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Ordered 2020 Rubicon Today - Tow Baseplate Setup

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Gizmo

RVF VIP
Joined
Nov 19, 2019
Messages
484
Location
Kansas
RV Year
2017
RV Make
Newmar
RV Model
Ventana LE
RV Length
40
TOW/TOAD
2020 Jeep Rubicon
We put a Blue Ox baseplate on our 2017 Sahara but thinking about put Roadmaster on the Rubicon. I think little cleaner installs and few bucks less for the baseplate. Here a pic of an install that I found on youtube. You can see there no crossbar showing which makes clean and doesn't affect the approach angle.

1578963789976.png


 
Whatever tow bar you get make sure it is long enough to accommodate the wheel cut angle of the coach. This is a big deal with the 60 degree wheel cut in the New Aire. See this post.

 
Whatever tow bar you get make sure it is long enough to accommodate the wheel cut angle of the coach. This is a big deal with the 60 degree wheel cut in the New Aire. See this post.


I have a Ventana LE so that shouldn't be a problem. I have the BlueOX Avail 10,000 pound bar and had to by new clevis to hook it to the Roadmaster baseplate.
 
I have a Ventana LE so that shouldn't be a problem. I have the BlueOX Avail 10,000 pound bar and had to by new clevis to hook it to the Roadmaster baseplate.

Probably a good idea for everyone to find a big parking lot and may a slow tight 360 turn with the TOAD attached just to make sure.
 
The roadmaster nighthawk is a great towbar and it lights up at night (coach lights on) making it easier to unhook. I have the baseplate as well. I bought an extra set of brackets and had a buddy of mine weld the front tow hooks on.

7F3BC394-08E5-4EF9-911E-A981666F9B11.jpeg
 
The concern I have with Roadmaster is there no bar between the left and right tow bar hookups. Seems to me there would be an outboard and inboard stress generated on the frame connections that would cause those connections to flex the frame. I have zero engineering experience just trying to use common sense. The only reason I even brought this up was a friend had a Jeep Cherokee that had the same type of connection and found frame cracks after about 20,000 miles towing. It was a BlueOx tow bar the BlueOx solutions was replacing the tow bar with one with the bar between the left and right connections.
 
Here is what I’m going with, their bumpers are mounted with 4 bolts on each side that sandwich the bumper to the factory frame bumper holes. The tow brackets use 2 of the 4 bumper bolt holes and can be installed in the top or bottom holes. The pull will be directly to the frame not a pull from a lever 6 to 8 inches below. Don’t get me wrong, the blue ox set up on my 2017 JK worked great. I just didn’t want it hanging down below the bumper for off road driving this time.
 
The link says 2007- to 2015 but it’s the same mounting
I should also point out that the aluminum version I went with is 1/4 thick and weighs under 40 pounds (looks the same as bumper in pictured in link)
 
Roadmaster Nighthawk Towbar here. Love it. Zero issues so far.
 
Roadmaster Nighthawk Towbar here. Love it. Zero issues so far.

If I was in the market for a new towbar I agree. Lights are cool but the cable management is impressive. I have a BlueOx Avail and works.
 

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