Towbar wiring, not the usual question.

[rover220]

Just fitting westfalia 13 pin electrics to my superb mk 2, all don't apart from the perm feed to battery for pin 10. Struggling to find a way through the bulkhead. 

 

Do we think the internal fuesbox can support this as there is a spare male blade on the perm lives. Would obviously fuse appropriately. 

[chimaera]

On the OE wiring everything is run from the internal fusebox. It came with a cat-tail whip (can't think of a better way to describe it) harness to fit on the back of the fuse panel to supply power to positions 43 (15 A), 44 (20 A) & 45 (15 A) which as far as I can tell are for the +12 V supplies to the trailer. It additionally uses pins 8 & 9 for power to the control module. One of those will be the power supply for the trailer lights too, I'm just not sure which one.

 

Wiring colours for the 5 wires are:

• Fuse 8: Black/Green
• Fuse 9: Black/Red
• Fuse 43: Purple/Red
• Fuse 44: Yellow/Red
• Fuse 45: White/Red

I have some recollection that one of the three bigger lines bypasses the control unit and runs straight through to the trailer socket but I can't remember which one it is; looking at the wiring diagrams it appears that this is pin 10 (it's the only one missing from the assignment to the 13-pin socket on the diagram).

Edited 2 April, 2020 by chimaera
Added image

[rover220]

hi, thanks for that.

 

westfalia is similar but different. number 4 on the main loom is fed by an additional kit which is basically a relay, these then feeds pin 10 on the socket. i think i  will tap into the fuse nox for the premanent live. should be fine.

 

 

[rover220]

@chimaera

 

Do you have coding instructions available? Just playing with the coding and under the trailer module there is an option for pin 10 live when trailer connected. Not sure if I need the additional wiring or if the module can switch it itself now? 

[chimaera]

The only instructions I found were these: http://wiki.ross-tech.com/wiki/index.php/Trailer_Hitch_Retrofitting_(1K)

 

Beyond I just poked at stuff and did what I thought made sense. I would think that the coding for pin 10 only applies if it has been wired up first? As a test, you could leave it coded for permanently on and check with a multimeter.

[rover220]

Yeah tried but the module doesn't like the coding, have left with my relay powered ignition controlled 15a feed to pin 10.i like things to be as factory but frankly I'll probably rarely use it so it really doesn't matter. 

[3T51704x4]

When I got rid of the fixed tow bar fitted to mine for the removable type I ordered the Westfalia electrics to include the additional feed with relay like yours. I took the cable to the SB fuse box by the battery and used the busbar with the 15A fuse tucked in like seen in the photo.

My module would not accept SVM code but did mine manually.

The standard electrics went to the SC fuse box on the side of the dash for the 3x power take offs mentioned within the thread.

the feeds to the SC fuse box is also shown below (to follow as picture is on my laptop) so you can see what the rails do.

Edited 16 April, 2020 by 3T51704x4

[CombatWombat]

Apologies for diverting this topic a bit.  For a 2009 superb hatchback, what would be a rough figure to buy and self-install a towbar (for caravan use)?  What brand is the best value for the Superb, if there is much choice?

 

I've only fitted one towbar before and that wasn't on a Canbus-equipped car, so I'm well out of date!

 

Thanks.

Edited 16 April, 2020 by CombatWombat

[chimaera]

I went for the OE detachable one; it was around €360 from a dealer for towbar and wiring IIRC (a slightly discounted price since the lads give me the trade discount). Fitting the towbar was pretty simple, just make sure to have some spray paint to cover the exposed metal after the bumper bar is removed. The foam insert for the toolkit in the spare wheel well has a cut-out for the towball attachment when it's not in use.

 

Electrics were mostly straightforward but a bit time consuming. Trailer module goes on the left side of the boot, inside the trim panel; wiring harness runs from there across under the boot lip and up the driver's side to the fuse panel. Whether you go OE or Westfalia this bit is the same. If your car has factory towbar prep it's a bit simpler since you don't have to run the cable down the driver's side of the car.

 

At the fuse panel you have to hook in the 5 pins as outlined above, and there's a bit of swapping around of pins on the brown BCM connector to add the trailer harness to the CANBUS. As you'll have seen in this thread the Westfalia is a little bit different.

 

Whatever you go for, I'd suggest getting something CANBUS aware: in this case the other modules in the car are aware that a trailer is hooked up (provided you do some coding as per the Ross-Tech link I posted above). You get deactivation of rear parking sensors, activation of ESP towing mode, alarm activation if the trailer is unplugged while the car is locked.

