Installing a towbar: installation rules, installation methods, advice from experts

Just recently, a car enthusiast who wanted to attach a trailer to his car had to contact car service specialists, but they could not provide any guarantees. Today there is no need for this, because... Most modern vehicles (trucks and cars) come off the assembly line with special holes that are necessary for independently securing the trailer. Even if your car is not equipped with such holes, you can still carry out the installation quickly and effortlessly. As a rule, professional intervention is not required, except in special cases.

General description of the device

How much does it cost to install a tow bar? This question is asked by many of those car owners who have decided to think about installing it. The cost of installation, for example, on a domestic car in standard places is approximately 2000 rubles. However, it is worth saying here that this can be done with your own hands. To successfully carry out such an operation, you only need to understand what kind of equipment it is and what its functionality is.

A towbar is a special attachment that is designed to couple a car to a trailer. How much does it cost to install a towbar with full connections and drilling new holes? This is a fairly common operation, since there is a need for electrical installation, and sometimes it is necessary to install it where it was not planned by the manufacturer. The cost of such an operation increases to 2300 rubles.

As for the device itself, it is a ball that is connected to a hook. This ball, like a certain part of it, protrudes beyond the rear bumper, and therefore is quite easy to notice. The hook itself is attached to a special beam, which is mounted under the bottom of the car body.

What is better - to make or buy ready-made?

The first option has its advantages. Firstly, it saves money. Secondly, the opportunity to gain good practical experience.

However, experts are more inclined towards the benefits and safety of the second option, since it has its undoubted advantages:

1. Factory capacities make it possible to optimally calculate the load on all elements of the device and the ball, which is impossible to do at home.
2. All factory items undergo various tests and technical inspection before being released for sale.
3. The purchased design has a guarantee of quality and reliability, which cannot be said about home production.

It is recommended to trust even the installation procedure of purchased products to specialists in order to avoid various related problems. What you should do is up to you to decide. To make your choice easier, we have tried to collect all the necessary information in one material.

Types of tow bar

Installation of a towbar is most often required if the car owner needs to transport cargo that is too large or too heavy. There are currently three main types of tow bars: flanged, welded and removable.

The cheapest and most reliable design is considered to be welded. However, installing a towbar of this type has one very serious drawback - it is not removable. As for the flange type, its installation can only be carried out if the manufacturer initially equipped the machine for this.

Regarding the choice of this part, it is very important to take into account not only the make and model of the car, but also the year of manufacture of the element itself. It would be best, of course, to consult with a specialist before purchasing, but if you do it yourself, then the craftsmen recommend making sure that you have a certificate for the part. If it is missing, then there is a possibility that the towbar is of poor quality, and it may become deformed in the near future.

Most often, summer residents, tourists, fishermen and other people who have to transport any equipment or things need to install a towbar. Most often, it is purchased specifically to be able to attach a trailer.

Towbar for Volkswagen Polo: selection of analogues and original spare parts

When choosing a design for Polo, it is important to choose a product that is long enough to attach to bumpers and has the number of connectors that matches the car. For the full functioning of electrical signals, the Polo towbar must have 7 plug connectors

For the full functioning of electrical signals, the Polo tow bar must have 7 plug connectors.

On the tow bar, all the chips must be freely connected to the car, otherwise the product will not be able to transmit turn signals and braking signals, which can result in fines when stopped by traffic police officers.

Features of the tow bar

How much does it cost to install a tow bar on a car? For example, attaching such a device to foreign cars without a connection will cost 2,000 rubles. However, it is quite possible to carry out this procedure without the intervention of specialists. The most important thing is to choose the right model so that it not only fits the car and performs all the necessary functions, but also fits aesthetically. It is also very important to remember that they can be either removable, when the hook can be removed from the beam, or they can be non-removable, when both the tow bar and the supporting beam form a single whole. The first option is more common for obvious reasons.

How much does it cost to install a tow bar on a car, and does it just depend on the job? The fact is that the installation of such a device also depends on some characteristics of the part itself. Naturally, the most important of them is carrying capacity. Of course, such an element both in itself and its installation will cost a little more, but saving in this case is strictly prohibited, since its breakdown, especially while driving, is dangerous for road users.

Once the desired model has been selected, you can begin installing the tow bar on the car. There are several well-known companies, for example, BOSAL, THULE, Westfalia. These companies are distinguished by the fact that they cooperate with many car production plants. This means that if the tow bar was chosen correctly, then it will definitely fit the car in all respects, and you will not have to drill additional holes.

How does it work?

If the lubricant is hot, that is, heated up by the engine, then it begins to filter through the paper, leaving particles of dirt, shavings, etc. on the paper.

