The Story: i'm hitting up Jeep Skool this weekend in Twinsburg Ohio and i figured i should look for a tow hook just incase i get stuck somewhere or have to pull somebody out. i check out an auto parts store and they got nothin. as i'm leaving a guy parks next to me in his TJ Rubicon, we compliment each others jeeps and get to talkin and he has me meet him down the street at his work place and he'll give my his rear tow hook, since he put a shackle on the back of his rubicon. i ask the guy what i owe, him and he replies, "nah, nothin'..It's a Jeep Thing.."
The Problem: so i have this tow hook and the holes don't line up right on the back left of the JK from his TJ. so i mounted it using one bolt
Temp Solution: mount it using one bolt and tighten it down really good?
Pics:




i mean i'm not looking to use this thing every weekend but every once in a while it should be okay, right?
kinda along the lines of how they are now putting them on the 09 JK's

 

Yamaha90 - My opinion is that thing doesn’t look safe.

It looks like you have it mounted on the side on the frame, not in the middle where the JK hook is supposed to be mounted. Also the JK mounting with its 3 bolts and mounting location will support the weight of your Jeep. The one-bold-side-frame setup you have doesn’t look like it will support your Jeep. You certainly don’t want to find out if it will work when you are trying to be extracted and the thing breaks - someone could get killed.

Have you tried stepping on it and jumping up and down to see how it reacts?

I would recommend looking in the “For Sale” section and picking up a proper hook for relatively cheap.

 

the 09 jk's have the tow hook off to that side.

yamaha, I if you are willing I would say drill and tap a second hole for that other bolt.

 

If you look at how the '09s are mounted they don't have one old rusty bolt mounted vertically, but one large bolt mounted horizontally, and 2? other bolts to keep it stable.



I agree that a second bolt would be helpful, but are the bolts that are holding in place big enough and mounted properly to keep it from sheering off? Maybe.

 

I wasn't saying that the 09's where using one rusty bolt. I was saying the 09's have the hook mounted off to one side. Personally the 09 hook should be stronger due to mounting location. on a 08 the OEM hook would be best. however the trail that yamaha and myself are going on, I bought the trail leaders hook before yamaha could.

 

cyberbrain - My “one rusty bolt” comment was directed at Yamaha90s picture - not your comment about the location of the hook. Since the 09’s have it mounted on the frame in the corner, the engineers would have ensured that the mounting location and hardware was sufficient to be used to yank the 09’s out of a tough spot. The picture that Yamaha90 has posted is nothing like the hook/hardware for the 09s, and if it ripped off while someone is winching out the Jeep it would definitely pose a serious hazard.

Yeah, I think getting the hook from the trail leader was the way to go for you. I don’t think the “standard” hooks for the 07s and 08s go for much in the “For Sale” section, and if Yamaha90 wants a Tow Hook it would be the best way to go for him.

 

the hooks are cheap here on the boards and on ebay.

 

 

thanks guys, i know it's not perfect lol i can take it off no problem. i'm not looking to pull the jeep out of frame deep mud. i don't off road often. however it is stable and i can stand on it. i'm just looking for a temporary solution until i get a hidden hitch tow package or something to put on the back because then i can tow my jet ski or something. i checked the stealership price yesterday and they want $67 for a pair of front tow hooks.

 

you can find people giving the rear tow hooks away on here. I paid $20. If you do get ahold of one make sure you get the bolts that go with them. The dealer wanted like $10 a piece.