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Towbars.....retrowagen1234
@GUEST
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Anyone on here ever made a towbar? I'm finding it hard to get one for the loon, and seing as I'm looking to buy a small speedboat soon... (approx 12ft) ill need one... anyone got any advice ? or possibly a price for a custom made one haha... I'm a confident welder but not sure with things like that  |
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93fxdl
Posted a lot
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Posts: 2,000
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there has been a clampdown on towing and towbars
depending on when you took your test you may not be allowed to tow any trailer without passing an extra test
only if the vehicle has being classified for towing can a towbar be fitted to it
afaicr you are not allowed to make your own towbar as a towbar has to be made to certain standards and using official mounting points etc
so make sure your licence entitles you to tow and keep an eye on ebay, local free ads etc untill you find a used bar
ttfn glenn
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...yet despite this ridiculous story there are plenty of components available at your local halfords which would enable you to construct your own tow bar.
They sell a metal coloured towing ball for £11.99 or a black powder coated one for £20~ish.
They do the lighting connectors - male and female which you can bolt on, they have relays, cable, lighting boards and basically about 20 other products. Everything you need to do the job.
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Last Edit: Jun 6, 2010 14:48:20 GMT by ejenner
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Think it's 1997 on the trailer 'pass' grounds. Because we all know people who took their test after this can't tow trailers.
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sowen
Club Retro Rides Member
Posts: 2,245
Club RR Member Number: 24
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Towbars.....sowen
@sowen
Club Retro Rides Member 24
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As far as I know, for post 1997 licenses you are entitled to tow as long as the trailer does not exceed the weight of the towcar, and the total car+trailer combo does not exceed 3500kgs. Back on topic, you will need to check the maximum towing capacity for the Polo, and ensure that the speedboat and trailer does not exceed that, and as for constructing your own, I'm sure there is a cut-off date (don't know why but 1998 springs to mind) from which all towbars fitted must be E marked or something I'm not sure exactly but you cannot make your own, though it becomes a grey area for older (retro ) vehicles as whether you can construct your own or not. |
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Towbars.....retrowagen1234
@GUEST
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As far as I know, for post 1997 licenses you are entitled to tow as long as the trailer does not exceed the weight of the towcar, and the total car+trailer combo does not exceed 3500kgs. Back on topic, you will need to check the maximum towing capacity for the Polo, and ensure that the speedboat and trailer does not exceed that, and as for constructing your own, I'm sure there is a cut-off date (don't know why but 1998 springs to mind) from which all towbars fitted must be E marked or something I'm not sure exactly but you cannot make your own, though it becomes a grey area for older (retro ) vehicles as whether you can construct your own or not. yes thats what ive been told by my local trailer school... as for making one i thought (naughty i know) that if i get pulled and it gets checked... (cant see that happening if its built right) that ill just wing it and say its allways been on there..  As for towing weights ... the polo is allowed nearly 400kg....  |
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Towbars.....retrowagen1234
@GUEST
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ahhh cheers for that mate... 129.95 according to the pricelist... first company ive seen list a saloon one ;D |
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For new licences you don't need a trailer test to tow any trailer under 750kg MAM (maximum laden weight) or any trailer over 750kg as long as its MAM is less than the unladen weight of the tow car and the combination is less than 3500kg total weight. You must also abide by the maximum towing weight and the maximum train weight of the tow vehicle if these impose lower limits. In your case, if the Polo has a max towing weight of 400kg, then any trailer that you can legally tow with it will be within the new "normal" licence allowance. As for towbars, as long as the car is old enough to not require full type approval (ie: every part fitted must be "approved") then you're free to make a towbar for it if you want. It's probably easier to find one at a scrappy and adapt it to fit you car than it is to make one from scratch - part of the work is done and you've got something there to gauge how strong your adapting needs to be. Try to find a photo of a commercial one and base what you do in that, including working out where suitable mounting points are. I'm afraid photo doesn't show any real details and it's raining so I'm not going to take another one, but here's one I prepared earlier:  |
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Towbars.....retrowagen1234
@GUEST
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ahhh cheers mate , much appriciated, the only problems ive found with the saloon ones is they are longer than the hatchback, but as theres not many saloons about theres not many towbars either.. I'm pretty sure a hatch (bready) one will fit , but the rear bar where it goes to the floor may be different...
