As I purchased a basic X 2 door model with only the LSD and air conditioning as options, (off of the dealer lot... no waiting) I was needing to install some recovery points for my new Jk. The Mopar reciever hitch and wiring harness were a no brainer, and I might have had a half hour getting that install out of the way (with a reciever tow hook on its way from Quadratec), but the front tow hooks turned out to be more of a challange.

With my limited budget, I figure that I'll replace the bumpers probably next year some time. But I know I need the front tow hooks as a just in case measure for any wheeling I plan on doing this year. So I got the Mopar set.

The instructions are pretty basic, but they do show the need for an electric saw such as an Saws-All. The instuctions only show the cutting of the 2X2 inch 'dimple' in the front bumper, so I figure I can do this with a hand saw, and a drill.

Well, it wasn't so easy.

What Mopar fails to mention is that a 4X6 inch hole must be cut out of the interior of the bumper to clear the mounting of the tow hook portion. This is quite a job by hand, as the plastic is like 3/16 of an inch thick and it is also in the L shaped area of the bumper. My hands are still cramping!

Here is my additional tool list for this project:

Saws-All... beg, barrow or steal... well don't steal it! A jig saw just won't work on the inside of the bumper.
18mm deep socket. You can use a shallow socket to remove the bumper nuts, but you will need a deep socket to reinstall them.
Files and/or rasps. Once the holes are cut you will want to clean up the cuts with the file to make them 'prettier'.

Also, I might recommend some additional fasteners for the grill, air dam and the frame hider thingy that mounts on the frame behind the bumper. These fasteners are quite cheesy, and the factory seemed to overtorque most of them making their extraction a pain and their distruction ensured. I did not reinstall the air dam at this time as it looks like in might anchor me in place if I get stuck and need to be recovered from the rear.

I hope this helps others thinking of doing this install that this time, a power tool is pretty much required, as the instructions are incomplete on this item.

 

Yet another write up that falls under the category of.....

 

I'm about to install mine this weekend, just got em today. Any more issues or tips I need to know about?

 

thanks for the info, I am going to install my set this weekend,
but...
Pictures, PLEASE

 

PICTURES PICTURES PICTURES. Somebody please post some.

 

The easiest way to make the cuts is to use a 2 1/2 inch roto zip cut wheel and a drill. I made all 4 cuts in less than 5 minutes and they are all factory clean.

As an added note to those that are just doing this. Do not cut the entire 2 inch square on the top of the bumper......only cut the back 1/3 of it out.

 

For those without a saws-all or a rotozip, a quality utility knife with a fresh blade works just fine especially for the exterior bumper wall cut. the dimple gives you nice clean lines to follow and i used a metal ruler to cut against as well. this is nice and clean with no filing afterwards to clean it up. the plastic is very thin. now for the thicker interior bumper wall cut, it can be done with the same utility knife with a little muscle and a sharp blade and several cuts, or you can simply heat up the plastic with a heat gun (use your wife's, girlfriend's, etc... hairdryer on the high setting if you don't have a heat gun) to get the plastic nice and warm (should be hot to the touch) and you will be able to cut through it like butter with the utility knife in a matter of minutes. this method is lighter on the wallet. if you have them or even if you don't i would definitely use a deep well socket with an extension bar. not necessarily needed but will make your life much easier.

 

rotozip is definately the way to go!! man that was easy....didn't take any pics, sorry, I was kinda in the moment and wanted to get it done.Start to finish it took about an hour, but about 15 minutes of that was taking the plastic air dam off and trying not to break any of those plastic clips. Thanks everyone.

 

So I've read over the post on how to remove the bumper and I'm thinking I'll know how the hooks will go on once I get it off, but some pictures or instructions on that last step would help and make me feel better when they're being tugged on.

 

This helped me ----> http://project-jk.com/jeep-jk-write-...ation-write-up

I wish I had taken pics, but trust me when you get the bumper off you'll see exactly how it needs to go back together. It's really straight forward, I was worried about how difficult it would be but it wasn't as bad as I thought.

Once you get the bumper off of the end of the frame rails, there's a metal "inner bumper" that attaches to the backside of the plastic bumper. There are 4 bolts holding that metal plate on that you have to remove. Once that is removed, there are 4 little brackets with studs that you can set to the side because the tow hooks will go in their place.

Then you have to do some cutting....a small hole on top of the bumper obviously so the hook can stick through, and you'll see on the under side of the bumper where you will need to cut out about a 4x6 inch section of plastic to clear the "shoulders" of the tow hook. Put the tow hooks in the place of the little brackets that you removed earlier, then re-attach the metal "inner bumper" plate , then re-attach the bumper to the end of the frame rails.

I know it sounds confusing now, but once you start taking it apart it will make sense and it won't seem as bad.

Tools that you will need to make life easier:
Sawz All or Roto Zip type saw (jigsaw will not work on the inside bumper cut)
Deep wall 18mm socket
15mm socket
basic screwdrivers

TIP: lay a towel on the ground under the bumper so the bumper does not sit directly on the driveway....it will scratch the bumper otherwise.