So I bought a tiny popup a few months ago and I've been on a few camping trips up in the Sierras. I have an 07 with 38" tires and 5.13 gearing which is already a dog and the trailer makes it unbearable to tow on the grades up in the mountains. This is where the question lies. Does the 3.6 tow any better at elevation with larger tires. It's been a long time since I had 35" tires but I remember it being a dog, how much do you all think just a tire swap would help? I'm guessing not that much. I know a hemi or LS would solve all my problems but I can't afford the 20k. Supercharger feedback would be interesting as well but I'm fairly certain my motor or tranny would go soon after the install. Thanks for any input.

I have a 2010 on 35's with 4.10 gears. I tow our pop up with it, and I just assume people are going to have to get around me, so I take the back roads or I just stay all the way to the right and let people pass. On big hill I have teh hazard lights going.

I have a 2008 with 6 speed manual. I used to pull a Jayco Baja pop up which is the big offroad pop up with a 6' space in front for atv. it weighs 3500 lbs. I was running 37" toyo o/c m/t at the time with 5:13 gears. on the flats it would pull fine but in the Tennessee and north Carolina mountains it was a dog. I added a RIPP supercharger which allowed me to maintain 50 to 55 mph on 5-7% grades in 4th or 5th gear. The sierras may be a lot more challenging than the mountains in NC and TN. seems to me that the 3.6 would pull about the same as a 3.8 with supercharger.

2013 jkur here with the factory 4.10's and 35's. I pull a 3k lb 20ft travel trailer and hold my own in the mtns of wv and pa. Sure the speed drops on the long climbs but I can't complain for what it is.

Can you elaborate on speed/gear/grade? For example...I am in second gear at 35mph up a 6%grade struggling to keep forward momentum.

The steepest Iv'e encountered so far is the climb up 40 to the laurel caverns in pa. Not sure of the grade but I would say at least 6%. As far as gear, can't say for sure here either cause mines an auto but I believe I can hold 4th (may have dropped to 3rd) and the lowest I ever dropped to was 45. Never felt like it couldn't handle the load.

07, 4.10, 6 speed 35s--I pull a 22ft Carolina Skiff 215DLV fully loaded at ~4100lbs. I only use the jeep when the wife is busy with her new Highlander....Mostly flat on the 45 minute each way trip, but on the serious grades I can only 55 in 4th gear.

I have a 2013 JK with 6 speed manual and 3.21 gears on 35' tires. I pull an Eco-Trek All Terrain trailer. Trailer is maybe 1,200 lbs fully loaded.
During a recent road trip out west, including the Sierra Nevadas and the Rockies, I had to use 4th and even 3rd gear to climb most the the steeper inclines. Since returning home I have installed 4.56 gears on the same setup and am noticing quite an improvement both on climbing steep grades and maintaining highway speeds of 65 mph in 6th gear. Heck, I can even use cruise control again.

So after some research on RIPP superchargers I'm guessing my snorkel has something to do with my lack of power. I also found a good deal on a set of wild peak 37" tires that I'm gonna try out. They are a few inches smaller and quite a bit lighter then my 38.5 pitbull Maddogs on spyderlocks. I'm leaning towards the RIPP since I don't think I'll ever be able to afford a V8. I can also disconnect and connect the snorkel as needed with the RIPP.

With the known history of the 3.8, do you really think it will hold up to super charging? I don't know how many miles are on your rig, but I wouldn't go putting a super charger on a high mileage engine. If you blow up the 3.8 with the RIPP you would be out about the same amount as a LS swap. You can pick up a 5.3 and 4L80E auto with less than 100K miles for around $2500. You can't tell me the harness work and labor to install will be more much more than $3500. Not everyone needs to spend $17K for an LS3 swap.

Hey Scardup, the rig in the middle in the pic below is mine. 2012, 3.6, auto, 37s, 5.13s. The trailer, loaded would go ~2k or maybe heavier I'd guess. The data plate says 1250 empty, + the shell, rack, 10 gal. Fuel, 10 gal. Water, spare parts, and all my camping stuff.

That pic below is on our way back from Dinkey Creek Campground near Shaver Lake (east of Fresno, if you're not familiar). CA 168 on the way up to Shaver has a grade that will tell you how your rig is set up for towing. It's 9.4 miles long and gains over 3000 feet in elevation. Average grade is over 6%. There are signs warning drivers to turn off the A/C, several places to get off the highway, and a couple of water tanks on the way up for those who have overheated. Not in my Jeep, but in my Chevy Colorado, I've actually turned on the heater to try and get some more heat out of the coolant. (Nothing like scalding your ankles in July.)

When I was on the way up that grade I pulled down to about 35 MPH just to hold the temp down on the engine and especially the tranny. They still got hotter than I was really comfortable with. (Should've taken a pic because now I can't remember the exact numbers but the tranny never got to 200 -- 195 though, I think.) The 3.6 had plenty of guts and I could've kept my foot in it and held 55 -- just didn't feel like killing it to prove a point.

I think you'd find the 3.6 has the guts -- when set up correctly -- to handle what you described (plus a lot more), with no trouble at all. But the guts are obviously not the only limitation. Now, to contrast with my experience going to Shaver lake -- last year I took basically the same setup to Sierra Trek and held 65 all the way up 80 to Truckee with no heating issues. And I've used the trailer for a few trips to Reno helping my daughter move stuff in and out of UNR and never had a hiccup. That grade up to Shaver is just brutal, and it's notorious for eating rigs' lunch.

Bottom line is that I think you'd be happier with the 3.6 than your 3.8, but depending on where you want to pull your trailer to, you may still find that you have to baby it occasionally.

BTW, I used to see you in Livermore now and then (before I was on here), but haven't in a long time. Always loved the tag.

All the best.

Thank you for the detailed info. Not sure what I'm going to do yet. I used to daily drive the jeep but got fed up with my 8mpg fill up schedule so I got a TDI sportwagen. You probably wouldn't recognize me around town in that but I still drive the jeep on Fridays into town. I also have a new plate due to the fact that the DMV thought scardup was offensive on a veteran tag, bullshit...

That is BULLSHIT....

F**k DMV and thank you for your service 😁

I have a '15 6spd 2dr rubicon with 4.56 gearing. Pulls my trailer fine. I use 5th and sometimes 4th going up long inclines but the power is there -- real improvement over the OEM 4.10 gearing. Trailer is an AT Chaser with a RTT and is about 850 pounds before I add 19 gallons of water and 10 gallons of fuel.

The dash computer tells me I average about 18 mpg without the trailer and about 15 with it.

2.5 inch AEV lift and 35 inch Nitto Trails.

LOLz. The dash computer is a pathological liar.