Baseplate Installation - Is this for the average do-it-yourselfer?

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rsalhus

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Joined
Jul 20, 2006
Posts
1,335
I thought about installing a baseplate myself to our new 2007 Saturn Ion after reading Tom Jones' illustrated article entitled "Installation of a Roadmaster Blackhawk heavy duty tow bar and base plate" in the RV Forum Library.  Tom says that such a project is "definitely within the capabilities of the average do-it-yourselfer".  Well, installing a tow bar is something even I can handle by myself, but tearing the front end off a car to install a baseplate?  Read the following and take a look at the pictures below and judge for yourself.

I started off on this project by downloading the Installation Instructions from the Blue Ox website designed especially for our car (BX3325).  The instructions had lots of pictures but the quality of the pictures left a lot to be desired.  And the pictures that came with the baseplate were even worse (black and white vs color).  I could tell right away that I would be in big trouble if I had to rely on these pictures to get the baseplate installed correctly.  Luckily for me, I found someone to help me that was skilled way beyond the average do-it-yourselfer.  My thanks go out to Kevin Krumm of Somerset, WI, who made this project successful.

PICTURE 1 shows the end result of the baseplate installation.  PICTURE 2 shows the baseplate with the tabs inserted.  You can see that some trimming of the lower lip of the fascia rib had to be done on each side to make room for the two baseplate projections at the front of the Saturn.  My helper (actually Kevin did most of the hard work, I was mostly the helper) also fabricated a piece of iron bar to one of the two holders for the electrical connector so that it would also hold the breakaway connector (for the Blue Ox Apollo Braking System) shown in the middle of the picture.  You can see this in more detail in PICTURE 3.

We started out by removing the plastic wheel well coverings from each side.  PICTURE 4 shows the wheel well covering from the passenger side.  PICTURE 5 shows the fascia (left) and the Styrofoam bumper (right) that came off next.  PICTURE 6 shows the position of the metal bumper which came off next after removing the horn and the headlights and doing some trimming of the plastic air dam and a small section of the metal frame on both sides. This was difficult only because the installation instructions and pictures weren't very clear about how much to trim off. 

Getting the baseplate in position required two people but wasn't too hard on the passenger side because an existing hole for the air baffle was used (by design) to hold the baseplate in the proper position.  On the driver's side however, there was no such hole.  We clamped the baseplate where we thought it should be and then measured each side from the floor to the bottom of the baseplate to be sure the baseplate was level.  There were no instructions or pictures on how to do this.  After clamping both sides of the baseplate to the frame, we used the baseplate as a template and drilled 3 holes through the frame on each side and one in front on each side.

Next came the hard part - threading the mounting bolts to the nuts.  The nuts were welded to long wires and had to be fished up a narrow, metal channel and handheld by the wire while attempting to thread it with the bolt.  This is where we spent the most time.  The wires had to be bent just right and to get the nut in the proper position was very difficult and the most time consuming part of the entire installation.  We applied Loctite Red to the bolts and torqued them to the required PSI using a torque wrench.  PICTURE 7 shows the baseplate after the mounting bolts were attached.  The two round extension pipes pointing out the front from the baseplate are what hold the electrical wiring plug to the baseplate.

Wiring consisted mostly of running 6 wires through the firewall.  Two wires were for the Blue Ox Apollo Braking System's breakaway system and the other four wires were for the Saturn's tail lights.  We had to drill 1" holes in each tail light to insert an extra bulb as part of the Blue Ox Bulb and Socket Tail Light Wiring Kit (BX8869).

Another hard part was finding the wire to the Saturn's rear brake lights.  Tapping this wire is needed by the Blue Ox Apollo Braking System to send an RF signal to a remote receiver in the motorhome to light a light when the toad's brakes are actually applied.  I managed to squeeze my digital camera up under the dash to get a picture of this wire because it couldn't be seen any other way.  PICTURE 8 shows this, it's the blue wire that has current when the Saturn's brakes are applied.