If the lubricant is cold (especially in winter), then its throughput drops significantly, because it is thick and cannot properly pass through the paper part. Therefore, the bypass valve opens; it opens only when the pressure in the filter rises above 0.8 atmospheres. And the oil passes through it.

After heating up to + 60, +80 degrees Celsius, the lubricant becomes liquid and is already able to seep (filter) through the surface. Therefore, the bypass valve closes and the filtration process continues in full.

After filtration has occurred, clean oil is discharged into the central main hole and then enters the engine.

First stage of installation

Installing a towbar with your own hands, regardless of the model of equipment and vehicle, will take place in several main stages.

The first step on this path is to dismantle such an element as the rear bumper, as well as the rear bumper amplifier. This work is usually carried out quite quickly and simply, since all modern cars have a pair of screws and plastic caps for fastening. In some cases, the work becomes somewhat more complicated because the screws may be located behind the rear lights of the car, and therefore they will have to be removed. As for removing the bumper reinforcement, you can install a tow bar only if you remove it permanently. In its place there will be a beam holding the towing mechanism.

As for the immediate installation stage, it must be said here that it usually differs depending on the model of both the machine and the equipment itself. However, there are several general requirements that must be met in any case, both when installing a tow bar on a Lada, for example, and on a foreign car.

Installing a tow bar on a car with your own hands

Good day to all! Work on the site continues, and therefore a portion of new materials is already waiting for you. The topic for today's discussion will be the installation of a towbar. Many people think about doing it themselves. In certain situations, this is a completely reasonable step that does not require special skills or a lot of time from you.

A towbar installed on a vehicle allows you to expand the vehicle's lifting capabilities. Roughly speaking, it will make it easier for you to transport more things. One uses a towbar to transport a trailer. Others hook up a regular trailer for transporting some building materials and other things. Some people use it to transport bicycles. There are also those who need a trailer for a car to deliver their own scooter or boat to bodies of water. Here the situations are different.

General requirements during installation

Firstly, the towbar beams, as well as its brackets located on the sides, must be attached to the vehicle's side members as shown in the diagram, which is usually sold along with installation instructions. Secondly, a socket box is always attached to the beam. Next, you need to insert the harness with the electrical cables of the device through the hole in the rear panel of the car body. However, before you do this, you should attach it to the beam using plastic fasteners.

Next comes the electrical installation process. Usually, many people wonder how much it costs to install a tow bar precisely because of this part. Indeed, if it is a foreign car, then the difference in cost will be 1000 rubles for work with and without a connection. However, electrical installation can be carried out independently. Many vehicles have special connectors for its installation. It is necessary to find them, guided by the diagram of the car itself.

It is important to pay attention to the fact that all threaded connections must be tightened as tightly as possible.

After this, you will need to begin installing all previously removed parts in the reverse order. Here you should be prepared for the fact that you may need to trim the rear bumper of the car as shown in the template so that it can be mounted with the tow bar without any problems. If you don’t want to do this at all, then you need to pay attention to this point at the purchase stage. The need for trimming is indicated in the installation instructions.

As can be seen from the general work plan, it is, in principle, not difficult to fulfill all the requirements for installing this part.

Towbar connected to frame

Thus, to make the device, you need to find a ball with eyes (on the market or used does not matter). After that, remove the bumper, cut off the lugs and make a hole using a drill and a drill bit. Next, you will need a pipe of suitable diameter up to 1 meter long. Connect with a fastening weld. After this, in the middle of the pipe, another pipe is strengthened at a right angle by welding. After this operation, the structure can be primed and painted. To increase the spar, you can insert a small piece of angle iron with a nut welded to it, eventually you will get something like a removable towbar.

Mounting to body

We made a towbar with our own hands and now we need to attach it to the car body.

1. The first thing to do is to combine the trailer frame with the body frame frame. This allows you to get a load-bearing body. To get the platform, you will need to use five small crossbars and place them between the crossbars.
2. Then, it is necessary to weld the longitudinal elements on both sides. It is necessary to install 4 racks through each crossbar and weld them carefully. Now you will need rectangular pipes.
3. I recommend making the sides folding, as this will allow you to transport long and large objects. Lay a sheet of iron on the floor. A sheet of iron needs to be welded to the grille of your body.
4. If suddenly you do not have the material for your homemade trailer hitch, then the supplier of the tools you will use will be an old car. You will need two springs from it; they will connect the beams and the frame. Now your trailer will need wheels, these can also be borrowed from an old car.

To install the tow hitch you will need an inspection hole or a lift. Before installing, I recommend disconnecting the car from the battery. Then remove all contents of the trunk and remove the trim.

Attention to details

After this, as they say, you need to estimate the towbar at the attachment point. Next, you must first attach the structure in a place prepared for this with the help of bars, clamps, or something else; help from a friend will not be superfluous.

