Best Setup for RV Flat Tow

[ResqFE]

I have a JL Sport and installed the Maximus 3 tow points. A little different than their Rubicon instructions, but are the same points with a little different cutting and lots of wrenching. Available in black or red.

https://maximus-3.com/jl-bumper-accessories-/jl-d-ring-loops#/

I installed all of the below:

Maximus 3 and Blue Ox both have terminations which work with their tow points.
Remove the BO tow points and add the items designed for Maximus 3 tow points.

I installed lighting using a Roadmaster Harness Kit with diodes.
Also installed a batter charger from RVi.
Brake System is RVi3.

I couldn't wait any longer to install the lights, but eventually both Hopkins and Curt Group said they will have JL Harnesses that will be more plug and play using matching plugs to the lights with built in prewired diodes. Either way the routing of wiring and install the breakaway switch takes some time, you just don't have to do the cutting and splicing of the wires to the tail light. ETrailer has a very good installation video. Follow it step by step and the lighting will work fine.

I passed on CoolTech following a review of their product and installation.

-----

Greetings Dennis, first post here and I am researching how to flat tow my forthcoming 2-door Rubicon. Good to see everyone's setups and preferences - and some great looking rigs. I, too, like the cleaner look of the Maximus tow loops as opposed to the bar hanging under the bumper. My RV is a View, so very much like yours and I plan to use the RVIbrake as well.

Questions. . . you mention not liking the Cooltech wiring harness - may I ask why to help me understand the differences in options? At face value and per other posts, it looks like a relatively easy install, clean, and ready to go with the flip of a switch.

You have a Blue Ox tow bar. . . which model did you choose and why? I would actually like to use a Roadmaster tow bar, but there is no compatible adapter to connect it to the Maximus tow loops. You chose the Maximus adapters and it appears there is a BO offering, too. How did you decide on the Maximus?

Thank you for any feedback you can share on your decisions. And good luck with the transfer case / manual problem.

Can you share install directions? I would like to see where on Jeep it connects to. I have a barricade bumper and hope I can make this work safely. Thanks

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[Hypalon Man]

Can you share install directions? I would like to see where on Jeep it connects to. I have a barricade bumper and hope I can make this work safely. Thanks

Sorry for the delayed response, Holidays and all....

I considered the CoolTech approach to lighting. Electrically and installed properly it's likely the least obtrusive system. As you say, "flip the switch" Upon reading the directions and following the instructions I felt it was a bit intimidating at the time. In retrospect, and given some more time to study, I would reconsider.
I was a but put off by other users attempts to get technical support with some delay. I was up against the clock and weather doing my install.
The eTrailer video of the Blue Ox wiring harness on a JLU was done so well, "even a Caveman could do it".
I just haven't been able to find direct evidence of the blocking diode system being a problem. Time will tell I guess, and at the moment, everything works fine.
Hopkins and Curt Group will have their plug and play harnesses out soon for the JL so they say, even an easier install than the cutting and splicing of the Roadmaster, but it too does use diodes.

When it came to selecting a tow bar there were two choices in my mind, Blue Ox and Roadmaster. Reading all the reviews, there was really no way you could go wrong with either. Again, I was against the clock and weather on my research. I wanted to do the complete installation.
I selected the Blue Ox Avail. BX7420. Rated at 10K pounds I found it at a great price.
I wasn't particularly enamored with tow bar base plates and mostly with their appearance.
Given unlimited resources and further research, and owning a
Sport S, my first choice would have likely been the new Warn full body bumper with the D rings. About $800. My bumper doesn't lend itself to a winch, as configured. Still don't know if the bumper is tow rated at the welds??
I liked the appearance of the Maximus 3 tow points and they are certainly are robust. Pretty straightforward install with minor cutting and wrenching.
Maximus and BO both have connectors for D ring tow points for the BO, I went with Maximus, they were great to work with and I was their first Customer doing a JL Sport so they worked with me a bit.

The transfer case and Users Manual is still an open issue with Jeep.
I think they are going to have to revise their manual. I'm still waiting for a definitive response. They verbally say that you can either move the vehicle a bit or start the engine to go from TCN to TCH2. That conflicts with the Manual.

