Kansai Service Tow Hook
Sep 16, 2010, 01:17 PM
#1
Newbie
Thread Starter
Kansai Service Tow Hook
Hey guys,
As part of my goal to get more integrated into this community, I figured I'd tell you about my experience with the Kansai Service Tow Hook. So far, tow hooks have been mostly for show or you've had to buy the JDM crash beam and a few other parts to make it work. I decided to take an entirely different approach to the tow hook idea and ended up with this...
Look pretty good, right? And it's not just aesthetic, it's fully functional. I planned this out over about a week after receiving the tow hook. I got it through DSGPerformance who are based out of Canada. Really great guys, and really good at getting rare parts, too.
Anyway, the tow hook comes like this...
Essentially, the orange hook is attached to a stainless steel thread which screws into the black seat or anchor. The anchor would then be screwed into the JDM crash beam to give it a secure hold. I didn't want to pay $400 for the JDM beam so I took mine off and drilled a hole through it using a vertical drill press. This made a nice, clean hole straight through the crash beam, even though the part where the hook goes is on a slight curve. I then flattened out the back side with a blow torch and hammer (like a blacksmith!) so that the anchor would sit flat against it.
Now, at this point I could've threaded the rear hole and made the tow hook and aesthetic part only, but I didn't want that. The front of the Evo doesn't have any good tow points and I'm dropped so low that it's difficult to get under the front anyway. My solution? TIG weld a stainless steal lock nut to the back of the crash beam and thread the anchor into that. This is no different than how the actual JDM crash beam works. In fact, we hooked our tractor up to the car and pulled it a little to make sure it would work.
Great success!
Anyway, the proper bit and lock nut were all I had to buy, and that came out to about $11.00. Much cheaper, and more satisfying, than buying an all new crash beam and modifying it to fit the USDM cars, especially if you have any large, aftermarket FMIC.
Sorry, I didn't take pictures as I went through the process because I wasn't sure if it was going to work. But I just wanted to show you guys the great tow hook (it's truly beautiful), and tell you the story behind it.
If this is the wrong section, Mods, I apologize. But I think this counts as a review/introduction to a great tow hook.
As part of my goal to get more integrated into this community, I figured I'd tell you about my experience with the Kansai Service Tow Hook. So far, tow hooks have been mostly for show or you've had to buy the JDM crash beam and a few other parts to make it work. I decided to take an entirely different approach to the tow hook idea and ended up with this...
Look pretty good, right? And it's not just aesthetic, it's fully functional. I planned this out over about a week after receiving the tow hook. I got it through DSGPerformance who are based out of Canada. Really great guys, and really good at getting rare parts, too.
Anyway, the tow hook comes like this...
Essentially, the orange hook is attached to a stainless steel thread which screws into the black seat or anchor. The anchor would then be screwed into the JDM crash beam to give it a secure hold. I didn't want to pay $400 for the JDM beam so I took mine off and drilled a hole through it using a vertical drill press. This made a nice, clean hole straight through the crash beam, even though the part where the hook goes is on a slight curve. I then flattened out the back side with a blow torch and hammer (like a blacksmith!) so that the anchor would sit flat against it.
Now, at this point I could've threaded the rear hole and made the tow hook and aesthetic part only, but I didn't want that. The front of the Evo doesn't have any good tow points and I'm dropped so low that it's difficult to get under the front anyway. My solution? TIG weld a stainless steal lock nut to the back of the crash beam and thread the anchor into that. This is no different than how the actual JDM crash beam works. In fact, we hooked our tractor up to the car and pulled it a little to make sure it would work.
Great success!
Anyway, the proper bit and lock nut were all I had to buy, and that came out to about $11.00. Much cheaper, and more satisfying, than buying an all new crash beam and modifying it to fit the USDM cars, especially if you have any large, aftermarket FMIC.
Sorry, I didn't take pictures as I went through the process because I wasn't sure if it was going to work. But I just wanted to show you guys the great tow hook (it's truly beautiful), and tell you the story behind it.
If this is the wrong section, Mods, I apologize. But I think this counts as a review/introduction to a great tow hook.
Sep 16, 2010, 05:19 PM
#3
Newbie
Thread Starter
No problem, man. That's why I posted this up. I want people to now there are other options out there. Just make sure you TIG weld because it's steel onto aluminum.
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