[Esmerda]

I'm about to go on a road trip, and I plan to drive on some questionable dirt roads. I don't have a tow eye hook and wanted to buy one, but there's no place nearby that has any in stock. I'm leaving for my trip tomorrow and can't wait for it to arrive. If I do get stuck, is there any way to safely get unstuck without the towing hook?

 

[Dr. Dyno]

Use extreme caution?

 

[Esmerda]

Haha, thanks. Can you be a little bit more specific?

 

[mxer125]

Eh, you're sol with any car without the hook.

Sent from my SM-G998U using Tapatalk

 

[Esmerda]

Thanks. The Toyota dealership suggested that I use an aftermarket one, so I got a toweye receiver mount and hitch pin which Napa claimed was "universal." Of course, it's not screw-in so it doesn't seem to fit. Silly question: is there any way I can get that to work?

 

[Lobo7]

I carry maxtraxx in my RAV. Good for snow or mud.

 

[Esmerda]

Thanks.

I carry maxtraxx in my RAV. Good for snow or mud.

 

[Mr_Flux]

The first thing coming to my mind is that a tow hook just grabs the frame, so in theory you have a hole somewhere in the frame that you could latch a strap or something to and achieve a similar effect. That said, and don't take this the wrong way, it doesn't sound like you're quite up for that treacherous of driving at this point. I would not personally drive anything that could get me stuck if I didn't have much more in recovery gear than just a towing bolt. You should be fine on uneven dirt roads, just be careful.

 

[Esmerda]

Thanks. You're right -- I'm definitely not up for very treacherous off-road driving yet. My main car is a Miata I'm doing a 2-week trip from Los Angeles to Cabo San Lucas and back, mainly on the highway but also on a few dirt roads that seem not much worse than moderate. I just want to have some kind of backup option because I'll be very far from any cell phone reception (I verified that Verizon only works in the larger towns in Baja) and don't really want to know what Mexican towing companies are like. One of the dirt roads I plan to take is right near the beach and I read that it could have potentially deep sand on it (the East Cape Road), but I'm definitely not planning on any jeep trails or serious off-roading.

I found a post which seems to describe what you mentioned: tow hooks and recovery options?. The first answer talks about using a tiedown bracket on the driver's side in the rear of the vehicle. Do you think this seems like a good solution if I get stuck in sand and can't get out any other way?

 

[Dr. Dyno]

That said, and don't take this the wrong way, it doesn't sound like you're quite up for that treacherous of driving at this point. I would not personally drive anything that could get me stuck if I didn't have much more in recovery gear than just a towing bolt. You should be fine on uneven dirt roads, just be careful.

I had the same thought. IMO expecting a tow rope or strap to get you out of where you shouldn't be in the first place is pretty iffy.
I've had a whole lot of offroad dirt bike experience in competition and just trail riding everywhere from the Northeast to the Dakotas, Montana and Alaska, 90% of it alone with no one to rescue me. I've got thru some pretty hairy situations only because I had the confidence from experience to overcome the fear.
But as the saying goes, "A man's gotta know his limitations."
So these days pushing 80 years young I wouldn't even attempt some of the difficult terrain I just blasted thru 30-40 years ago. "Been there, done that, don't have to do it again" is good enough for me.

Seems to me our friend Esmerda is about to gain some of that confidence ... from experience. He may learn what is meant by "Make it happen."

 

[Mr_Flux]

I found a post which seems to describe what you mentioned: tow hooks and recovery options?. The first answer talks about using a tiedown bracket on the driver's side in the rear of the vehicle. Do you think this seems like a good solution if I get stuck in sand and can't get out any other way?

If your vehicle has this installed it's certainly better than nothing but this is a two-anchor system, you'll need something to pull against and those options are usually very limited on beach roads.

If you don't have time to order parts I assume you also don't have time to do much work on it. I like having a receiver hitch on my vehicles and I would use that as a rear secure point; you might look at installing one. I don't have a 3rd gen so I really don't know the capabilities of that generation, though a capable car is nothing without a capable driver. I encourage you not to take extra risks on this trip if you're going to be as remote as it sounds, that's not the place to learn your limits. Go have a nice trip but save experimenting with getting stuck/un-stuck when you're near home or with a buddy who can help you out.

 

[foxtherouge]

Bring a shovel. If you get stuck move earth around until you are no longer stuck. Wheel off the ground? Fill it in with dirt. Too much mud? Bring earth from somewhere else. Use your floor mats as traction pads. Rock back and forth until unstuck.

When I got stuck in the snow I didn't bring traction boards or a shovel, all I had was a REALLY big knife. So I dug out my Rav with a knife. Took a while but I finally got out. You can read about it here:

I got stuck

And then I got unstuck. True story. Went on our first off road adventure in Decker. The trail I was on has two ratings, very easy and extreme. It's very easy when there is no snow and extreme when there is. 15 miles one way. I....went when it was snowed. I had figured that since it's April...

www.rav4world.com

Moral is, even if you don't have traction boards or any way of towing, moving earth is a good alternative. Time consuming and tiring but you will get out for sure.

Now I drive everywhere with my traction boards in the back as they fit perfectly back there. Never leave home without them! Or any of my recovery gear for that matter haha. I keep it all in the rear seat floor board.

 

[jim3_86]

Watching some off road recovery videos, I'd suggest getting a pair of soft shackles so you can attach your vehicle to a tow rope reducing the potential damage of a metallic hook. Also, get a kinetic rope (it's better to have your own recovery gear instead of depending on someone else's), and the recommendations of the people above.

 

[TomKatt]

A bag of kitty litter makes great portable traction.

 

[DionJ]

I imagine on your road trip you’ll pass a wrecking yard or two. It’ll probably take 5 minutes and 5 bucks to get a suitable replacement.

 

[Dcl]

If you get stuck you might try turning off the traction control. I haven’t done this with my prime but it has helped with previous vehicles I have owned. Driving in deep snow if find that traction control fights forward progress by its braking of spinning wheels.