 

[Bilymac]

Does anybody have an Electronic version of @CoolTech's install instructions? I will try their email also.

 

[Hypalon Man]

Does anybody have an Electronic version of @CoolTech's install instructions? I will try their email also.

Send me your email I have them as a pdf.

[email protected]

 

[Bilymac]

@Hypalon Man, email sent.

Thank you.

 

[Hypalon Man]

@Hypalon Man, email sent.

Thank you.

Hopefully you received the .pdf.
Our Spectrum Email can be funky when forwarding with attachments.

 

[Freiberger]

All complete!!
Cool Tech Harness
Maximus - 3 Tow Loops
Blue Ox Tow Bar Adaptors for the Maximus - 3 Loops
Blue Ox Break Away Harness

 

[jeepixel]

All complete!!
Cool Tech Harness
Maximus - 3 Tow Loops
Blue Ox Tow Bar Adaptors for the Maximus - 3 Loops
Blue Ox Break Away Harness

Dutch, thank you for posting your setup, it looks great and is another one that almost mirrors my upcoming version, so of course I find it very helpful as I'm a Jeep and towing noob. And more importantly, thank you for your service to our country.

My setup will look like the little brother of yours, as I have a silver 2-door on order to pair with my 25' MH. If you don't mind offering some guidance and info, I have some questions - so much to learn!

Did you install the Cooltech yourself or have a Jeep shop do it? Any comments on the difficulty? Which harness etc parts did you get from them? I plan to use their gear, too. Was it straightforward to mount their 6-pin in the skid below the bumper?

I bought the Maximus tow loops and BO adapters, too, thanks to the great info and recommendation from Dennis / Hypalon Man and others in this thread. In the garage waiting for my Jeep. Which BO tow bar did you buy? I'm leaning towards their new aluminum option to save weight.

I bought the RVI brake system, so I got their breakaway harness with it. I can't quite tell in the pics - where / how did you mount the junction box at the steel bumper / skid plate? Any difficulty in routing the cable to the driver's footwell? I'm assuming folks just coil up and stow the couple feet of cable in the footwell when not towing.

Are your safety cables connected directly to the tow loops or with shackles / clevis? I know Hypalon Man ended up going direct.

Thanks again and safe travels!

 

[Hypalon Man]

Dutch, thank you for posting your setup, it looks great and is another one that almost mirrors my upcoming version, so of course I find it very helpful as I'm a Jeep and towing noob. And more importantly, thank you for your service to our country.

My setup will look like the little brother of yours, as I have a silver 2-door on order to pair with my 25' MH. If you don't mind offering some guidance and info, I have some questions - so much to learn!

Did you install the Cooltech yourself or have a Jeep shop do it? Any comments on the difficulty? Which harness etc parts did you get from them? I plan to use their gear, too. Was it straightforward to mount their 6-pin in the skid below the bumper?

I bought the Maximus tow loops and BO adapters, too, thanks to the great info and recommendation from Dennis / Hypalon Man and others in this thread. In the garage waiting for my Jeep. Which BO tow bar did you buy? I'm leaning towards their new aluminum option to save weight.

I bought the RVI brake system, so I got their breakaway harness with it. I can't quite tell in the pics - where / how did you mount the junction box at the steel bumper / skid plate? Any difficulty in routing the cable to the driver's footwell? I'm assuming folks just coil up and stow the couple feet of cable in the footwell when not towing.

Are your safety cables connected directly to the tow loops or with shackles / clevis? I know Hypalon Man ended up going direct.

Thanks again and safe travels!

Photo one features tow points, breakaway point, power plug.
Center pin on the plug goes to the RVi battery charger.

Photo shows the safet cables directly to the tow points. It works, but it's tight.
Had to modify, cut back the spring loaded clip to get it on the tow point. Hence I marked the Jeep ends.

I purchased the BO Avail. Aka BX 7420. It's rating is overkill (10k Lbs) but I found it through an Amazon vendor for $150 less than the present price. Paid $724 plus tax. Only slightly more than the Alpha. Otherwise I would have purchased the Alpha IIRC it's rated at 6500lbs.
I took the cable ends that I route to the Jeep and cut the spring clips back about 3/16 to fit over Maximus tow points. Hence I taped the Jeep ends red.
Originally I bought loops, and may use them yet.

