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Old 09-24-2016, 08:56 AM   #1
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Tow Hooks on Toad

Has anyone used the front tow hooks that are available on many imports to attach their safety chains to the toad? I'm dolly towing a Toyota Rav4 and now have two above ground connection points on the front that I can theoretically use to attach safety chains. I'm just wondering if anyone has done it already and what their experience has been. I like the idea of being able to hook and unhook without crawling under the toad ...
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Old 09-24-2016, 09:09 AM   #2
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Quote:
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Has anyone used the front tow hooks that are available on many imports to attach their safety chains to the toad?
What you are calling "Tow Hooks" are undoubtedly "Tie-Down" points for the transporters to use to chain the car to the deck of the ship for the ride over from Japan.

As an engineer, I would NOT trust those tie-down points to protect MY towed vehicle and ME from liability should a break-away occur.

They might possibly be good for a one-time use providing you NEVER have to rely on them.

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Old 09-24-2016, 09:23 AM   #3
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If your RAV-4 is like our Escape, the ends do have "tow loop" hard points

These are NOT the freight tie-downs used to ship the car...included in your safety pack with jack and spare...like:

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We have have always used these loops for the safety chains...easy to access, strong, and free from body work.

As a side note: l would NEVER put safety chains on the suspension parts. Modern cars rely on a matrix of parts for suspension strength. Any single piece would surely be damaged if the safety chain took a load. Instead (in the absence of tow loops) I have added a loop of cable or chain to the front frame of the car for safety chain connection...there should never be a routine reason to crawl under the car.

Best luck
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Old 09-24-2016, 03:26 PM   #4
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Thanks Scarab0088! Those are exactly the kind of attaching points that we have on our Rav4. In that the "loops" connect directly to the unibody, my thought is they're as strong or stronger than any suspension component to your point ... My plan is to attach two "d" rings to the dolly and the chains to the "d" rings with grade 8 bolts, nuts and lock washers and itt sounds like you've done exactly that ... Any pictures?
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Old 09-24-2016, 03:33 PM   #5
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In the world of commercial towing many manufactures warn against using that hook to load cars onto rollback/flatbed equipment as the load angle is not straight on to the opening.

Most vehicles seem to come with just one of those screw in hooks at least back in my time are they now coming with two?
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Old 09-24-2016, 03:39 PM   #6
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No but I bought a second one at the local Dealer ... They're meant for emergency towing because they're mentioned in the Owner's Manual ...
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Old 09-24-2016, 03:44 PM   #7
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Thanks Scarab0088...it sounds like you've done exactly that ... Any pictures?
Our Safety chains (2 each from Acme EZE Tow) have hooks on both ends, so the chain is doubled around the dolly frame and up to the tow loops (not the in-bumper thingies)...
...chain is just long enough to allow swing in a turn - but not too long to allow the car to leave the dolly if there was a strap failure.

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Best luck

P.S. All our "modern" cars only have 1 of those tie-down pins sockets on each end (1 front and 1 rear). I am not really sure how they would work as a tie-down in the real world(?). If you Google search "Car Carrier tie-down" you get hits for the strap baskets like most all dollies use...EZE as Pie to use. But I think even tow trucks use safety chains like dollies. Right John?

P.P.S. John ran a big tow company for years
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Old 09-24-2016, 04:12 PM   #8
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P.P.P.S. I found a photo of how to use the in-bumper tow pin thingie...
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Old 09-24-2016, 04:33 PM   #9
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Pics

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Old 09-24-2016, 04:34 PM   #10
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Nice new EZE-Tow
We store our ramps in a bin to avoid them "growing legs".
Just keeping honest people, honest.

Here's what a Toyota dealer says about the in-bumper eyelet:


Basically, emergency extraction/pull - only.

But, from your pics, looks like you could use the bumper eyelets for the safety chains. And, I would expect that there would be some chaffing of the bumper surface from the chains swinging - over time.

Best luck
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Old 09-24-2016, 04:44 PM   #11
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An "emergency" like when your baskets fail and the vehicle slides off the dolly? Aren't we talking about the same thing here?
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Old 09-24-2016, 04:48 PM   #12
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There's more possibilities for shock factor when towing than when putting a constant pressure when pulling from sand or snow.

I did a Google search on the hooks to kind of get up to date, lots of comic reading both pro and con about it.
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Old 09-24-2016, 04:50 PM   #13
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I use cables thru the wheels.
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Old 09-24-2016, 04:59 PM   #14
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That may be the best solution yet ... Rated for 5,000 lbs I hope ...
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