Hey there,

I am looking for some front tow hooks/D-ring mounts that are braced together and will work with the stock bumper on my '99
there are cutouts for the tow hooks in the plastic bumper skirt/valence/air-dam, whatever you wanna call it, but no hooks.
This XJ had a factory tow package but I suspect the original owner removed the hooks to make room for some weird snow plow mount thing that was on there when I bought it from him.

I was looking at the Iron Rock front D-Ring kit, but in the instructions it mentions having to " Trim plastic valence as needed for tow strap clearance. "
I am not sure I can visualize what they mean. Are they assuming there were no factory hooks, thus no cutouts for them in the air dam?
After a little research, I found all kinds of contradicting info : people who did not have to trim anything at all, and people who say they had to remove the center portion/panel of the air dam, etc.

I was hoping someone here may have one of those installed and could help me figure this out. I would hate to go through the hassle of ordering it and returning it.

Before anyone brings it up...
NO I do not want a heavy aftermarket bumper with D-Rings instead
NO I do not want a front hitch instead.

I want braced hooks/shackles that are "plug and play" with a '97+ front bumper, and I am trying to figure out if IRO's kit would work
Thanks!!!!!

 

Okay, I eventually heard back from IRO
In case anyone else needs this info in the future, here's the answer :

"Hey Max,
it should line up fairly well but you may still have to do some trimming"

pretty vague.

I am still interested in feedback from people who used them with a front stock bumper
Thanks!

 

Cant really help with your issue, but may i ask why you dont want a front receiver? Plug and play and more versatile then tow hooks.

 

when i installed our brushguard i had to trim the mud flap that runs underneath the front bumper from left to right, some people might not even have one on there anymore, it was tempting to just tear it off but i didnt, just cut it nicely just to have the brackets run through.

im not sure if this helps you but i think you cant get around trimming that flap..

this is what you are looking at right ?

https://www.ironrockoffroad.com/prod...tow-mount.html


-Marc

 

They seemed to have positioned their hooks very closely to where the factory tow hooks would be. Probably not exact, but close. Their hooks are also oriented horizontally, which may require a little more space to be cleared in the air dam. But you probably will not have to trim the air dam very much. The air dam is just plastic and very easily trimmed. I had to do it once to mount a brush guard to after-market tow hook brackets, then had to trim just a little more when I took the brush guard off and replaced it with simple tow hooks. You can also get replacement air dams (I got one on sale at some point last year for $20 (probably a one time good deal though).

Perhaps you could post a picture of your air dam, so that we can get a better idea of what you are trying to plug and play around.

 

Several reasons, all personal

#1 I am trying to keep the factory look as much as possible... flares, fenders, bumpers etc
#2 not planning on doing any crazy wheeling, it was my DD for 14 years now I wanna keep it as a backup DD for when one our other vehicles is having trouble and for camping trips (long drives, even 600 miles each way sometimes)
that's why I only got the 3" lift, so it would still be practical and safe for long journeys. RIght now I have ZERO tow hooks. front or rear... That's not good even without offroading
#3 those steel bumpers are really heavy.. it would add stress to the front end and rob me of at least 1/2" of lift up front.. which is a lot when you only have 3" with 29's (planning on 31's when these wear out)

Nothing against front hitches or bumpers... it's just not what I am trying to "build" here.

 

Yes that's the one!

 

Here it is... That's Buddy y'all

 

the iro mounts basically the same as this. Not heavy at all. look at the customer photo. Can barely even tell its there. Cheaper as well. Can mount a reciever mounted winch if you ever wanted to. Again just my 2 cents lol

 

Ok, those definitely look to be factory hook locations there. You will almost certainly have to cut to fit aftermarket hooks like you posted. Your best bet is to find some replacement factory tow hooks (and brackets).

 

just saw the photo and I agree.

 

I have had a front hitch on my cherokee, and another Cherokee I bought had the front crossmember with tow hooks (I believe it was IRO, but there were no brand markings), and I have put a steel bumper on my Cherokee. The steel bumpers are not as heavy as you would think, and if you get most decent quality bumpers they double as a steering box plate strengthening the frame rail there. I honestly believe with my Cherokee I gained lift putting on the steel bumper since it felt lighter than the stock bumper/endcaps and hitch combo. I ran it with a 3" lift and 31s and wheeled it everywhere without issues. the first couple of pictures show the difference between stock bumper with hitch and steel bumper. I know they aren't taken at the same angle, but might give an idea of what it'll be like. The next couple show that 3" and 31s is fine especially with the steel bumper (actually rubbed more with the factory bumper and trimmed the bumper end caps and removed the air dam) and the last picture you can maybe see the hook barely poking out under the bumper. That's apparently the only picture I have of it. I thought I had more.

 

 

The hooks mount the same way as my hitch did, and the main cross tube was the same size.

 

I haven't moved the license plate yet since the lift, I do have the new bracket for it to put it in front of the bumper.. not gotten around to it yet, doing other stuff