Just completed an entire DIY towbar fit on my MY06 Volvo V50 Sport SE so I thought I would give an update for anyone looking for info.
I purchased the following which will fit all models including sport and r-design. All prices includes VAT and delivery:
- £106.03 Witter VL48S from eBay
fixed swan neck
go for VL48QF if you want a detachable
The VL48 series is easy to fit and does not require any bumper modifications at all
- £93.80 Genuine Volvo Electrics from volvopartsstore
13-pin harness 31414907
40amp fuse to fit in location 14 - my car already had one fitted for some reason
Trailer control module 31407108
- £22 for a 1 day VIDA subscription from Volvo Technical Information Shop
You need to go through the screens and give all the required information including a VAT number
- £19.02 for the trailer control module firmware 8698479
This was my first time downloading software with VIDA and I found it hard to convince the dealers they could do this. When I eventually found a dealer that was willing to try he said afterward "i've been working here for 18years and didn't know this was possible". You may find this hard.
As for running VIDA, probably best to wait until the DVD arrives and install the latest version to avoid problems. I was too eager to crack-on and went with a torrented version of VIDA 2013A (unpatched) but had an issue with SSL certificates only after I kicked off the 1 day subscription and had to spend time fixing the underlying software against the clock.
The actual software installation takes a couple of minutes and as long as you have a semi-decent battery you will not need a charger to maintain voltage.
No need to take the boot apart to plug the trailer module into the CAN bus; everything can be done just by taking off the rear bumper. So a couple of hours fitting the bar and electrics and a couple of days trying to convince a Volvo dealer to order your software.
£240.85 all in and no time spent buzzing out a hacked up wiring loom.