Towing with a Commander

[Cottontail]

I just picked up a 2006 Hemi Commander as my DD (to replace the 96 ZJ I've had 18 years). I am also going to use it for tow duty for my 01 XJ trail rig. The Hemi Commander is rated at 7200 lbs. The XJ, loaded for the trail is at 4320 lbs - which is 1000 lbs over stock. It came with the factory towing package and the previous owner added in a Reese trailer brake controller.

Just curious if anyone else tows with the Commander and what their experiences have been. Going to take it 5 hours to Harlan KY in about 3 weeks.

 

[TrailBadger]

@Cottontail Not familiar with the Commander, But run the vin on Jeep's site to see what gears were installed by the factory, unless you have other paperwork verifying if the gears have been upgraded.

 

[Mash5]

I have the same rig and towing with it is great. If you are thinking of flat towing the xj I would think breaks would be an issue. If you have a reasonably light flat bed with breaks I'm sure it will do fine. I occasionally pull a very heavy (not sure the weight) trailer with a heavy 70 ft numeric antenna mast on the tong. It makes me wish I had stiffer rear suspension to mitigate sway but other than that the big engine makes it almost too easy.

 

[troy]

We have a 2010 commander with the hemi. It has towed a '19 Airstream all over the upper midwest. I could do 80mph all day long, passing easily when needed. The Airstream was 3,900 unloaded. I guarantee we were at 4,500 with all of our stuff. Very stable, plenty of power.

 

[Cottontail]

Good stuff guys. Thanks. The previous owner added stiffer springs in a coil-over to the rear. I expect it to tow well in the mountains, but don't expect much over 10 mpg at best.

 

[Mash5]

Not that it is directly relevant to your question but I got my all time best tank towing a light but loaded off road trailer across Nevada. 19.6 mpg....

 

[TrailBadger]

Again Not being familiar with the Commander, is it possible to upgrade the gear ratio?. @Cottontail Also what about wheels and tires, I've heard the Commanders can be lifted (seen it) but was never able to check on what tires were being used. Not saying you're going to lift.. but worthy tires for towing should be considered. 10 MPG?.. yea guy down the street in his lifted F150 gets 9 MPG without towing anything.

 

[Cottontail]

Rubicon, from all I've read, the Hemi Commander came with an appropriate gear ratio to tow Jeep's published 7200 lbs. Not sure I need to fool with gears. The previous owner did lift it 2 inches and it has brand new General Grabbers on it. Talking to a guy on NAXJA.com that towed his XJ with a Hemi XK, he said he didn't even know the trailer was back there.

 

[DesertJK]

Good stuff guys. Thanks. The previous owner added stiffer springs in a coil-over to the rear. I expect it to tow well in the mountains, but don't expect much over 10 mpg at best.

What do you mean by stiffer springs in a coil over? Like, in addition to the rear springs?

I have a 2006 Hemi Commander with an Old Man Emu heavy duty kit (2") and am running 255/75/17 Cooper AT3's. It pulls my 2500 pound empty (as much as 6000 full) toy hauler/camper like it not there as far as power. I need to add airbags soon. The handling could be a lot better.

 

[Cottontail]

The set up now is a coilover in addition to the stock springs.

What are you getting for MPG on yours with a 6000 lb load? That's about where I'll be with the XJ and trailer - maybe a bit over.

 

[Cottontail]

FYI - I towed about 550 miles, averaged 8.92 mpg over 5 tanks. It pulled well on the flat, but had some issues keeping speed and deciding what gear to be in when climbing hills.

Overall, good experience.

 

[DesertJK]

The set up now is a coilover in addition to the stock springs.

What are you getting for MPG on yours with a 6000 lb load? That's about where I'll be with the XJ and trailer - maybe a bit over.

I would love to see a picture and know some more details about the extra coil over mounted on the rear axle. I am about to get some airbags for the Old Man Emu heavy rear springs (2" lift) but I would rather find another option since I am no that fond of airbags.


I have only towed what I think was probably near 6000 pounds a few times and didn't really care about the mileage that much since I had to move the stuff I had in the trailer regardless of fuel consumption. I would not load 6K pounds up and take off on a trip for fun. I think I got a about 10 MPG, anywhere I drive here in the inland Northwest involves mountain passes and narrow 2 lane roads. So I am either going up hill and using a ton of fuel, or I am doing about 50 on a back road. When I have towed over Blewitt pass and that other one going to Yakima with a lot of weight, I had enough power to keep up with the 70 MPH traffic.

I have the round trailer connector wired in with a factory harness, but I need to wire in my Prodigy brake controller. Hoping to get that done at the same time as airbags, unless I like the set up you have and can go with it.

 

[DesertJK]

With a 5.7 and a 545RFE? Or do you have a 4.7?
With the 5.7, put the selector in manual shift and turn on the tow haul. It has no problem keeping a gear on big hill.
A lot of people also make the mistake of trying to drive at a speed the tow rig/trailer/gear ratio/engine torque curve won't do without hunting. Drive by the tach, not the speedo. Keep it in the torque and everything will be happier.

 

[Charles R]

Like the grand Cherokee, the commander with the hemi will come with a 3.73 axle ratio. I do not see any optional choices available. http://www.xkjeeps.com/xk_specs.htm

So The commander should haul that load with no problems at all. But if you check your owners manual, I'm sure you'll find that jeep 'requires' a load leveling hitch at weights above 3500 lbs. But I'm sure that is because they are so softly sprung in the first place. So while you probably wouldn't NEED that type of hitch with your setup, it would still make the ride and control better.

 

[Cottontail]

Well, my big mistake, I learned after the fact, is that I have a tow/haul button that I never used. Didn't even see it on the dash until I got home. My next trip will go smoother. DesertJK, I'll try to upload some pics, but with the Photobucket issue, I'm learning a new hosting site. If you want to PM me a cell number or e-mail, I could definitely get them to you that way. I don't know much about them, as they were on the truck when I got them.