How to tow a car without tow hooks

A car without external tow hooks almost always has a threaded recovery eye stored in the trunk that screws into a hidden socket behind a removable bumper plug. That eye is the right pull point. If you cannot find it, the safest method is a flatbed wrecker, full stop. A tow dolly works for front-wheel-drive cars under the dolly’s weight rating without needing any tow point on the car. Hooking a strap to suspension components, plastic bumpers, or random sheet metal will damage the car and can release under load.

Most passenger cars since the mid-1990s shipped with a removable recovery eye instead of fixed tow hooks. People do not know about it and assume there is no rated point.

Find the hidden recovery eye first

Open the trunk, lift the spare-tire cover, and look in the foam tool tray. You should find:

• A threaded steel eye, maybe 4 to 6 in long, with a hex on one end.
• The same tools that release the spare tire.

Now look at the bumpers, front and rear. Most cars have a small plastic plug (round or rectangular, often 1 to 2 in across) on the driver’s side of the bumper cover. Some are on the passenger side. Pop the plug out with a flat screwdriver or your fingernail. Behind it is a threaded socket that runs into the car’s frame or subframe.

Screw the eye in clockwise until snug, then use the lug-wrench bar or a similar lever in the eye’s hole to tighten it firmly. That is the rated recovery point for front (or rear, depending which plug you opened). It will handle the car’s weight in a recovery pull.

If your car is from a manufacturer that does not include the eye (some older economy cars, some EVs), the owner’s manual lists the recovery procedure. Often you can buy the correct eye for $15 to $40 from the dealer parts department.

When there is genuinely no recovery point

A handful of older cars, some kit-built vehicles, and some custom builds have no rated recovery point. For these, the options are:

The flatbed is the universal answer. It does not need any pull point on the car, the wrecker uses a winch and wheel cradles.

Identifying real frame points

If you have to attach a strap somewhere because you are stuck and need a short pull, look for steel that is welded to the unibody, not plastic and not suspension:

Acceptable in an emergency:

• The horizontal subframe crossmember at the front. On unibody cars, this is a steel beam running across the car ahead of the engine, behind the bumper cover.
• A leaf-spring shackle bolt on a truck.
• A rear differential housing on a solid-axle vehicle (not the cover, the cast iron housing itself).
• The receiver tube of an installed hitch.

Not acceptable, ever:

• Bumper covers or chrome bumpers (cosmetic, will bend or rip off).
• Lower control arms, sway bars, tie rods, ball joints, steering rack. These bend.
• Sheet metal floor pans, fender liners.
• The car’s body sheet metal in general.
• The trailer hitch ball if installed. The ball is for vertical tongue load.

The reason people destroy cars towing is almost always the wrong attachment point.

Method-by-method for cars without hooks

Flatbed: Call a flatbed wrecker. The truck winches your car onto the bed using wheel straps or a strap around the front wheels. No need for a tow point at all. This is the only safe option for AWD cars, EVs that cannot freewheel, and any car you do not own.

Tow dolly (FWD only): The dolly captures the front wheels with platform straps. No hookup to the car body required. Pull the recovery eye out before loading just in case, but for normal dolly towing it is not used. Strap both front tires to the dolly platform, connect the dolly’s safety chains around the car’s lower control arms or the subframe (the dolly’s chains are typically rated for this and are short enough to limit fall distance).

Car-hauler trailer: The car drives onto a deck. Wheel straps secure the car to the trailer. No tow points needed on the car. The car’s own wheels carry the load on the deck.

Tow strap (short distance): If you absolutely have to use a strap and the car has no recovery eye, the only safe attachment is the front subframe crossmember accessed from under the front bumper. Loop a soft shackle or sewn-loop end of the strap around the crossmember, not a single bolt. Pull slowly with steady force, no jerking. Limit this to recovery distances measured in feet, not road towing.

EV-specific notes

Most EVs cannot be flat-towed at any speed. The drive motor is permanently coupled to the wheels and there is no neutral that disconnects it (the only neutral they have is for shop maneuvering, with a 5 to 10 mph limit). Examples:

• Tesla Model 3, Model Y, Model S, Model X: tow on a flatbed only. Limited 5 mph “transport mode” exists.
• Ford F-150 Lightning: flatbed only.
• Rivian R1T, R1S: flatbed only.
• Chevy Bolt: flatbed only.

EVs have a tow eye in the cargo area or under the rear panel that threads into the bumper for short pulls onto a flatbed. The flatbed driver knows where to find it.

Common mistakes

• Wrapping a strap around a plastic bumper assuming the steel beam underneath will hold it. The plastic cover will rip off and the strap moves until it finds something to bend, usually a control arm.
• Hooking to the rear suspension’s lower control arm bushing. The bushing pulls out of the body and the suspension drops.
• Calling a wheel-lift wrecker for an AWD car. AWD systems get damaged with two wheels turning and two stationary, even at tow speeds. Insist on a flatbed.
• Treating shipping tie-down loops (visible under some cars near the wheel wells) as tow points. Those are rated for ship deck securement, not pulling.

FAQ

Can I just call a wrecker? Yes, and for a car without rated tow points it is almost always the right answer. Flatbed wreckers carry cars without ever attaching to the car’s body.

Are tow hooks the same as recovery eyes? Functionally similar. A tow hook is a permanent fixed loop or hook on the chassis. A recovery eye is a removable threaded piece you screw in when needed. Same job, different storage.

Can I install a tow hook on a unibody car? Sometimes. Several aftermarket brands sell front and rear tow hooks that bolt to existing chassis points on common cars (Civic, Corolla, Mustang, etc.). Make sure the mounting point is the OE-specified recovery socket, not just a body panel bolt.