Roof top carrier

Doneworking

450
OwnPC: Yes
NewUsed: Used
PurchDate: September 2013
Model: 2350 Ford
ModelYear: 2013
Slide: Yes
Location: Oklahoma City

Re: Roof top carrier

« Reply #15 on: March 15, 2014, 08:53:43 am »

Tom, she got a Trail Hawk really zipped out with goodies. If you look at the Limited be sure it has Active Drive II. There are two options on the 4wd and my understanding is you have to have Active Drive II to properly put the transfer case in neutral for flat towing. We simply couldn't find a Limited within 200 miles with the color and equipment we wanted. Jeep.com has a very good site for shopping. I drive a 2011 Jeep Grand Cherokee and I really like it, but it is too heavy to pull behind much less than a diesel pusher.

The rv.net site has a "Dingy Towing" selection on their forum and a guy recently bought a Cherokee and listed the base plates and set up. He did it himself and has pics on line.

I have never towed in the past because we had mostly Class Bs. I have been researching all the gear necessary to tow and seems, as usual, everyone has their own opinions. I am going to research some more before I get into that gear selection and will seek advice from some others here that have towed. Seems more than one person on this forum have used
a Jeep Liberty.

Paul

« Last Edit: March 15, 2014, 08:56:44 am by Doneworking »

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TomHanlon

Re: Roof top carrier

« Reply #16 on: March 15, 2014, 10:55:38 am »

Thanks Paul. Last summer, for my birthday, we traded in my 2004 Grand Cherokee for a 2014 GC Summit with every thing on it. Boy do I love it. So much so I can't argue with my wife about getting a new Jeep with all the safety features they now have. I know what you mean about to heavy to tow behind a PC. When I got my new one there was a guy showing the salemen how his new base plate looked on his new 2014 GC. Yes he said he has a diesel pusher. Way to big for me. i down sized from a 35 foot class A, gas to the PC and am much happier.

Looking on line I see that Blue Ox does not make a base plate for the Cherokee but Roadmaster makes one for the Trailhawk and a different one for the Limited.

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Doneworking

450
OwnPC: Yes
NewUsed: Used
PurchDate: September 2013
Model: 2350 Ford
ModelYear: 2013
Slide: Yes
Location: Oklahoma City

Re: Roof top carrier

« Reply #17 on: March 15, 2014, 07:34:46 pm »

Tom thanks for the info and source on the plates. We picked up the new Cherokee Trail Hawk today. I only drove it at the dealer but my wife drove it home (bought it about fifty miles from home) and was really tickled, particularly impressed with the ride and the nav system. It will take us some fun time setting all the controls. I gotta admit, I really have to think the things through to get them and understand how they work. The wife cheats: she reads the manual.

We plan on spending about 4-6 weeks this summer in the National Forest campgrounds in the Rockies and there will be lots of places the Trail Hawk can take us. We go to escape the heat in the summer. Mid sixties here today, beautiful day. Tomorrow: light snow. Monday: seventies, full sun.

This thread started on needing extra storage. I suspect since it is just the two of us, we will flip that backseat down when we tow it and use that for our extended camp supply storage.

Paul

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racephoto

58
OwnPC: Yes
NewUsed: Used
PurchDate: 4/1/2013
Model: 2100
ModelYear: 2008
Slide: No
Location: VA

Re: Roof top carrier

« Reply #18 on: March 17, 2014, 05:43:20 pm »

While it's not rooftop storage, I just installed this lightweight aluminum hitch carrier and I like it so far. I bought one with a fold-up hinged attachment as I was thinking I'd want it out of the way when not in use. After I put it on I realized that due to the design of the rear of the coach it really doesn't stick out that much farther. It's 60"x19" The chair rack on the ladder sticks out almost as far. So I removed the hinged part & it sticks out even less and it's less wobbly. I picked up a big waterproof cargo bag to put in the tray. I like the idea of the Stowaway, but the price and weight were a bit off-putting. Right now I don't have anything on the carrier so the plate isn't obscured, but I picked up a plate holder from http://www.ehrmanindustries.com/ that I'll use when I have stuff on the carrier. Not as pretty a solution as the Stowaway but I'm at $170 including the locking hitch pin and under 30 lbs in weight after I took off the folding mechanism which weighed close to 10 lbs. The pic was taken with the hinge on so now it's even closer though the ladder blocks part of it now. I am keeping the hinge for now so I can always put it back on if it works better.

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keelhauler

560
OwnPC: Yes
NewUsed: New
PurchDate: 05/2012
Model: 2552
ModelYear: 2012
Slide: Yes
IntColor: Sunlit Maple
ExtColor: Sunlit - no paint
Location: Westlake, OH

Re: Roof top carrier

« Reply #19 on: March 22, 2014, 10:19:02 am »

Quote

Paul, if you really want to carry a hard top carrier on the roof, I'd call Phoenix. I've seen other posts where Phoenix has sent owners the diagram for the roof structure so they can mount solar panels, etc. Also, there are posts from Keelhauler showing how he had Phoenix add another cross bar to the roof rack configuration so that he can carry his kayaks up there. Kermit may have suggestions for stowing gear on top. You may be able to add standard short rails and cross bars the same as you would mount on a car. Whatever you decide just remember down the road that your rig is now taller than what it originally was and may not fit under all the bridges and overhangs you could go through previously.

I am up & down on my roof all the time. It is very strong. Here is a picture of the rack I made from ridged 3/4" conduit. I attached floor flanges to the roof and made sure at least 2 of the screws went into the 1" Aluminum frame used by Phoenix. Roof sealant works well and has never leaked. In the past 20 years I have done this to 3 different RV's.

My canoe on top.

Kayak on top

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John