Guys I'm thinking of fitting a detatchable swan neck towbar to my VRS. Would this turn potential buyers away later on do you think?

Possibly to some,

but if you want or need to tow or fit a towball bike rack etc. you will obviously need to fit one.

 

So is the car not devalued to you in its usefulness, if you want to tow and do not fit a Ball.?

With me it would depend whether  I felt I could believe the owner's account of what he had been towing.  A small light trailer taking garden rubbish to the tip - no problem.  On the other hand a max weight caravan would probably have me looking at another car instead.

 

But as goneoffSKi said - use the car for your needs and worry about re-sale later.  Or buy a vehicle for which towing is expected.

You could always remove it when you come to flog the car? To me, it makes no odds. I've just swapped my crash bar with another Ipswich member's car who had what looks like a genuine Skoda wiring and Brink tow bar job fitted to his car back in 2005 to pull a caravan. Just towed 500kgs of trailer, wheels and fuel this morning and I've got to say that it tows perfectly, apart from the obvious wheelspin on the damp roads. Hopefully another 500kgs of Caterham won't upset it too much tomorrow.

well I can say VRS's (well 2nd hand cars in general) I've been looking at - if they turned out to have a towbar I've avoided

 

perhaps not right - but my concerns would always be to additional wear on the clutch/flywheel

In most cases people seeing a towbar can be a put off.

Best bet is remove completely when selling the car, your average person will be none the wiser (unless you have had to cut the bumper etc) and you can sell the towbar as a separate item.

I would not personally attempt to sell with the bar on unless it is a proper utility type vehicle where it is expected to have a towbar like my Defender

Ok ill fit it and remove it when I sell the car

I can't see how a detatchable one would devalue it. The whole point of a removable one is so it's not seen 

Once the tow ball is removed on mine, you'd have no idea it has the rest fitted. Totally invisible unless you lie on the floor. How many potential buyers do that?!

When I bought my 4x4 I asked the dealer if it had a towbar over the phone before going to view it and was told it didn't have one. When I arrived I was looking over the car, underside as well it being a 4x4 and I noticed the towbar mount under the bumper with its plastic bung in place. I then looked under the boot carpet to find a brand new unused swan neck. Result.

 

I would have been wondering what it had been towing had the towbar shown any signs of use.

They are cars with towing limits & not made of Chocolate.

If towing is going to kill the cars drivetrain, they really are not worth buying are they, even as a non tow car.

 

As well as looking  at previous owners, mileage, private or business/lease, condition matters.

& while towing at NSL it is possibly not being thrashed.

 

A towbar having been fitted is good for you to try to get money off, if that is the way it really works.

& if you are selling/trading in, a reason to get all signs of having towed with it removed.

 

george

I think dealers take them off vehicles before they go to market.

I would assume theres a reason for that.

When I bought my 4x4 I asked the dealer if it had a towbar over the phone before going to view it and was told it didn't have one. When I arrived I was looking over the car, underside as well it being a 4x4 and I noticed the towbar mount under the bumper with its plastic bung in place. I then looked under the boot carpet to find a brand new unused swan neck. Result.

 

I would have been wondering what it had been towing had the towbar shown any signs of use.

alot of dealers are as bent as a nine bob note though, would'nt put it past them to replace that well worn swan neck with a brand spanker or even send the old one to the paint shop for a re-paint.

some would do anything for a sale sad

Once the tow ball is removed on mine, you'd have no idea it has the rest fitted. Totally invisible unless you lie on the floor. How many potential buyers do that?!

 

Same with mine.

 

Mine is only used to carry either a bike or carrying rack/box for extra storage on holiday use.

Didn't put us off - just bought a 2011 / 60 plate VRS estate with a tow bar (from a dealership) - it was a positive for us as we want to put a bike rack on so would have had one fitted anyway.

 

I guess it depends how quick you want to sell when it gets to that point; as with everything, some folk will like, some not so much.

alot of dealers are as bent as a nine bob note though, would'nt put it past them to replace that well worn swan neck with a brand spanker or even send the old one to the paint shop for a re-paint.

some would do anything for a sale sad

 

There used to be a dealer in Falmouth who had a skip behind the showroom full of old towbars. They removed them from every car that came in with one.

 

I managed to view mine and do the deal a couple of hours after the previous owners dropped it off so I know the dealer hadn't tinkered with it. Only thing was the swan neck had no keys. I was going to contact the previous owner but I managed to get a new lock barrel/keys from the local dealer for about £14.