Need recomendations for flat towing 2015 Grand Cherokee

[Magredvet]

Anyone have recommendations for the best brackets and braking setup for a 2015 Grand Cherokee Summit, which is equipped with the forward facing camera ?
I'm particularly interested in where the brackets poke out, how far they poke out, and what the installer did to the lower grill, to get the brackets fitted.
Anybody care to share some pictures of their installation ?
Thanks in advance

[KenNJ]

Hopefully this gives you an idea of what it looks like. Sorry I did not take any pictures directly from the front. I had the Blue Ox baseplate installed. On my Grand Cherokee there were two round mesh plates that popped out and I store elsewhere. I went with the Brake Buddy Vantage select system for braking. Another popular option is the Airforce one unit. I can't even really see where the baseplate brackets are because they are black in color and blend in with the front grill mesh material. I am really pleased with how everything looks.

[Ohsirr]

Before you tow what specifically needs to be done? Transmission, steering and battery care?

[Magredvet]

Thanks for the info Ken, that's exactly what I wanted to see.

[KenNJ]

Good deal and glad to hear

[bd041556]

I went with the Demco base plate on my 2017 GC Summit, since it explicitly said on their website that it would work with the adaptive cruise. I installed it myself. The first picture is the Jeep with the front taken apart, and the second with the Demco installed. I did the grill surgery myself. I think the front fascias are different between 2015 and 2017, so YMMV. I don't know why the second picture came in upside down. I went with the iRV3 braking system. The silver thing near the left mounting point is the breakaway attachment.

Barry

[Magredvet]

Thanks for the pix Barry, my front fascia is very similar, so it looks like I will have to trim the grill around the camera. Is there any way of just removing it completely, or will that expose the rad/condenser to road debris ?
How easy was it to remove the front bumper, as if I need to trim the grill, I would rather do it myself, than have someone else just cut holes, and not care about what it loos like

[bd041556]

I pretty much followed the instructions that came from Demco with the base plate. After you remove the removable fasteners (bolts and plastic body rivets), the fascia is held on at the front fenders by some pretty strong clips. It takes some force to get those off, and it feels like you are going to break something, but that seems to be the way it works. A few things weren't in the Demco instructions - there are some electrical connectors that had to be removed (two of which go to the lights and are a bit stubborn to disconnect, others going to the parking sensors), and there are headlight washers to disconnect (easy). The biggest problem I had with the install was that the tapped holes that are in the vehicle frame did not line up exactly with the base plate slots, so I had to get a round file and file the base plate on both sides. I'm not sure whether the Jeep drilling/tapping was out of spec or the base plate isn't quite right, but it was a pain.

I don't think the small grill removes easily, but I didn't really investigate that very closely because I don't think you'd want it off - I think that would look pretty bad, personally. It's easy to cut with either a knife or wire cutters (which is what I discovered to work better after some experimentation). You have to keep test-fitting it to get the holes in the right place and the right size.

If I bought a new Jeep and was faced with doing it all over, I'd pay someone else to do it. Between going to the hardware store for more tools (round file, torque wrench, portable lighting, etc.) and trying to figure stuff out, the installation spread over two days. My reasoning for doing it myself was the same as yours - someone you pay isn't going to care as much about the aesthetics. But they probably have a lift (which would have made it much easier) and whatever tools they need, and having done it many times would be able to do it much more efficiently.

If you're going to put in a bracket for a brake breakaway cable, do that while you have the fascia off, so you can attach it to something solid behind the fascia rather than the fascia itself. I bought the RVi3 braking system, and the two days included installing the breakway bracket (IIRC, I drilled a hole in the base plate and tapped it) and figuring out how to route the breakaway wire through the firewall - I put it through an existing grommet on the passenger side footwell.

Barry

[britcon]

I did my own install on my 2015 GC. Front fascia actually comes off pretty easily. I used a Blue Ox baseplate with removeable tow pins. Blue Ox brackets are supposed to bolt up to existing holes in Jeep frame, however, as previous poster found, holes do not line up exactly and made install a lot more time consuming than it needed to be. Actual tow brackets are mounted where factory tow hooks would normally be. There is a small plastic grill piece which pops out of the main fascia assembly. A little work with a dremel tool to exend the hole a bit.
Wiring was easy ! Purchased a harness thru E Trailer that had diodes built in, with flat 4 connector at front. Ran wires thru wheel wells and along inside of plastic rocker panels to drivers side rear light, then across under rear bumper to right side light. Plug and play. No cutting into Jeep harness at all.
Set up to tow is simple. Follow instructions in manual. Takes 2 minutes.
No fuses to pull, no battery disconnect required, No speed limits or max distances on the GC.