Fitting tow bar and wiring to a Yeti with tow prep.

[joel0407]

Ok, so here’s the deal. I’ve red all sorts of thing on the net about Yeti Tow bars and wiring them. Most people in the UK seem to get the dealer to fit it because their dealers charge reasonable fee. Here in Australia however, dealers seem to think they have sold us an Audi and charge accordingly. My quote was $1700. So I decided to fit mine myself as I’m reasonably handy at these kinds of thing.

I have to say with all I’d red, the task seemed quite daunting Turns out that once I had the right information and parts, it couldn’t have been easier.

My first issue was getting the right parts. I ordered everything from PF Jones in the UK. PF Jones have been fantastic to deal with and it was with their help I managed to sort out the only problem I had.

These are the initial parts I ordered. The wiring kit is wrong as it’s for a Yeti without “Tow Prep”. There are a couple of different types of detachable tow bars. I went with the Witter Flange type but I believe the Westfalia or Witter standard type would be equally as good.

NOT FOR TOW PREP Superb Yeti 7 Pin Dedicated Wiring Kit 2009 on 19220508RC

Skoda Yeti 2009 on Detachable Flange tow bar

3.5t 1" Jaw, Pin & Ball

Stainless Steel Bumper Protector

I have never heard of a Australian delivered Yeti not having “Tow Prep”. Amongst other things, “Tow Prep” provides a connector in the back of the vehicle for the trailer wiring harness to connect to.

I was aware the connector for the tow wiring was behind the plastic panel on the left hand side of the vehicle. I had received everything from PF Jones prior to my Yeti being delivered but once I had my Yeti and the panel off I could not work out how the PF Jones wiring harness connected so I called them. Their tech department was great and quickly worked out the kit was for a vehicle without “Tow Prep” they couldn’t provide me with the correct wiring kit but were happy for me to send the kit back for a refund.

I called around a couple of dealers here in Australia for the genuine Skoda part “EEA 630 002 E4”. I was quoted $730 from Canberra and $530 from Nowra. My Yeti was in pieces and I didn’t want to put it back together to have to pull it apart again so I wanted to get the wiring kit ASAP. With some help from a member from Briskoda Forum, I was put in contact with a dealer in the UK. Royal Mail freight for 5 days deliver and 1kg was only 22 pound. The price from the UK with freight ended up being $265. Take that Australian Dealers.

So this is what arrived: (Sorry about rubbish photo)


With this control Unit:


Here is where the control unit gets fitted.


Yep Here:


The kit comes with these plugs and screws:


And they get fitted here:


Like this:


Then this red plug:


Found here:


Goes into the control unit like this:


And this plug from the harness goes into the other socket on the control unit:


Then the control unit goes here:


And the screws go in. The control unit has a slot in one end and a hole in the other so you can put the first screw in and then just slot the control unit behind the screw and tighten it after the second screw is in:


Take the earth wire and put it under this bolt:


Like this:


Then take these cable ties (supplied in the kit):


and push them over the panel seem. Here:


Ok from here on is how to reassemble the panels. You can just reverse for the removal procedure. I was too busy being careful not to break the clips when I was dismantling. Turned out I didn’t need to worry. This clips are well designed and never looked like breaking. There are some tricks though to pull the panels in the right directions.

The main big panel has a clip here:, Just be sure to get the edge of the panel under the carpet.


2 screws here:



2 here:

[joel0407]

And one here:


And they are all here:


The hook rail has 3 screws:


Which are under this plastic strip:, I carefully lifted one end with a knife.


“C” Pillar cover has one screw at the top: There is no airbag under the little cover that says airbag. The airbag is under the roof lining.


The “C” Pillar cover slots in at the top and clips in at the bottom before the screw goes in:


The rear center panel: Red clips go down before the yellow clips go in then 2 screws in the holes circled in blue.

[joel0407]

I didn't take any photos with the bumper off or how the actual tow bar was fitted. It’s really simple though. The bumper comes off by removing these covers:



Like this:


And then you can remove these nuts:


There are 4 plugs/clips under the bumper. 2 screws at the edges which join the bumper to the inner guard and that’s about it. The bumper is not much more than a cosmetic thing. There is nothing solid behind it, which is a good thing when someone bumps you in a car park. You might break a couple of clips but the plastic bumper should bounce back and since it’s not painted it shouldn’t show a scratch too bad.