I have an S with plastic skid plate, that's where I mounted the breakaway and electrical connector. I routed the cable through the passenger side floor drain, which requires bring up some carpet. No big deal. Routing these cable is challenging and requires staying away from hot spots and moving parts. I did the routing then went back and did cable ties.

 

[Freiberger]

Dutch, thank you for posting your setup, it looks great and is another one that almost mirrors my upcoming version, so of course I find it very helpful as I'm a Jeep and towing noob. And more importantly, thank you for your service to our country.

My setup will look like the little brother of yours, as I have a silver 2-door on order to pair with my 25' MH. If you don't mind offering some guidance and info, I have some questions - so much to learn!

Did you install the Cooltech yourself or have a Jeep shop do it? Any comments on the difficulty? Which harness etc parts did you get from them? I plan to use their gear, too. Was it straightforward to mount their 6-pin in the skid below the bumper?

I bought the Maximus tow loops and BO adapters, too, thanks to the great info and recommendation from Dennis / Hypalon Man and others in this thread. In the garage waiting for my Jeep. Which BO tow bar did you buy? I'm leaning towards their new aluminum option to save weight.

I bought the RVI brake system, so I got their breakaway harness with it. I can't quite tell in the pics - where / how did you mount the junction box at the steel bumper / skid plate? Any difficulty in routing the cable to the driver's footwell? I'm assuming folks just coil up and stow the couple feet of cable in the footwell when not towing.

Are your safety cables connected directly to the tow loops or with shackles / clevis? I know Hypalon Man ended up going direct.

Thanks again and safe travels!

Hi Al - I will answer your questions in order. I did all the work myself. I started with the Maximus Loops. The Maximus instructions are pretty straight forward.

I have the steel bumpers and a couple of steps were missed in the instructions:
1. On the bottom of the horizontal frames are plates that the skid plate aft bolts go into. They need to be removed to access installation of the nuts for the lower bolts holding on the Maximus Tow Loops.
2. Once the bumper is off, there are two brackets where the bumper attaches to the frame that need to be removed and will stay off. They do not go back on.
The instructions call out Loctite but I waited unit I towed about 100 miles and then went back and removed the bolts, applied the Loctite, and retorqued. The bumper and skid plate can be removed with hand tools, but an air ratchet sure makes it easier.

Once the bumper and plate are off, you will need a 1 1/2 inch steel hole drill bit which I bought at Home Depot for about $9.00. I also bought a 4 1/2 in. 4.3 amp Angle Grinder at Harbor Freight for $14.00 to make the slots in the bumper and skid plate. It is actually easier than it sounds. The instructions talk about tangent cuts with the picture in the instructions appearing to be angled cuts. The key is to make sure the cuts are parallel to the frame. This can be done by taking two measurements; one toward the front and one toward the back edge of the bumper and you should be squared with the frame.

The Cool Tech kit is another story. The instructions are horrible. I think the hardest part was taking the trim panels off without breaking them. The instructions tell you to disconnect the electrical harness for the door wiring but you also have to separate the female end of the connector from the wall in order to remove the kick panel. The kick panel and the step trim panel both need to be pulled inboard toward the center (not forward) of the car to pop them loose. Make sure you understand which set of four wires splice in forward and which four splice in rearward. I did it wrong the first time and had to tear it all apart and replace. The thicker wires of the two sets splice in forward and the thinner wires splice rearward. The 6 pin plug harness runs along the frame over the steering and then through the skid plate which required a hole cut and then slotted like the Maximus slots for the harness to feed through. I put the hole for the harness about four inches to the driver side from center and the hole is 1-1 1/2 inches below the edge of the skid plate and then two cuts to make the slot. I used the original bracket that came with the kit and used the existing hole in the bracket and bolted the bracket between the bumper and the skid plate. I also used a black plastic 6 pin connector because they are easier to work with then the aluminum one that came in the kit; plus it looks better.

