MJ Towing with Dolly ?

[AMC86Kid]

Is it easier to tow my MJ on a car dolly with the front tires up on the dolly or the rear tires up on it , I thought maybe someone would know one which is best so when you turn it has a less likely chance of sliding off 

[eaglescout526]

When I got my MJ my dad and I towed it with a car dolly with the front wheels on. Course we took back roads to get home.

[gogmorgo]

Front wheels up on the dolly works just fine, probably better than rear cause then you don’t have the rear overhang over the dolly tongue, and you don’t run the risk of snapping the steering lock and having the front of the truck swing out into traffic, or a guardrail, or something. 
But you’ll want to drop the rear driveshaft. People get away with putting them in neutral, but if you’re going any sort of distance it’s just safer to disconnect the shaft. 

[Pete M]

how far are you going?

[Aidan]

Just curious, why would you want to disconnect the driveshaft instead of just leaving it in neutral?

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[eaglescout526]

9 minutes ago, Aidan said:

Just curious, why would you want to disconnect the driveshaft instead of just leaving it in neutral?

Sent from my moto e5 play using Tapatalk
 

Actually it could rack up miles on the speedo. If the output shaft is spinning, chances are so is the speedometer and the odometer. So even leaving it in neutral is fine but youll rack up miles. I'm sure theres a liability reason and stuff like that that I can not think of.

[AMC86Kid]

I just put it in neutral 

and I’m going about 15 miles 

I’m just wondering if it’s easier to turn with the front wheels slightly turning as you turn 

[gogmorgo]

Uhaul’s guide says to lock the steering wheel with the front tires on it. In theory the dolly itself articulates, but ymmv.

Dropping the driveshaft is added protection for the drivetrain. Automatic transmissions don’t necessarily circulate the oil with the engine off, so that can cause issues. Manual transmissions will still splash lube in neutral so that won’t be an issue, but I’ve seen people say they’ve had them bounce into gear. While I find that unlikely, it’s unlikely to be good if it happens. 
A transfer case in neutral isn’t going to engage itself, unsynchronized gears will prevent that if there’s a difference in shaft speeds, which there will be when the input shaft isn’t turning. But something to keep in mind is the NP231 that shipped with a CAD axle may not actually disconnect the driveshafts from each other. With an unlocked CAD that’s probably not an issue, but the centre axle segment would end up spinning at twice road speed. I can’t see that being great on the highway, but I guess it might still be fine as everything will be splash lubing. However if the CAD has been permanently locked in, then that’s not even a possibility... the front tires will try to spin themselves off the dolly when you try to move. 
 

That’s my own personal motivation to disconnect the driveshaft. Piece of mind. But here’s what the ‘91 owner’s manual has to say on the subject:

I’ll point out a few things. 
Firstly, it never talks about tow dollies that lift the front wheels off the ground but prevent them from turning. But it does say a dolly should be placed under the rear tires when towing from the front. It also says towing with the front or rear wheels off the ground should not exceed 15 miles or 30mph. There’s no reason to suspect “off the ground” means anything other than “in the air and free to spin as driven by the other axle still on the ground”.

 

Secondly, when it’s talking about l flat towing, the front tires are rolling at road speed, same as if it were driving itself, and they’re operating under the assumption the CAD will be unlocked with engine off, as set up from the factory. It even tells you to make sure the front axle disengages before flat towing. 

Thirdly, it does say you shouldn’t disconnect the driveshaft because the transfer case will leak. This is completely true. You can mitigate this by leaving the driveshaft in the tcase, secured so it won’t slide out. You’ll want to tape up the rear ujoint as well so you don’t lose the caps. I personally just tie a rag over the empty tcase to stop dust from getting in, then make sure you check the fluid level when you get the MJ driving again. If you’re picking up a new-to-you unit, it’s in your interest to dump and refill the tcase anyhow so that’s really not a big deal.

 

Lastly, to answer your question about the steering lock, it suggests if the front wheels are on the ground, to make sure the steering lock is disengaged, and if the rear tires are in the air, you’ve got some other way to keep the wheel pointed straight. This doesn’t cover dolly towing, but if the dolly doesn’t articulate, then you probably won’t want the steering locked, but if it does then you should be fine I guess. 
Interestingly it makes no mention of 2wd. I suppose that might be covered under “transfer case cannot be shifted to neutral”?

 

[AMC86Kid]

Nice 

I just did it with the rear wheels up and put a strap on my steering wheel to the driver chair so the wheels go back straight after a turn, it worked out pretty good 

also I don’t know about everyone else’s truck but mine doesn’t lock the steering wheel even in park 

[eaglescout526]

Hooooo, shes free of the tarp!

[gogmorgo]

The key switch locks the steering wheel, not the shifter.
 

Good looking truck. 

[AMC86Kid]

Maybe there’s something wrong with my turn key switch then 

[70barracuda]

If you pick it up rear wheels on the dolly, steer wheels on the ground, definitely ratchet strap the steering wheel straight. When I tow RWD in the air and front on the ground I ratchet from the steering wheel to the seat bracket, and also use the seat belt as back up. Ive gone 60+ mph with big vans and trucks like that no issues. But I am using a purpose built tow truck so control is definitely better.  Don't trust the steering lock (made that mistake ONCE)

[WyoCherokee]

i towed a 2wd MJ from Oregon to Wyoming on a uhaul dolly. just dropped the rear drive shaft from the pinion, tied it up to the body with a ratchet strap to keep fluid in the AX-5 and away we went. blew a rear driveshaft on the tow rig in Boise, hooked the driveshaft back up on the MJ, went and got new u joints, put it back on the dolly with disconnected driveshaft, and continued on our way.

[omega_rugal]

On 5/4/2020 at 4:22 PM, Aidan said:

why would you want to disconnect the driveshaft instead of just leaving it in neutral?

 

even in neutral, over a long distance, it may damage the transmission, transfer case or other, better to be safe