Toads, Jeep or Forester January 10, 2015, 05:48:54 pm Yahoo Message Number: 150257I really want the Jeep Wrangler but reading this blog am concerned about the weight. The Forester would have to be manual tranny but is much lighter. Would like to hear from Jeep towers. Would only want a 2012 or newer because of the newer engine. How easy to set and go and tow each day? Does a Blue Ox tow bar work on the Jeep? Any comments. Oh yes we have on order the 27 MB due to be born in Aug. Tough to wait but will be ready to go south next year. Thanks John in Oregon
Re: Toads, Jeep or Forester Reply #1 – January 10, 2015, 07:31:09 pm Yahoo Message Number: 150258We towed a Wrangler 24,000 miles behind our 2004 LD 27. Very easy to hitch and unhitch and very good offroad and mud.Unfortunately, it's a miserably rough-riding, horribly noisy vehicle that requires endless, very tiring downshifts whenever you drive a lot of downhill runs. We learned to hate it.Personal choice. We're going with a 2500 pound Honda Fit behind our new-to-us 2011 LD 31, partly because of the 31's very limited carrying capacity combined with the Fit's very big carrying capacity ... and partly because we did almost no off road driving in 80,000 miles pulling a toad.FYI, YMMV, FWIW.
Re: Toads, Jeep or Forester Reply #2 – January 10, 2015, 07:42:01 pm Yahoo Message Number: 150259A lot of people in this group tow Jeeps, and a fair number (including me) tow Foresters. Both are good cars.For what it's worth, my personal feeling is that with the right add-ons, a Jeep is better suited for serious off-road travel... but a Forester is much more comfortable all around, and handles occasional off-road excursions with aplomb. From what I've read, it appears to be the best of the "light SUV" class (Honda CR-V, Toyota RAV-4, etc.).Larry Wade can tell you more, I'm sure, since he has both a heavily kitted-out Jeep and a late-model Forester.Andy BairdTravels with Andy
Re: Toads, Jeep or Forester Reply #3 – January 10, 2015, 10:12:57 pm Yahoo Message Number: 150261I wouldn't want one of the newer Jeeps. Horribly expensive, butt ugly, and under powered.My choice for a Toad is an old 1997 Jeep Cherokee. Rugged, good looking. and gives me lots of room to stash stuff when towing. I have the Country model with most factory options. It's been hopped up at Wade Motorworxs and hauls a**. Now for the supercharger .......Go JEEP.Bob
Re: Toads, Jeep or Forester Reply #4 – January 11, 2015, 12:41:35 am Yahoo Message Number: 150262To clarify, when we sold the LD we got a beast 43 foot tag axle diesel pusher. With it we towed a 5000-pound Jeep Grand Cherokee with a big Hemi V-8. We loved the Grand Cherokee as much as we hated the Wrangler. But a LD cannot tow a 5000 pound car.
Re: Toads, Jeep or Forester Reply #5 – January 11, 2015, 01:28:49 am Yahoo Message Number: 150263"For what it's worth, my personal feeling is that with the right add-ons, a Jeep is better suited for serious off-road travel... but a Forester is much more comfortable all around, and handles occasional off-road excursions with aplomb."That sums it up. It all depends on how serious you are about back country travel. We tow a built Jeep Cherokee and at times would prefer to tow our Forester (it's has a CVT transmission and it not towable), just depending on what would work better for a particular trip.The Forester, equipped with a set of skid plates, can venture off road until the rocks get to about 6-7" in diameter. That should be good for about 90% of the places where most sensible people would want to venture. I have had a chance to test our Forester in in various conditions, on and off road and it's impressive...for a car. The X-Mode gives it good uphill traction in slippery conditions and eerie low speed downhill braking where the car's brake are controlled by the computer. The anti-lock brakes, traction and stability are all computer regulated, making it hard to get into trouble. It's a great car for foul weather. The biggest problem with vehicles in this segment (CUTs- cute utility vehicle) is the lack of ground clearance. Rocks and deep mud will stop them. They do not have the clearance need to climb over tall rocks It's the other 10% of roads that we like to explore and is the reason for owning a true 4X4. When the road get rough, that's when I would prefer the Jeep, it just works better in the environment it was designed for A good friend own and tow a 2014 Wrangler, the only upgrade being larger tires. It's not a bad driving vehicle and works well off road but it is a completely different vehicle than the ForesterEither vehicle will tow fine, the 600-lbs or so in weight difference will not be very noticeable. Our Jeep weight right at 4000-lbs and we have towed it 60,000 miles. Most of the time, I don't even notice it, until the road heads up or down.So it boils down to your intended usage. If you have not already test driven both vehicles, that's a good place to start. When trying the Jeep, I suggest driving a hard-top Wrangler and bypassing the rag-top. Everyone I know who has started with the convertible has switched to a hard-top within a year or two and never gone back. The new Jeep have sections of the roof that pops out, providing good overhead viewing, nice for exploring deep canyons. The Forester can have aftermarket skids plates added. A full set for the engine, transmission and rear differential are about $500 from Primitive Racing. http://www.writerguy.com/primitive/skidplate/skid_forester.htm I would replace the stock Subi tires, when worn, with a LT tire that had a decent mud and snow tread. The stock tires have too weak a side wall and a poor tread pattern for off-road play, IMO.It's a tough choice.Larry
Check out the Jeep Renegade coming soon Reply #6 – January 11, 2015, 09:55:44 am Yahoo Message Number: 150264I just ran across this new Jeep Renegade vehicle soon to be introduced to the American market. Specs about what matters to us (weight, tow ability) are quite sketchy at this point.