The Brake Away Switch was also easy. Below the Brake Vacuum Module is a firewall plug which I removed and fed the wires through to the inside. Then I fed them behind the driver side kick panel, under the step trim panel, and under the carpet below the seat. I left enough service loop to make sure it would plug into my Brake Buddy. The other end of the harness was routed forward and down toward the front under the bumper. The I routed the wires through the slot I cut for the 6 Pin connector and harness and secured the switch between the skid plate and bumper at the very center bolt location for the skid plate. Make sure you leave enough extra harness so you you can do future repairs to the plugs if need be.

The Blue Ox adaptors were really tight and I struggled to get then on the Maximus loops. I took a vibrator sander with 120 grit and just scuffed the surface of the loops and the work perfect; easy to install the hitch. I did not use D-Rings. O used the second set of holes in the loops for the safety cables. My tabor is the Advent which has a 7500# rating. I called Jeep Customer service and they gave me the basic vehicle weight as it rolled of the assembly line. It weighed 4378 lbs which I thought was light so I am going to take it to my local QT and get it weighed.

If your RVI Brake system requires 12 volt, you may need to buy a second socket and wire it hot because the one on the dash is only hot with key on. I bought one on eBay for $7.00 free shipping and am going to put it below the dash on the lower trim panels below the steering column so my Brake Body can plug up.

I think that covers it. Good luck and let me know if you have more questions.

 

[jeepixel]

Hi Al - I will answer your questions in order. I did all the work myself. I started with the Maximus Loops. The Maximus instructions are pretty straight forward.

I have the steel bumpers and a couple of steps were missed in the instructions:
1. On the bottom of the horizontal frames are plates that the skid plate aft bolts go into. They need to be removed to access installation of the nuts for the lower bolts holding on the Maximus Tow Loops.
2. Once the bumper is off, there are two brackets where the bumper attaches to the frame that need to be removed and will stay off. They do not go back on.
The instructions call out Loctite but I waited unit I towed about 100 miles and then went back and removed the bolts, applied the Loctite, and retorqued. The bumper and skid plate can be removed with hand tools, but an air ratchet sure makes it easier.

Once the bumper and plate are off, you will need a 1 1/2 inch steel hole drill bit which I bought at Home Depot for about $9.00. I also bought a 4 1/2 in. 4.3 amp Angle Grinder at Harbor Freight for $14.00 to make the slots in the bumper and skid plate. It is actually easier than it sounds. The instructions talk about tangent cuts with the picture in the instructions appearing to be angled cuts. The key is to make sure the cuts are parallel to the frame. This can be done by taking two measurements; one toward the front and one toward the back edge of the bumper and you should be squared with the frame.

The Cool Tech kit is another story. The instructions are horrible. I think the hardest part was taking the trim panels off without breaking them. The instructions tell you to disconnect the electrical harness for the door wiring but you also have to separate the female end of the connector from the wall in order to remove the kick panel. The kick panel and the step trim panel both need to be pulled inboard toward the center (not forward) of the car to pop them loose. Make sure you understand which set of four wires splice in forward and which four splice in rearward. I did it wrong the first time and had to tear it all apart and replace. The thicker wires of the two sets splice in forward and the thinner wires splice rearward. The 6 pin plug harness runs along the frame over the steering and then through the skid plate which required a hole cut and then slotted like the Maximus slots for the harness to feed through. I put the hole for the harness about four inches to the driver side from center and the hole is 1-1 1/2 inches below the edge of the skid plate and then two cuts to make the slot. I used the original bracket that came with the kit and used the existing hole in the bracket and bolted the bracket between the bumper and the skid plate. I also used a black plastic 6 pin connector because they are easier to work with then the aluminum one that came in the kit; plus it looks better.

The Brake Away Switch was also easy. Below the Brake Vacuum Module is a firewall plug which I removed and fed the wires through to the inside. Then I fed them behind the driver side kick panel, under the step trim panel, and under the carpet below the seat. I left enough service loop to make sure it would plug into my Brake Buddy. The other end of the harness was routed forward and down toward the front under the bumper. The I routed the wires through the slot I cut for the 6 Pin connector and harness and secured the switch between the skid plate and bumper at the very center bolt location for the skid plate. Make sure you leave enough extra harness so you you can do future repairs to the plugs if need be.

