Flat Towing Jeep JL With After Market Bumper

[Jamdozer]

Hey guys, trying to find an answer to "Can I safely tow my Jeep JL with an after market bumper" ? I am getting mixed answer from the Jeep dealer, RV Dealer and multiple online sources. I would like to install an after market bumper and use the D-ring location, that are welded to the bumper, to install the tow bar. Having said that I have contacted a couple of after market bumper manufatures and can't get a yes or no answer. The Jeep dealer said it should be okay. RV dealer said after market bumpers are not built for for flat towing and I would need to install a "tow bar base plate" to safely flat tow my JL... I would prefer to replace the current factory bumper and know that I can safely flat tow my Jeep...HELP

 

[Onyrlef]

Hey guys, trying to find an answer to "Can I safely tow my Jeep JL with an after market bumper" ? I am getting mixed answer from the Jeep dealer, RV Dealer and multiple online sources. I would like to install an after market bumper and use the D-ring location, that are welded to the bumper, to install the tow bar. Having said that I have contacted a couple of after market bumper manufatures and can't get a yes or no answer. The Jeep dealer said it should be okay. RV dealer said after market bumpers are not built for for flat towing and I would need to install a "tow bar base plate" to safely flat tow my JL... I would prefer to replace the current factory bumper and know that I can safely flat tow my Jeep...HELP

"Should be okay", really? What does the aftermarket bumper mfg'er say? There's no one on here qualified to answer that.

 

[mnc]

you can definitely buy an aftermarket bumper that can be used to flat tow. Rock Hard , Smittybuilt are a couple of companies that make them

 

[Isaac-1]

It depends, we had a member over at IRV2 that had some of those D rings shear off on an aftermarket bumper that was supposedly tow rated last year. As I recall at some point the bumper manufacturer stopped putting reinforcement plates behind the D-rings, likely to make the bumper cheaper to build, and the owner in question had one of these new and encheapend bumpers.

 

[Jamdozer]

"Should be okay", really? What does the aftermarket bumper mfg'er say? There's no one on here qualified to answer that.

As per manufacture(s), to remain unnamed: They would not recommend attaching tow bar directly to the bumper as they cannot verify installation. Yea wtf… I responded that I wanted to know if the bumper was strong enough to attach the tow bar if installed by a certified dealer. Again manufacturer responded that they could not verify installation…So I am not buying another product from these guys…

 

[Alan_Hepburn]

We tow a 2020 Gladiator with a Rugged Ridge Spartan bumper - the tow bar attachments are bolted to the frame after removing the D-ring attachments, which are bolted, rather than welded. So, the bumper does not do any heave work: it is merely a piece of metal that is placed between the tow bar attachment and the frame. I think any bumper that uses bolted-on D-rings rather than welded-on should work.

 

[Jamdozer]

We tow a 2020 Gladiator with a Rugged Ridge Spartan bumper - the tow bar attachments are bolted to the frame after removing the D-ring attachments, which are bolted, rather than welded. So, the bumper does not do any heave work: it is merely a piece of metal that is placed between the tow bar attachment and the frame. I think any bumper that uses bolted-on D-rings rather than welded-on should work.

Thanks for the info... Is there anyway you can post or dm me a pic of your setup?
Thanks again...

 

[Onyrlef]

As per manufacture(s), to remain unnamed: They would not recommend attaching tow bar directly to the bumper as they cannot verify installation. Yea wtf… I responded that I wanted to know if the bumper was strong enough to attach the tow bar if installed by a certified dealer. Again manufacturer responded that they could not verify installation…So I am not buying another product from these guys…

Sounds to me like they just don’t want to say “no, it’s not”. I would assume it’s not.

 

[Ray-IN]

Lawyers run companies these days. Saying yes is not in their vocabulary.

 

[Old_Crow]

A lot of those aftermarket bumpers have the tow points just welded to the outside of the bumper. You'd want one where they actually cut a hole in the bumper, insert the tow point and weld it on both the front and back sides of the bumper.
For my TJ I use an old-fashioned solid tow bar with the mounts bolted to the stock bumper and also a 1/4' steel backer plate behind the bumper. Towed it for 6 years like that with no problem.

 

[Ernie n Tara]

I used the D rings to tow three different Jeeps on two different motor homes with adter market bumpers. No problems with any of the hook ups. Last Jeep is a Gladiator. Hook the safety cables to a different point.

Ernie

 

[John From Detroit]

I can not answer your stated question but I might be able to provide a path.
First The reason you get different answers is it depnds on the bumper.
Some are more "Orinmental" and some are more Functional
Read that some are designed to 'bump' With and some are strong enough and properly attached.

Others are not.
So. ask the BUMPER maker "If I use your bumper as the hitch point for my tow bars.. and it fails.. You you pay for the repairs.
NOTE: Blue ox. if THey decide their tow bar failed WILL pay for repairs.
(When mine "Failed" (note the quotes) it was NOT the fault of the tow bar or Blue ox.. it was something else entirely.. Thus they did not pay... They did. however, replace the tow bar (No cost) And that's even after i told them I was 100% sure it was not a failure of the tow bar.. I know exactly what happened and what broke the tow bar.... And told them.. Took them a month to agree with me. )

 

[NMJEEP]

From the lawyers the answer is no. I have been flat towing jeeps for over 25 years with bumper mounted tow bars. It all depends on the bumper. A real bumper fully welded with "D" ring mounts. The amount of force required to excavate a jeep stuck to the axles in mud is far greater then what is applied when towing. But again the answer is NO.

 

[Jamdozer]

After spending much of the morning calling multiple suppliers, 4X4 shops, bumper manufactures and waiting on hold for quite some time I finally received an answer to “Which bumpers are “Tow Rated”. There are only a few (3) manufacturers that list their bumpers as “Flat Tow Rated”. I contacted Extreme Terrain Off-Road Outfitters, and they made several calls while I was on the phone with them to verify that the bumper, I wanted was tow rated. Well, it was not but they were able to find several in their inventory that were. I purchased a Rough Country Full Width Bumper P/N JG 5490. This bumper is considerably less than other manufacturers tow rated bumpers. Hats off to Extreme Terrain Off-Road Outfitters customers service…

Now on to securing a tow bar, braking system and wiring…

Thanks to all for you input…

 

[Alan_Hepburn]

Thanks for the info... Is there anyway you can post or dm me a pic of your setup?
Thanks again...

Here is a photo of what it initially looked like - I have since swapped the positions of the Blue Ox clevices and the ring bolts (used to attach the safety cables). The Rugged Ridge Spartan bumper is one of the few available that have the D-ring attachments bolted through the bumper rather than welded on to the bumper.

 

[NMJEEP]

On my current Jeep (JK) that is lifted 3 inches I tried using my tow bar connected to the bumper but it sat so high that in order to get the tow bar level I had to use a 6 inch riser and a tall ball on the RV. Just seemed hokey. I was able to modify the bumper and install tow bar plate to the frame under the bumper. Uses the quick dis-connect tow attach lugs. Works really well.

 

[HueyPilotVN]

I also use a Blue Ox base plate with removable connectors installed under my front bumper that was custom built for me by a friend.

 

[HueyPilotVN]

This is the back bumper done by the same friend.

 

[garyb1st]

Have one on our 2016 Jeep JKU since new. Have driven mover than 35,000 miles with no issues. Jeep maxes out at just under 5,000 lbs.