Highly optioned vehicles

[Bluerex]

I also went genuine on our tow bar. I just wanted it covered by factory warranty - towing was going to be a major part of the justification in getting the 4Mo Crewvan. The only gottcha has been that you can forget any of the HR load balancing or other trick hitch options. The VW bar (and from memory the Mercedes) has a different profile to the HR, still 50mm but with radiused corners while the HR is more square-er
Oh and the big ugly round connector seems dumb when everyone (at least in the ACT) uses the flat style.

I still love the van though

Charles

[Tombi]

At one VW commercial dealer in Melb' , they were quoting (in writing) a genuine factory towpac for close to $2000.00

Theives I think they call them

[mangoburger]

Why not ask ARB or have a look on their web site ?

I was wondering a bit about your need for an ARB air locker for a Transporter - air lockers are a fairly serious bit of gear more usually seen on heavy duty off roaders. Transporters aren't really designed for rough off road work where good ground clearance is needed, and their long wheelbase (even on a SWB) severely limits their ramp-over ability. OK on sand and (shallow) mud though. IIRC it isn't very practical to raise them too much either (ie more than 75mm).

Checked ARB website and only the Touareg appears on the list, that's not to say it's not possible but I'll have to query it with them. In the end it all comes down to $$ and if the air locker is cheaper than retrofitting a VW locking diff and provides the additional benefit of an onboard compressor then it may be the best solution. As for whether it's really needed, well if VW makes a factory locking diff then I'm clearly not the first to think of it.

I used to drive a 12m long double deck tourbus in Europe with a simple up-normal-down switch, minimal travel but it was very handy for clearing crests on corners with driveways, driving onto ferries and under trees with low clearance, so that's where the idea comes from. I've also used independent front / rear lifters to great effect on removal trucks parked on slopes, so since the van has a lounge in the back I considered being able to level it when parked may also be practical.

Fitting King springs won't achieve what I want to do as I don't want the van to ride high at the back, don't like the look of cars with raised rear ends.

They certainly do as the label claims - completely lock a differential when activated, and the one I had (on a modded Landcruiser 80 series) was very effective and also very reliable. Most useful in conditions where there was poor traction on one wheel but good traction on another (eg rocky fire trails with uneven ledges).

Were you intending to fit rear only or both front and rear ?

Again, it's a question of $$ and hardware compatibility. I'd love to put a lock on both diffs and if the air locker lends itself to the task then I may look at that. My old daily driver was a 60 series Landcruiser (it seems I'm destined to always have cars with impractical rear overhangs) with a noisy gearbox and a constant smell of burning oil, it survived 80,000km with these afflictions but driving the Multivan is like a whole new world.

I considered the number of times I took the Landcruiser off road in 7 years of ownership, and didn't use up all of my fingers, so a 4motion van with high COMFORT levels seemed like the best way to go, but would still like the van to be able to extricate itself from a tricky situation should one occur, nothing like being prepared for the worst.

Anyhoo, just had all the windows tinted today and off to Adelaide on Monday with 4x crew on board, looking forward to my first long run in the finest style. All other mods will have to wait a while.

[Umai Naa!!]

As with all gripes with genuine towbar pricing I've seen on here, I feel that I should contribute.

For a T5, it takes about an hour to install the tow bar itself. It's really simple. The wiring on the other hand, in the case of a Multivan, requires all the seats to be removed, along with all the trims down the left side, and along the lower half of the dash. A Transporter is only a little easier, generally due to the lack of trims and rear seats.

I'm not sure what the parts are worth, but 8 hours is a reasonable timeframe to do a neat, and thorough install.

[Devilish]

For the difference in the price between genuine one and aftermarket, it's not worth of the troubles, at least to me. I paid around $900 5 years ago. Be prepared for $1,200-$1,500 today.
Tow bar properly wired with genuine wiring will integrate with your ABS while towing. Also you have, no issues with warranty, if you go for genuine one.

I got a Quote for $990 fitted for a LWB Transporter

[thevwbug]

Tow Bar parts price:

1 VVGA803921T5V04 T/BAR T5 MULTIVAN $423.39
2 V7H0055203A T/BAR WIRING TRANSPORTER $412.28 Including G.S.T

[Shifter]

Question: If I fit a genuine VW towbar - still under warranty, does it come with the wiring installed and is it easy to connect up the wiring? Do VW put in a simple plug connection??

[Devilish]

I got Quoted $1750 for a VW Genuine Towbar today, not including fitting.... to which I said No....

[Umai Naa!!]

Question: If I fit a genuine VW towbar - still under warranty, does it come with the wiring installed and is it easy to connect up the wiring? Do VW put in a simple plug connection??

No, the wiring is not pre-installed, and definately not easy to fit.

I actually have the displeasure of doing one next week on a Multivan