Towing with Dana 300

[Stacey]

Thinking of flat tow my Jeepster and expedition trailer to Vernal from St. George. I have a trailer the jeep would fit on but it is dovetailed so it is too low to hook the expedition trailer to.

I've heard that when flat towing with a Dana 300 the drive line should be dropped. Something to do with the oiling of the gears. Does anyone have good hard advice on the realities of flat towing with a Dana 300?

 

[scoutabout]

I know that is the recommended method for a Scout with a D300. That's what I do. Disconnect the rear driveline and wire it to the frame.

 

[mbryson]

I'd pull the drivelines. Not worth the $ not to.

 

[Hickey]

I once flat towed my 83 CJ5 from 300 west to 5600 west when it broke down. Kept my speed at 35 mph or less. The output housing on the D300 was too hot to touch when I got to 5600 west. Pull the driveline.

 

[Stacey]

Appreciate the input, I'll pull the driveline.

 

[DaveB]

You can also put in the front hubs so that the front driveline spins which will keep things oiled.

 

[thenag]

You can also put in the front hubs so that the front driveline spins which will keep things oiled.

This is an interesting thread. It seems the proper way to do it is keep the transmission and t-case from spinning.

I have also seen people with locking hubs on the rear for that purpose, that just seemed like a lot of time and money that should be saved for a full trailer.

I seem to remember a tow truck driver telling me that you usually leave the t-case in 2wd and the transmission in neutral. I guess with a t-case with a pump so long as the pump is spinning, which is usually when the rear output is spinning it will be fine. (of course this could lead to the transmission not getting enough oil, if you have an old 4spd that probably won't matter but anything else...)

However with a splash t-case I guess you would need the gears to spin to splash oil up to output shaft?

So what have other people done flat towing that has messed things up?

nathan

 

[Cherokeester]

Dana 300's can be towed with the t-case in neutral and the transmission in 4th gear (assuming it is a standard). This is per the original CJ manual. It has been argued a million times that you should tow yanking the driveshafts which is the safest way. If you have the patience to do that, you should.

 

[Shawn]

You only need to pull the rear shaft.

 

[Stacey]

Have flat towed my '71 Jeepsterr crawler from Moab to St. George without any issues. I put the tranny in Park and the Atlas in neutral. A friend of mine who has a Dana 300 in his Jeepster ruined his tc flat towing it 130 miles, wasn't sure if he did something wrong or if it was the type of tc.

 

[Cherokeester]

You only need to pull the rear shaft.

That is true, I don't know why I referenced shafts.