The Blue Ox adaptors were really tight and I struggled to get then on the Maximus loops. I took a vibrator sander with 120 grit and just scuffed the surface of the loops and the work perfect; easy to install the hitch. I did not use D-Rings. O used the second set of holes in the loops for the safety cables. My tabor is the Advent which has a 7500# rating. I called Jeep Customer service and they gave me the basic vehicle weight as it rolled of the assembly line. It weighed 4378 lbs which I thought was light so I am going to take it to my local QT and get it weighed.

If your RVI Brake system requires 12 volt, you may need to buy a second socket and wire it hot because the one on the dash is only hot with key on. I bought one on eBay for $7.00 free shipping and am going to put it below the dash on the lower trim panels below the steering column so my Brake Body can plug up.

I think that covers it. Good luck and let me know if you have more questions.

Greetings Dutch! Wow, just wow, another very helpful response from the good folks on this forum. Thank you very much for taking the time to provide so much detail, as I know it will help me and I believe others will benefit, too.

I may change my mind a few times between now and when I get my Jeep, but I think I will take on the tow loop and breakaway aspects, but I might look for a shop to do the Cooltech portion, especially given your comments about the lousy instructions and my almost nonexistent experience with touching automotive wiring, but I'll withheld final judgement until I get the gear and see the instructions for myself. I may reach out to Cooltech and share your comments if that's ok with you with the hope of gaining some clarity and maybe they will improve their directions. I did get another 12v outlet to wire hot, so I am hoping I can do that wiring and will figure out where to locate it once I get into it. I might connect to one of the Aux switches.

Once I get it all installed and functional, then it will be time to try towing for the first time. I plan to do a couple test runs like you and others have done, then hopefully do a trip out to Big Bend NP to try out both the towing setup and the Jeep.

Thanks again.

 

[CoolTech]

The Cool Tech kit is another story. The instructions are horrible.

I will take exception to Freiberger's characterization of our instructions as "horrible". This is simply not the case. We have a few HUNDRED of these harnesses on the road - and to the best of our knowledge, this was the ONLY case where the buyer/installer essentially wired the Jeep backwards. Why is this the only case? Because we are so EXPLICIT and repetitive AND have this step highlighted in RED... and we also have a diagram that further illustrates how to make the connections.

Here is the text from our instructions (Step 7) regarding this step:

Refer to Figure 5. After you have crimped this connection, fold back the OEM Green wire and crimp it into the SHORTER (and thinner) Green wire in our kit.

Note: It is VERY important that you attach the LONGER of the Cool Tech Harness wires to the location you cut (toward the front of the Jeep) and then fold back the OEM wire to the SHORTER, thinner, Cool Tech wires. In other words, the OEM wires that are going toward the BACK of the Jeep MUST be connected to the thinner wires that are shorter and also have pre-installed butt connectors

Literally, the text above is in Red in our instructions as well.... and there is a diagram for further illustrations. So, somehow, Freiberger got it wrong where a few hundred other installs managed to do it exactly as we described. As a result, our instructions are horrible?? Give me a break!

The kick panel and the step trim panel both need to be pulled inboard toward the center (not forward) of the car to pop them loose.

And here is the EXACT text cut/pasted from our instructions:

"Remove the kick panel and integrated door sill piece. ALL of the plastic snaps (even the ones by the sill), are released by pulling the panel toward the center of the car – not upward. Set the kick panel aside."

All of this said, every buyer needs to make an assessment if they want to tackle the installation themselves or take the Jeep to a professional. You can get an instruction manual on just about anything - from brain surgery to knitting a sweater - but it doesn't necessarily mean that you have the skills/experience/patience necessary to do the job. I feel really bad that this customer had to perform this step twice but I think it is wrong to tag our instructions as horrible and I believe that any objective person would agree.

 

[Hypalon Man]

I will take exception to Freiberger's characterization of our instructions as "horrible". This is simply not the case. We have a few HUNDRED of these harnesses on the road - and to the best of our knowledge, this was the ONLY case where the buyer/installer essentially wired the Jeep backwards. Why is this the only case? Because we are so EXPLICIT and repetitive AND have this step highlighted in RED... and we also have a diagram that further illustrates how to make the connections.

