Foretravel Owners' Forum For owners and Fans of Foretravel Motorcoaches September 09, 2025 ...

Towing a Wrangler

March 27, 2017, 10:49:32 am

Hello everyone!
Well we are doing good driving our 2012 Nimbus 40'--now we have a Wrangler Unlimited and need advice on equipment to get for dinghy towing.  Blue Ox?  Something else?  Just go to Motorhomes of Texas or Foretravel?  Would prefer to get equipment on Amazon or such save some $$.
thanks for advice!

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Re: Towing a Wrangler

Reply #1 – March 27, 2017, 11:26:59 am

Welcome the foreforums.
You may already know this:  https://prodcontent.s3.amazonaws.com/motorhomemagazine.com/2017DinghyGuide.pdf
There is a lot of information about towing a wrangler here, if you do a search you may find all your questions possibly already addressed.
Also this may help Trailer Hitches & Vehicle Accessories (800)298-8924
I purchased my towing equipment from PPL they had a sale at the time.

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Re: Towing a Wrangler

Reply #2 – March 27, 2017, 11:53:32 am

We use roadmaster and M&G brake system on our 2012 unlimited. Lots of good choices out there for jeeps. I agree buying used saves a bunch just be careful that vehicle brackets can be had for the towbar you choose, some work better than others.

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Reply #3 – March 27, 2017, 01:13:05 pm

We use ReadyBrake.  Easy to install and no modifications to the coach or the jeep (other than a couple holes and screws).
Supplemental Brake Systems
We found a Roadmaster Stowmaster tow bar for about $200 on Craigslist.  Works great for us.  Lots of choices for tow bars and brakes out there.  This was a low cost DIY that worked for us.

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Reply #4 – March 27, 2017, 01:57:39 pm

Very good info, thanks!
GeeBee

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Reply #5 – March 27, 2017, 02:31:13 pm

We only believe in Blue Ox base plate as with every stop the tabs come out of the Jeep easily and quickly.  Tabs are small attachment points.  Without tabs, Jeep looks pretty much like every other Jeep.

Roadmaster is very popular, but most hardly ever remove the very large and heavy outer steel framework, and end up with leg banger, parking lot damages (or theft) and an announcement that we are a tow car.

Any towbar can be used with Blue Ox baseplate, although many prefer to use the same brands for baseplate and towbar.  Also any towbar can be used with Roadmaster or other brands of baseplate.

Roadmaster has a very full line of accessories that work very well, like brake light diodes, brake pedal switches, brake seat mounts.

Some do the baseplate install themselves as instructions are very graphic and complete.

Buying on Amazon, etc may  not save much as parts are heavy.

In Nac, we prefer MOT for this kind of work, but any towing installation shop can do the job, as this is not a motorhome job.  There are other separate options for brake lights and toad braking.

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Reply #6 – March 27, 2017, 07:39:40 pm

If you decide to go with blue ox and M&G braking ( a really nice brake system that ties into the coach's air brakes) Their headquarters are between Canton TX and Athens TX. Great folks that took all of 4 hours to get ours completely ready to go.
You could save a few bucks getting the baseplate and tow bar and installing them yourself, but their brake system is the bomb.

Len

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Reply #7 – March 27, 2017, 08:30:44 pm

I bought a 2009 2 door jeep with this custom bumper.. I believe it is similar to one of the links provided above. Make sure how it is constructed Mine is failing after 2 trips so be careful .. Caught it before it was a real problem.  I will take the bumper apart and repair as needed and reinforce as required..  base plates and attachment are very important.

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Reply #8 – March 28, 2017, 12:25:47 am

We have our base plates mounted to the frame and also use M&G.

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Reply #9 – March 28, 2017, 01:32:15 am

David,

SO glad you caught that. You have a good looking set up but whoever

tried to weld it was an idiot. It looks like good heavy parts but was wire

welded imo. When people's lives are on the line they needed to use a stick

welder on it and weld hot enough to 'burn in' both things being welded

together, just my old fashion opinion. Have welded a lot with the stick

welders but very little with the wire welders. I am sure I will get corrected.

Find you an old welder with a 'pokie dotted' cap on and a welder on the

back of is truck and some tobacco split dried to the side of the truck there

you should get a gorilla weld for sure.

Carter-

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Reply #10 – March 28, 2017, 08:37:50 am

Definitely a poor fab job.  Is the front plate of the bumper that the eyes are welded to really thin?  I would want to beef that up.
As far as wire welders go T.G., my 250 amp Esab would have no problem making a good weld that could survive pulling 10X the weight of a Wrangler.

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Reply #11 – March 28, 2017, 10:10:01 am

Carter, we have a 250 amp wire feed and 300 amp Tig in our shop. A good welder can get great results with a wire feed. Not trying to be picky, only helpful.

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Reply #12 – March 28, 2017, 11:19:22 am

Thanks for the info. You know old pharts are hard

to adapt to new ways.

Carter-

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Reply #13 – March 28, 2017, 01:13:48 pm

I agree with Texas Guy:
Having used a "buzz box" 180 amp AC stick welder for years, and tried a 90 amp wire feed for 5 years, I get much better results with the stick, except for welding sheet metal. Sold the wire feed and use Oxy-acetylene brazing for sheet.

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Reply #14 – March 28, 2017, 04:06:52 pm

Having welded grousers on my Cat loaders with 1/4" stick 7018 for years with my Lincoln 400, got to use a 600 amp wire feed and was surprised that it penetrated deeper than the 1/4" rod.  I guess you have to compare apple to apples when rating them.

