Thinking of ordering a Combi.

 

I have a towbar mounted bike rack plus access to a large garden trailer.

 

Not sure if i should order a Factory towbar or should i go down the retrofit route if i decide i need one.  (Also, i may look at a caravan at some point in the future.)

 

Does anyone know if the factory tow bar includes any additional extras like increased coolant fan/system, higher amp alternator?  (it will have the dedicated electrics which will disable the rear parking sensors and set ESP to Tow mode i assume.)

 

Car will be a lease one, for 4 years.

 

Thanks

If you are going to need it then spec it from the factory... if for no other reason that they fold away out of sight when not needed! 

I specced a factory hitch on my Superb 2 Combi but it was fitted by a specialist who is based up the road from me, so this time im cutting out the 'middle man' & going straight to him when I get my new one, saving me a couple of hundred Euro. That hitch was a detachable one but I had it on the car all the time (for protection from clowns who can't park!) So the electronic fold away mechanism on the new hitch would be wasted on me. Is a hitch worth €700???

just looked at aftermarket prices over at Witter

 

Detachable Swan Towbar (vertical loading)

Mainly used in the rest of Europe. Cycle carriers are available for this type of bar but you cannot tow at the same time. The detachable towbar is easily removed and stows away in its own bag. When fitted it has a safety lock feature to give a visual indicator of correct attachment.

from £570.36 inc VAT

Includes: Towbar, Electric Kit & Fitting

If going to cost £200 more for aftermarket than factory fit then I would go with factory fit!

Saying that I have a detachable aftermarket on my current car and it works well but not a slick as an electrically retractable one.

So you can save £195 over the (neater) factory fit one (£765) but you will need to have the interior trim removed for them to wire it into the fusebox / CECM?

 

I know what I would rather go for... plus it will have a 3 year warranty.

 

BTW the factory fit bar is not electrically retractable      

If go factory fit.

Covered by warranty. Knowing that trim has not been removed/damaged. Guaranteed dedicated electrics. Etc.

However, it seems a lot of 'factory fitted' towbars are actually fitted in the UK just prior to (or even after) collection.

The maths suggest factory fit is the best option... plus as its going to be a lease car saves any hassle with them.

 

Cheers

Remember if you are thinking of a caravan you need to specify the 13 pin electrics and ensure it's fully wired for battery, ATC and fridge supplies.

 

Lee

Are the cars not already pre wired for a hitch? Im almost certain I read my wifes Octavia is.... As if what was said, & they are fitted by Specialist & not by Skoda, then the trim would still have to be removed. If you take your car to one of those Specialists then they know what they are doing so no botch jobs. I was quoted €350 when I enquired about a hitch for my sisters Superb 2

If it is leased then the lease company may not allow a non factory fit towbar to be fitted.

Are the cars not already pre wired for a hitch? Im almost certain I read my wifes Octavia is.... As if what was said, & they are fitted by Specialist & not by Skoda, then the trim would still have to be removed. If you take your car to one of those Specialists then they know what they are doing so no botch jobs. I was quoted €350 when I enquired about a hitch for my sisters Superb 2

 

No you usually had to spec towbar prep to get the wiring loom in the car.

 

I have previously attempted to code a dealer fit towbar when it had not been coded correctly... it turned out the wiring had been scotch locked (those nasty blue wiring connectors) to the car... which is why I could not code it. The dealer claimed this was perfectly acceptable, so the owner escalated it to SUK, they insisted the dealer removed their wiring and installed the correct loom!

 

Moral of the story is do not assume, for every decent dealer who will do the job properly there will be another who will have the job done as cheap as possible, even when it means it’s bodged.

Thanks for all replies..

 

ok, I have looked into this and the answer is FACTORY towbar. - as mentioned in my first post i was concerned regarding the additional extras you get in the towbar "kit"

 

Its a good call going down the OEM factory option on a lease car regardless, but the below is a bit of a warning for future ref for anyone else who may think about towing heavy loads (ie caravan) and warranty issues.