The second stage is drilling holes for fastening. For this job you will need a drill. Holes are made on both sides using a drill and a drill bit with a diameter of 12.5 mm. Insert washers and bolts into the formed holes and tighten the nuts. Tightening is done using a wrench of the appropriate diameter.

Then you need to make two holes on the inside of the trunk and in the lower part of the spar, using a reinforcing lining. Bolts are inserted into the drilled holes, linings are put on, followed by washers, and then tightened with a wrench to “17-19”.

At the final stage

Make a hole in the bottom of the trunk to connect the wires to the trailer outlet. Before you start drilling, think carefully and make a mark of the place that needs to be drilled. Secure the connector to the towbar, and then through the hole in the bottom of the trunk, pull out the wire and connect it to the socket, taking into account the color of the wires.

Choosing a device for Nissan

You can consider all the necessary stages of work using the example of a model such as the Nissan Qashkai. The manufacturer produces two models of this vehicle: J10 and J11. Therefore, when selecting a towbar, you need to be careful, since the body structure of these two types of cars is slightly different, which means the mounting locations may vary.

Next, you should pay attention to the fact that the device can perform two functions. The first is protective, and the second is transport. If everything is clear with the second one, then as for the defensive one, many do not understand what it has to do with it. The fact is that towbars are made of very durable metal and are quite capable of stopping a rear impact from an inattentive driver if he was not driving at high speed.

As for installing a towbar on a Nissan, any of the three types that were given earlier can be installed on such a car. There is another nuance, which lies in the fact that the ball itself, which is the tip for the hook, can be either conditionally removable or completely removable. The difference between the first and second is that the first is fastened with two bolts, and the second with bolts, nuts or semi-automatic. Depending on the method of connection to the supporting beam, they can be either forged, welded, or universal. Of course, it is better to choose equipment that can be removed in order to dismantle it at the right time and not spoil the aesthetic appearance of the car.

Do-it-yourself tow bar installation

It is not enough to buy a trailer; you also need to make sure that the car can move adequately with it and the trailer does not cause inconvenience to it. Therefore, even before purchasing, you need to ensure that a tow bar is installed on the car, and that the trailer can be attached to it. Don’t forget that installing a towbar also involves installing various electrics in the car, so that all the light signals that the driver gives when the nature of the movement changes can be displayed on the trailer.

We will briefly go over all this in our article today, we will touch on all the main points of installing a tow bar.

Installation instructions

Installation will not cause any difficulties if you strictly follow the instructions and drawings that are usually included with the towbar. However, it is still worth considering the scheme.

First, you will have to remove the rear bumper, although this is not always important. There are some models of towbars that can be installed without this step, so again it’s worth looking at the instructions.

Secondly, using a bolted or welded connection, it is necessary to attach the existing tow bar. The third step is laying out the wiring. The finishing touch is installing the bumper in its place.

Most often, installation work needs to be carried out in a garage where there is a pit or overpass. This will make the task quite easy. Another important requirement when installing this device is dryness. This means that any moisture must be eliminated, since the installation will involve electrical connections. When removing the trunk, it is recommended to use a special screwdriver with an unusual configuration. It has a curved shape, and this feature is that it will help you easily snap off the fasteners that hold the elements.

After the bumper is removed, you also need to remove the foam block, as well as the metal beam that is on the body. To successfully remove this element, a special 10-point socket is usually used. After removing the fastening elements of the beam, holes will appear, which are intended for attaching the tow bar. The side holes of the stiffeners must be connected to the side holes. The stiffeners are fastened with a bolted connection, and a towbar beam is installed between them.

In the end, it is worth noting that it is not recommended to purchase used parts, since there is no exact information about their condition, as well as about what loads the device was subjected to. For Nissan cars, several large companies produce towbars, and therefore choosing a suitable new model will not be difficult.

In what cases is it necessary to install a smart connection?

For almost all modern cars, when installing a socket on a towbar, it is required to connect it to the on-board network through a matching unit for the towbar. To check if your car needs a Smart Connect module, simply unscrew one of the headlight bulbs. If the on-board computer displays information about this on the dashboard, then a coordination unit is needed. Connecting the trailer hitch socket directly to the rear lights in this case can lead to blown fuses and failure of the wiring.

Connecting the towbar through the coordination unit is mandatory in vehicles equipped with:

• electrical wiring using a multiplex CAN bus, which transmits a digital control signal for all machine devices;
• automatic diagnostic system Check Control;
• voltage control system;
• LED lighting;
• system for detecting faults and burnt out lamps;
• low voltage lighting system.

