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I recently received an email from Team 4X Member Alan Greenberg about the mounting point for the front tow ring on the Subaru models. Here is what he asked and here is what I answered.
Alan:
On your 2017 3.6R you had the tow bar out the front bumper. How did you get the hike in the bumper?
Me:
Hmm… on the front of the car I have a brush guard and a red tow hook. The red tow hook is mounted through a hole that is covered with a plastic cover. Inside there, there is a place to mount that tow hook. Is that what you are asking?
Alan:
How did you get the plug out and fabricate the hole and put it all back together. I would use the OEM tow piece. Did you?
Me:
Thanks for the pic.
Yes, that hole cover comes off with a screw driver. Just pops out. Then, I used an aftermarket tow ring by Cusco.
Here is the link.
https://amzn.to/3AVF9qW
For the cover, I drilled a hole through the cover, snapped it back on and then threaded the Cusco hitch neck through that hole and screwed it into the same hole in the car frame…since the cusco is threaded.
See more on this page of my website:
https://4xpedition.com/equipment/off-road-vehicles/subaru-outback-overland-road-warrior/
Is the frame mounting location recovery rated?
Asking because on my little Jeep there's a threaded hole like this that it's possible to screw an eyelet into, and there's a factory part number for an eyelet that can screw in there - nice forged piece rated for tens of thousands of pounds.
But the threaded hole is just a captive nut behind thin gauge sheet, it's good for maybe a thousand pounds of pull force tops. You could use the eyelet to tie down a kayak on the roof or pull the Jeep around on level ground, anything more than that it's a deadly projectile waiting to be released.
Do you know if the Subaru fixture is rated for recovery pulling or if it's something users really need to be careful about when deciding to pull from it? Not asking this to bust your ball bearings at all, safety's a big deal and knowing the limits of a recovery point can protect lives and property.
@shovel Yes. From what I understand. The body cover cap is there to pop off for that reason, too. I used it to pull a jeep out of a ditch with zero issues.