Hi All,

Ready to order a yeti (from drive the deal).

Looking at 10-12 weeks, presume delivery will be another two

Dealer has qouted £528 for a detachable tow bar which seems a lot.

Has anyone had one fitted independently, if so where did they have it done and how much.

I presume it requires removing the bumper and cutting a hole in it which I dont fancy doing myself.

Cheers, Dave

Edited 16 December, 200916 yr by fuzzybunny

Hi,

And welcome o the forum. I am sure that someone will answer you very soon. the brochure is confusing when one reads the small print as to what might be involved what type if it is pre done at the factory or just fitted as an accessory by the dealer ship. I suppose that it might have to be programed into the system? to ensure the various chassis management programs recognize when a trailer or van is being towed?

Hi,

And welcome o the forum. I am sure that someone will answer you very soon. the brochure is confusing when one reads the small print as to what might be involved what type if it is pre done at the factory or just fitted as an accessory by the dealer ship. I suppose that it might have to be programed into the system? to ensure the various chassis management programs recognize when a trailer or van is being towed?

Thanks Anthony,

yes you're right about confusing. tow bar preparation is listed as £150 on the order form but on the dealer fitted accessories its about £150 to fit electrics by the dealer for pre prepared or £10 dearer if its not prepared so whats the difference. also tow bar is listed as £220 but presume there is a fitting cost on top.

Its really very unclear. Its not just Scoda though the Tiguan is the same confusing story. perhaps they just want to discourgae fitting towbars.

When I bought a new Seat a few years ago I just had a bar fitted by an independent fitter while I waited, which worked out fine. (Couldn't stand to look though when the cut into the bumper!)

Cheers, Dave

I have been quoted similar costs for fitting the Skoda towbar plus electrics.

The costs broke down as Tow Bar - £220, Tow Bar Electrics - £147 13-7 pin Tow adapter - £10.64 The rest was Labour.

I am waiting for Whitter and Indespension to quote for a tow bar alone and then I would get Skoda to fit the electrics. This may be a cheaper route.

Hi,

aerofurb has the factory tow prep on his Snow-MonsterDI, so he may have some very useful feedback; might be worth making contact.

Hi,

aerofurb has the factory tow prep on his Snow-MonsterDI, so he may have some very useful feedback; might be worth making contact.

I haven't had the time to look closely yet at my 'factory towbar fit' so am still in the dark a bit as well! The removable panel is already in the bumper (and it looks very neat) if I get it in the hangar at the weekend I'll take the panel off and have a look inside to see what lurks.

From another poster and thread, the factory twobar is made by Westfalia - there are several Westfalia suppliers on Google offering to fit towbars to Yetis. When I get a minute I'll work out/price up the options. On the Westfalia website there's the installation manual as well.

FYI I wrote in earlier thread "Howdy and mines ordered":

"Checked with a couple of towbar specialist before I ordered mine but no-one had one for the Yeti at that time. So decided to get dealer fitted detachable. One Skoda dealer quoted me a special price of �415 if I ordered the car from them (supplied & fitted with single electrics). I think this was a good deal for the actual towbar, but the dealer I ordered from gave me a better deal on the car plus the towbar, front & rear mudflaps, floor mats and rubber boot liner for �599. Both dealers told me the factory towbar preparation was not necessary."

Actually still waiting for the single electrics to be fitted, but the detachable towbar does come with a neat little blanking panel when you take it off (with the white cotton gloves provided)!

It is still as clear as mud I am afraid to say. Obviously after-market suppliers can fit a tow bar and connect it up. As can the dealer or do it your self. So what is it all about with the factory prep?

I know that modern cars like the Yeti have in their electronic chassis management controls and ability to detect if a trailer is fitted or not. The electronic management then tailors its responses for a trailer and back to normal again when it is unhooked. I should imagine that the electrics need a module or proper wiring harness rather than just tapping into the existing wiring like many did of old and some after market fitters still do. then presumably the towing equipment electronics surely must need programming to enable it to integrate and allow the chassis management to modify its response.???????

Can some one here explain what is the difference between the factory prep , the dealer fit, and after-market/do-it your self. In other words why the necessity of the factory prep.

I will like to have a tow bar partly to tow of course, I would prefer the management system to recognize if a trailer was on or not. The other reason why a tow bar is to be fitted for me is to act as a strong point for recovery should it either become stuck or another vehicle becomes stuck. Most vehicles particularly ordinary cars and cross overs do not have substantial attachment point for ropes and shackles. In the event of a recovery without proper attachments, their is a real risk of damage to the chassis. The lashing points on most vehicles are just not suitable for heavy or snatch recovery. I hope that readers on here unfamiliar with off road travel, realize this lack of strength of the original fittings..

Happy Towing!

Edited 2 February, 201016 yr by Anthony 1

Hopefully I am now coming out of the darkness !!