Coordination block (universal) ARAGON-501 MINI 7-pin

Kit for Niva

Installing a towbar on a Chevrolet Niva is a fairly pressing topic for many car owners, since this element is not installed at all at the factory. The only thing that is done during assembly is drilling holes for its installation. This is good because if you do it yourself, you can damage the integrity of the body, and it may crack in this place. As for purchasing an installation kit, you can purchase it from any convenient place, but you need to make sure that it has everything you need and that it exactly matches the car model. To do this, you need to know the year of manufacture of the vehicle. If we talk about the cost, it ranges from 1000 to 5000 rubles.

The kit itself includes the following elements:

• the device itself;
• socket made of plastic or steel;
• wires;
• 2 nuts and screws for fastening;
• six bolts;
• washers and cap on the ball.

Advantages of the matching block

Coordination unit for Unikit 2 towbar before installation If you are the owner of a modern model vehicle, then you need to connect smart control. Without connecting the towbar coordination unit, you simply will not be able to use the trailer. Here are the main advantages that installing this device provides:

• the unit completely eliminates the possibility of incorrect operation of trailer lamps and prevents malfunctions in the operation of the vehicle’s electronic systems;
• The unit does not respond to power surges. It is also needed to eliminate excessive loads on power supply circuits;
• The block is multifunctional. Its connection makes it possible to switch the fog lights, as well as constantly monitor the turn signals.

Installation steps

Installation of a tow bar on a Niva can be done independently, as in other cases. To do this you will need to complete the following steps:

1. To begin with, the car is driven into the garage, where there is an inspection hole to provide convenient and unobstructed access to the bottom, where the towbar will be mounted.
2. Next, you need to find the very holes that were intended by the manufacturer for installation of equipment. They are present on any Chevrolet Niva model, but sometimes it happens that they are quite difficult to detect. Quite often this happens due to the fact that they are sealed at the factory. To make the task easier, you can take the towbar and apply it to the place where it seems that it should be. You can pierce the taped holes using a screwdriver, for example.
3. After this, you should completely clean the tape with which they were sealed.
4. The main difference from all previous vehicles is that the Chevrolet does not need to remove the rear bumper, as was previously required. Here you can go straight to the installation process.
5. One by one, bolts are inserted into the holes of the device and the side members and tightened with a nut. It's best to start with the rear bumper crossbar, which is attached inside to the side member.
6. Next you need to fix the longitudinal rail. To do this, it is attached to the transverse rail at the rear, and to the side members of the car at the front.
7. The last step is to attach the directly removable ball. It is fixed with bolts. After this, we can consider that the mechanical part of the work is completely finished.

Next, you should start working on installing an outlet, that is, an electrician.

What you need to have

You can do without the traffic police. There is a list of technical changes made to the design that do not require approval from the state traffic inspectorate. In order not to be fined or, God forbid, to stop registering your vehicle, you must add to the usual set of documents:

• compliance (copy) and a passport for the towbar, which comes complete with the towbar. The passport must bear the stamp of the auto center performing the
• Documents provided by an auto center that is certified to perform this type of activity. You will be given a copy of the certificate with an auto stamp and a certificate of completion of work.

That is, in fact, the tow bar must be manufactured and tested at the factory for a specific car model. He must receive a certificate of conformity, a copy of which is provided upon sale. And also the tow bar must be installed in accordance with all regulations by a legal entity that has the appropriate permission to carry out this work.

Watch the very informative video below on making design changes. It talks about various additional equipment, bumpers, and gas equipment, which must be changed. They asked a question about the tow bar at the 16th minute.

Electrical installation

The socket is installed directly next to the towbar; for this purpose it has a specially designated place. After this, you should be guided by the diagram, which shows exactly how to install everything. The electrical cable is placed in a heat-shrinkable box or simply wrapped with electrical tape. The wiring is attached to the structure, after which the cables are inserted into the interior through a special hole on the left side. There is no need to drill anything, since everything necessary is already there, and the wire ends are crimped. In addition, you will have to install fuses, of which there must be at least 4. After this, you can begin connecting the wires to the rear left headlight of the vehicle. As for the right side, you only need to bring one cable here and connect it to the turn signal.

In the end, I would like to note the installation of a towbar on a Renault, since here it is slightly different from all the previous ones in that you need to remove not the rear bumper, but the holder for the muffler and the muffler itself, since it will greatly interfere.

What do we need

In order to install a towbar without resorting to the services of car services, we advise you to allocate 2-3 hours of time for this work in advance and find a suitable place. The ideal option would be a garage with an inspection hole in order to carry out all the work without problems, but if this is not possible, then installing a tow bar can still be easily handled.

Most often, the purchased towbar comes with both metal plates and bushings necessary for fastening, as well as wiring and sockets necessary for connecting the trailer, but if the package you purchased does not have this, do not despair, because the missing parts can always be purchased separately.