I know towbars are one of the recurring topics here and have read a number of the posts, but would be grateful for some advice...

My wife has a 2007 FL2 manual, not fancy bodykit.

She wants to be able to tow a horsetrailer - specifically an Ifor Williams 510. It's likely to have either a single medium sized pony or that pony plus a large pony / small horse.

Mostly fairly local stuff, occasionally up to about 30 min trips. But I have a D4 which we use at the moment and is likely to be used if there is any greater distance to go.

I'd prefer a removable towbar, but suspect it will spend most of it's time in place, so if there are good reasons to have a fixed one instead, I'd consider that.

Is there a recognised 'best' towbar for this sort of use? Are there any to absolutely avoid?

All advice / suggestions appreciated!

Many thanks.

Answering my own post, would this be any good:

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Witter-Fixed-Fla...4171e7ee3b

It's a Witter R40A with tow ball and basic electrics, for £87.50 inc delivery! Seems very cheap, but will it do the job? I realise it's fixed, although the ball could be removed - but at that price, might be worth giving up on removeable aspirations!

Do I then need to get the electrics enabled, or is it better to just buy a relay? Is that the only additonal item I'd need?

Thanks

having had both removable and fixed tow bars I would go for a fixed one every time. If you have a removable one you get keys to lock it and unlock it which is a real pain in the backside. First of all you have to remember where you left the keys, then remember where you left the bar itself. If its pouring down with rain in more often than not means kneeling on a wet ground to put it in place and lock it in position.


No go for a fixed one every time and avoid the hassle I got mine done in a caravan centre and they used LR parts, think may be bit cheaper than LR fitting it including electrics Ex 2010 Freelander2 GS-e Diesel manual Silver owner

I have a 506 Ifor and a tow on occasion ( about 1 every few weeks ) a 15hh pony, for typically upto 45mins each way.

First up: Witter tow bars are very good in my opinion. Wouldn't hesitate in buying one ... in fact now on my third, i didn't even look elsewhere ... went straight for a Witter.

Removable vs Fixed - My personal opinion:

Removable is fine for occasional use like what I do. It handles the Ifor trailer fine and I have no doubts about its strength. I also really like that I can remove it and leave the car looking normal(ish) at the rear for the periods I'm not towing. The comments about getting dirty knees I personally would say are exaggerated and because I remove it, the mechanism works easily and is a simple twist to release and pull out. As for fitting, it just slides in and clunks solidly. I always store the bar in the boot along with the keys for the bar and the trailer locks.

The downside is that there is a slight slight play in the setup, there simply has to be for the bar to slot into the main cross beam. Over time, and with heavy use ... which is what I would call towing a horse trailer regularly ... I would not be surprised if that play developed slightly over time.

The counter to that is for a fixed tow bar. There will be no play, and it'll remain rock solid all the time. The downside is whether the appearance of it fitted all the time would annoy you. It annoyed me after a while with my old range rover - but I think with the 3.5t rating of the RR, the fixed is the way to go.

Overall, I consider my towing to be occasional rather than regular, so the removable suits me. IF I were to tow every week without fail, then I would fit a fixed.

One last comment. A 510 is a big trailer, easily around the 1000kg mark IIRC. 2 ponys inside, depending on their size could add close to another 800-1000k ... the rating on the Fl2 is around 2200kg ... so your starting to get towards the higher end of the Fl2 rated capacity. Add to that, that horses carry their bulk 4ft in the air and they move it about, the weight shifting can transfer to the car more noticeably than maybe a D4 would feel for 2 horses.

In your position, I think that if I were towing 1, I'd take the freelander. If I were towing 2, I'd use the D4 firstly, and only the Fl2 if the D4 weren't available.

fisha is right on all counts - Witter make a good bar. I have a R40. It looks the part and gives confidence over the detachable which, especially if it clunks, I do not trust. Right about the weights too. A horse trailer is a heavy piece of kit, and horses are deceptively heavy. Way too easy to take a freelander to its tow limit. Check licences too. If test passed since the rules changed, max train weight 3,500kg or you need +E test pass.

Bob 10MY (Sept 09) TD4 HSE Auto in Stornoway Grey (Now Gone)

08 FL2 TD4 SE Manual in Rimini Red (Now Gone)

Thanks all for your comments and advice - much appreciated.

The Freelander will be used to tow regularly, probably once or twice a week on average, but most of the time it will only be going perhaps 2 to 10 miles, mainly on lanes, B roads, or small A roads.

Ponies are probably 300-400 kg, but even at the upper end, with 1000 kg of trailer, the total is reasonably inside max weight.

Weekends and longer jouneys, will no doubt see the Disco in action!

And both of us passed tests long before the revised trailer rules came in!

So thanks again for your help.

Finally - any comments on the electrical side of things (see my second post above)?

As yours is an XS and a manual version, you have front parking sensors, so you could get away with non LR towing electrics and have a bypass relay with an audible bleepers for he indicators, saves the outlay of getting them coded, your rear parking sensors will activate in reverse but as you have an XS you will have a button on the dash to silence them.

OK, thanks for that.

To clarify - is it either:

a) Land Rover original electrics & get it coded / activated.

or

b) Generic electics, linked through a relay.

Or is there a generic / compatible electrics option that then needs coding?!

You mention bleepers for the indicators - is this because the dashboard trailer light symbol won't be activated with option b) above?

Is there a recommended relay people have generally found to be good - or are they all much the same?

The ebay seller linked above sells a "7 WAY BYPASS RELAY PCT LOGICON NEW ZR2500" for £20. Looks OK to me! Any comments anyone?

LR electrics will need coding, then the reverse sensors, rear fogs and the indicator warning light will work.

By Pass relay, no coding required, rear sensors will get excited in reverse, rear fogs will come on and you will have an audible bleeper for the indicators. Just make sure whoever does it they do not use Scotch Blocks for patching in, recipe for problems further down the line.

OK, thanks. What should 'they' use?

Iirc the kit I fitted had an active wiring setup which plugged into the car. It needed a few fuses added to the rear fuse box and electronic boxes that just plugged into existing sections of the wiring loom. I haven't Amy reprogramming done on the cat and the trailer lights work perfectly. The trailer indicator symbol appears on the dash when indicating but the parking sensors on the rear don't disable when reversing (which doesn't bother me)

I have a fixed witter bar and although it is excellent when towing it is quite low, particularly if you use a combination ball and pintle hitch as I do. This is absolutely fine normally but if you do any driving on undulating terrain as I do you can experience some fairly unpleasant grounding. I am replacing mine with a removable witter type to avoid this in future.

At the end of the day fit whatever suits your news the most. Everyone has their own ideas to suit their own circumstances Ex 2010 Freelander2 GS-e Diesel manual Silver owner