Jeep Rubicon toad?

[Stakealot]

Getting ready to switch from my '07 GMC Canyon 4x4 w/UTB and '07 HD Road King piggy-back, (both for sale BTW), to an '06 Jeep Rubicon for a toad. My question is: Blue OX sells a baseplate BX1120 for a Rubicon for about $400.00, and says it is for single or double tube bumpers, not stock (square) bumpers. BUT, other than the price...is the base plate when installed will hang well below the stock bumper and possibly be a ground clearance problem off road. They also sell a Universal tab kit BX88230 for about $100.00 and LOOKS like with some reinforcement and fabrication could be mounted directly to the stock bumper or even a modified winch type bumper. Does anybody have any ideas??? THANKS as always!

[wilanddij]

I've done what you're asking about with the stock TJ bumper. Send me a pm with your email address and I'll send you some pics.

[Fakrwee]

My cousin has an 04 or 05 Rubicon with a lift and says loss of clearance with the Blue Ox baseplate isn't a problem. Then again he lives in Florida. I'll try and get him to post a picture.

Tom

[Drifter]

I have a Demco Base plate T20045, it works very well. I also have a extra.
http://wvw.demco-products.com/rvtowi...aseplates.html

[Wicked Whippets]

I went to my local 4x4 shop and they custom fabricated towbar tabs and mounted them on the bumper for about $150. I have an '05 Rubicon and Blue Ox Aventa LX towbar setup.

I just towed from Phoenix to Lompoc, CA arriving this afternoon. So far I have towed the Jeep about 10,000 miles since September and it tracks perfectly.

Avoid the Blue Ox baseplate. I bought one and decided against mounting it because:

1. It DOES affect clearance
2. The tabs are VERY likely to get tweaked on a rock on the trail and then you will be driving the RV and the Jeep to your next destination.

I use my Jeep as a daily driver and also off-road at places like Moab (been there 3x). My Rubi has stock suspension so anything that reduces clearance is an issue. The only mods are the bumpers and a winch (other than the one in the passenger seat).

The 4x4 shop placed the tabs on the bumper so they are much less likely to come into contact with mother Earth.

I'll shoot some pix tomorrow and post them to give you an idea how I solved the problem.

[Wicked Whippets]

Here's a photo of the tabs the shop fabricated and welded onto the Jeep bumper. I gave them the Blue Ox towbar and they used it as a template to be sure the tabs fit properly.

They determined that the strongest point on the bumper was at the frame rail. They added some reinforcement to the frame connection and then placed the tabs where you see them in the photo.

A good weld beats a bolted baseplate in my opinion when it comes to a Jeep that may see some off-road use.

[Cruzer]

I agree with the above. I do have the Blue Ox baseplate on my '05 Wrangler. I'm generally okay with clearance but it can get dicey with more extreme rock rolling. I did buy the add-on tabs but haven't put them on yet. I'm going to wait until I trade up to a new Rubicon and do it then. I do have the factory off-road winch bumper so it is solid enough to bolt to but the other issue is the height. If your bumper tabs are located too high you'll have issues with the tow bar height. You can't have the tow vehicle towbar mounting points higher than the RV's hitch receiver or else the toad and towbar will catapult over the top during a panic stop. It needs to be even or slightly less than the hitch receiver. If the Jeep bumper is fairly high you may have to resort to an inverted drop hitch adaptor. This is all stuff I'll deal with on the next Jeep. For now I just stay off of Poison Spider Mesa.

[Wicked Whippets]

Cruzer, you are 100% correct about keeping the towbar level with the tabs on the hitch. I talked to Blue Ox when I was setting up my Rubicon to tow and they said as long as the towbar centerline is no more than 4" above the tabs on the toad that is within specs.

Here's what they state in the instructions for the Aventa LX:

CAUTION:

It is important that the attachment
points at the center of the attachment tabs and
the center of the coach's hitch receiver should be
of equal distance. If a deviation must be present,
it should be no more than four (4) inches from the
tabs up to the hitch receiver. There should be no
deviation allowed for the hitch receiver tube to be

below the level of the attachment tabs.

Since I mounted the tabs fairly high on my bumper to further protect them from hitting a rock or other immoveable object I had to compensate by adding a Blue Ox drop hitch, which I reversed and made it into a lift. I checked this out with Blue Ox and they said it was fine in this configuration.



The tabs on my Jeep are about 8" above the centerline of the hitch. I decided to go with a 10" lift in case I later installed taller tires.

You were absolutely correct in stating that the deviation can't be in the other direction.

So far, I have towed +10K miles with zero problems other than I described in my earlier post about stupidly backing up with the Jeep attached.

[Forest Grump]

Have a shop weld the tabs to the stock bumper where the bumper attaches to the frame. Or buy a custom bumper, rectangular and weld them to it where the bumper meets the frame. Use a hitch extension on the MH to get the correct height. Equal height is best especially when going down steep grades and you need to stop. Being off can be quite funny.