Blue Ox tow bar Reply #7 – January 11, 2015, 10:38:21 am Yahoo Message Number: 150265I have been towing assorted vehicles for many years and prefer the Blue Ox base plate on the toad as the connecting pins can be removed when not in use. However, I chose the Roadmaster "All Terrain" tow bar that stows on the motorhome hitch receiver mainly for the non-binding release when disconnecting. Roadster makes the adapter for the Blue Ox base plate connection. Works quite well.
Re: Blue Ox tow bar Reply #8 – January 11, 2015, 11:09:25 am Yahoo Message Number: 150266Both Blue OX and Roadmaster manufacture a wide range of quality towing baseplates and tow bars. I suggest checking each manufacturer's website and picking the baseplate that looks best, for your vehicle, in the web site's photos, when the towing equipment is removed. With both brands, some baseplates disappear while others are still very noticeable.Both company's tow bars and baseplates can be adapted to work with each other. I think most will be happy with either companies tow bars.Larry
Re: Check out the Jeep Renegade coming soon Reply #9 – January 11, 2015, 11:34:21 am Yahoo Message Number: 150267Reports of the Renegade have been around for awhile. It is basically a 4-door Fiat 500 with various transmissions, powered by a 1.4L turbo 4-cylinder. It will be built in Italy....a moment of shame for Jeep. It's another economy car converted into an CUV. It is fairly short with less ground clearance than the various Subarus, except in the top of the line "Trailhawk" edition which will have the same clearance as most of the Suburus at 8.7". The Trailhawk edition, weights in at 3500-lbs, not a lightweight, especially for a smaller car. It will have a low range transfer case, which should allow flat towing, assuming Jeep keep to their past history of making their true 4X4s flat towable, even with an automatic transmission. Other than having lower gears, I can see little extra capability with the Trail Hawk. The limited ground clearance and suspension travel is once again the limiting factor. As of now, pricing information has not been released. A similarly equipped new Jeep Cherokee is in the $35-40,000 range.Considering the lack of towable back road capable vehicles, with automatic transmissions, the Renegade could become the next daring of the RV set.Larry
Re: Toads, Jeep or Forester Reply #10 – January 11, 2015, 02:19:48 pm Yahoo Message Number: 150273To add to the list of toads to consider, we have towed a 2011 Ford Escape Hybrid 4 down (no tow restrictions) for the past three plus years with no problems. Fords new Escape is not towable but if you can find an earlier Escape or Merc Mariner hybrid they make, in my opinion, great tow vehicles unless you are a dedicated off-roader. We do get into the "backwoods" and our Escape has taken the terrible roads/trails with nary a problem. (Note: Gas Escapes and Mariners had transmission issues when towed four down.)Our previous tow was an '05 Subaru Outback with stick shift. I loved it but my wife had difficulty as she had to be so far forward to reach the clutch, her head literally hit the windshield. We should have gone with the Forester as it had adjustable pedals. I think all models may now have the adjustable pedals.Another plus for us with the Escape, our folding bikes stand erect while in the Outback they had to be at an angle leaning on the windows making it harder to put in and take out.Bob SE 5 30IB AE
Re: Toads, Jeep or Forester - now Honda CR-V Reply #11 – January 11, 2015, 07:50:19 pm Yahoo Message Number: 150275As I think Larry reported a while back, here is CR-V info:In compiling information for the annual towables guide that will appear in the January 2015 issue, FMC magazine has learned that the 2015 Honda CR-V is not towable four wheels down behind a motorhome. Here is an explanation from Chris Martin in Honda's Western Region public relations office:"With the addition of CVT transmissions to both the Fit and the CR-V, our automatic transmission dinghy towing options disappeared. At this point, among all Honda vehicles, only the 2015 Fit with manual transmission has been tested for dinghy towing. There is no manual transmission option for the CR-V. I wish I had better news for your readers."Chris
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