Jeep grand Cherokee srt?

[BlkGS]

Anyone have any experience towing with an srt (or regular) grand Cherokee? Thinking it'd be a whole lot more fun to drive than a truck. A little worried the wheelbase is a bit too short to tow my sx230, and that I should get a durango instead (which aren't as nice imo). Anyone got experience with it? Would be pretty frequent towing, but short distance mostly and in flat FL, with only a few bridges to deal with.

 

[jgourlie]

I towed a 21ft travel trailer with a grand Cherokee and it was all good. I think you would be just fine.

 

[2kwik4u]

Towed my AR190 with a Trailblazer SS. Close to the same thing as an SRT GC. Plenty of power and brakes. Firm suspension and tires were nice too.

You'll be fine on capacity and capability.

Used to be that the SRT GCs had a center rear exist exhaust. Check that before buying. Makes it a PIA to put a hitch on it.

 

[wTheOnew]

I've put about close to 1000 miles in with the 212 behind my Grand and it's been great and it's only a v6. Doubt the 230 is that much heavier, so can't imagine you'd have a problem with it. We like the Grand Cherokee enough that I've been thinking about getting another one to replace our sedan.

 

[Maccam26]

We have 2 2018 Grand Cherokee's - both V6. The Trailhawk does all the boat hauling and does a fantastic job hauling the 19 footer. That said, i do haul mine pretty far and if I had anything bigger than my current boat, I'd have a 1500 size truck to feel safe at higher speeds.

 

[Shuck Water]

I tow with a Dodge Durango SRT and it tows better than my previous tow vehicles (Yukon XL w/5.3L & Lincoln Navigator w/ 5.4L). The JGC SRT isn't that much lighter than the DD SRT so I think you will be ok. Heck the curb weight of JGC SRT is nearly 5,200lbs which is more than a F-150 King Ranch. Plus you have the Brembos for stopping power. I will say that replacing those Brembos are pricey AF!

 

[ninjakris]

I've racked up a few thousand miles towing with my V6 Grand cherokee. Most of the towing was with a open car hauler and my race car which weighed around 4500lbs total. I picked up a 05 SX230 a couple weeks ago and although I've only towed about 20 miles with it so far, it was fine. I would have no concerns towing long distances. I'm probably a little underpowered but if your looking at a SRT, you have plenty of ponies for towing.

 

[Daren and Heather]

I have an 05 Grand Cherokee V8, works fine.

 

[AZMark]

Wheelbase in your tow vehicle doesn’t seem to be as big of an issue with boats as long as you’re tongue weight is setup right. Maybe just that they’re generally shorter and don’t catch the wind.
I have a land cruiser with 2” shorter wheelbase than a JGC and regularly tow 70-75mph with no stability issues at all.

 

[mraz72]

Does the boat weight fall under the tow rating for the vehicle? I think my boat weights ~5000lbs so a 23' has to be pretty darn close to that. I know I was hesitant to get a Ford Explorer because the tow rating for that was 5000lbs.

Just make sure whatever your towing falls within the manufacturer tow rating for that vehicle. Not only for your safety but for other folks on the road.

 

[Dean P]

I pulled a 25' SeaRay Cabin Cruiser with the Grande Cherokee Laredo 4x4 with a V8. Had plenty of power and did a decent job. Highway speeds were not fun. Traded it in for the Chevy Avalanche. Night and day difference! Almost felt like there was nothing back there. Wheel base make a difference. IMO, The truck felt like it was meant for it. The Jeep not so much.

 

[ninjakris]

Does the boat weight fall under the tow rating for the vehicle? I think my boat weights ~5000lbs so a 23' has to be pretty darn close to that. I know I was hesitant to get a Ford Explorer because the tow rating for that was 5000lbs.

Just make sure whatever your towing falls within the manufacturer tow rating for that vehicle. Not only for your safety but for other folks on the road.

14+ Grand Cherokee's with factory tow packages are rated from 6200lbs (like mine with the V6) to almost 8000lbs in the V8 and SRT variations. That was the primary reason I picked up the jeep over its similar sized competitors.

