Towing Question

I will be bringing home a new to me 67 CJ 5 this coming Sunday. It is equipped with a tow bar and I plan on hauling it the 70 miles home behind my truck but here's the question: the seller says it will just need the hubs to be unlocked and both the transmission and transfer case put in neutral and it can be hauled home that way with out damage. I was going to disconnect the rear drive shaft for the trip but he says it is not necessary.
Which is the correct way?

 

Unlock the hubs, transfer case in neutral, transmission in gear. I've never disconnected the rear drive shaft.

 

I agree with this.
I disconnect the rear shafts for long trips, just for my peace of mind and to reduce drag and wear.

 

I've also heard that if you leave the rear shaft in you should stop every few hundred miles and run the jeep with it in gear (transfer case in neutral). Supposedly this will get oil on all the parts that need it and normally get it when the jeep is running but don't when you flat tow it.

 

It only takes a few minutes to take the rear drive shaft loose, and you can do it without jacking it up. I take a ratchet strap go around the frame and under the drive shaft to hold it up, and duct tape the bearing caps to keep then from falling off. Good Luck.

 

Many many posts on this topic in the past. Try searching the archives.

 

This applies to newer Jeeps, but not to early CJ's with the model 18 tcase.

 

Yes - this is one of the most popular topics, repeated over and over and over, like knuckle pudding.

Search for "flat towing" - site:earlycj5.com flat towing - Bing

 

I always just remove the rear drive shaft, mostly for my peace of mind.

 

Best, put it on a trailer
Better, remove rear driveline
Ok, trans in gear, tc in neutral
Might get away with it, both in neutral
Or just call AAA.

 

Thanks for all the replies! Yeah sorry should have done the search, I've been guilty of that in the past on on other forums I will try to mend my ways here.

 

Focker your locked thread does not mention putting it in gear. Is that now a definitive or not?

 

My bad, I missed that. Sorry Focker.

 

According to the 1964 owners manual, The vehicle may be towed forward in the normal manner with out damage to the 4-wheel drive mechanism. The gears in both the transmission and the transfer case must be in their neutral positions. ,that's from the Kaiser Jeep Corporation!

 

That however was before years of learning that the input shaft and the main shaft can actually friction weld together. At first thought, that seems to make the most sense until you know the repercussions. I wouldn't ever flat tow anything that had any value as I have seen the real world disasters that often come with it.