Front tow hook for 2-Eleven

[Noah Vail]

Does Lotus make a front tow hook for the 2-Eleven? According to the Lotus parts brochure, the front and rear "recovery eyes" are designed for emergency recovery operations and may damage the vehicle if used for towing. I'm having difficulty grasping the concept of a tow hook that can't be used for towing.

I need a hook for the front of my 2-Eleven to which I can attach a cable and winch the car into my trailer.

[sleepe]

Attach the cable normally, but be sure the load bearing tow cable is pulled parallel to the cars tow hook.

Do not pull the tow hook from an angle.

-Robert

[Noah Vail]

Thanks. I received the following from Lotus UK clarifying use of the recovery eye:

"You can use the towing eye to get it on to a trailer. The constant tension will be fine, but towing could cause jerking instead which makes the eye unsuitable for that purpose."

[Jack]

Originally Posted by Noah Vail

Thanks. I received the following from Lotus UK clarifying use of the recovery eye:

"You can use the towing eye to get it on to a trailer. The constant tension will be fine, but towing could cause jerking instead which makes the eye unsuitable for that purpose."

I think that you might get some "jerking" when you try to get the car off the trailer using the winch to retard it's rapid deployment.

[Noah Vail]

I decided to go with the Sector 111 tow hook. Shinoo says installation is simple, it just screws in; it costs quite a bit less than the Lotus hook; and it shouldn't be affected by jerking.

[Jack]

Originally Posted by Noah Vail

I decided to go with the Sector 111 tow hook. Shinoo says installation is simple, it just screws in; it costs quite a bit less than the Lotus hook; and it shouldn't be affected by jerking.

Should work for towing the car from the rear -- attaches to the main bolts for the service panel. If you referring to the Sector 111 front tow hook, it won't work...there is no front brace/ chassis support (that's what you get from Lotus in addition to the actual "hook") into which you screw the tow hook. See post #8 for a photo.

[TonyWoo]

Originally Posted by Noah Vail

Does Lotus make a front tow hook for the 2-Eleven? According to the Lotus parts brochure, the front and rear "recovery eyes" are designed for emergency recovery operations and may damage the vehicle if used for towing. I'm having difficulty grasping the concept of a tow hook that can't be used for towing.

I need a hook for the front of my 2-Eleven to which I can attach a cable and winch the car into my trailer.

Our team both race 2-Eleven use factory Exige tow mounting with custom front & rear tow hook.

TW

[Jack]

Originally Posted by TonyWoo

Our team both race 2-Eleven use factory Exige tow mounting with custom front & rear tow hook.

TW

Yes, here is a photo of the "recovery eyes" Lotus Sport offers for the 2-11.... the car should have at least come stock with the front recovery/tow hook setup, imho.

[simonwg905]

I have a launch edition 2-11 & I was told to tow the car via the over head antiroll bar!!!!!!!hahahaha

[Noah Vail]

I spoke with Shinoo this morning and he said that at least one 2-Eleven was delivered with the same front tow mount as the Exige. The Sector 111 tow hook screwed right in. I'm hoping mine comes the same way.

[Jack]

Originally Posted by Noah Vail

I spoke with Shinoo this morning and he said that at least one 2-Eleven was delivered with the same front tow mount as the Exige. The Sector 111 tow hook screwed right in. I'm hoping mine comes the same way.

Don't bet on it...none that I've seen come with the proper setup.

[Noah Vail]

I just got an update from Shinoo. The 2-Eleven he referred to apparently had an optional factory installed mount for the tow hook. Why a tow hook is considered optional on a track car is a mystery.

Bottom line: Don't mess with Jack. He knows what he's talking about.

[Jack]

Originally Posted by Noah Vail

I just got an update from Shinoo. The 2-Eleven he referred to apparently had an optional factory installed mount for the tow hook. Why a tow hook is considered optional on a track car is a mystery.

Bottom line: Don't mess with Jack. He knows what he's talking about.

Norm,

You may luck out....just saw a pic of another recently delivered 2Eleven and it had the proper provision for a front tow hook.

[Noah Vail]

Jack,

That would be sweet. The pieces are finally falling into place; last week I found the trailer and yesterday Rambo here. All that's missing is... the 2-Eleven. It's supposed to arrive tomorrow. Sure hope so; I'd love to start breaking it in at BW on the 24th.

[Alphonse]

Nothing wrong with using the roll bar. That's sop with the Formula Fords we race. The tow hook would be nice for getting the car onto or off of a trailer tho.
Just add this slight faux-pas to the rest of the items that should have been considered but were left off.
Good luck N-V. I truly feel your pain.
Out of curiosity, what kind of trailer did you go for? I have an 03 Dodge Ram and am looking for a trailer for towing the race car.
Al B.

[Mr. Oz]

Originally Posted by Jack

Norm,

You may luck out....just saw a pic of another recently delivered 2Eleven and it had the proper provision for a front tow hook.

That was my car. Just picked it up last saturday and it came with tow hooks already installed. Here are a couple of pics.

[Mr. Know]

[Noah Vail]

Is that a license plate????!!!!!

[Noah Vail]

Originally Posted by Alphonse

Out of curiosity, what kind of trailer did you go for? I have an 03 Dodge Ram and am looking for a trailer for towing the race car.
Al B.

I wanted an enclosed trailer but don't like pulling them so I bought the smallest I could get away with. It's 7' wide, 17' long, all-aluminum V-Nose made by Legend Manufacturing; it's similar to a Featherlite. I found it on craigslist. The widest part of the 2-Eleven clears the trailer's rear opening by 1" on a side so I bought a 55 gallon drum of KY and am installing a winch and wheel guides to prevent the car from wandering.

The trailer is at the shop being outfitted and I don't have any photos so these are from Legend's website. Mine is identical on the outside sans awning and a/c but not as fancy on the inside, no diamond plate on floor or walls.

[Patricko]

That looks like a very nice trailer. How much does it weigh?