Hi All,

I'm after getting a towbar fitted to our Fabia VRS estate (2011). Ideally I want a removable one, and it will need electrics. It is needed to tow a small trailer that my wifes offroad mobility scooter will go onto (trailer not yet purchased!)

Just wondering, has anyone managed to get one? I've heard that you can't get them fitted due to the rear bumper, and others have said that it doesn't have type approval and invalidates your insurance !?

Just wondering if there is any truth in this... and if one does exist, is there a Skoda part that i can get done at my local dealers?

Sure I have read something about the vRS not having a towing rating so if this is true would assume that your insurance would be invalidated and that no official dealer will fit one.

Correct - vrs models not suitable for towing.

As a general rule I let the wife use the passenger seat (if she has been a good girl). Making her ride out back in a trailer is pretty harsh, especially in this weather lol

load of tosh they recon the vrs & monte carlo are not rated for a tow bar and would invalidate your insurance well my monte carlo has just been fitted by the dealers with one its not removable but looks excellent check out my post in fabia II my insurance company know that my car is fitted wiyh a tow bar no problems its fitted with single electrics & not the fancy skoda set up total cost around £240 skoda system was around £500

ken b,

many may fit towbars to cars without Type Approval or Manufacturers Towing Limits, and get away with it.

Plenty of cars are not allowed the fitting of towbars for towing, but may have them fitted to carry bike racks etc.

eg, Audi TT, Ka, Toyota iQ, Fabia MK2 vRS.

http://www.witter-towbars.co.uk/towbars/faq1.php

I have no idea on the Monte Carlo.

The fact that a dealer supplies and fits them does not change the fact that the car does not meet the regulations and in the event of an accident you might find the Insurance Company covering the 3rd Party part of the Insurance, but not your claim.

The Towbar Fitter knows or should know the relevant regulations.

They should be checking the VIN Plate to see the permissable & approved Train weight before fitting a towbar.

Lack of knowledge from the driver is no defence if stopped by VOSA or the police at a roadside check while towing a trailer.

If there is no 'train weight' on the VIN plate then the Manufacturer never submitted one during 'Type Approval' and no tow bar or towing device should be fitted.

george

Insurance info, not the Type Approved bit of things.

http://www.moneymaxi...nsurance-towbar

load of tosh they recon the vrs & monte carlo are not rated for a tow bar and would invalidate your insurance well my monte carlo has just been fitted by the dealers with one its not removable but looks excellent check out my post in fabia II my insurance company know that my car is fitted wiyh a tow bar no problems its fitted with single electrics & not the fancy skoda set up total cost around £240 skoda system was around £500

Simple way to check to find out whether your car is Type Approved to legally tow.

Look at the vehicle ID and Weight Plate, possibly situated on the bottom of the drivers B post. If it has NO towing capacities entered on it then you CANNOT legally tow with that vehicle.

If stopped and checked at a VOSA Vehicle check then your car can be impounded, the trailer removed and stored for which you have to pay a hefty charge, and if the Police are present (which they generally are) can lead to a prosecution both on invalid insurance and illegal towing. For the last couple of years checks like this have taken place in the summer at Exeter Services on the M5, in the Lake District and in North Wales, and are sometimes seen near large Recycling sites or farmers marts.

Strange that it's illegal for you guys to tow, if I where to fit a towbar I would be allowed to tow 1313 kg :>!

If Sweden joined the EU then you might have their Regulations imposed,

or maybe just if your Government allowed them to.

Our Government allows some things to be adopted here while other EU countries do their own thing.

george

I would hazard a guess that the reason the VRS is not approved for towing is the gearbox. I had a B7 RS4 and apparently it wasn't approved for towing because of limits in the cooling system and the fact that towing a load makes the engine work much harder without the extra air flow from travelling at a higher speed.

*edit* not that I wanted to tow anything with an RS4 ... I wanted to fit a bike rack

Edited 27 January, 201313 yr by Mike_Bike

There is that, but the whole package is considered when they are putting the vehicle in for Type Approval.

Tyre Load, Suspension, Brakes, need to be considered, they might have to compromise a vehicle to give it not much of a Max Towing limit. Say 1000kg braked.

