Thats wild. My wife’s ‘16 4Runner hauls up to it’s max rating with aplomb. Only time it can get a touch skittish is when I’m over max tongue weight & the steering gets light... but otherwise, a load distributing hitch & trailer brakes make for a fairly uneventful pull all the way to 5,000lbs and sometimes a touch…

I don’t think wheelbase has as much to do with it as people assume. I currently own a ‘16 4Runner and ‘98 4Runner and previously owned a ‘96 Cherokee. All of those vehicles have shorter wheelbases than the 4dr Wrangler, and all of them are rated to safely tow 5,000lbs.

My wife’s ‘16 4Runner is rated for 5,000lbs. Like you, I had no problem towing the max rated weight (and occasionally beyond). Crazy that 2 vehicles (JK 4dr & 5th gen 4Runner) so close in dimension/weight would differ so greatly in towing. The laws of physics never cease to amaze me.

In CA vehicles towing trailers are restricted to 55mph as well.

The wheelbase argument doesn’t really hold up in my opinion... the 4dr Wrangler has a 116" wheelbase to my ‘96 Cherokee’s 101" and my ‘96 Cherokee was rated (w/tow package) to safely (by 1996 standards) tow 5,000lbs.

The 4dr 2017 Wrangler has over a foot more wheelbase than a ‘96 Cherokee (116" to the XJ Cherokee’s 101"). Furthermore, my ‘16 4Runner with it’s 109" wheelbase is rated for 5,000lbs. So... I’m not quite sure thats the issue.

That’s a better explanation than I was able to extract from JK Forums in 5 min of searching (‘liability’ was the most reasonable answer I could find there)... thanks.

I hate to be that guy (disclaimer: no I don’t) but 3,500lbs towing? My ‘96 Cherokee was rated for 5,000lbs. I guess I haven’t followed towing capacities on newer vehicles, but is that normal for a vehicle of the new Wrangler’s size/shape/power-ratings?

This kind of ‘life hack’ pops up about once/yr. This time last year, it was the “2nd button from the top right” that muted it, back in 2012 when this first came out, it was the upper right (https://rachelbythebay.com/w/2012/08/29/pump/).

If you do manage to broker a deal with that dude, I can pick it up & ship it if he won’t. He has a bunch of trucks there, not just that 2002 Tacoma. He had about 20 last time I was there from mid-1970's through ‘98. That ‘02 is a new arrival.

Is it a T-100, Tacoma or the 1989-1994 pre-Tacoma Toyota Pickup? Probably more hassle than you want to deal with, but if you’re in a pinch here’s one of his Craigslist adverts. https://fayar.craigslist.org/pts/d/tacoma-2002-for-parts4/6255170265.html

I know a guy a few towns over that parts those out. You say camper window is that the sliding rear window or something from a camper shell?

It’s wicked itself up into all of the trunk lining fabric and part of the rear seatback. If I could find a ‘98 Volvo S70 at a junkyard within 150 miles of me, I’d have done what you suggest haha.

There isn’t a specific spot... its the entire carpet. Said carpet is adhered via 3m adhesive to a piece of particle board that serves as the floor over the spare-tire well. All of this is covered in oil. The spare tire itself is basically swimming in an oil bath. I’m planning on filling the trunk w/cat litter because…

Does the same thing apply if I... I mean... a friend spilled 5qt of 5w30 full synthetic in my... I mean... their trunk?

Looks like a 7th gen Malibu. TIL people are destroying cars for fun that are 10+ years newer than anything I can afford.

I used to have this crap luck whenever Flirtin’ with Disaster by Molly Hatchet came on the radio. The first time it happened I was driving on ice and punched through (luckily it was only 3' deep). Still took 2 trucks and half a day to extract the vehicle.

Came here to post this.

Locally these are listed for $23-25k and selling for $21-23k USD. Clear titles, 60-80k miles. So basically in line with what you’re seeing. I expected worse, to be honest, considering the big-daddy Range Rovers from 2012 are starting to dip below the $20k threshold.

The key to longevity in these is using as many off-the-shelf parts as possible on the wear-and-tear items. The LLVs have lasted so long because under the covers, they’re basically Chevy S-10 Blazers, and the consumable parts for those are cheap and plentiful.