Once the bumper is off, there is a pressed metal bar that needs to be removed. There are 3 screws in one end and 4 in the other, if I remember correctly. It gets chucked out.

The tow bar itself is very simple. There are 2 flat, vertical tongues that insert into the ends of the chassis. Then 2 bolts screw into the tongues from inside the wheel arches. There is a large square tube that runs across the back of the car with the socket for the tow hitch in the middle. All the bolts have torque settings so a Torque Wrench is needed to get the right tension on the bolts.
Here is the socket visible with the cover off:


And the cover on:

[joel0407]

I'll post some more tomorrow with the hitch in place and the socket screwed on.

Happy Days.

[Guest001]

Just a thought Is the towbar ADR compliant in Australia

[joel0407]

Just a thought Is the towbar ADR compliant in Australia

More compliant than most box trailers. The NSW rego on my 3 box trailers all say H/Made.

Happy Days.

[Guest001]

More compliant than most box trailers. The NSW rego on my 3 box trailers all say H/Made.

Happy Days.

Im not being flippant about it. You can get a box trailer certified for use on inspection.

Not so with an imported towbar which must be ADR approved to be legal.

Otherwise insurance payments may come into question should anything go wrong attributable to an illegal fitting.

Your car your life just pointing out the pitfalls.

After years of vanning cant believe what some people think is actually Ok when its not.

In NZ I made my own towbars but wouldnt try it here due to ramifications of something going wrong

[Transporter]

A nice write up. So, how much did all the parts cost you including shipping and how many hours did you spend fitting it?

[joel0407]

A nice write up. So, how much did all the parts cost you including shipping and how many hours did you spend fitting it?

All the bits from PF Jones were $844 delivered. I had ordered the wrong wiring kit from them though and had to order the correct kit from a UK Skoda dealer, it ended up being $265 deliverder. I haven't received the credit for the returned wiring kit to PF Jones yet.

The same wiring kit, I ordered from a UK Skoda Dealer was $730 in Canberra. The $265 included 5 day delivery with Royal Mail.

Happy Days.

[Transporter]

All the bits from PF Jones were $844 delivered. I had ordered the wrong wiring kit from them though and had to order the correct kit from a UK Skoda dealer, it ended up being $265 deliverder. I haven't received the credit for the returned wiring kit to PF Jones yet.

The same wiring kit, I ordered from a UK Skoda Dealer was $730 in Canberra. The $265 included 5 day delivery with Royal Mail.

Happy Days.

How long (how many hours) did it take you to install it? If you don't mind me asking?

[joel0407]

How long (how many hours) did it take you to install it? If you don't mind me asking?

It's just a bit of a hard question to answer. I went back to Bathurst, form Canberra, where I have a mate who owns a panel beating business so I could get him to remove rear bar. I was a bit worried about taking it off myself as I really hate plastic clips. After I saw how it is removed I would not hesatate in doing it myself next time. Once the side panels (shown in picture) are off, it's the nuts under them, 3 clips at the bottom and 2 screws.

Anyway after he took it off, I went back to my parents place and fitted the tow bar. That only took about 30 - 40 minutes, if that.

Then it took about 30 - 40 mintues to remove the spare wheel and the plastic panels inside the car. About this time I realised I had the wrong wiring kit. I left everything inside the car in peices, refitted the rear bar and returned to Canberra where I sorted out getting the right wiring kit. The kit took 5 days to deliver and less than 30 minutes to fit. Then it was about 30 - 40 miutes to put the plastic panels back in place, while taking photos.

I'm sure I could do it in under 3 hours if I had to do it again. Maybe even under 2.

Happy Days.

[Ocy_RS_TDi_Kombi]

Hayman Reese now sell a towbar for the Yeti. Its the 50mm square hitch and costs $612 from HR. A towbar place will charge another $200 - $300 to fit and wire it. Lots cheaper than what a Skoda dealer would charge!

[joel0407]

Hayman Reese now sell a towbar for the Yeti. Its the 50mm square hitch and costs $612 from HR. A towbar place will charge another $200 - $300 to fit and wire it. Lots cheaper than what a Skoda dealer would charge!

That's about what my Witter flange type bar cost, with wiring kit, delivered from the UK. The HR will have Australian compiance though.

Dont forget you can't just splice the wires to the vehicle lights. You need a dedicated wiring kit.

Does the HR require bumper cutting?

