[13BT]

hi boys and girls,

Just picked up a 95 LWB vitara and cant seem to find any underbody hooks for winching/snatching from. There are only closed loops that would require the use of shackles for snatching. Is this normal?

Has anyone found a place to attach proper recovery hooks?

[tanshi]

the loops are standard, and i wouldnt recomend using them for snatching/recovery.

[royce]

the front on on a vit is OK for recovery, the rear is a bit suss bit ive never really looked at how to improve it

[13BT]

well thats a bummer! what am I supposed to attach to then? What are you guys using?

[royce]

most people use a towbar on the rear, whether with a recovery insert or where the ball bolts on

[suzukikid]

Dont snatch off the actuall ball though!

[royce]

dont start that argument till you go research the australian standards for a tow ball, the breaking strain of your average snatch strap, the breaking strain of the bolts holding it on and the speed required to create enough momentum to exceed this

[suzukikid]

Nah not talking about the ball breaking i have seen them slip off the ball when coming back for the second go and smashing a window!

[royce]

bwahahaha how funny would that be

[suzukikid]

Was funny as!

If it was my car i wouldn't think it was funny but the force that it went through the window was amazing!

Probably lucky no one was hurt when i look back at it and it happened so quick no one could really do anything except see what had happend in about .1 of a second!

[sp1086]

One word.... Damper!

Anyway yer the recovery point on the rear Id only use for a slight pull or towing.. The front one is stronger but you should be using shackels which ever way you go. (Load Rated) Shackels should be a standard part of any 4WD recovery kit.

[magnat]

3.5 tonne Shackles are the Average in a Recovery kit...
Just never sure how to actually use them lol///

[13BT]

thats a ton of info guys, well done.

I was never sure about the towball thing. I just heard they snap off sometimes. Yet they look so strong.

I bought a hefty looking shackle from a hardware shop. It looks a lot beefier than the load rated ones in my recovery kit. Except this one isnt load rated. Anyone here using unrated shackles and getting away with it?

[sp1086]

The one you got from the hardware shop shouldn't be used on a vehicle for recoverys. It may look stronger but the ones you get with a recovery kit are load rated and are stronger and safe to use on your vehicle.

[royce]

get a picture of it and measure the pin size, I'll tell you its rating (lots of shackles dont have markings yet are rated)

but yes for the few dollars they cost, stamped bow shackles are the way to go

[crikeymike]

A rated shackle isn't worth a crap unless it's stamped onto itself.

Tow ball + snatch strap = dumb move

I've used the front and rear factory points on mine plenty of times. The rear has started to move a bit after being winched off it a few times, but they do hold very well. I don't expect them to last forever. Your best bet would be to incorporate tow points into some new front and rear bumpers, or you could mount a receiver style hitch on the back, and put the strap into the square hole with the pin thru it.