Towing with Jeep Grand Cherokee

[Spaceace]

Hello!

I am currently camping in a small pop up and considering purchasing a 2019 Jeep Grand Cherokee V8 Limited 4wd and part of the appeal is that I could upgrade to a bigger trailer.

I was drawn to this tv partly because it has a 7,200 pound towing capacity.

There is no problem with this towing my small pop up. I don't have a trailer picked out but am looking for something smaller in size like the GeoPro G19BH.

I am attaching the door stickers to the Jeep I'm looking at. But the one sticker says the cargo and passengers shouldn't exceed 1,050 pounds. It seems like this is a round figure. Is this based on actual weight?

Does this include the hitch weight of the trailer? The GeoPro I'm using as an example has a hitch weight of 425 (and I understand that might be without battery or propane).

If that is the case, I would have only 625 pounds (1,050 - 425) for my family of 4 plus any cargo that was in the Jeep.

Am I thinking about this right? I was drawn to this Jeep as a daily driver that could tow a camper during the summer. I live in a very flat area if that makes and difference here.

Also from googling, it sounds like the curb weight is around 4,700 pounds. Wouldn't that make my cargo amount 2,100 pounds (6,800, gvwr from sticker - 4,700 pounds)?

Thanks for your expert advice!

[bikendan]

Originally Posted by Spaceace

Hello!

I am currently camping in a small pop up and considering purchasing a 2019 Jeep Grand Cherokee V8 Limited 4wd and part of the appeal is that I could upgrade to a bigger trailer.

I was drawn to this tv partly because it has a 7,200 pound towing capacity.

There is no problem with this towing my small pop up. I don't have a trailer picked out but am looking for something smaller in size like the GeoPro G19BH.

I am attaching the door stickers to the Jeep I'm looking at. But the one sticker says the cargo and passengers shouldn't exceed 1,050 pounds. It seems like this is a round figure. Is this based on actual weight?

Does this include the hitch weight of the trailer? The GeoPro I'm using as an example has a hitch weight of 425 (and I understand that might be without battery or propane).

If that is the case, I would have only 625 pounds (1,050 - 425) for my family of 4 plus any cargo that was in the Jeep.

Am I thinking about this right? I was drawn to this Jeep as a daily driver that could tow a camper during the summer. I live in a very flat area if that makes and difference here.

Also from googling, it sounds like the curb weight is around 4,700 pounds. Wouldn't that make my cargo amount 2,100 pounds (6,800, gvwr from sticker - 4,700 pounds)?

Thanks for your expert advice!

You can forget that 7200lbs of towing capacity because you'd never even get close with a low payload capacity of 1050lbs.
Tow Vehicles will almost run out of payload WAY before reaching the max towing capacity.
Forget that fictional dry tongue weight number. Using 13% of the trailer's GVWR, you get a ballpark loaded tongue weight of 575lbs. That leaves you only 475lbs of payload capacity for all the Occupants, 100lbs for the WDH and any car cargo.
Single axle trailers have heavier tongue weights than comparable tandem axle trailers. That's why you use 13%.

https://forestriverinc.com/rvs/trave...pro/G19BH/4396

Sent from my SM-G781U using Forest River Forums mobile app

[NavyLCDR]

That vehicle won't have enough payload for 4 people and the trailer. My Yukon has a GVWR of 7300 lbs and a published payload capacity of 1517 lbs. I tow a dual axle trailer with a tongue weight at 650 lbs. Here was my last weighing:



I had 4 adults and one 8-lb dog in the truck and I am 40 lbs over GVWR with the trailer hooked up with a WDH.

[Chuck_S]

Get rid of one of the adults. Get more dogs.

BTW: Thanks for posting the real weights!!

-- Chuck

[NewToTheForce]

Originally Posted by Spaceace

Hello!

I am currently camping in a small pop up and considering purchasing a 2019 Jeep Grand Cherokee V8 Limited 4wd and part of the appeal is that I could upgrade to a bigger trailer.

I was drawn to this tv partly because it has a 7,200 pound towing capacity.

There is no problem with this towing my small pop up. I don't have a trailer picked out but am looking for something smaller in size like the GeoPro G19BH.

I am attaching the door stickers to the Jeep I'm looking at. But the one sticker says the cargo and passengers shouldn't exceed 1,050 pounds. It seems like this is a round figure. Is this based on actual weight?

Does this include the hitch weight of the trailer? The GeoPro I'm using as an example has a hitch weight of 425 (and I understand that might be without battery or propane).

If that is the case, I would have only 625 pounds (1,050 - 425) for my family of 4 plus any cargo that was in the Jeep.

Am I thinking about this right? I was drawn to this Jeep as a daily driver that could tow a camper during the summer. I live in a very flat area if that makes and difference here.

