How to rescue a car stuck in the snow.

[alterastro]

How not to do it....

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vO1jsO9MrnM&

[etlsport]

If not you can double the strap back after wrapping around there connecting point either to your shackle (halving it) or double it back and put the shackle through the loop and then around the strap...(does that make sense?).

i also got a "dog bone" from cabelas (outdoors store) basically its a metal pipe with two ends that you can use to adjust a strap to any length you need.. it has come in handy for me a few times pulling people out of the ditch across the narrow road i used to live on

one other piece of advice.. make sure there is plenty of room around you, especially if the VX is also on ice or snow, it will have a tendancy to wander back and forth a bit... and if you are on a hill.. pull them uphill! it makes it a little more difficult.. but you eliminate the risk of having them slide down into you after being pulled free

[JAMAS]

All VERY great advice.

I hope I never have the need to pull someone out. However if I do have the need, I now feel prepared.

Time to go buy stuff.

Thanks!

[Marlin]

To keep the TOD from having to work so hard.

....riiiiiigggghhhht

[BigSwede]

BTW, the running start ... really isn't. You're supposed to inch forward until the strap becomes tight but not stretched. At that point, the recovery vehicle guns it. The stretch of the strap will provide a measure of momentum to overcome the suction of being stuck in muck.

A running start will only guarantee a broken strap, potential damage to both vehicles and possible injury to anyone within reach of the strap.

... or so I've heard ... I've never experimented to find out.

There are two different kinds of straps out there...the standard "tow strap" has a little natural stretch but isn't elastic per se, so the running start is not a good idea with this kind of strap.

There are also "snatch straps" (or other names) that are made to be elastic like a giant bungee cord, these are intended to be used with a running start such as on the Top Gear episode (just watched that the other night).

Most of our vehicle have tow points, that is the easy part. As noted, most cars will not have anything easy...you might be able to find the tie-down point which is your best bet, but even it is not intended for heavy tugging. If you're very lucky they will have a tow hitch and you can insert the tow strap loop into the receiver and put the pin through the loop of the strap (this also works well for those of you that have hitches as a pull point).

If I were y'all I would buy a tow hook and install it on the rear, those tie down points just aren't made for serious tugging.

[Ldub]

....riiiiiigggghhhht

when locked 4 lo, the TOD isn't in play...you knew that though...riiiiiigggghhhht?

[JAMAS]

If I were y'all I would buy a tow hook and install it on the rear, those tie down points just aren't made for serious tugging.

Is this a concern for pulling a car out of a snowy spot?

I suppose I could replace the tie down point with a shackle mounting bracket.

[JAMAS]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WialC...layer_embedded

[BigSwede]

Heh, I saw that on another board, guys were saying the WRX manual pretty much says not to tow anything, anytime. But doing it on that slippery snow probably didn't hurt anything...

[JAMAS]

Where is a good place to purchase the shackles and strap?

[Triathlete]

Check your local 4x4 shops. They will have what you need. If not, you can hit up some of the internet sites...
Indy 4x
Poly Performance
4Wheel Parts
Just to name a few. You will find Indy comes highly recommended here...Matt does a lot of support for the Zu community and has great customer service.

[Jolly Roger VX'er]

wow...I feel vindicated. I told someone once about using "winter mode" while in 4-low and it was not taken seriously.

I just did it the other day while stopping on a very steep hill that hadn't been plowed or salted for a stop sign and then resuming with a sharp left turn....mainly because I was already in 4-low and it seemed moot to shift back to 4-high and hit winter mode too. Pulled out very smoothly with just the right amount of torque & no wheel spin.