All in all, it took us 8 and 1/2 hours to get the baseplate installed and to do all of the wiring.  This included a trip from Somerset to New Richmond to buy a hole saw that would work with plastic (we didn't want to chance breaking the tail light assembly with a wood hole saw).  All I can say is that without my very talented helper, Kevin, I wouldn't have been able to come anywhere close to finishing this project by myself.  Of course, I haven't had time to connect the Saturn to the motorhome yet to see if it all works.;D  That will come later but I have a lot of confidence that everything will be just fine. 

So, is this something you think is definitely within the capabilities of the average do-it-yourselfer?  I don't think so, but you be the judge. :-\

 

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I have installed two different Roadmaster Base plates on two different make vehicles and I would consider it an easy task that most anybody with basic knowledge using tools and reading instructions could accomplish easily.  However, I have NO experience with Blu Ox baseplates. However, I was told that it cost more to have them installed but that could just be one persons opinion.
 
I think that it is dependent on the specific vehicle and base plate combination.  I'm sure that some are alot easier or harder than others.

In my case (2002 Honda Civic) I decided to have my RV dealer install the base plate after I read what was involved.
 
KodiakRV said:
I think that it is dependent on the specific vehicle and base plate combination.  I'm sure that some are alot easier or harder than others.

In my case (2002 Honda Civic) I decided to have my RV dealer install the base plate after I read what was involved.

That is a good plan read the instructions then decide if the task is something one wants to do.
 
I have installed base plates on a couple of vehicles myself on our truck-like SUVs but our new Acadia looked like a formidable job so I had a hitch shop handle it. It was nearly an all day job for one guy. The entire front fascia had to be removed, though that probably wasn't all that difficult if you had any experience at that sort of thing. For somebody doing the job one time, it may take longer to figure out how to do each step and find where the fasteners are than to actually do it. And of course you have to have decent tools.

Blue Ox base plates have the cross bar behind the fascia, so it is more likely to have to remove everything than with a Roadmaster, which can sometimes be slipped into place without dismantling too much. But only some times. Usually the base plate fit guide also has an indicator of how difficult the job is, something like a rating of 1-4 for degree of difficulty.
 
Usually the base plate fit guide also has an indicator of how difficult the job is, something like a rating of 1-4 for degree of difficulty.

You're right, this one was rated 3 out of 4 by Blue Ox.  I pity the guy who has to do one rated 4 out of 4!  :(

 
Thanks for the report and the photos. Sounds like this was a bit of a project and a reason to not recommend Blue Ox. Gary makes a good point about knowing where the fasteners are and having the right tools. I wished I had a removal tool for the "Christmas tree" fasteners, which I now have, but didn't when I did the job.

My article talked about a specific make/model of tow bar/base plate and a specific vehicle and my "within the capabilities of the average do-it-yourselfer" was in the context of my project. I have no knowledge or experience with a different brand of tow bar or a different vehicle, and consciously don't offer any advice on the installation of other brands or vehicles. The article contains the following caveat, added recently at the suggestion of a forum member:

"One caveat - since base plates and installation procedures vary between base plate manufacturers, vehicle makes and models, and even between model years, the reader should follow the manufacturer's installation instructions for their specific base plate and their towed vehicle."
 
Sounds like this was a bit of a project and a reason to not recommend Blue Ox.

Not entirely true.  Everything I've seen from Blue Ox (hardware wise) is top notch stuff.  It should be, it's pretty expensive too!  I just wish they would invest in a good digital camera and/or a good photographer to take the pictures they publish in their installation instructions.  There's really no excuse to publish photographs ths inferior (unless they're trying to drum up more business for the retail places that peddle their stuff.)  :eek:

 
I'm not questioning the quality of Blue Ox products; Everything I've read from other forum members has been very positive. I'm surprised that you went ahead with the self-install given your prior comment:

I downloaded the baseplate installation instructions from Blue Ox and the pictures in it are about as clear as mud!
 