Also from googling, it sounds like the curb weight is around 4,700 pounds. Wouldn't that make my cargo amount 2,100 pounds (6,800, gvwr from sticker - 4,700 pounds)?

Thanks for your expert advice!

Not an expert by any means, but that sounds right. You could load everything into the TT and adjust as needed to keep tongue weight to a minimum, as long as you aren't exceeding it's CCC and your tow weight.

[NewToTheForce]

Welp, now that I've seen the posts above, ignore my last post.

[Spaceace]

Thanks for the feedback. Hard to believe that Jeep advertises being able to tow 7,200 pounds with this car but I can’t even town a 3,500 pound trailer with my family of 4 due to a low payload.

I need to find a midsize suv with more payload…

[NewToTheForce]

Originally Posted by Spaceace

Thanks for the feedback. Hard to believe that Jeep advertises being able to tow 7,200 pounds with this car but I can’t even town a 3,500 pound trailer with my family of 4 due to a low payload.

I need to find a midsize suv with more payload…

2500/250 with a shell?

[Qwkynuf]

Originally Posted by Spaceace

Thanks for the feedback. Hard to believe that Jeep advertises being able to tow 7,200 pounds with this car but I can’t even town a 3,500 pound trailer with my family of 4 due to a low payload.

I need to find a midsize suv with more payload…

Here's the thing about that. Jeep doesn't say you can specifically pull a 7,200 pound travel trailer - basically a giant high-centered box on wheels, they just say that you can tow *a* 7,200lb trailer.

Get you a medium sized dump bed utility trailer with 2 axles. Weighs about 2,000 pounds. Load 5,000 pounds of gravel in it, and that Jeep will likely tow it just fine. Don't get me wrong - you will KNOW it's back there every time you push on the gas pedal and nothing moves except your gas gauge, but it will tow it.

What's the difference? For one, the axles of the dump trailer tend to be farther apart. That helps it track straighter. All of the weight is low and distributed more evenly between the axles. It's out of the wind.

A boat is similar. The weight of the engine and the out-drive are basically completely supported by the axles, and the axles are comparatively way back on the trailer. You end up with what is effectively a very long tongue, which aids stability. And the weight is carried low, like the utility trailer. And it's mostly out of the wind.

Keep something in mind when you look at published specifications - Gross Combined Weight Rating (GCWR) is the maximum weight that your vehicle can be as it goes down the road. The tow vehicle, any accessories, snacks, passengers, pets, trailer and all of its accessories, gas in the tank, even water in your windshield washer bottle. If you put the whole thing on the scale at once, the total weight can't be more than that GCWR value on your sticker.

Your Gross Vehicle Weight Rating (GVWR) is the maximum weight that can be carried by the 4 tires of your tow vehicle. If you load everything up as above, but only pull the Jeep onto the scale, the total weight can't be greater than the GVWR on your sticker.

For completeness, you also have front and rear GAWR (Gross Axle Weight Rating) numbers - those address the distribution of your load. If your GVWR is 7,500 lbs, you obviously can't have 7400 on the rear axle and only 100 on the front... So if you are fully loaded as above, and pull just the front wheels of your Jeep onto the scale, you get your front axle weight, and just your rears gets you the rear.

The next (and final) important number is Curb Weight. That is the weight of your Jeep as it sits, ready to load up.

Every other number that you will deal with is derived from this information.

That 7,200lb maximum tow number is simply Gross Combined weight minus the Curb Weight of the representative model in your class - NOT your specific vehicle, with your specific options. If you have a loaded out Laredo 4wd with leather and sun roof, your max tow is not 7,200lbs. It's your GCWR minus the weight of your particular truck.

The payload value on the sticker is simply the GVWR (Gross Vehicle Weight) minus the curb weight of your specific Jeep as it left the factory. That means that it was accurate when the Jeep was brand new, but any options or upgrades that have been done since it rolled off of the truck at the dealer (bigger wheels & tires, roof rack, running boards, WeatherTech mats, that errant bag of Cheetos that someone left under the seat...those all reduce your available payload).

Payload is a handy reference number to give you an idea what you can carry, but you have to remember that Gross weight is what is really important, so if you have 1050 of payload, but you have added 500lbs of aftermarket accesories, then your curb weight has increased and your payload has decreased (because GVWR doesn't change) so you really only have 550 now.

Some will say that there is no way to increase payload, and this is sort of true. You can't change the springs & shocks, or go to higher load range tires, or add air bags or load levelers & increase payload. In fact, adding those things decreases payload because they are weight added to your vehicle. You might feel better about towing over weight, but you are still over weight. The only way to actually increase payload is to reduce curb weight. If you remove your nerf bars, that's 60-80lbs less stuff that you are carrying. Take out your back seat, remove the bed from your pickup. Take the winch and aftermarket bumper off of the front, All of those reduce your curb weight, which means that you can carry more other stuff before you hit that all-important GVWR.