 

[jthackman]

got the wife a 2017 grand cherokee (v6, 8spd, limited, 4x4, tow pkg) in march to occasionally pull our ar240 when my truck is pulling the camper.
first trip with it was three weeks ago...only 110 miles ea way, but it did fine cruising 70.
def get the factory tow package. i was shopping for used v6 jgc's and durango's with the tow package for the hd cooling and self-leveling rear shocks...not many seemed to have it.
i did notice the tranny runs hotter than my 8spd ram 1500...truck pulling camper heats up to 180-190, the jeep was at 210-220.

 

[BlkGS]

I pulled a 25' SeaRay Cabin Cruiser with the Grande Cherokee Laredo 4x4 with a V8. Had plenty of power and did a decent job. Highway speeds were not fun. Traded it in for the Chevy Avalanche. Night and day difference! Almost felt like there was nothing back there. Wheel base make a difference. IMO, The truck felt like it was meant for it. The Jeep not so much.

A friend of mine from track days had a similar thing. His wife had a really nice GC Summit, and he said he used it to tow his car trailer once, and then went out and bought an expedition for himself immediately to tow with.

I probably should look into a dura go RT or SRT. Or maybe see if the new Explorer St is better than my parents old Explorer Sport was, which is setting the bar really low. They hated that car.

 

[wTheOnew]

A friend of mine from track days had a similar thing. His wife had a really nice GC Summit, and he said he used it to tow his car trailer once, and then went out and bought an expedition for himself immediately to tow with.

I probably should look into a dura go RT or SRT. Or maybe see if the new Explorer St is better than my parents old Explorer Sport was, which is setting the bar really low. They hated that car.

The Explorer's tow rating isn't anywhere near the GC. Can't imagine that it would feel better. Personally, I'd be nervous towing right at the limit. The only other two row SUV that I'd be comfortable towing our boats with is the new GLE, everything else's rating is so close to the wet weight.

My GC High Altitude has the air suspension, so it levels once there's a load on the tongue, maybe that makes it feel better when towing because I can't complain how it pulls at all.

 

[BlkGS]

The Explorer's tow rating isn't anywhere near the GC. Can't imagine that it would feel better. Personally, I'd be nervous towing right at the limit. The only other two row SUV that I'd be comfortable towing our boats with is the new GLE, everything else's rating is so close to the wet weight.

My GC High Altitude has the air suspension, so it levels once there's a load on the tongue, maybe that makes it feel better when towing because I can't complain how it pulls at all.

Ah, yeah, I looked into that and you're right, only 5600 pounds. That's probably "just enough", but since those would be on the higher priced side of it, kinda silly.

On the plus side, 2021 Durango RTs are offering a tow and go package that gives you the srt brakes, so that'd be nice. Though I'm sure it's just a bolt on upgrade, so I could always do that after the fact if I went used.

 

[2kwik4u]

Totally NOT what you're looking for, but I bet this would make at least a 1/2 way decent tow vehicle with a 3rd row

DuraBurb: The 1000HP Duramax-Powered Suburban

The 1,000rwhp family hauler does exist—you just have to build it yourself. Getting to and from the store has never been so fun.

www.drivingline.com

 

[bobholthaus]

2014 GC Diesel. Towed 75 mph for 1500 miles round trip this summer. My 2020 242SE tows like it’s not even back there. 240hp with 420 ft lb of torque (same as the 2014 Hemi) rated at 7400 lbs with factory tow package. Not a single issue. (wrangler looks like it was flat towing in this pic; it wasn’t, ha!)

 

[Alexegan88]

I tow 252se which fully loaded is right at 6200 with a 2021 Jeep GC V6. No issue, but I never go faster than 60MPH and I always drive conservative. That said, I feel like 4x4 is a must on a boat ramp. I would love a truck with 9000lb+ capacity, but it’s just not in the cards. I would never recommend going over your limit, but being right at your limit fully loaded is fine. It’s silly when people say “ just because you can doesn’t mean you should” and cite sudden braking, acceleration needs, engine temperature, strain, etc. because this is exactly the test that goes into determining the maximum “safe” towing capacity. All of these test are performed to ensure it meets specific standards that are the same across all major manufacturers. Meaning if they told you you can tow 6200 safely, you can absolutely do that and do it safely. It’s already been proven. To say in another way, it feels great and more secure having thousands of pounds of excess capacity, but that doesn’t mean towing at capacity is unsafe either.