Well, I have a Blue Ox tow bar (Aventa II), a Blue Ox Braking System (Apollo), a Blue Ox Bulb and Socket Tail Light Wiring Kit, and a Blue Ox electrical cable, so doesn't it follow that I should get a Blue Ox baseplate?  ;D  And Pender, NE is pretty much on my way to Arizona, so why not make one stop if any one (or more) of the 5 needs to be repaired?  I hear they stand behind their products too, and that is important.

The article contains the following caveat, added recently at the suggestion of a forum member:

"One caveat - since base plates and installation procedures vary between base plate manufacturers, vehicle makes and models, and even between model years, the reader should follow the manufacturer's installation instructions for their specific base plate and their towed vehicle."

Don't worry Tom, I'm not going to send you a bill for the installation of my baseplate.  And I'm not going to sue the RV Forum.  ;D ;D

 
I'm not in the least worried Rolf, because you already told us that my article wasn't helpful before you started your project  ;)  We also have caveats in our forum rules and elsewhere about forum content.

Having seen Blue Ox products up close (on other folks' coaches/toads), I would be giving them serious consideration if/when we were ready to change. But, having read your report, I might not attempt to install one of their baseplates myself  ;D
 
I'm not in the least worried Rolf, because you already told us that my article wasn't helpful before you started your project 

Yeah, but your pictures were very nice!  :D

 
LOL Rolf, thanks. What you previously said about my pictures was:

The ones you took were nice pictures but were missing a few things like before and after pictures.

A true statement and I sure wished I'd taken photos before starting. I changed my photo habits on subsequent projects. Hopefully others here will take the time to snap before, during and after photos when they work on a project that might be informative to share with other members.
 
Well, you know what they always say, "All's well that ends well."  Thats how I feel about my baseplate installation. 

And I've got a few more projects up my sleeve before winter.  Yikes, is it that close to winter already?  One thing is an awning fabric and torsion spring assembly replacement and another is the installation of a backup camera.  I don't know if I'm up to either one of those projects either, but hey, maybe I can get lucky and recruit another expert helper!  You don't have anything in the Library to help me with either of these two projects do you Tom?

 
rsalhus said:
You don't have anything in the Library to help me with either of these two projects do you Tom?

You could try searching the library and searching the message boards. Just remember that, to search the message boards, you need to use the Advanced search link above. The library search tool is visible if you click the Library button above.
 
I have factory-issue tensioning instructions for most A&E and Carefree awnings and can send the pdf file for whichever you need. I don't recall if they are in the forum library - they are owned by the manufacturer and may be copyrighted, even though they freely distribute them to users.
 
Gary,

You already sent me a copy of The A&E Awning Replacement Instructions PDF (BTW it's an A&E Model 8500 Awning), unless you're referring to something else.  That was a few months ago, so you can see how I can drag a project out..... :p

But I've got a different towing question for you, I think you mentioned that you have to remove the BATT1 fuse and have the ignition switch turned to Accessory in your toad when towing it.  And I believe you said that doing that still ran the battery down even though the manual said that was all that was needed.  Well, I've got the same instructions in my 2007 Saturn ION, so I'm wondering if I'm going to have the same problems you had, that is, battery rundown even after removing the BATT1 fuse?

 
I've got a correction and an update to my previous post.  The towing instructions for my 2007 Saturn ION say to remove the BATT2 fuse (not the BATT1 fuse as stated in my previous post) to prevent battery rundown on long trips.  The trouble is, removing the 40 AMP BATT2 fuse (fuse #41) disables the two 12V power outlets needed by my Blue Ox Apollo Braking System.  Not only that, but it also disables the ION's brake lights, radio and clock, wipers, ignition key buzzer, odometer light, dome light, ignition (you can't start the car with this fuse removed), and more that I haven't discovered yet. 

So it looks like I'll have to leave the BATT2 fuse in to use the Apollo Braking System and remote monitor.  I wonder how long the ION battery will last when being towed in that configuration?



 
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