FANC 1 wrote:
I would hope they design a base plate around the tow hooks and leave them on. That way you can go off road and on road.
BlueOx mounted a baseplate at one time on the tow hooks of either a Ranger or Explorer, and learned the hard way that the tow hook mounting points were not strong enough to handle the bending loads at that point coming from vertical loads towbar to baseplate. These come from acceleration, braking, traversing bumps and dips.
Tow hooks might work for flexible connections, cable or chain, but that won't brake the toad for you, or let you push back. There is also sometimes a situation that those hooks are basically cosmetic, rather than functional, like "fog lights" not really designed for use in fog.
Not all tow hook mounting points may be inadequate, but the requirements are different enough that we can't simply assume that if the hooks are good for a pull they are good for towbar loads.
