Witter tow ball height

[tfspark]

HI All, long time lurker, first time poster!

 

My company car is a 2014 Superb II Greenline Estate. The day after I took delivery I had a Witter fixed flange tow bar, with Alko tow ball and twin 7 pin electrics fitted. The day after that I towed my caravan on holiday.

 

The problem I have is that the tow ball is very low and causes problems when I hitch up. Unless the jockey wheel is absolutely straight it fouls the A frame and brake linkage and is a real struggle to retract into the A frame.

 

I have only just decided to do something about it because it was pointed out to me recently that it may be illegal!!

 

With a reasonable amount of load (work spare parts) the tow ball measures 320ish mm from the ground up to the centre of the ball. I believe the legal requirement is between 350 and 440mm.

 

When I took it back to the company that fitted it I was underwhelmed by their response. They say "it is an approved tow bar designed by Witter and fitted to their instructions so it can't be wrong."

 

I have just spoken to Witter who say there is definitely something wrong with it and want me to send photos to them with part numbers showing and as many dimensions as I can take.

 

Has anyone else had anything similar to this? If anyone has a Witter fixed flange tow bar fitted to their Greenline Estate perhaps they could post a photo so I can compare it to mine?

Edited 23 July, 2015 by tfspark

[psycholist]

The greenline suspension is set 20 or 25 mm lower than the other cars in the Superb range AFAIK, so the towbar will be lower than other Superbs, but that's not quite enough to account for the height difference you're seeing. What height is it at when the car is unloaded? I have an OEM detachable towbar so I'll get a photo of it this evening for comparison.

Edited 23 July, 2015 by psycholist

[tfspark]

When I spoke to Witter they said on a standard Superb they would expect the ball height to be 440mm, with the Greenline around 410mm. They also reckon it should be a minimum of 375mm.

 

Something not right somewhere.

[andrehj]

The official norm is that the center of the tow ball should be between 420 and 350 mm from the ground. The idea behind this range is that in unloaden state it should be around 420mm, so it can lower to 350mm when the car is fully loaded. What dimension have you measured?

[tfspark]

Thanks for the replies.

 

I carry a lot of spare parts for my job but they are not excessively heavy. I was carrying a lot more than I usually do the other day and the tow ball measured 290mm from the ground up to the centre.

When I carry my normal amount of spares it measures 330mm. I did measure it before with the car unloaded and I think it was the same. Just to check, if I get time this weekend, I'll unload it and measure again.

[Kilkenny]

Why not just make sure the jockey wheel is straight. Makes life easier for me anyway.

Edited 24 July, 2015 by Kilkenny

[tfspark]

Why not just make sure the jockey wheel is straight. Makes life easier for me anyway.

Have been doing for the past year. Just don't like the fact that I'm driving a car with an illegal tow bar fitted. 

Edited 24 July, 2015 by tfspark

[andrehj]

Thanks for the replies.

 

I carry a lot of spare parts for my job but they are not excessively heavy. I was carrying a lot more than I usually do the other day and the tow ball measured 290mm from the ground up to the centre.

When I carry my normal amount of spares it measures 330mm. I did measure it before with the car unloaded and I think it was the same. Just to check, if I get time this weekend, I'll unload it and measure again.

Both dimensions are way too low. Just measured my (non-removable) Westfalia and the center of the tow ball is at exactly 42 cm from the ground (unloaden car), so perfect.

[kevin defty]

I had a similar problem many years ago with a vx Carlton. Witter were spot on! They made me a new flange section that lifted the town all height free of charge.

Fast forward to today and my elegance estate was sitting very low when the caravan was hitched but is perfect since I fitted a set of Grayson spring assisters. Maybe that or doughnuts may be an option for you?

[tfspark]

I had a similar problem many years ago with a vx Carlton. Witter were spot on! They made me a new flange section that lifted the town all height free of charge.

Fast forward to today and my elegance estate was sitting very low when the caravan was hitched but is perfect since I fitted a set of Grayson spring assisters. Maybe that or doughnuts may be an option for you?

 

I guess I need to get the height of the ball without the caravan hitched right before I even consider spring assisters or doughnuts.

 

I have sent loads of photos to Witter technical, so we'll see what they say.

 

Incidentally, I have a work colleague who has exactly the same car as me with a tow bar but his isn't a Witter. He doesn't know what make it is but it is 100mm higher than mine!

[psycholist]

^{Thanks to some sort of issue with my phone uploading the picture it's only showed up now for sharing. This is a picture of the OEM removable towbar:}

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1ny7mEUYjjvvscQwQkx9RLYgqgTe7QuhhRw/view?usp=sharing

[tfspark]

Thanks to all for the interest, things have moved on.

 

Witter thought the neck didn't look horizontal so suggest I loosened all the hardware, lift it and re-torque to see if that would make a difference.

So I took it back to the fitting company who in the process of trying to undo, lift and tighten it decided they couldn't leave it on the car because a captive nut had stripped.

 

They then gave me the choice of taking my car back with no tow bar, have the unsafe tow bar fitted or paying for a different make of bar. They were adamant that was the choice and wouldn't move at all.

I paid for a Tow Trust bar to be fitted. Which incidentally is 90 mm or so higher.

 

Hindsight is a wonderful thing and I realise now that I should have stood my ground and told them to sort it at no cost to me. But I just felt under a lot of pressure to get this sorted.

 

I am now in dispute with the company trying to get my money back as it appears they fitted an illegal tow bar in the first place.

 

Sorry but I don't know how to attach photos.

Edited 2 August, 2015 by tfspark