 

 

Source -

http://www.skoda.co.uk/SiteCollectionDocuments/Brochures/SE%20Business%20model%20brochure%20October%202015.pdf

Edited 8 November, 201510 yr by RickTT

There are a number of aftermarket options now appearing. P F Jones have a couple, but not yet for the Combi. I have Westphalias on my BMWs and that is the make used OEM. The instructions are now there for the Passat B8 but not yet our versions. Rock solid parts and about half the OEM price for Skoda. Fitting looks straightforward, but ?I'm only looking at the paper instructions not the real thing.

My dealer offered to fit one if we needed it later on. It's the electrics that care is needed with. Not because they are tricky, but if Skoda are anything like BMW, the 13-pin wiring is incomplete from the factory! According to BMW, no one but the UK uses all the connections so they don't bother wiring them in, even in a UK spec car. A number of owners (self included) have got the wiring fully installed at BMWs cost because no warning is made in the sales brochures......which only state 13-pin electrics included with a 'Y' lead for twin-electric equipped caravans/trailers.

Thanks FelisBengalensis, I have used Witter towbars before on my current E60, but that didn't require any additional cooling etc, but as I have now discovered, (see above) that the Superb requires that, I would have to go down the factory option for warranty purposes etc. Last thing I would want to do is provide a get out clause.

 

Cheers

If it is leased then the lease company may not allow a non factory fit towbar to be fitted.

 

Depends on the lease company - as long as we fund the installation, our lease company have no issue with them being fitted.

I have gone for factory towbar, guaranteed to be wired ok with no warranty issues also when I ordered not many aftermarket out there for the estate. Tow a caravan and looking to take it to Europe so the cooling alteration done in Ecuador might be worth while.

Depends on the lease company - as long as we fund the installation, our lease company have no issue with them being fitted.

 

That why I said may.

 

Some wont allow any retrofit bars and some will. Some expect you tor return the vehicle to factory spec so you have to be really careful with bumper cuts.

 

Personal lease tends to be more restrictive than a large business lease.

 

Lee

I have gone for factory towbar, guaranteed to be wired ok with no warranty issues also when I ordered not many aftermarket out there for the estate. Tow a caravan and looking to take it to Europe so the cooling alteration done in Ecuador might be worth while.

 

I'd double check when you get it.

 

A lot of owners have been getting 13 pin electrics without and fridge supplies (Pin10) They are coming with just 12V feeds for caravan lights. (Pin 9)

 

 

A lot of owners across VAG have had to have this rectified by the dealer.

 

Merc and BMW owners as well.

Edited 9 November, 201510 yr by logiclee

Does anyone know what "trailer hitch preparation" means in spec? Thanks.

Does anyone know what "trailer hitch preparation" means in spec? Thanks.

IIRC it means the wiring is all there ready and waiting.

I would also assume that if additional hardware for extra engine\transmission cooling or similar is required then that is fitted too.

Sent from my D5803 using Tapatalk

Thanks for the clarification trundle nut.

I spoke with a few dealers on the cost of retro fitting, the cost plus the cooling element came out at over £1000 estimate based on the time required, however the dealer did not have anyone trained at this moment in time.

 

Other dealers thought it was just a coding element..... 

 

therefore just went with one from the factory.

 

Does anyone know if the factory tow bar includes any additional extras like increased coolant fan/system, higher amp alternator?  (it will have the dedicated electrics which will disable the rear parking sensors and set ESP to Tow mode i assume.)

 

The brochure does have some words that suggest the cooling/charging/battery systems are changed when towbar is specced, not quite sure what the changes are though.

We've just received our estate with towbar, it's very neat.

Just lift the handle at the rear of the boot floor, the towbar drops down from under the back bumper, then just rotate it into position by hand until it locks in place.

Pulling the same handle then lets it fall back down again, and you just push it back under the bumper until it locks again.

There's an LED on the boot floor edge that goes green when locked in place, or red when it's hanging loose.