Having got an unacceptably high quote from a main dealer I went to a local independant long established company who gave me a very sensible quote ( just over £400) for supply and fitting of a detachable Westfalia with 13 pin wiring (for caravan)

The company however said that if I wanted to avoid potential warranty issues I might wish to have them fit a vehicle specific wiring kit (extra £130) which would have to be programmed by a Dealer download and also I would have to provide the blanking plate for which back to your Dealer.

Anybody any idea of the cost of the dealer download and also the blanking plate if it is not already in place.

Cheers GB

Hi Geordiebroon,

Well at £400 plus £130 for a harness plus other bits it seems my dealer quote of £528 doesn’t seem quite as bad. That was Marlborough in London, if you are concerned about warranty issues then might be worth ringing round local dealers for alternative quotes then take those quotes back to your supplying dealer. Tell them you will be bringing the car there for servicing and see what they offer.

Hi Geordiebroon,

Well at £400 plus £130 for a harness plus other bits it seems my dealer quote of £528 doesn’t seem quite as bad. That was Marlborough in London, if you are concerned about warranty issues then might be worth ringing round local dealers for alternative quotes then take those quotes back to your supplying dealer. Tell them you will be bringing the car there for servicing and see what they offer.

Thanks Fuzzybunny for your prompt response.

Your £528 was £500 cheaper than my first quote which made the independant price with harness seem a bargain :0)

By paying £130 extra for the harness to avoid splicing into the existing wiring avoided warranty difficulties. However I would be looking at an extra £100 approx for other bits and therefore your price is excellent. Will let you know how I get on.

I think, that fitting the proper harnnes allows the ECU to be aware when a trailer is fitted or not. This would allow for changes in electronic vehicle handling responses by the ECU to adapt between trailer pulling and solo driving. I am not too sure that just splicing into the existing wiring would allow this to take place, therefore compromising safety?

I think, that fitting the proper harnnes allows the ECU to be aware when a trailer is fitted or not. This would allow for changes in electronic vehicle handling responses by the ECU to adapt between trailer pulling and solo driving. I am not too sure that just splicing into the existing wiring would allow this to take place, therefore compromising safety?

I agree. The owners manual gives a list of the fuses and, In that list, there are fuses dedicated to the tow electrics. My deduction is that the Skoda electrics harness is a MUST.

What I am not happy with is the cost of the Tow Bar which, at £220, I think is too expensive. I have tried to convince my dealer that the TB and the Electrics are mutually exclusive and I could have a cheaper Tow Bar fitted elsewhere.

Any Views?

The electric harness is a must I believe. What are the prices of alternative manufactured tow bars? What are the respected differences in price for fitting bearing in mind that he harness must be used and the vehicle ECU programmed for trailer pulling?

I suspect that the costs might start to get closer, taking everything into consideration perhaps not. It would be great to have an all in price from tow bar fitting outlets but how many of them would take short cuts and just use scotch connectors and not use proper harnesses nor have the ECU programmed!

I agree that the towing equipment inducing the various harnesses plugs and bar are very expensive. Just to have the car pre wired at the factory costs enough, then their is all the other kit. The whole caboodle should in reality cost no more than a couple of hundred pounds all in and be fitted in the factory. Instead we have a confusing brochure and a mounting price even before labour costs have been worked out. A bit of an earner if you ask me.

Hi All,

Ready to order a yeti (from drive the deal).

Looking at 10-12 weeks, presume delivery will be another two

Dealer has qouted £528 for a detachable tow bar which seems a lot.

Has anyone had one fitted independently, if so where did they have it done and how much.

I presume it requires removing the bumper and cutting a hole in it which I dont fancy doing myself.

Cheers, Dave

Hi there,

I am booked to get a towbar fitted to my Yeti in a couple of weeks time, at Rainworth Skoda in Mansfield. They have quoted an all in price of around £412 for a detatchable towbar with 13 pin electrics (Caravan), including the panel in the bumper. They have had to order to the tool for putting the hole in the bumper for the panel, so this will be their first one, but it seems like a reasonable price.

Best Regards,

Tony

When I bought my VW Eos the dealer quote for a VW tow bar was £850.

All the issues over effects on the reversing sensors, would the roof still go up and down, would the trailer damage the sensors, what effect would there be on the ECU if the VW wiring harness was damaged, blah blah blah etc.

In the end the dealer arranged for a third party installer to come to the dealer and fit a very nice westfalia tow bar at a fraction of the VW price.

Three years later still working pefectly no warranty issues and no problems whatsoever.

Hi there,

I am booked to get a towbar fitted to my Yeti in a couple of weeks time, at Rainworth Skoda in Mansfield. They have quoted an all in price of around £412 for a detatchable towbar with 13 pin electrics (Caravan), including the panel in the bumper. They have had to order to the tool for putting the hole in the bumper for the panel, so this will be their first one, but it seems like a reasonable price.