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Reply #15 – March 28, 2017, 04:57:58 pm

We went with the Roadmaster baseplate for our 2-door JK.  It bolted directly to the frame and did not require drilling into the frame.  There is no cutting of metal parts.  There is no relocating the vacuum assembly or removing the bumper, etc.  The most difficult part was getting the proper torque on the bolts without sliding across the floor.

The baseplate we got has the EZ4 style arms and uses the crossbar mentioned earlier.  The Jeep does not require this cross bar for structural support.  We went with the EZ4 mount because it allows you to use Roadmaster's "Tow Defender" screen (stretches between the motorhome and towed) to help keep rock and debris from hitting the towed.

We are using the RViBrake inertia based braking system.  When not in use it is completely removed.  No cables on the brake pedal, steel cables around the pedals, etc.  Personal preference. 

For activating the Jeeps brake lights, etc. we went with the CoolTech wiring harness.  It was a simple plug in unit that does not use diodes, etc.  The Jeep JK uses a CAN bus electrical system, and this wiring harness takes that into account.  I ran the wire loom inside the Jeep's box frame from the rear driver side brake light up the front bumper.  No exposed wires, and nothing to snag.

The most difficult part of installing the RViBrake was wiring up the 6-way plug to the front of the Jeep, and passing the cable for the emergency brake disconnect through the JK's firewall.  We used a 6 way plug instead of a 4 way plug because we are using a charge wire to power a trickle charger to ensure the battery stays charged during multi-day tows. 

Passing the emergency brake disconnect cable through the firewall was done by using an existing rubber grommet in the engine bay  There is a rubber grommet/plug about 1-1.5 inches in diameter in the upper corner of the engine bay on the driver side.  The other side of this grommet is the dash/foot well area.  If you punch a small hole is the center of this grommet you can pass the emergency brake disconnect cable through, and have is come right down into the foot well.  No drilling through the firewall required.  Roll up the extra cable when not in use and tuck it out of the way.

We looked at the various air braking systems and we decided that we wanted an inertia based system.  One reason was that if we are only using the engine retarder to slow the rig down, then I want the towed to brake if the engine retarder slows down enough to activate the inertia system.  I don't want the motorhome taking the weight of the Jeep.  If we have the retarder engaged more aggressively, and we do an emergency stop with the primary air brakes, the retarder will also kick in.  This combination REALLY slows you down fast.  In such a situation I wanted the Jeep to have more braking power applied than what might be sensed just by the air brake system alone.

This is all personal preference, and our choice is based upon the type of driving and experiences we've encountered in the past with a variety of RVs.

Before we bought the Road Master baseplate we look at various after market bumpers.  We chose not to go this route because in the end we wanted: 1) to keep the Jeep as light as possible, 2) I wanted to keep the crush cans on the OEM bumper.

A steel bumper up front would have increased nose weight - which would lead to a suspension lift to correct the handling, would would lead to...  We stayed with the stock setup and increased ground clearance at the differentials by switching over to 34x10.5x17 BFG KO2 tires on the stock rims.  This change adds a total of 50 lbs to the unsprung weight of the Jeep, but gives us a severe weather rated All Terrain tire.  Also this tire and wheel combination are within spec for the OEM/factory spare tire carrier, so we did not need to change out the rear bumper or add a swing gate (which would have increased the sprung vehicle weight).

We will be doing more overland type driving than rock crawling, so our vehicle build choices reflect that.

Sincerely,
Chris

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Reply #16 – March 28, 2017, 09:54:14 pm

We have a 2016 Wrangler 2-door automatic.  Went with a Blue Ox Aladdin tow bar, a Blue Ox BX1126 base plate, and an Invisi Brake.  Our goal was to make the hitch / un-hitch task as easy as possible.  This system works great for us and has been very easy to use.

The bulk of the base plate hides behind the bumpers bottom plastic piece and should not hinder you from going over off-road obstacles.  Very little is visible from the front.  Be aware that if you want a replacement bumper that only a few allow the front air bags to work – one reason we decided not to change the front bumper.  All we have to do with the Invisi Brake is plug in the wiring cable at the bumper.  Be sure to get a cover for the Blue Ox to keep the dirt out when not in use.
 
The newer Jeeps are great because you can take the key out and the steering wheel does not lock.  Take the key out, lock the car, and there is no battery use.  I made up a laminated card with easy to follow hitch / unhitch instructions for configuring the transmission because following the instructions in the Jeep manual is a chore.

Hope this helps.

PS - I bought the Aladdin and Invisi Brake on Amazon and had a Jeep specialty shop supply the other parts at better than Amazon prices.  They did a great job on the install.  It is something you can do yourself, but I wanted experienced Jeep guys to do the work.

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Reply #17 – April 10, 2017, 11:25:34 pm

Repaired my bumper over the weekend and repowdered.. came out pretty good and should be super strong. Replaced the LED lights with new as the old ones kinda fell apart (my helper forgot to unwire and pulled them apart). 35$ replacement lights not bad for 4 lights

Before and after pics... as you can see the flatbar was added and reinforced under the bumper and full welded.

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Reply #18 – April 13, 2017, 08:08:43 am

Rugged Ridge bumper with D Rings, Blue Ox and M&G Brake System.  Easy hook up.

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