Will be towing aforementioned auto-hub JX with our 30' Rexhall Aerbus RV. We have a two-wheel trailer. My question is, should we put it in neutral and tow it backwards as some of my friends are suggesting? Why do I have the feeling I just made someone cringe..? 

put in manual locking hubs and if you are going to pull it long distances like over 30KM then unhook the drive shaft at the diff and tie it up out of the way if you dont unhook the drivshaft you will wear out the transfercaser due to a lack of lubracation.

Dustin

Check out Ack's FAQ's page on it here: http://www.acksfaq.com/flattow.html

Will be towing aforementioned auto-hub JX with our 30' Rexhall Aerbus RV. We have a two-wheel trailer. My question is, should we put it in neutral and tow it backwards as some of my friends are suggesting? Why do I have the feeling I just made someone cringe..? 

This a touchy subject that Suzuki addresses in a Technical Service Bulletin and in the owner's guide.

The Reader's Digest version is:

Don't.

To expand a bit, Auto-locking hubs, if not properly set to the "free" operating mode AND the transfer case is NOT in neutral, will cause damage to occur to the drivetrain.  This applies ONLY to Sidekick/Trackers which is what the poster is talking about.  More on auto locking Samurais in a moment...

The big danger is the potential for accidentally NOT getting the auto-locking hubs into the right mode before towing.

Do a search for flat tow at Ack's FAQ (the link is in my signature) for an excerpt from the 1993 Sidekick Owner's Manual that covers in detail the methods for towing a Sidekick.

For you Samurai owners, the same search described above will also result in a link to a Suzuki Technical Service Bulletin (TSB) pointing out the dangers of flat- or dolly-towing a Samurai equipped with auto-locking hubs.  Unlike the Sidekick/Tracker transfer case, the Samurai transfer case connects the front and rear driveshafts together when placed into the neutral mode.

If you are interested in the actual details, do the above search.

Thanks much for the great info... We purchased this little scrapper as primarily an RV 'shuttle' craft so we'll be extra careful in making sure the hubs and trans are set correctly. I plan on printing and laminating that section of your FAQ to go into the Rexhall AND the Sidekick!

For what its worth...I flat towed my 2001 Tracker , auto trans , auto hubs from California to Georgia and back with the trans is park and the transfer in neutral. We stoped every 200 mi and started the engine and put the transmission in drive leaving the transfer case in neutral for at least two minutes, as advised by trusted RV friends, then continued towing as above. We never had a problem and now have over 100,000 mi on the Tracker towing many more miles. We have also towed the Calmini white Vit the same way.  Perhaps 1st gen Trac/kicks are different...had an 89 Tracker but never towed it....Gary

The big danger is the potential for accidentally NOT getting the auto-locking hubs into the right mode before towing.

After reading the FAQ, I'm not clear on whether there's any way to determine if the hubs are unlocked for towing method "D" (auto locking hubs, with the rear wheels up on the trailer). Is that the danger, that you can't ever tell for certain?