There is a lot of information on this subject out there, some of it is even good.

[bikendan]

Yep, those max towing capacity numbers are NOT for a full height travel trailer. Especially since that Jeep probably has a frontal area limitation, which I think is around 60 square feet.

Sent from my SM-G781U using Forest River Forums mobile app

[ARhappycamper]

Most SUV's (besides the Excursion, no longer made) aren't great TV's.

[RedRoverComeOver]

Originally Posted by Spaceace

Hello!

I am currently camping in a small pop up and considering purchasing a 2019 Jeep Grand Cherokee V8 Limited 4wd and part of the appeal is that I could upgrade to a bigger trailer.

I was drawn to this tv partly because it has a 7,200 pound towing capacity.

There is no problem with this towing my small pop up. I don't have a trailer picked out but am looking for something smaller in size like the GeoPro G19BH.

I am attaching the door stickers to the Jeep I'm looking at. But the one sticker says the cargo and passengers shouldn't exceed 1,050 pounds. It seems like this is a round figure. Is this based on actual weight?

Does this include the hitch weight of the trailer? The GeoPro I'm using as an example has a hitch weight of 425 (and I understand that might be without battery or propane).

If that is the case, I would have only 625 pounds (1,050 - 425) for my family of 4 plus any cargo that was in the Jeep.

Am I thinking about this right? I was drawn to this Jeep as a daily driver that could tow a camper during the summer. I live in a very flat area if that makes and difference here.

Also from googling, it sounds like the curb weight is around 4,700 pounds. Wouldn't that make my cargo amount 2,100 pounds (6,800, gvwr from sticker - 4,700 pounds)?

Thanks for your expert advice!

Information already presented is good to know but you can do it. I've seen several Grand Cherokees out there and use one myself, safely. You just have to be smart on how you load and stay within specs. Last year was my first time pulling the RV and have complete confidence in my capabilities and configuration. No wind/trucks pushing us around and able to go as fast as the RV tire rating, even uphill, when needed.

I had to go with a G16BH because of towing and storage constraints. Our typical passenger load are three humans and one dog with a weight of 400 lb. It's easy to get that tongue weight up to 720 lb. if not careful and weigh before hitching to keep at spec.

No reason to switch vehicles for a 10% yearly duty.

[REL]

Your actual payload is 1050. That includes EVERYTHING/ANYTHING that you put in or attach to the vehicle including your morning cup of coffee.

[trailerdude]

The Nissan Armada is a decent tow vehicle. 1500-1700 pound payload depending on how equipped. 8500 tow capacity. 400 hp v8. It feels like a truck. When I test drove a Cherokee it felt light and nimble compared to it, not real inspiring for towing a lot of weight (fun to drive though).

[Webefine]

That payload number of 1050 does not sound right, if it is that means that Jeep weighs 5,750 pounds! A quick search on line and I cannot find any Jeep GC with a curb weight over 5,000 pounds.

I would take the jeep to the scales and then work my payload numbers from there!

[dschust1]

I thought the limited had a smaller tow capacity? We have the Overland V6 with a 6200 and I thought the 7200 was mainly the trailblazer?

Limited has even less capacity... Check the vin online to see what it says. you get competing information unless you look at the Models.

[Iowa Frogfarmer]

Real world numbers:

Per CAT Scale my 2015 GC Laredo weighs 5260 with full load of fuel and my big butt in it. MY payload sticker also says 1050 limit. GVWR per sticker is 6500 lbs. See attached.

Once we get our 17 foot camper hooked up with our WD hitch engaged, me and wife in GC, we come out at just over 5600 lbs for the GC.

[ARhappycamper]

Originally Posted by trailerdude

The Nissan Armada is a decent tow vehicle. 1500-1700 pound payload depending on how equipped. 8500 tow capacity. 400 hp v8. It feels like a truck. When I test drove a Cherokee it felt light and nimble compared to it, not real inspiring for towing a lot of weight (fun to drive though).

Short wheelbase says otherwise.

[Underthedog]

Space,
While you may not be able to use the jeep for heavier trailers;
We towed a pup with an Explorer for many years. I added a Reese light duty WDH which used a single bar and was much lighter than the 100 lbs you will see quoted elsewhere. (probably half that) It was a big help in our situation and would be worth looking into if you feel you need one. The Explorer was handy since when we got a new one the hitch and trailer moved over with no adjustments needed.

[Flybob]

The math says this combination will not work, but not that you can not do it. Based on the numbers, you will likely not enjoy the trip and risk stressing the TV. I would not do it.