MOT Failure Due To Towbar !!!!!

[GeorgeandAde]

Took my CRV in for its MOT today after owning it for about 9 months and had a Witter detachable towbar fitted last year.
The reason for failure??
Two of the bolts did not have sufficient thread showing(too short).
One of the other nuts had completley dissapeared from the bolt!!!!
The mobile fitter we have used for the past few years has been excellent but I rang him last night to explain that I definitly was not happy and that I wanted it rectified immediatly.
He apologised profusely and promised to rectify it this week.
He did howver explain that he had no answers for the missing nut,but the contents of the box he recieves from the manafacturers which contains the towbar,fittings etc.,was up to european directives but promised to check any future stock.
Basically,if I hadnt taken the car in for its annual MOT,I would have possibly been towing the van with family on board,in traffic with possibly catastrophic results.
So basically,Im going to check my towbars fittings on a regular basis from now on and not rely on the MOT test to find any weaknesses.
Adrian

 

[Icemaker]

being a competent engineer i tend to check all nuts and bolts for tightness after a few hours of use. its common knowledge that wheel nuts need to be re tightned after aprox 50 miles of use yet no recomendation is made for towbars which do after all suffer a huge amount of stress during use.
personally i think its the responsibility of the vehicle owner to make sure his or her vehicle is suitable for the job required, im not saying you should get under the car with a torque wrench every time you tow but a quick look to check all is well takes seconds, 9 months of use is quite a lot of time for a nut or bolt to stretch or vibrate loose if not re tightened shortly after fitting.
i think a lesson is learnt and those that dont check their tow car should take note.

 

[max1979]

alot of people moan when there car fails its mot (this coming from an mot tester) but can u imagine if you was towing your van and the towbar came loose the damage it could cause is unimagineable, well done to the tester as some might not of even noticed it

 

[GeorgeandAde]

Whilst i definitly agree with you that the nuts and bolts should be checked and that 9 months is a long time,we only towed the caravan for a total of 145 miles during that 9 months.
I returned the car to the garage that fitted the towbar this afternoon and he has rectified the faults.
I basically said to him that in my opinion,one of the nuts and bolts including the spring washer were not tightened at the time of installation.
I dont feel that I should have to check work carried out in such a short space of time by a reputable company which I paid good money to carry work on my vehicle.
Having said that,yes,I do agree that thinbgs like this should be checked on a regular basis.
I certainly did not moan about the car failing the MOT test due to the above faults.
I was actually glad that the vehicle had been checked by a competant mechanic and yes I do realise what the concequences could have been.
Adrian

 

[Beachball]

What happens if you are disabled how do i tighten the nuts ( In my case i will take it to my garage to check it ) Just think not everybody can get down and check the car ...

 

[Mel]

Just what should the torque be when checking towball bolts?
mel

 

[iansoady]

Here: http://www.caravantalk.org.uk/topic/26620-towball-bolt-torque/page__view__findpost__p__268039

 

[Lutz]

I think there is some confusion here. The above link refers to the torque required for the bolts attaching the towball to the towbar assembly, but they way I read George & Ade's original statement, it was the bolts fastening the towbar to the vehicle underbody that were the reason for the failure.

 

[Sedo]

Interesting this because I had a Witter towbar fitted by a dealer when I bought a Sedona off them.
Whilst checking the spare wheel under the car one day I found by accident that the towbar (not towball) was loose.
Phoned the dealer and asked for the torque settings and was told that the technician 'always tightened until they felt right'.
Having been in engineering for nearly 40 years I know what he meant but wasn't impressed.
I got the torque settings off the Witter site and did it myself.
As for nuts coming loose, there should be locking washers or nuts, or use a proprietary liquid like 'nut loc'.

 

[GeorgeandAde]

Thanks Lutz.
I dont think I explained myself properly in first post......sorry.
It was actually the bolts which attach the towball to the towball assembly.(Its a swan neck detachable).
As you look at the rear of the car.......the first two bolts did not have enough thread showing.(MOT tester said it should be at least one and a half threads).
The other larger bolt was just behind these two,with a spacer in between.This was the bolt that didnt have the nut on the end at all.
Sorry for the confusion.
All is well now after I returned the car to towbar fitter and he rectified the faults with a pass at MOT station on re-test.
Adrian

 

[Lutz]

Now you've got me completely confused. You talk about a swan neck detachable and yet also about the connection between the towball to the towbar assembly.
A detachable swan neck doesn't have any bolts between the towball and the towbar, but is normally a bayonet-type attachment or a locking pin. Bolted fastenings are not considered as readily detachable.

 

[GeorgeandAde]

Oh dear...will try to explain.
I never have the towball inserted in whilst not towing.Stored in the boot.
Where the neck of the towball piece is inserted,I have a rubber "plug" which fits into this hole whilst not towing.
About 1 inch behind this rubber "plug" are 2 nuts and bolts,(the 2 which didnt have enough thread showing) which fit through (left to right) and also fastened within these bolts are the plate where the 2 electrical sockets are mounted,along with the metal plate where I attach the breakaway cable.
Approx 1 inch behind these 2 nuts and bolts, is the longer nut and bolt with a spacer,which did not have the nut on the end.
Hope ive described it right this time.

 

[Lutz]

If the bolts neither attach the towbar to the vehicle nor the towball to the towbar it is difficult to imagine that they have a structural purpose other than perhaps the anchorage of the breakaway cable. I presume that this is what the MOT criticised.

 

[GeorgeandAde]

Just been out to car with a torch in the rain.......lol.
The receptable(I think thats the correct word)that houses the swan neck towball is sandwiched in between the towbar and is held in place with the 3 nuts and bolts and a spacer.

 

[Lutz]

Sorry to have made you go out into the rain, but from your description the bolts in question appear to be part of the towbar assembly itself and have nothing to do with its installation. This indicates that the towbar manufacturer is to be blamed for poor quality and not the fitter. A properly designed towbar should not need any bolts within the assembly to be touched by the fitter.

 

[ProfAlGoogle]

I think what it is Lutz if it is a similar tow bar to mine, its a standard bar and you have a choice where it terminates to have a fixed ball via the two standard bolts through the ball, or you can opt for a detachable swan neck ball, where you place it in to the receptacle that is bolted in place of the standard 2 bolt plate, then turn it 90 degrees, then it locks in to place with a spring loaded catch.

 

[GeorgeandAde]

Thats it cookieones

Youve described it much better than me.
Thanks.
Adrian

 

[John_374564913]

its a very interesting topic as when I ordered my swan neck detachable tow bar to my mercedes C Class I watched the fitter do the instalation.
What surprised me most was that he removed the sub-frame cross member and replaced it with a new one to take the towbar
The old cross member is still in my garage so I know this for a fact when I say old one the car was brand new last year and the tow bar was fitted only six months after I purchased it from Mercedes.
This makes me wonder why change the cross member on the sub frame and why is it not done to all cars

Just a thought

John

 

[Steve L]

The subframe cross member that you refer to is the rear crash bar as such and is designed to absorb impact in the event of an accident. A stronger cross bar is fitted to allow towing. That's why it is changed. So keep the original cross bar just incase you take the towbar off or sell the car. The cross bar carries the impact padding and outer skin that constitutes the rear bumper system.

I'm glad tow bars are now part of mot's. I visually check my bar twice a year, which is a chore for me as I'm not in the best of health. I also agree that disabled or less abled will find it difficult to crawl under a car or may well not know what they are looking for. So surely bunging your local mechanic a drink would be a cheap price to pay for piece of mind.