Tow hooks Options, Tundra Hooks?

Yes - and the point is that the location and mounting method is bad meaning there is an increased risk that the hook can snap lose when being pulled.
There are other hooks that mount in the same place but wrap around the frame more and have more bolts so they distribute the load better. No solution is perfect here (thanks Toyota) but there are safer options that optimize physics and the transfer of load across a more structural area / square inches of steel.



https://www.ebay.com/itm/2671202774...0359301671307&abcId=10214638&merchantid=51291

Hell - even these (not as aesthetically good admittedly) use better physics than the one that only bolt to two holes with one drilled out.
https://www.ebay.com/itm/2667669800...0634178907724&abcId=10250680&merchantid=51291

 

I used to be into drag racing and also hiking, I still have the onces = pounds mentally. A few pounds here and there add up... and I kind of want to make my own.

 

Those links don't go to anything that looks like that. Is that a real product or just somebodies' prototype?

 

Yep its a real unit in the pic an the links are to other ones you can buy. The point was the design transfers the load over a bigger surface area and onto the frame.

https://nytop.com/2016-2023-toyota-tacoma-front-recovery-points-installation-guide

 

Those are for 3rd Gen. Don’t believe they will work with the 4th Gen.

 

Thanks for this. Much safer to have something made for the Tacoma. Something less could and have actually kill someone

For those using 1 bolt to install the Tundra ones, please take them off. Even drilling a hole for a 2nd bolt will impair the ability to hold, but 1 bolt will snap very easily with very little pressure due to angles.

There are multiple videos out there on flying projecticles during recovery. Some have killed people. I think it is irresonsible to purposely install a weak point on your truck because it looks cool that looks like a safe recovery point. Someone else or the next owner could use that as a recovery point and when it breaks, it will snap as a projectile into the truck in front or hit someone standing nearby. If you break down and call a tow truck, the driver likely will hook onto one of these and then it could break and kill him. You could loan the truck to someone and they wouldnt know these are dangerous

That is just me. I build things to go places and carry equipment for safe recoveries. I also take care of the trails while I am out there. I belong to clubs and organizations that preach safety and protecting the trails so that is why this rubs me the wrong way.

And the above quoted post defines ones made for the Tacoma that look just as cool and will be safe.

I really hate being one of those posters who throws stones at others, but this is dangerous so I feel the need to respond

 

Must not hate it that much as you certainly achieved that goal!

 

Very thoughtful response Ken.

 

The guy in the picture is one of the lucky ones. When I first started looking into what recovery gear I should carry (stuff that I never expect or want to use) one of the first things I found was a video of someone who used a hitch ball for a recovery point. The driver of the other vehicle was killed.

 

I did see that video as well. It is sad when people don't understand the dangers of recovery and what gear and vehicle interfaces to use with it. They could have wrapped a strap around the rear axle if there were not any safe spots to sttach a strap to.

Quality Recovery Gear and knowing how to use it is very important. Knowing the potential stresses and selecting items waith safe weight and stress margins is key.
This is what I carry in my Land Cruiser (primary Wheeling rig) and have a similar reduced set in the Tacoma. The LC has a 12K Warn with 7/16" Amsteel Blue line and the Tacoma has a Warn 9K with Warn synthetic line. The stuff in the bag on the right along with the winch extension I will carry in whatever rig I am wheeling with. The Taco has the same Snatch strap, hard shackles, tree saver and a Mojab Hydrolic Jack.

• ARB
  $100 ARB710LB 3-1/4" x 30' Recovery Snatch Strap Minimum Breaking Strength 24000 lbs Kinetic Stretch 20% With Reinforced Eyes and Protector Sleeves
  ARB710LB 3-1/4" x 30' Recovery Snatch Strap Minimum Breaking Strength 24000 lbs Kinetic Stretch 20% With Reinforced Eyes and Protector Sleeves
• ASR Tree Saver (2-ply, 3" x 10') 46,500 lb MTS
• 2 Max Trax Boards
• ARB Hydrolic Jack
• Warn M12 winch with 88 ft Synthetic AMSteel Bluee 7/16" Line
• 4 Hard shackles, Two of them are ARB and the other two were highly rated when I bought them.
• 2 Safe-Xtract Soft Shackles - SX-20000E 7/16x 10"
• Safe Xtract SX-20000G Pulley Block (Snatch Block) – Vehicle Recovery Hardware – Up to 20,000 lbs. VERY Expensive but after talking to them I was sold. I really appreciate it as a engineer. Quality product that will be passed down generations
• Safe-Xtract X-LOCK SX-20000H – Vehicle Recovery Hardware – Up to 20,000 lbs
• 25ft AMSteel Blue 7/16" Winch Extension

 

Agreed. This happened in my neck of the woods. Killed a guy.
https://youtu.be/aOV3DbgXHCQ?si=mvy4S5T8QKfpylvR

I didn't know him but knew people that did an they said he was a great guy - who left a family behind.

 

The point isn't if they fit a 2nd, 3rd, 4th Gen or a Dodge Tradesman.

You do see in the picture how it makes more contact than the ones the OP installed right?
Surely you can see how it transfers the load to the frame, yes?
THAT's the point.

https://arbusa.com/news/the-all-new-2024-toyota-tacoma-gets-the-arb-treatment

Hope that link helps. I'm sorry if the truck is the wrong color, but I'm pretty sure physics works the same regardless of the paint.

 

The red OEM Tow Hooks, when installed on the correct vehicle, are safe for recovery. If not Toyota is setting themselves up for massive law suits. Modified tow hooks are probably not a good idea. Aftermarket tow hooks may or may not be as good or better than OEM but you might want to read the fine print before using them.

 

Knowing the mount points on my 2024 Tacoma, I would say recovery only on fairly level ground. The hooks may be strong, but those mount points will not handle the load getting you out of a ditch with the full weight of the vehicle being aggressively pulled. Something may break, and I don't think it would be most of the hooks being sold. It would be the hook mount point. Serious injury or death is possible if something snaps during a stretch of a recovery rope or chain. My rear recovery hooks on the other hand, are made to handle a much higher stress load and are heavily bolted across the vehicle frame.

 

I carry an AAA card. Still trying to figure out where to mount it.

 

I mounted mine in my wallet.

 

Genius!!!! I didn't think of that.