[Quacker]

Originally Posted by gaby

I never would have guessed how much can be deduced from just looking at (pictures of) these items.
And to do so without studying them in detail! I cant, and I certainly wouldn't go as far as discrediting the
commitment to safety from Volvo, safety being their mantra. Would they sacrifice safety by mounting a
towbar of compromised design while they could bolt or weld the ball to the existing and assumed safe beam?
That seems even more unlikely to me than being able to asses the propertie of these beams from afar.
But of course it's not impossible...

They must compromise when it comes to the different properties that are necessary for a rigid and stressed tow bar compared to dedicated energy absorbing structures, which are by necessity removed and replaced by the tow bar.

You do realise that the removed deformable beam is made of aluminium of course and that the tow hitch is made of thick walled high strength steel?

It seems to me that you think I'm guessing this and guessing wrongly. I can assure you that I am not.