Thomas the Tig

[ralp2dam]

I found this guide online for time to fit VW genuine components. May be of use when having items fitted when a dealership quotes labour to install. Also, lists accessories available for all VW models. Hope it helps someone save money. List current as of February 2012.

http://wa.ahg.com.au/Osborne-Park-Vo...2012%20(3).pdf

[ralp2dam]

Deleted.

[philsan]

Hi mate
Yes the tongue of the towbar can be removed.
Up near the locking clip[which you also remove] there is a lock nut which you have to ease off with a small shifting spanner or crescent.
Put some upward pressure on the actual tongue [to release tension] then pull out the locking circlip and then juggle out the retaining bar that's sitting in the drilled hole in the upper tongue.You should then be able to pull down and completely remove the whole tongue and towball.To refit just work in reverse but dont forget to tension up the locknut after the whole thing is back in place.
Phil

[ralp2dam]

Hi mate
Yes the tongue of the towbar can be removed.
Up near the locking clip[which you also remove] there is a lock nut which you have to ease off with a small shifting spanner or crescent.
Put some upward pressure on the actual tongue [to release tension] then pull out the locking circlip and then juggle out the retaining bar that's sitting in the drilled hole in the upper tongue.You should then be able to pull down and completely remove the whole tongue and towball.To refit just work in reverse but dont forget to tension up the locknut after the whole thing is back in place.
Phil

Thanks again I'll give it a go later. The dealer said if connecting lights that are LED this will throw up a light out warning on the dash. He said ignore it there isn't any problem. This sounds funny to me bit he assured me it is normal. Does this sound right to you?

[philsan]

Good day to you again mate,
Yes the dealer is correct in that if you hook up to any towed vehicle be it box trailer, boat trailer etc and they have led stoplights/indicator lights it will throw up a bulb warning on the mfd.There is a way around it[and your dealer should have alerted you to the fact] that there is another wizz bang electrical box[the name escapes me at the moment] that could have been wired into the towbar electrics to negate this error message,but once again it involves parting with another 200 or so smackos to have it installed.
The alternative is,just ignore the error message as the dealer advised you.Unfortunately most trailers etc these days have the led setup.
Phil.

[ralp2dam]

Good day to you again mate,
Yes the dealer is correct in that if you hook up to any towed vehicle be it box trailer, boat trailer etc and they have led stoplights/indicator lights it will throw up a bulb warning on the mfd.There is a way around it[and your dealer should have alerted you to the fact] that there is another wizz bang electrical box[the name escapes me at the moment] that could have been wired into the towbar electrics to negate this error message,but once again it involves parting with another 200 or so smackos to have it installed.
The alternative is,just ignore the error message as the dealer advised you.Unfortunately most trailers etc these days have the led setup.
Phil.

Thanks yet again Philsan! You're a wealth of information.

[philsan]

ralp2dam
No worries mate.
Only learnt by my own experience and doing the hard yards myself.I fitted my own genuine towbar but as yet it hasn't been wired up.Wiring harness still sitting coiled up in the lower r/hand wheel internal storage area.
Maybe you can offer me a bit of advice! Do you know how the dealer went about wiring in the towbar harness on yours.
I didnt get the genuine vw harness due to exorbitant price charged the dealer,rather went thru aussietig's advice and purchased another european harness that's basically the same as vw's but half the cost.I am very hesitant about doing this job myself as I am told by a vw independant service place that the whole r/hand interior panels have to be removed to run the wiring in the proper channel up to a place behind the dashboard.I was later told by another vw dealer that my model Tig 2010 and beyond is part prewired for the towbar and the final hookup place for the wiring is under the hard cover on the left hand side of the internal boot.
Do you know if your dealer utilised this part of the factory prewire.It would make the job a lot easier to run the harness to this point rather than having to take all the other panels off on the opposing side.
If you can throw some light on it,it would be appreciated.Tks mate
Phil

[mutare 23]

ralp2dam
No worries mate.
Only learnt by my own experience and doing the hard yards myself.I fitted my own genuine towbar but as yet it hasn't been wired up.Wiring harness still sitting coiled up in the lower r/hand wheel internal storage area.
Maybe you can offer me a bit of advice! Do you know how the dealer went about wiring in the towbar harness on yours.
I didnt get the genuine vw harness due to exorbitant price charged the dealer,rather went thru aussietig's advice and purchased another european harness that's basically the same as vw's but half the cost.I am very hesitant about doing this job myself as I am told by a vw independant service place that the whole r/hand interior panels have to be removed to run the wiring in the proper channel up to a place behind the dashboard.I was later told by another vw dealer that my model Tig 2010 and beyond is part prewired for the towbar and the final hookup place for the wiring is under the hard cover on the left hand side of the internal boot.
Do you know if your dealer utilised this part of the factory prewire.It would make the job a lot easier to run the harness to this point rather than having to take all the other panels off on the opposing side.
If you can throw some light on it,it would be appreciated.Tks mate
Phil

Cant speak about your specific model Phil, but I was told by a VW independent that he took his vehicle to the stealers to have his tow bar put on, because of the complex and prolonged process required to install. he suggested that the wiring harness had to go all the way through the vehicle. exact route and panels unknown to me.

I took his advice and went to the stealers. As i previously stated I paid $1638, so the $1465 was viewed with Envy.

Cheers

[philsan]

mutare 23
Thanks mate for your response.
Yeh I was afraid that would be the case.
My fellas at Elite Euro in perth can do the running of the harness and the final hooking up,but it's just the thought of having to pull all of those panels [and possible clip damage.plastic.] that worries me.Hell it shouldnt be so frickin hard.
phil.

[ralp2dam]

Z1000. I went with Denlo Parramatta. I ordered the part then for them to fit after getting quotes. See above.

I obtained a couple of quotes for having my towbar fitted. I thought I would share this for anyone who goes down the route of having a dealer fit a towbar to a Tiguan.

Parramatta: Total $502 - Labour per hour $143 - Hours of work 3.5hrs
Sutherland: Total $649 - Labour per hour $163 - Hours of work 4 hrs
Liverpool: Total $640 -Labour per hour $160 - Hours of work 4hrs
Sutherland: Total $487 - Labour per hour $139 - Hours of work 3.5hrs
Campbelltown: Total $528 - Labour per hour $151 - Hours of work 3.5hrs
Waitara: Total $- 653 - Labour per hour $145 - Hours of work 4.5hrs

For the astute reader Sutherland is listed twice. Sutherland responded twice to my email with two different prices. Hmmmm.....