When gearing up to head out for your next HPDE weekend with NASA, you will probably remember to bring sunscreen, snacks, some blue masking tape for those 10” tall numbers and a Snell-rated helmet. But, do you have a tow hook? This is where some folks will say to me, “Rob, you dumb racecar driver, a tow hook isn’t required in HPDE. I’ve read the rules and I have even seen the tech sheet. Tow hooks are not required.” I won’t argue with you, a tow hook is not required, but I assure you it is a good idea.

The Rennline front tow hook comes unassembled, however it is not a complicated assembly process. Anyone who can handle a Lego set with the age range 3-4 and up can handle this project.

When the tow truck shows up to drag you off the track because you forgot to add gas before the last session, the tow driver will connect that cable to anything they can as quickly as possible. I’m not trying to be disparaging to tow truck drivers, their job is to get you off track quickly — because you are holding up everybody else’s run group that they paid good money for. A tow truck driver’s job is not to ensure they don’t scratch your prized possession dream car. They just want to hook and go, which means that tow cable might be attached to something that might not hold. There is no time for discussion as to “the best place to connect” to your favorite car. To avoid this conflict and possible vehicle damage just add a tow hook and you’re set.

All cars sold in the European Union are required to have tow hook access, which makes adding a tow hook for HPDE extremely simple. Behind the small circle is an access point for the OEM tow hook.

“But Rob, you dumb racecar driver, I’ve never needed to be towed off the track. My brand-new street car is well maintained, unlike your vintage beater door-to-door heap of trash you put on the track.” I accept that criticism, however, I will tell you there are two types of drivers at the race track. Those who have been towed off the track, and those who are going to be towed off the track. It is just a matter of time. You can tempt fate, but when your front bumper cover is accidentally ripped off by a tow truck all I will say is, “Hmmm, never saw that coming.” This can all be solved pretty simply, especially if your car is from Europe.

Tucked in the frunk of my Porsche 718 Cayman GTS is an OEM tow hook that threads into the front bumper or rear bumper depending on how I got the Porsche stuck in a ditch.

Cars built to be sold in the United States have rules and regulations that detail how they are designed, called the Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards. There is no FMVSS requirement for a tow hook. However, Europe has similar rules and the European Union’s Commission Regulation EU No 1005/2010 requires that all motor vehicles have a towing device at the front, and vehicles in category M1 must also have one at the rear. The towing device must be able to withstand a static force that’s at least half the vehicle’s maximum laden mass. What that means is if you have a vehicle made in Europe adding a tow hood is extremely simple.

Using a trim tool to protect the paint, the cover for the front bumper tow hook access is easily popped out.

Without spending a dime you can install a tow hook in your car during your next HPDE weekend by threading in the OEM tow hook that came with the car into the front bumper. All you need to do is refer to your owner’s manual and figure out where the tow hook is stored, grab it and thread it in. The one caveat to the install is that European tow hooks are reverse thread. You will need to rotate it counterclockwise to get the threads to catch, which is quite counterintuitive.

I learned the hard way these European tow hook threads are reverse thread. I have no idea why. I spun the thing into the bumper for a half an hour before I realized I couldn’t catch a thread because the threads are backward, lefty tighty and righty loosey. Crazy Europeans!

I chose to upgrade my OEM tow hook with a nice piece from Rennline. Their kit is specifically designed for the Porsche 718 Cayman, which means it protrudes through the front bumper at the exact length to go beyond the bumper cover. It is also rated to work as designed and not break when being used by a tow truck.

To install the multipiece Rennline front tow hook, we first tightened the portion that threaded into to the front bumper — reverse threads.

Since we are talking about HPDE, it is okay to have a tow hook that protrudes from the front of your bumper since there won’t be any bump-drafting. If there is bump-drafting, congratulations, that was your last HPDE session ever. My road race car has a front tow strap that we tucked under the bumper to allow us to use the chrome horn. But that extra precaution is not necessary for HPDE. An aftermarket or OEM tow hook that sticks out of the front will suffice for the tow drivers to see it easily, connect quickly and get you out of harm’s way.

Once the inner portion of the tow hook assembly was threaded into the front bumper, then I was able to thread in the eyelet portion of the tow hook. The Allen head screw will lock the eyelet in at the correct orientation.

The Rennline tow hook was extremely easy to install and fit perfect on my Porsche. The front eyelet remains in the down position and has a rubber backing to ensure it doesn’t harm the vehicle’s paint. The eyelet can easily be rotated upward by the tow operator to connect a tow cable.

The hardest part of the tow hook installation was getting the red “tow” sticker placed at the exact correct position on the tow hook so the engraved portion that said “tow” on the eyelet matched with the sticker. Rennline was kind enough to send me an additional sticker after I buggered up the first application attempt.

For the rear of my Porsche the installation of a tow hook is slightly more complicated. The tow hook access is behind the license plate, which meant it can’t be permanently installed. You must have that license plate as you drive to the track or Johnny Law will pull you over. But it is only two screws to remove the license plate at the track, which is very simple. Then the rear tow strap simple threads into the bumper. I just keep the rear tow hook in my gear bag with my helmet.

I chose a strap version of the Rennline tow hook for the rear of my Porsche. The rear bumper access hole for the tow hook threads are hidden behind the license plate.

My recommendation is to add a set of tow hooks. They are extremely easy to install on European vehicles. It is better to have it and not need it than to need it and not have it. Plus, when you go to cars and coffee, you can stand around and brag about the time you went sub 2 minutes at Buttonwillow. And since your car has a tow hook, people will have to believe you.

Stickers and a tow hook add at least 50 horsepower at every cars and coffee.

Rob Krider is a four-time NASA Honda Challenge 4 National Champion, the author of the novel, “Cadet Blues,” and  host of the “Stories and Cocktails” podcast.

 

Image courtesy of Rob Krider

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