Blue Ox Base Plate Kit - Removable Arms
This item does not fit your vehicle
1993 Chevrolet Astro
These items fit your vehicle
1993 Chevrolet Astro
To see if this custom-fit item will work for you please tell us what vehicle you'll use it with.
If you want a flat towing setup that keeps your vehicle looking stock when not in tow, this base plate kit delivers. The hidden design keeps the brackets from protruding past the front of the vehicle, so you get a clean, seamless look. When it’s time to unhitch, the arms twist off easily and receiver covers plug in to keep dirt and debris out, leaving nothing but a smooth front end.
Hooking up is fast and straightforward. Each arm slides into the receiver, rotates to lock in place, and secures with a simple pin. When you’re done towing, pull the pin, twist, and remove them just as easily. The twist-lock design also means less fumbling at connection time and fewer parts to misplace.
For long trips or just peace of mind, the sturdy steel construction spreads towing force evenly across the frame to help protect your suspension from stress. It bolts directly to the chassis—no welding required—and includes all mounting hardware for a solid fit that stays put mile after mile. The powder-coated finish resists rust and corrosion for lasting durability.
The lugs on this base plate pair securely with Blue Ox tow bars for a reliable connection every time. It’s also adaptable if you’re running other gear—Roadmaster adapters (RM-031 or RM-031-5) or Demco adapter (DM9523041) are available separately to make your existing setup work without compromise.
This base plate’s distance between brackets is 20" and bracket height is 13-1/2". Those dimensions help you match up your tow bar height for a smooth, level connection that keeps everything tracking straight on the road.
Ratings & Reviews
Instructions could have been better but was straight forward and easy to figure out. Had to widen two holes on vehicle a tiny bit to align up with plate. Was shorted two connectors to attach the safety cables to the vehicle and base plate. None mentioned on inventory but two were included. Picture showed using four.
Well designed and solidly built base plate. Very good product support from Etrailer and Blue Ox.
The four 1/2 inch by 1 3/4 inch bolts are category 5 bolts. I had a bag full of identically sized bolts which were category 8. But I did not have any whizz nuts that were category 8 nuts so I stayed with the standard Blue Ox Hardware. We used POR 15 rust preventing paint at every location where we cut the steel or drilled holes. The distance from the center of the attachment tab assembly holes to the ground is 20 inches on our 2025 Wrangler Rubicon JLU with "Xtreme" 35 inch tire package. Easy five stars for Blue Ox and etrailer.
had to spread it apart 1/4" to make it go over the rails, hammering the pinch welds wasn't enough. poor weld on one of the plug in supports. fit good otherwise, video was very helpful.
The Blue Ox base plate kit was installed without a hitch on our 2024 Maverick Hybrid. It was a perfect fit! It was installed by Fantasy Truck, a referred installer of etrailer, in Odessa, MO. Brett was very easy to work with and did an excellent job! I highly recommend the Blue Ox baseplate and Brett @ Fantasy Truck!
Two day delivery! I'm impressed. I have not installed yet because I just got them. It appears that everything is all there. I am excited to do the install of the base plate and the hitch and the wiring harness.
Was an easy installation. Only problem is instructions are vague on getting nuts in frame for 7/16 bolts.
After installing over 500 baseplates on various vehicles, this one was probably the toughest one . It had the off road package on it . But it fit great after I had to remove a lot that had been bolted up for 27yrs.
Fits my 2013 mini cooper non turbo. Does take a few hours to install this Fit was good. The hardest part is removing the front bumper and reinstalling it. You do have to cut the lower bumper grill in three places take your time locating the exact spots for cuts. I have pulled Mini Cooper about seven thousand miles now with this Blue Ox and has worked great
I was given a Blue Ox Tow Bar and needed Base Plates for my Ford F150. In my online search, E-Trailer had the best price, so I ordered them. Delivery was a few days earlier than expected. I read the installation instructions and it sounded fairly simple to install, so I decided to tackle it myself. I began it about six pm and had the job completed and cleaned up in just over two hours. The job required removal of the bumper and tow hooks and drilling of two holes. Also William at E-trailer was of great help in the correct parts and keeping me informed of the delivery.
The safety Cable installation left a little to be desired. I'm not sure if I installed it as designed. The cables we're really long enough to go aroiund the frame rails on our Jeep, under the Radiator mount, Aluminum Frame, I was only able to go around the Raditor mount on both sides. Didn't really seam like it was the right way, but I suspect it's only for if something comes loose that there isn't a catastrophic breakaway.
