone.

 

[joecrna]

Dannyboy, the info about trailers not exceeding the tow vehicle weight comes from the RV Consumers Group. A nonprofit group dedicated to safe towing and other RV issues. They are considered by most to be the source when it comes to towing issues. If you want to read about it in print, get their book "Trailer Life RV Rating Guide" or "RV Towing".

You are correct, many newer trucks have ratings even greater than 10,000 lbs. However, if you check the vehicles GCVWR you will often find that once the true loaded weight of the truck is subtracted, you are left with less than half for trailer weight. You could attribute the recent soaring towing capacities to improvements in suspension design but it probably has as much to do with competition and publicity as anything.

Things like wheelbase, rear axle to hitch pivot point and the associated ratios probably have more to do with safe towing than anything. Manufacturers have no way to no what you will tow or with what equipement. Their ratings are a catch all to limit product liability. No one said you can't tow more, but for safe stable towing its best that the tail not wag the dog.

 

[Dannyboy]

Gotcha Joe, I have pulled several heavy loads that have exceeded the vehicles weight in Tahoe's and F250s. I guess weight setup on the hitch (5th wheel) and whatnot make big exceptions. I guess I see dually's pulling a 3 car wedge all the time and that clearly outweighs the weight of the tow rig.

The major factor is brakes. I used to own this boat, it would barely stop with the brakes not connected but with brakes on every axle it stopped just as good as if no load was attached to the truck. I put several city and highway miles on this trailer and never once felt unsafe.

I will definitely look into that group as it looks like a good source of knowledge, I know I wouldn't let anyone hook up to a setup like that and take off, you're at the helm of a pretty big liability and need to make sure you know whats going to happen.

 

[zjrog]

Not an Ex but relavent

Recently I needed to drag my daughter's Cherokee home for repair. I had to use my Grand Cherokee though, and a Uhaul tow dolly. With the dolly, the towed load was more than the Grand, and I believe the ZJ was rated for 5000. While I had no real issue getting up to speed on flat areas, I would slow on hills. Not an issue of I'd had a V8. Or better, if I'd had the key for my locking pin so I could have used my F150 Supercrew. It does much better, but will be getting a trailer brake controller someday.

Like the Ex, the ZJ barely has enough brakes for itself, even with 4 wheel disks. Pulling the dolly and the XJ required lots of planning for slowing and stopping. I really wished for trailer brakes. My ZJ has a 7 pin connector as part of the factory tow package. I picked up an older tent trailer that I will probably be adding trailer brakes for it.

I know a guy that used his V8 Grand Cherokee to tow his ZJ based buggy and he has some scary stories, nearly swapped ends with the trailer.

So, you could do it, but plan ahead and don't speed.

And lastly, this was a question I had about using a 93 Ex as a tow rig. But see it might not be any better than my ZJ, except the Ex has a slightly longer wheelbase.