I LOVE my '96 RAV4 4WD, but I can't tow a decent-sized trailer. I got it into my head that Jeep made a 4WD Wrangler that converts between four and six cylinders. Fuel economy is very important to me, so four cylinders for in-town and six cylinders for occasional towing sounds great to me. Any such thing?
Sounds like a great idea to us, too, but right now that type of cylinder deactivation in the Jeep lineup is only available on the Wrangler’s larger stablemates — the Grand Cherokee and Commander with the 5.7-liter V-8.
If you absolutely “LOVE” your 1996 RAV4, don’t count out a new RAV4, which has a max trailer capacity of 3,500 pounds (same as the Wrangler) with the optional V-6 and tow package. The RAV4 also has better gas mileage than the Wrangler, but if you’ve always had a yearning to drive without doors, the Wrangler does that naturally, so you won’t have to ruin a perfectly good RAV4. The Wrangler will also be able to tackle serious offroad trails, if that’s your thing.
Even though the RAV4 and Wrangler have similar tow capacities, the vehicles have two completely different personalities and drive as such, so be sure to test drive both models to find which SUV fits your style.
Learn more
See if your question has already been asked and answered
Your question has been successfully submitted to Ask.cars.com. It will now be reviewed by our editors and we'll answer it soon if we think it's a useful question. You will be notified via e-mail when the answer is posted. Ask.cars.com tackles your questions about new cars and the car-buying process. Unfortunately we can't answer questions regarding:
Have our experts answer any of your questions about new cars.
Don't worry — we won't publish your last name or email.
