Yes, that's what I had in mind exactly as one of my possible solutions.

Jimj

On Wed, May 25, 2011 at 9:12 AM, Rocket J Squirrel <
camping.elliott@gmail.com> wrote:

> Something like Gary Lee did for his hitch mount? He runs a long 1/2''
> drill bit straight down from the top of the bumper, through the sheet
> metal behind it, and out the bottom of the bumper, and reinforces the
> bolts with chunks of metal. See bottommost pictures at
> <http://www.telusplanet.net/public/gary2a/rack/winch/winch.htm>
>
> He uses four bolts to mount the 8000 lb winch, but a D-ring mounts with
> two. The pull would be at right angles to the mounting bolts, but that's
> also true with the winch.
>
> I dunno, it's probably the best idea I've seen so for for mounting a
> couple D-rings up front.
>
> -- RJS
>
> On Wed, 2011-05-25 at 08:34 -0500, Jim Felder wrote:
> > On a related, but not exactly on-topic subject... this is related to the
> > original post in that the vanagon bumper is too flimsy in itself to
> attach
> > anything to. It is a cosmetic skin that covers the part of the body meant
> to
> > take an impact (except in the rear, where there is no such part). This is
> a
> > lot different from the clamps that may dad made up years ago to tow VWs
> > with. They just grabbed the bumper, loooped some chain through as a
> backup
> > and off you went. Now we are dependent on other things.
> >
> > I went shopping and asking around when I tried to come up with a vanagon
> tow
> > bar. Turns out that the metal bumper is held on with two puny screws that
> > could not possibly tow the car if they were the fasteners for a towbar.
> And
> > there are no other choices that I know of except
> >
> > a) welding some larger fasteners alongside them in such a way that they
> > would be covered by the bumper in normal use, and that the bumper could
> be
> > removed should the car have to be towed. This idea obviated the intended
> use
> > of my tow bar, which was to bring home vanagons I might find on cragslist
> or
> > wherever. Another similar concept was just to drill a 3/4 inch hole
> through
> > the "lip" behind the bumper on the front and fit the towbar with a
> bracket
> > that would attach to the lip with clevis pins. This would allow me to tow
> a
> > vanagon if I had access to a drill, the two holes being fairly minor
> > modifications although I admit I have never drilled such holes in the
> > particular spot on the vanagon.
> >
> > b) cutting the bumper and welding on some heavy brackets on the underside
> > that were mainly hidden from view by the bumper, which would not have to
> be
> > removed to use them. This method also offers the problem that while it
> would
> > work well on your personal vehicle, it would not help you get any other
> > non-modified vanagon home.
> >
> > So, I gave up. But still thinking about it, because if you're going to
> tow
> > or extract yourself, you need the same kind of strength. The bumper
> simply
> > won't do.
> >
> > Any other ideas? There is not even a place to put a D-ring up front that
> I
> > could find, that would actually work, without removing the bumper to use
> it.
> >
> > Jim
> >
> > On Wed, May 25, 2011 at 7:44 AM, george jannini <georgejoann@gmail.com
> >wrote:
> >
> > > >> "Approach angle"? "Off-roading"?...You have me confused with someone
> > > with more courage and more brains than I. <<
> > >
> > >    Ya's don't have to go off road to graunch yer air dam... in
> > > Atlanta, all you gotta do is tackle some of the steep driveways we got
> > > around here.
> > >
> > >  Mine's gotten all kind of torqued over the years...it's an '89, and
> > > this bus is low.  Too low.
> > >
> > > Geo/ATL
> > >
>
>