[CombatWombat]

Thanks very much for the full and prompt reply!

 

That's much appreciated!

[Lutz]

Maybe you have already sorted out, but I have made tutorial on how to install OEM tow-bar to Estate SII.

 

 

[FlyingSpanner]

I bought a Westfalia removable type £220 ish  with full 13 pin electrics £170 ish from PF Jones with vehicle specific wiring kit inc ecu and additional loom for fridge which includes relay.

This was new but you should be able to buy fixed bar cheaper and even cheaper if you find one on eBay 

 

https://www.pfjones.co.uk/skoda-superb-estate-dec-2009-2015-westfalia-detachable-towbar.html

[rover220]

Mine is a pct detachable with westfalia electrics. 

[rover220]

Fitted my module on the right side of car, no reason it has to be on the left. 

 

My pin 10 switched live comes from the internal fuse box. It's relay powered. Plan to connect direct to battery at some point as worried that it will overload internal fuse box but will be OK for now. 

[rover220]

1 hour ago, FlyingSpanner said:

I bought a Westfalia removable type £220 ish  with full 13 pin electrics £170 ish from PF Jones with vehicle specific wiring kit inc ecu and additional loom for fridge which includes relay.

This was new but you should be able to buy fixed bar cheaper and even cheaper if you find one on eBay 

 

https://www.pfjones.co.uk/skoda-superb-estate-dec-2009-2015-westfalia-detachable-towbar.html

 

Pf jones always include the charging loom which is an option elsewhere. 

[chimaera]

1 hour ago, rover220 said:

Fitted my module on the right side of car, no reason it has to be on the left. 

 

My pin 10 switched live comes from the internal fuse box. It's relay powered. Plan to connect direct to battery at some point as worried that it will overload internal fuse box but will be OK for now. 

I wouldn't worry about it provided it's on a bus with sufficient current capacity. As I mentioned earlier, the Skoda OE setup uses the internal fusebox for that supply.

 

The Skoda electrical kit EEA800103EL includes the full 13 pin setup. There is an alternative p/n (that I don't have to hand) which only runs lights. It's a bit cheaper if you think you'll never need the additional connections.

[FlyingSpanner]

1 hour ago, rover220 said:

 

Pf jones always include the charging loom which is an option elsewhere. 

 

1 hour ago, rover220 said:

 

Pf jones always include the charging loom which is an option elsewhere. 

Not talking about charge, talking about fridge which is different, but you could use it to charge. I had to make sure I got the correct kit which did come with the fridge relay, not that I need it, just wanted the car wired up correctly.

 

Edited 16 April, 2020 by FlyingSpanner

[3T51704x4]

I had to get them (PF Jones) to change the kit as I ordered the wrong one to start with.

To save you the hassle of having to wait to fit the correct one.

They call it an extension kit I think.

 

Edited 16 April, 2020 by 3T51704x4

[rover220]

If you order westfalia they include it, 9r they do on their ebay page. I've bought 2 transporter kits and the superb and its always been included. The ebay listing even says they include it. 

[3T51704x4]

56 minutes ago, rover220 said:

If you order westfalia they include it, 9r they do on their ebay page. I've bought 2 transporter kits and the superb and its always been included. The ebay listing even says they include it. 

Bought mine direct so can’t comment on eBay orders.

[CombatWombat]

Thanks very much to all the posters of that additional information.

Very useful!!

 

[andrehj]

On 16/04/2020 at 17:58, chimaera said:

The Skoda electrical kit EEA800103EL includes the full 13 pin setup. There is an alternative p/n (that I don't have to hand) which only runs lights. It's a bit cheaper if you think you'll never need the additional connections.

That is not correct. The above mentioned kit does NOT have a charging pin 10 (and its minus on pin 9). These pins can also not be retrofitted, since they are also missing in the supplied socket.

Me however, I really wanted this set, since (in 2011) in was the only set with which it was certain that trailer ESP could be enabled. So I bought the set, cut away the socket, routed a separate wire for pin 10 to the fusebox and bought a new Hella socket.

[chimaera]

1 hour ago, andrehj said:

That is not correct. The above mentioned kit does NOT have a charging pin 10 (and its minus on pin 9). These pins can also not be retrofitted, since they are also missing in the supplied socket.

Me however, I really wanted this set, since (in 2011) in was the only set with which it was certain that trailer ESP could be enabled. So I bought the set, cut away the socket, routed a separate wire for pin 10 to the fusebox and bought a new Hella socket.

It does, trust me. It's fitted to my car and I've confirmed its operation. It may have been revised since you bought it.