Despite our constant criticism about necessary trail essentials, (or lack thereof) we always seem to get vehicles that don't have extraction anchor points (A.K.A. tow hooks) for FWOTY.

Case in point: Kia Borrego

It really irks me when a vehicle is piloted into a situation where another rig is required to retrieve it. Especially when the guy driving is our web director. just kidding... Getting stuck is part of the game when driving off road. However some vehicles are better armed for such activities.

Seen here is the 2009 Kia Borrego SUV. While this rig comes with a potent V8, comfy interior and rockin sound system, it lacks two very obvious pieces of extraction equipment: Rear-mounted Tow hooks.

As such, I had to climb under the rear of the vehicle yesterday to attach a tow strap to the rear sub-assembly to connect the 2009 Nissan Xterra. The Xterra wasn't much better by the way, it only has one front hook.

Note to O.E. manufacturers:

We at Four Wheeler magazine give 2.5 points per corner when we deem a tow hook is actually usable for trail misshaps. GET IT TOGETHER AND PUT SOME REAL TOW HOOKS UNDER THE VEHICLES YOU BUILD!