Best Regards,

Tony

Excellent price Tony and by a Skoda dealer as well. Must be a third party installer under the control of the dealer like my VW Eos.

Lets know how you get and if you get the panel cover for the hole OK.

Cheers, Dave

Excellent price Tony and by a Skoda dealer as well. Must be a third party installer under the control of the dealer like my VW Eos.

Lets know how you get and if you get the panel cover for the hole OK.

Cheers, Dave

I'll drop you a note back when it's been done, but so far Rainworth have been really good to deal with.

Great choice of colour and add ons by the way, I bought the demo from Rainworth and it pretty much matches yor spec. Never thought I'd buy a brown car, but this one looks great.

I'll drop you a note back when it's been done, but so far Rainworth have been really good to deal with.

Great choice of colour and add ons by the way, I bought the demo from Rainworth and it pretty much matches yor spec. Never thought I'd buy a brown car, but this one looks great.

Thanks Tony, I originally wanted cappucino but the elegance I test drove was in Muscovado and looked great so that made the colour choice for me.

Cheers,Dave

My supplying main dealer is fitting a tow bar within dedicated caravan electrics for over £400 cheaper than the quote from the local main dealer!! A fair deal all round.

I now have the problem that I wanted to use the local main dealer for servicing etc. Now I think perhaps not

Great to read all the reports of the yeti driving experience.

I'll drop you a note back when it's been done, but so far Rainworth have been really good to deal with.

Great choice of colour and add ons by the way, I bought the demo from Rainworth and it pretty much matches yor spec. Never thought I'd buy a brown car, but this one looks great.

New to forum so excuse if covering old ground. Great to read all these thoughts about towbars. When took delivery of my Yeti in early December, the dealer was unable to give a quote for a towbar but thought it would be the best part of a grand, fitted. Recently, have been quoted £326 by towbar specialists in Manchester (detachable Westfalia, fitted, including bypass, with "visible bumper cuts"). This sounds too good to be true (apart from the last bit). Should I accept?

New to forum so excuse if covering old ground. Great to read all these thoughts about towbars. When took delivery of my Yeti in early December, the dealer was unable to give a quote for a towbar but thought it would be the best part of a grand, fitted. Recently, have been quoted £326 by towbar specialists in Manchester (detachable Westfalia, fitted, including bypass, with "visible bumper cuts"). This sounds too good to be true (apart from the last bit). Should I accept?

You will probably need in addition a colour matched hatch to cover the hole,a dedicated wiring kit (your quote will involve splicing into existing electrics) and a dealer download to get the same product as you would from a main dealer. Earlier in this thread the question of splicing into electrics was discussed. As your car is brand new like me you may not want to go down that route.

Your main dealer "quote" is probably based on 5.5 hrs labour as my first quote was. If you look on Westfalia site you will see towbar fitting 1.5hrs and electrics 0.5 hrs.

Suggest you contact other main dealers knowing 2hrs is labour element of job. Happy hunting

Edited 10 February, 201016 yr by geordiebroon

You will probably need in addition a colour matched hatch to cover the hole,a dedicated wiring kit (your quote will involve splicing into existing electrics) and a dealer download to get the same product as you would from a main dealer. Earlier in this thread the question of splicing into electrics was discussed. As your car is brand new like me you may not want to go down that route.

Your main dealer "quote" is probably based on 5.5 hrs labour as my first quote was. If you look on Westfalia site you will see towbar fitting 1.5hrs and electrics 0.5 hrs.

Suggest you contact other main dealers knowing 2hrs is labour element of job. Happy hunting

Thanks v much for that and I suspect you are absolutely right. I guess you get what you pay for. Will start again!

New to forum so excuse if covering old ground. Great to read all these thoughts about towbars. When took delivery of my Yeti in early December, the dealer was unable to give a quote for a towbar but thought it would be the best part of a grand, fitted. Recently, have been quoted £326 by towbar specialists in Manchester (detachable Westfalia, fitted, including bypass, with "visible bumper cuts"). This sounds too good to be true (apart from the last bit). Should I accept?

I was quoted £300 for a Westfalia tow bar - not fitted. The Skoda price is £220.

I believe the different prices are the result of the electrics. Most tow bar suppliers "Skotchlock" the electrics cable to the existing wiring harness in the boot area.

The Yeti, as I understand it, requires its own unique electric harness which connects to the fuse box under the side panel located by the driver. This provides the correct signals, created by the trailer lights being plugged in, to be interpreted by the CPU.

Edited 10 February, 201016 yr by Terfyn

Apologies folks I know I'm a day late and dollar short on the discussions but I have just found that the Westfalia-Automotive GmbH website has a pdf download file for the Yeti tow bar fitting method. It may be of interest to some of you to see just how its done. Trust it is of some interest, it certainly was to me as I may well end up doing the job myself.