[Ocy_RS_TDi_Kombi]

That's about what my Witter flange type bar cost, with wiring kit, delivered from the UK. The HR will have Australian compiance though.

Dont forget you can't just splice the wires to the vehicle lights. You need a dedicated wiring kit.

Does the HR require bumper cutting?

I haven't spoken to anyone at HR but they would have the dedicated wiring as part of the kit.

Don't know about the bumper cutting, again a HR question.

[Blue103TDIDSG]

The HR will have Australian compiance though.

One of the main issues for me is compliance if I get, say a Westfalia towbar from the UK.
No problem if some business down the road imports it and I buy it from them because if it goes "pear shaped" I have them to point the finger at.
But if I buy it overseas and fit it myself the buck stops with me.

My mission statement is "must be hidden when not in use with bumper cutout refitted

So after a lot of searching, this is what have found

Starting with the World Forum for Harmonization of Vehicle Regulations

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/World_Forum_for_Harmonization_of_Vehicle_Regulations#Type_approval

Quote
__________________________________________________ ________________________________

Type Approval
The 1958 Agreement operates on the principles of type approval and reciprocal recognition. Any country that accedes to the 1958 Agreement has authority to test and approve any manufacturer's design of a regulated product, regardless of the country in which that component was produced. Each individual design from each individual manufacturer is counted as one individual type'. Once any acceding country grants a type approval, every other acceding country is obliged to honor that type approval and regard that vehicle or item of motor vehicle equipment as legal for import, sale and use. Items type-approved according to a UN Regulation are marked with an E and a number, within a circle. The number indicates which country approved the item, and other surrounding letters and digits indicate the precise version of the regulation met and the type approval number, respectively.
Although all countries' type approvals are legally equivalent, there are real and perceived differences in the rigour with which the regulations and protocols are applied by different national type approval authorities. Some countries have their own national standards for granting type approvals, which may be more stringent than called for by the UN regulations themselves. Within the auto parts industry, a German (E1) type approval, for example, is regarded as a measure of insurance against suspicion of poor quality or an undeserved type approval.

__________________________________________________ _________________________________


Where it all comes from and the design rules involved for the towbar are found here


UN Regulations (1958 Agreement)
Regs 41-60 - Transport - UNECE

Regulation No. 55 Revision 1
UNIFORM PROVISIONS CONCERNING THE APPROVAL OF MECHANICAL COUPLING
COMPONENTS OF COMBINATIONS OF VEHICLES

http://www.unece.org/fileadmin/DAM/trans/main/wp29/wp29regs/r055r1e.pdf

Quote
__________________________________________________ __________________________________


SCOPE

1.1. This Regulation lays down the requirements which mechanical coupling devices and components shall meet in order to be regarded internationally as being mutually compatible.

__________________________________________________ _________________________________



This is an excerpt from the certificate for the Westgalia towbar



What it all means

The 55R - 01 2429
"55R" indicates the UN Regulation that applies and the "01" is the version that it is approved to
"2492" is the approval number

Type 317-117 is a Westfalia identification/design number

the Class A 50-X
"Class A" is the designated class of Coupling - Coupling balls and towing brackets employing a 50 mm diameter spherical device

"50-X" is the sub group for the 50mm Class - "Non-standard 50mm Coupling Heads"


__________________________________________________ __________________________________

Australia signed on 25th April, 2000 and is #45 on the list.

So the "E13" makes it approved in Luxembourg, thus also accepted by any of the signatories to the World Forum for Harmonization of Vehicle Regulations and that includes Australia.

Quote
"Every other acceding country is obliged to honor that type approval and regard that vehicle or item of motor vehicle equipment as legal for import, sale and use"

__________________________________________________ __________________________________

So that means the Westfalia as well as the Witter that Joel used, assuming and I'm sure that it will have a similar "E" compliance certificate, are OK and LEGAL to use in Australia as they are ADR approved by default.

In passing, the likes of IronBull would not be able to have every towbar they advertise and sell actually tested to meet the ADR's as the cost would be prohibitive. On the other hand though, any towbar designed and made here in Oz must be tested before it can be sold.

So for me, Westfalia it will be, which I believe from reading posts on the Briskoda forum, is the OEM towbar in the UK
[edit] Obviously the "E" certification is accepted in the UK

I am putting this here on the forum to maybe help any others that might have the same issues with the OEM (BestBars unit) supplied by Skoda Australia and might be considering getting something else cheaper and not hang out the back of the car.