After alot of faffing about and having to wait 7 days on paypal returning my money because PFJ were advertising something not in stock on eBay   my towbar arrived 2 weeks later.....

 

So what do you get for £286? Genuine Westfalia removable towbar, vehicle specific 7 pin electrics (i will only be using to hitch a trailer, no caravans) and the plug and wiring to complete the job.

 

 

first impressions? being a classic VW enthuiast i know Westfalia means quality, afterall it was VWs inhouse camper design team.  Its solid, very heavy and a good finish on it. I choose the removable version as i have the Reiger diffuser with hideaway hatch.  I wont be towing a caravan as we use the vw camper for weekends and camping so i choose the 7 pin trailer electrics. The instructions look straight forward and i'll post the images and use one of the install topics from here for instruction as well. Hopefully i can get it done over the weekend weather permitting. 

Edited 15 May, 20188 yr by JohnnyType2

Looks good.

I know not the details, but a special wiring loom and coding is need to be installed to enable the towing stability system. And to cut out the reversing sensors when a plug is connected to the tow hitch.

Be aware, tightening the bolts on the left side of the chassis rails is a nightmare!! A big pry bar and a long spanner are needed to bring the silencer down and out of the way to get the tool on the nut. Easy on the right as it’s a diesel, the fraudulent exhaust tip is handy in this situation  Good luck with it, truth be told I wanted a proper Westfalia bar, but a swan neck Witter one came up for £50 with a wiring loom so I went with that instead. Too tight for my own good haha. Wiring is straightforward but there’s lots of trim to undo. I don’t know if you've seen this, but I found it very helpful  

https://cjnet.info/gd/octaviamk3-towbar/

A car lift makes the job much easier...  

 

2017 Octavia towbar fitting

Edited 15 May, 20188 yr by Guest

1 hour ago, Scot5 said:

A car lift makes the job much easier...  

 

2017 Octavia towbar fitting

 

both really good sources of reference. looks like a full days work for a noob like me.

Fitting the mechanical part of the towbar will take you a few hours to do being careful. Unhook the rear of the exhaust system from its rubber hangers to make your life easier. 

 

The electrics take the longest. If you have fat fingers and a short temper then practice counting to ten. Just read the instructions and take your time. 

ill be booking a whole day then 

Having never done one before I fitted the same Westfalia detachable to my Oct 2 in about 6 hrs

My local garage will fit me a westfalia with 13pin electrics for £400 but it's not coded, just through a relay, my next option is the same towbar and electrics at another garage but coded £600 plus £70 to code it.

I'm thinking can I get the cheapest then take it to the other garage and get it coded who charge £70 for doing it.

Would this be an option?

9 hours ago, Madatter said:

My local garage will fit me a westfalia with 13pin electrics for £400 but it's not coded, just through a relay, my next option is the same towbar and electrics at another garage but coded £600 plus £70 to code it.

I'm thinking can I get the cheapest then take it to the other garage and get it coded who charge £70 for doing it.

Would this be an option?

 

No, if they are using rely to wire it in then it cannot be coded, you need the Škoda wiring loom.

10 hours ago, Madatter said:

My local garage will fit me a westfalia with 13pin electrics for £400 but it's not coded, just through a relay, my next option is the same towbar and electrics at another garage but coded £600 plus £70 to code it.

I'm thinking can I get the cheapest then take it to the other garage and get it coded who charge £70 for doing it.

Would this be an option?

can you not find one of the VCDS gurus from briskoda close to you who would do it for a few beers? £70 seems excessive to plug in a laptop...

So a dedicated kit doesn't have a relay, it just plugs straight into the loom?

Might look at doing it myself and getting it coded then.

Thanks

 

5 hours ago, Madatter said:

So a dedicated kit doesn't have a relay, it just plugs straight into the loom?

Might look at doing it myself and getting it coded then.

Thanks

 

Dedicated electrics only has a relay if you have 13pin wiring, which a new loom needs pulling to the front of the car to connect to the battery. The plug and play part of the kit is for cars with tow prep only. 

 

I recently fitted 13pin and had tow prep, straight forward job with coding if you take your time and don’t rush, it’s looks OEM from factory. 

 

 

 

My local tow bar specialist charged about that for a Westfalia fixed swan neck and TSP coding with a pukka wiring loom - the total was £600 ish with coding iirc.

Edited 18 May, 20188 yr by gregoir