Towbar Information

[Euro Car Upgrades]

Tow Bar for your Volkswagen - genuine VW option inc. module Germany - Westfalia
Euro Car Upgrades has become a dealer for Westfalia tow bars in QLD
This is the system you get when you order a car with a towbar from VW Frankfurt or VW Berlin
Invisible and some say it has a bit of a sexual appeal when dismantled... keep it away from the missus
What do you think? Its cheap as well - check out some options here

[wfdTamar]

I have one of these on my Skoda Octavia and it's excellent. When the gooseneck is off you can see no sign - nothing to rub on driveways. There is a little cap that goes on the key slot to keep dirt out. Has a 13 pin socket.

My only criticism is the loop for the safety chain is high up and hard to connect a shackle to, but if you leave the shackle on it rattles or you can see it when the gooseneck is off. Maybe a rubber sleeve around the shackle would work to stop the rattle.

[Kenneth]

ECU?

Guys

I have a 2014 AllTrack and have read all the posts.
I need a tow bar but am extremely concerend about some of the awful jobs I have seen on this forum and in the flesh.
I do not trust anyone enough to cut out the shroud and would be quite dissappointed in a non symmetrical solution therefore would prefer the Westfalia option.

I contacted Westfalia and their nominated dealers and was not really impressed with their responses with regards to my questions concerning the rear sensors and reversing camera operations. One guys said yeah you'll get used to it and the other didn't seem to understand that we need to bypass/disconnect these functions when we hooked up a trailer.

Further research has led me to a DIY option which seems resonable in price hoever I an concerned with their technical solution. Can anyone shed any light on the follwoing which is from the vendors web site:

Vehicles since the 1980`s have been fitted with Can-bus or Multiplexing wiring, a system designed to cut down on the amount of wiring required in a motor vehicle, to save weight, improve fuel economy as-well as to capitalise on new technologies making vehicles more user friendly with improved creature comforts and of course safety. This vehicle wiring system uses a series of electronic control units (ECU`s) to control various aspects within the vehicle.

When another electronic component is required to be added to this arrangement it can cause issues if not installed correctly. The vehicle’s ECU`s can basically get confused and send out warnings to the vehicle that there is confusion. Therefore, when adding a trailer connection harness to a vehicle an additional electrical component or ECU may be required. This can be done in one of two ways.

No. 1 Directly incorporated into the Can-bus system.

An additional ECU can be incorporated directly into the Can-bus system so it will communicate with the other ECU`s hence turning off reverse sensors / camera`s and modifying ABS, traction control and stability systems. This installation is normally carried out by the vehicle manufacturer at the time of genuine towbar fitment. It is time consuming and can be expensive as existing on-board ECU’s may need reprogramming to accommodate the towbar installation.

No. 2 Connection via a Bypass / Intelligent ECU.

A Bypass ECU (Intelligent ECU) is simply attached to the vehicle’s rear light wiring harness and takes a signal from the harness telling the Bypass ECU when the vehicle is indicating, braking or the lights are turned on. This type of ECU draws little current and therefore causes no issues for the Can-bus system.

Certain ECUs can detect the different voltages sent on a shared wire circuit (sometimes vehicle manufacturers will use a brake and tail light signal through one single wire especially with LED lights) and therefore can determine how the output signal is sent to the trailer.

As the Bypass ECU has its own separate power source it can safely send the correct signals to the trailer connection plug wiring without any issues or effect to the vehicle’s other sensitive circuits.

So the my question is Option 1 or Option 2?

Thanks Kenneth

[wfdTamar]

Option 1 is the correct way. That's how the factory do it. It's how the better aftermarket makers do it. Rear parking sensors turn off when you attach a trailer. The car goes into 'towing' mode ABS/ESC wise. It uses the gooseneck removable Euro style bar. No sign of it when off. More expensive attachments than for the square hitch style or older flat style bar. It is also expensive to install, and hard to find anyone that knows how to do it (even dealers).

Option 2 is the quick and dirty way to do it. Most likely the car won't know you are towing so it won't do the ABS/ESC adjustments. May not matter if you only tow a small trailer, but for bigger trailers, boats and caravans - it might not be a good idea to go cheap on this.

If you're at all fussy go for option 1. You can do it yourself, but it requires research, a good kit and programming of the car after by VCDS or dealer to let the car know it has trailer wiring in it.

I used a westfalia bar (imported from the UK) on my Skoda Octavia 4x4 and a kit from PFJones.co.uk. Bar install is one of the best I've seen on here and the electrics work properly, though I'm not convinced the car knows it has trailer wiring (despite PF Jones assuring me it should once programmed). The reverse sensors work properly and I get a pic of car with trailer on the satnav screen when reversing so all seems ok. Current kits there mention trailer stability.

One difficulty is what socket you put on the back of the car. Tricky if you want fridge power to a caravan. The 13 pin doesn't seem wired up for it. Can't remember the details - it was a while since I did it, but I did a good write up on here about it.

https://www.pfjones.co.uk/tow-bars/towbars-volkswagen/vw-passat-towbars/vw-passat-alltrack-towbars.html

https://www.pfjones.co.uk/towbar-wiring-kits/volkswagen-towbar-wiring-kits/volkswagen-passat-towbar-wiring-kits.html

[try000]

VGA803921PAS06 T/BAR PASSAT B6 06> ALL, $486.31 retail. In stock.
3C9055204G supersedes to 3C8055210 R36 WAG T-BAR WIRING, $541.46 retail, in stock.

does anyone know if these are still valid? looking for a tow kit for the R36

[Euro Car Upgrades]

Hi Try000
You can get a Westfalia detachable swan neck towbar and wiring harness half price.
looks nice & neat and works with all the car systems like ops, camera, abs/esp etc.

VGA803921PAS06 T/BAR PASSAT B6 06> ALL, $486.31 retail. In stock.
3C9055204G supersedes to 3C8055210 R36 WAG T-BAR WIRING, $541.46 retail, in stock.

does anyone know if these are still valid? looking for a tow kit for the R36

[Umai Naa!!]

Is the towbar itself, ADR-approved?

[Euro Car Upgrades]

Yes made in oz

[try000]

do you have a link to the item?

also does it disable the rear sensers when backing up?

cheers

[Euro Car Upgrades]

Module supplied is a VW genuine module and it works with the sensors, disabling the rear ones
i put a link for you above but here you go:
Westfalia Towbar for VW Passat B6 2005-2010 Detachable Tow Bar A40V 0761-800-000 -Euro Car Upgrades

[Guest001]

So by the time you buy the bar and the module and get it fitted you are up for about $1500.

Presumably this will also fit a B7 and a wagon

[try000]

That's hardly half price of VW equipment. Lol

[snerlo]

It is talking about cuts to the bar though. Do you have any real life pictures of installs. I am considering one for my R36 wagon but I don't want to hack up the bumper doing it though.

[slipshot]

My R36 has a tow bar (the Westfalia one I think but bought and installed by the dealer when new). I'll take some pics and post when I can so you can see what they did and how it looks. And just for the sake of clarity, I was thinking about getting a tow bar when I bought the car yet I did not even realise it had a tow bar fitted until about two days after I bought it when I found the kit hidden in the boot! This is either because it's incredibly well hidden and hard to spot or, more likely, I'm just thick and old

[try000]

^^^^^ looking forward to seeing THIS