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My sister had a polo with a tow bar, from what I remember, it was quite simple....the bit behind the bumper was 40 angle (ish!) was as wide as the bumper mounting brackets, inside was a strip, about 8mm and it had 5 bolts clamping on to the rear panel. There was one piece of angle which then went from the above angle, and bent under and bolted with 2 bolts under the spare wheel.
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TryTowequipe.They cover a lot of 'retro's'.
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Towbars.....retrowagen1234
@GUEST
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TryTowequipe.They cover a lot of 'retro's'. Cheers for that, they seem to do one although it mentions coupe or hatch... not saloon  the only reason its a problem is some of them require fitting to the spare wheel well. and on a saloon its further away from the rear of the car than a hatch... |
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i may have a 'loon towbar lying around, i'm afraid
i don't want to sell it but i can sort you out with
dimensions and maybe a couple of paper templates
that would be enough to work on to make your own.
(i sold my 'loon to a mate's sons and they're going to
make a teardrop to tow behind it so it'll be needed)
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purplevanman
Posted a lot
Way too orangey for crows
Posts: 3,829
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I have made several and towed allsorts  Don't know about legal side sorry but the actual construction isn't difficult. It is usually fairly obvious where to bolt to when you stick your head under the back of the car |
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mrj
Posted a lot
Posts: 1,662
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that'll be worth a look to the netherlands; the dutch fit towbars to everything with wheels* and the Polo saloon was pretty popular over there, chances are not that low to find a secondhand one ... * sorry for that towbar stereotype to our dutch members |
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- 1971 VW 1600 TL Fastback
- 1978 Passat GLS Variant
- 1980 Audi 100 5E
- 1981 VW aircooled panel van (sold)
- 1983 VW Jetta Mk.I
- 1984 VW Polo Coupé
- 1984 VW Passat hatchback
- 1987 VW Passat Variant
- 1987 VW Passat hatchback
- 1988 VW T25
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Towbars.....retrowagen1234
@GUEST
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I may have a 'loon towbar lying around, i'm afraid I don't want to sell it but I can sort you out with dimensions and maybe a couple of paper templates that would be enough to work on to make your own. (i sold my 'loon to a mate's sons and they're going to make a teardrop to tow behind it so it'll be needed) that would be wicked if you could mate.. , Even a few straight on pics from above, behind , under that sorta thing would be great... much appriciated, and no rush, do it at your leisure mate I have made several and towed allsorts Don't know about legal side sorry but the actual construction isn't difficult. It is usually fairly obvious where to bolt to when you stick your head under the back of the car Yeah I'm pretty sure on where it goes.. theres a bar on the inside of the bumper, that drops down to the swanneck, then theres a set of bars going accross to the too box sections that are otherwise purposeless under the bootfloor... the only problem is, vw are the only ones that did that, everyone else uses the spare wheel well... that'll be worth a look to the netherlands; the dutch fit towbars to everything with wheels* and the Polo saloon was pretty popular over there, chances are not that low to find a secondhand one ... * sorry for that towbar stereotype to our dutch members haha never heard of that before but ill try have a look cheers mate ;D |
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You only need a EC94/20 type approved towbar if the vehicle was registered on or after 1st Aug 1998. So I guess before that, any well made homebrew is acceptable. The driver their licence and the weight limits are separate issues.
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Last Edit: Jun 7, 2010 9:24:33 GMT by alfazer
1976 Suzuki GT550 Celica RA28...Gone |
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the only reason its a problem is some of them require fitting to the spare wheel well. and on a saloon its further away from the rear of the car than a hatch...