Here is the text from our instructions (Step 7) regarding this step:

Refer to Figure 5. After you have crimped this connection, fold back the OEM Green wire and crimp it into the SHORTER (and thinner) Green wire in our kit.

Note: It is VERY important that you attach the LONGER of the Cool Tech Harness wires to the location you cut (toward the front of the Jeep) and then fold back the OEM wire to the SHORTER, thinner, Cool Tech wires. In other words, the OEM wires that are going toward the BACK of the Jeep MUST be connected to the thinner wires that are shorter and also have pre-installed butt connectors

Literally, the text above is in Red in our instructions as well.... and there is a diagram for further illustrations. So, somehow, Freiberger got it wrong where a few hundred other installs managed to do it exactly as we described. As a result, our instructions are horrible?? Give me a break!



And here is the EXACT text cut/pasted from our instructions:

"Remove the kick panel and integrated door sill piece. ALL of the plastic snaps (even the ones by the sill), are released by pulling the panel toward the center of the car – not upward. Set the kick panel aside."

All of this said, every buyer needs to make an assessment if they want to tackle the installation themselves or take the Jeep to a professional. You can get an instruction manual on just about anything - from brain surgery to knitting a sweater - but it doesn't necessarily mean that you have the skills/experience/patience necessary to do the job. I feel really bad that this customer had to perform this step twice but I think it is wrong to tag our instructions as horrible and I believe that any objective person would agree.

"All of this said, every buyer needs to make an assessment if they want to tackle the installation themselves or take the Jeep to a professional. You can get an instruction manual on just about anything - from brain surgery to knitting a sweater - but it doesn't necessarily mean that you have the skills/experience/patience necessary to do the job. I feel really bad that this customer had to perform this step twice but I think it is wrong to tag our instructions as horrible and I believe that any objective person would agree."

I agree. I read the instructions at least five times and felt it wasn't something I wanted to tackle and I am quite proficient mechanically and electrically.
CoolTech folks, you are doing yourself a disservice by not having a detailed video. Something the installer can watch, stop/start as necessary.
Your sales would probably go up considerably.
I like your technology but for someone doing this once in their life you need to take your instructional material up a notch with audio-visual media.
These comments are meant in only the most positive and constructive sense.

 

[CoolTech]

These comments are meant in only the most positive and constructive sense.

Absolutely, and thank-you for taking the time to contribute to the thread.

As time and a local opportunity permits, this is something that we may consider. There's definitely some skill in creating and then editing such a video - admittedly not easy for us but nevertheless a very pragmatic suggestion.

Until then - I super respect your decision - and that of any others, to opt to have the installation done elsewhere. There IS some skills and comfort-level needed to work with removing interior pieces of the vehicle, AND with testing wiring (with a test light probe) to verify the correct wires. Again, an appendectomy can be described in words - and even better described with a detailed video. However, I'd still prefer someone who had past experience to tackle the job.

 

[jeepixel]

Absolutely, and thank-you for taking the time to contribute to the thread.

As time and a local opportunity permits, this is something that we may consider. There's definitely some skill in creating and then editing such a video - admittedly not easy for us but nevertheless a very pragmatic suggestion.

Until then - I super respect your decision - and that of any others, to opt to have the installation done elsewhere. There IS some skills and comfort-level needed to work with removing interior pieces of the vehicle, AND with testing wiring (with a test light probe) to verify the correct wires. Again, an appendectomy can be described in words - and even better described with a detailed video. However, I'd still prefer someone who had past experience to tackle the job.

And I'd like to thank everyone, including the OP that took exception with the directions, for participating in the discussion. As someone about order from Cooltech, in general it's all helpful and let's stay respectful of each other.

Regarding the video idea, I agree it would be super helpful to anyone, including an experienced Jeep shop, to view. We've all become a little accustomed to seeing such things to help us understand and navigate things that are new to us. Hey, Cooltech, if you would like to visit Austin TX and install my harness for me, I'd be happy to have cold beverages handy and shoot the video! Ok, maybe that's not in your plans, so I'll start making calls with the hope of finding a shop that has previously done an install.

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