Tried to install this baseplate. It was a challenge to say the least. It did not fit the frame of my Jeep YJ without making modifications to the mounting plates on the driver side. I had to use a cut off wheel and remove 3/16 of an inch from the driver side spacer (which is too long. See pictures) in order to get it to clear the frame. Also, instructions say to drill an additional 1/2 inch hole in the frame for a third mounting bolt. BUT....the internal frame construction doesn't allow the nut on a stick to pass under the existing reinforcements for the bolts that mount the steering gear to the frame. Nut is way too thick to pass under the internal tubing in the frame from manufacturer (AMC).
Base plate for flat towing my Jeep behind the bus was ordered Monday afternoon and was delivered to my house on Wednesday early afternoon, MO to NC! It was exactly as described and was very well packaged. Best online transaction I recall in 20+ yrs.
Part fit like a glove, a tight one (a hammer gets it in place so no need to clamp after), but lined right up with the factory holes. I only had to do some minimal drilling to make the bolts slide through. Instruction guide was very helpful with only some minor differences, but it is pretty obvious what to do once you get into it.
First, the packaging is first rate - super-heavy duty cardboard box, stapled together, not taped! Filled w/industrial grade packing paper - lots of it! Way to go, Shipping!!! Secondly, after thoroughly reading the Installation Instructions before dinner this evening, I decided that at 76 years old, maybe I should drive down to my Chevy Dealer and have a chat with my Service Manager about an after-market, add-on job!!! Looks a bit too involved for me (these days, anyway)!
This was instilled on a 2024 Chevrolet Colorado Z71 truck. I watched your video online with this exact model truck and the words I remember most was “and we did not have to do any trimming”. Well my truck was certainly different than what was on video. Guess it’s because it’s a late build 2024 (end of September 2024) and the grill system was maybe what would appear on the 2025 models? There was lots of trimming involved. I also will tell you the mounting holes both for the frame and the bumper back plate did not line up and required some modifications to fit. I would like to say this job is not for the faint of heart. I luckily have a mechanical/machinist background so was able to get the job done. Have not tested it yet but will be soon. Good luck to those of you who are planning on installing it yourself. Just remember it can be done. Just take your time.
Items arrived in 2 days, free shipping. All appeared in new undamaged condition.
Well built and relatively easy to put on. I have a 2020 Jeep Mojave, and there was an issue with leaving my skim plate on the bottom. There were some existing bolts that wouldn't allow the base plate to sit if the remained. After watching the video and reading paper instructions, the bolts weren't addressed. It was a non - issue since zi dont need the skim guard.
The Blue Ox base plate for my 2015 Kia Soul is well manufactured and, with a little bit of mechanical skill, easy to install. It fit perfectly without issues. Brad from etrailer provides a step-by-step installation video that is outstanding and nicely guides through the process from beginning to end. I highly recommend this Blue Ox base plate from etrailer.
Well the blue ox base plate actually fits my turbo engine. The Curt didn't fit as advertised.
Super high quality baseplate for towing by Blue Ox. Instructions, videos, shipping (one day!) and overall experience was awesome. A bit pricey but their quality and the additional support by E Trailer cannot be beat! BTW (E Trailer) the baseplate fits three different Jeep configurations but did not call out the Recon package. After looking at other brands which showed there's to fit the 3 variations AND the Recon, I figured it would fit and it DID. You should definitely upgrade to include the Recon Edition.
I got a used set for a great price and it worked out well. my only caution is that some of the holes in my 2008 2500 suburban had to be drilled to 9/16 due to misalignment with the tapped holes in the brackets. This minor adjustment made it all go togehter easily though. Be aware, you won't have tow hooks anymore if that is something you use a lot.
lways great to shop at etrailer, especially the tech experts. Royce did an awesome job with our order. Everything fit perfectly and the help video provided the guidance I needed.
We installed the baseplate on our 2023 Encore GX AWD as well as the light harness and breakaway switch. A couple of items were incorrect but Royce corrected the issues with no problems.
Thanks again etrailer!
2019 Ford Ranger baseplate worked and fitted fine for me. 73 yrs old took me a couple hours but took many breaks. Younger could do it less than hour I'm sure.
Also works fine with my Blue Ox tow bar.
I looked into every brand/model available and this was the beefiest. There is cutting and trimming required on all brands, so why not get the strongest? If you're slightly handy with a toolbox, you can easily do the install yourself and save thousands.
Installed on 2010 VW Jetta TDI Sportwagen - Very easy installation and no real fitment issues. It took a few hours but nothing beyond basic tools and ability.
Info for this part was:
At etrailer we provide the best information available about the products we sell. We take the quality of our information seriously so that you can get the right part the first time. Let us know if anything is missing or if you have any questions.
Thank you! Your comment has been submitted successfully. You should be able to view your question/comment here within a few days.
Error submitting comment. Please try again momentarily.