XC90 - Westfalia Detachable towbar fitting guide

[Ron_XC90]

Jeffo, please can you let me know what you think of the thule 909 plus the 4th bike adapter as I'm thinking of buying one in the next few days. I also have the westfalia towbar... many thanks

[XCF]

I have it. I used to have a 3 bike Thule ( 903 I think) and got this to carry 4 bikes.

It is very good and easy to use. Bikes are very secure and there is a little more space now between the bikes so no chance of any scratching. Fitting to the car is simple as is fitting the bikes to it - but it's bad points are that it's a heavy lump in an awkward size and in my opinion is expensive (compared to the 3 bike rack I had it's a big step up in price).

Best price was PF Jones - around £330 delivered but ebay sellers are close at around £350. Some 2nd hand ones come up on ebay - but sell for close to the price of a new one (£300+)

Due to it's size it only just goes in the boot (with the 4th bike adaptor removed) when not being used but needs to go on it's side and across the boot diagonally. That said - it locks to the towball so you can leave it on - but at £330 I'd rather put it inside the boot !

It comes with 13 pin connection ( think it's the only Thule bike rack with 13pin) so if you have 7pin socket on your car you need an adaptor - Thule do one for £20 but the ebay version I got for a few pounds looks identical and works fine.

If you've got 13pin socket the bike rack has both fog and reverse lights in the light board so should work with the Volvo wiring ( they do on Audi wiring).

Hope that helps...

[Ron_XC90]

Thanks Nicknick, I probably have simliar (9503) now, which looks flimsy compared to the 909, guess you get what you pay for... I need the 4th bike adapter which is not possible on the 9503.
I have the 13-pin wiring loom, but installed it with a 7-pin socket as both my bike rack and trailer are 7-pins, so might decide to fit the 13 pin socket to get fog and reverse lights.

PF Jones is currently £346 incl the 4th adapter and free p&p, not cheap but very good compared to others.

[minimow151]

Have just finished fitting the bar. Took 4 hours and was hard work getting the bolts to fit. Took some knocking from a hammer and the jack to get it lined up. Has anyone else fitted it to an an Executive? The exhaust appears to just touch the bar. The kit comes with the extra bolts and spacers for the sport or V8, are they required for the Executive.

Will attempt the wiring in the morning.

[npope1974]

Just purchased my second xc90 and decided to fit the tow bar later rather than through dealer as cost is very high. I have purchased a R-Design which has the dual exhaust, has anyone fitted on a R-Design if so anything different to ABC instructions.

Thanks

[Ron_XC90]

When I fitted my towbar the most difficult part was to fit it without removing the exhaust. That is with a single one... With a double one you might want to consider removing the end parts as it will definately make the job easier

[bobdabuilda]

Originally Posted by jeffo

This really is a great write up. I received my Westfalia Towbar today, along with a Thule G5 909 + 9081 cycle carrier.

I started to fit the towbar but have now decided to get someone else to do it. I found a local company who will fit for £80 + VAT. It will get done while I am at work, and not take up my time. There is no chance of me making a mistake; for £80 it isnt worth doing it yourself.

Even though I am not fitting it myself; thanks for the write-up. I am going to print it out and give it to the fitter so that he knows the bumper doesnt need to come off.

What sort of a job did the fitter do jeffo? Was it as good as the OP's and invisible?

[Britsud]

Originally Posted by ABC

In response to why did I buy the Volvo wiring....Well a good reason was that it was half the price of the non Volvo kits ( £52 delivered from Simon at FRF versus £105 from PF Jones) but the following were equally important ...

1) No warranty issues with the Volvo kit
2) Visibility of the installation instructions in advance
3) No messing - Volvo kit is 100% plug and play
4) Included the new boot floor gromit pre fitted, 7 pin socket already fitted


Here are some pictures...

The first picture shows the fuse panel where the Volvo wiring plugs in. You can easily reach in and plug the kit in (and take it out) without removing the side trim of the car as in the Volvo instructions.

In the second picture you can see the towbar just above the exhaust pipes. It's closer than I thought but doesn't touch . The silver bumper is pushed down a little in the middle. I think if I cut the bumper back a little more it would sit level, but I might see a fraction of the towbar receiver. I think I will keep it as is.

3rd picture shows the cuts I made. I need to file the curved edge down a little more for my liking. You can also see that I have cut the ears off the red plug. This just meant I got away with a smaller cut than I otherwise would have had to.

4th /5th picture shows the towball in use. The towball has changed from some of the earlier pictures I saw (old design was round tubing). I prefer this style so was happy that this is how it came.

Fitting the towbar couldn't be simpler. Remove the red plug, and simply offer up towball and it just clicks in to place. Turn the key and remove.

To remove unlock, pull handle out 1/2 inch and turn and the towball will disengage and you can lower out.

I store the towball in the boot to the right of the battery.

Bumpty Bump

[indiebands]

Originally Posted by ABC

Yes - that was a surprise to me espcially since I had already fitted the wiring the week before. I had to remove the wiring and start again. I fed the wiring through the towbar 7 pin socket plate. It was a squeeze and I had to feed the larger of the electric plugs through first without any cable to give enough room to get the plug through side ways on.

So - if that makes sense - basically fit the towbar, them feed wiring loom through plate starting with biggest plug , then into car leaving 7 pin socket as last to come up to the plug.

I did think about cutting the round plate when I realised my mistake ( of having fitted the wiring before the towbar) but decided against it and was glad it worked out ok.

Thanks for this great thread. I have just ordered the Westfalia detachable towbar and the Thule G5 909 bike rack with the 4th bike extender (glad to read the reviews here first). Now I have to deal with the wiring question and installation. I figured I would go with the Volvo OEM wiring kit. Can someone let me know the part number for the Volvo wiring kit? The dealer quoted me for the trailer module ( 30664974 ) and the cable harness ( 31285778 ). If I just want to attach a bike rack (albeit with lights), do I need the trailer module?

Thanks,
Tom

[Coconut]

Hi Tom,

The cable harness number you mention is different from the one I bought - Mine was part number 30756530 ( £15.26 + VAT ).

The trailer module ( Control Unit ) number is the same. ( £27.91 + VAT ).

These were the only two electrical parts I needed - the Cable harness has the 7 Pin socket on one end,
and 3 x factory moulded plugs on the other end, plus an Earth eyelet.
( AFAIK The smallest of the 3 plugs is not used on the 7 pin 12N wiring set up ).

The grey and green plug connects into the Trailer Module,
and the black plug connects into the fuse board behind the rear nearside trim panel as described earlier.

The wiring instructions for the 7 - pin set ( 12N ) describe selection of ONE of the following options via Pin 2 of the 12N socket :

Rear Fog Lamps, or
Charging, or
Reversing Lamps

I went for rear Fog Lamps being the one I thought I would need most often,
( and which I probably need legallly in the UK ? ).

Selection is made by inserting ( push to click lock ) one of 3 wires from the harness into the appropriate position on the appropriate plug.

I have no idea what would happen if you just connected up the black socket to the fuse box, with the other plug left free ( no Trailer board ).

I have no information on 13 pin wiring or additional 12S socket wiring.