Engine power, & gearboxes ability to cope with towing 1300kg or so would hardly be a problem.

george

If Sweden joined the EU then you might have their Regulations imposed,

or maybe just if your Government allowed them to.

Our Government allows some things to be adopted here while other EU countries do their own thing.

george

I thought Sweden was in the EU.

They are; joined 1995.

However it is possible that there towing regulations are different to the UK's, and they may not have signed this particular piece of regulation, or are ignoring it.

I have no idea on the Monte Carlo.

If there is no 'train weight' on the VIN plate then the Manufacturer never submitted one during 'Type Approval' and no tow bar or towing device should be fitted.

george

Just checked ours and it says zero.....

Just checked ours and it says zero.....

Thank you for checking, that confirms you cannot tow with it.

One point that someone raised. If you fitted the bar, but with no ball, just to fit a cycle rack, then that would "possibly" be legal, but you might have to prove that you didn't use it for towing. Not sure on the legalities, it would need confirmation from VOSA.

Last vRS wasn't allowed to tow either. Isn't a problem for me a the moment as I don't have a trailer license but looking to getting one in the future

Yep - something I didn't check before ordering which means I still need a towcar :( Perhaps I should have gone for the Octy after all...?

If someone tells me I can't do something I want to do I want to know WHY...

There must be some ,or several reasons,what are they?

Drivetrain/cooling system not up to it?

Strain on dsg box when setting off?

Insufficient structural strength at rear of car to mount the brackets?

Vehicle unstable at high towing speeds?

Without wanting to sound too dramatic,does it not imply there's a weakness in the vehicle somewhere that has been rather ignored?

If someone tells me I can't do something I want to do I want to know WHY...

There must be some ,or several reasons,what are they?

Drivetrain/cooling system not up to it?

Strain on dsg box when setting off?

Insufficient structural strength at rear of car to mount the brackets?

Vehicle unstable at high towing speeds?

Without wanting to sound too dramatic,does it not imply there's a weakness in the vehicle somewhere that has been rather ignored?

Probably just something the politicians have decided in the UK, since we in Sweden are allowed to tow with it.

Edited 28 January, 201313 yr by Snowman89

XK140,

Skoda/VAG simply did not Submit the Vehicle with the relevant Weights for 'Type Approval' to get a Towing Rating.

The car fitted with a tow bar, will tow as well as any other MK2 Fabia. It is just that you can not legally fit a towbar and tow with it.

Physically you can fit a bar if you want,

then you aware what you are doing and why you should not be doing it.

They have done them with the Rear Crash Bars & the extra weights on the Hatch.

http://www.briskoda....owbar-vrs-again

george

MK 2 & MK 1 Pictures pinched from Posts on this forum.

Maybe they simply didn't want to Type Approve it as its classed as a different model? Odd that you have a towing weight in Sweden though (and we don't in the UK)...

XK140,

Skoda/VAG simply did not Submit the Vehicle with the relevant Weights for 'Type Approval' to get a Towing Rating.

The car fitted with a tow bar, will tow as well as any other MK2 Fabia. It is just that you can not legally fit a towbar and tow with it.

Physically you can fit a bar if you want,

then you aware what you are doing and why you should not be doing it.

They have done them with the Rear Crash Bars & the extra weights on the Hatch.

george

So was the non-submission by Skoda carelessness or stupidity?

I would admit that if I wanted to tow something weighty like a caravan then it would be up to me to check first,but apparently it would be illegal to just tow any small (say quarter ton) trailer...ridiculous.

No it will have been a thought out thing within the 'Volkswagen Audi Group', and do they want these vehicles from Skoda, which can be Tow cars?

VW Polo GTI is

Trailer load limits

Braked 12% incline 1200 kg

Unbraked, Automatic DSG gearbox 630 kg

Towbar load limit 50 kg

george

Tiguan and Passat have the same engine also. Even (I think) the Ibiza ST FR - or is that on the new chassis?

Is this legislation retrospective?

If not, then a Reliant Robin can legally tow but not a Fabia vRS.

Hilarious.