Four Down Fail
Saw this in a campground today. The campground owner told me the RV pulled the front end off a car. I didn't believe it until I saw it.
Forum Discussion
Looks like one of those baseplate/bracket designs where the towing equipment simply replaces the hidden bumper bar. Bumper bar is bolted to those points for location, and load is impact (one time only) rather than multiple pulls and bending.
Designer doesn't know whether that part of the front end sheet metal (not really a frame on unibody cars) is going to hold up until a few failures say NO.
For my Fit, i chose on the basis of how it would install. I chose the baseplate that bolted to the reinforced sides behind the bumper mounting plate, rather than the one that simply repaced the bumper. Engineering training, and a few years experience autobody repair, behind that choice. Most customers probably don't have the experience or training to evaluate how their baseplate attaches, and the manufacturers don't always get it right.
Designer doesn't know whether that part of the front end sheet metal (not really a frame on unibody cars) is going to hold up until a few failures say NO.
For my Fit, i chose on the basis of how it would install. I chose the baseplate that bolted to the reinforced sides behind the bumper mounting plate, rather than the one that simply repaced the bumper. Engineering training, and a few years experience autobody repair, behind that choice. Most customers probably don't have the experience or training to evaluate how their baseplate attaches, and the manufacturers don't always get it right.
