Towbar legalities

[IH8TEC]

Right, i'm about to buy a 04 KTM 250sx, and need to suss out legalities on making a tow bar for the levin now this will only be to tow a light trailer that will hold max 3 bikes,

i have sufficient braking thats not a problem. and suspension wise it's easy enough to raise the back up and soften the ride to make it more pleasant.

i was thinking of making something pretty solid, that mounts to 3 bolts on either side of the rails in the back where the tow hooks bolt to. would this be satisfactory? pretty sure they are m14x1.25 and hopefully should clear the exhaust.

can anyone see any downside to the idea, or any idea on what i would need for it to be legal,

[l1ttle_d3vil]

they need to be certified, which i think costs around $150. my dad makes them and gets them certified by someone, i'll get the info from him next time I talk to him if no one else gives you the answers by then

[fangsport]

they need to be certified, which i think costs around $150. my dad makes them and gets them certified by someone, i'll get the info from him next time I talk to him if no one else gives you the answers by then

isn't it only the towbar itself that needs certification, and not the installation??
therefore getting a S/H one from the wrecker would be a cheap option

[pidge]

isn't it only the towbar itself that needs certification, and not the installation??
therefore getting a S/H one from the wrecker would be a cheap option

I've got a 2nd hand one made by AA bars (?) in Henderson on my AE101 Levin - I took it to them to get it re-installed. The tow bar + install cost me $200 to $250.

AA Bars simply weld a steel tube between the Tow hook on one side to a steel flat installed in the corresponding location on the chassis rail on the other side of the car, and the "tongue" is welded to middle of that tube.

[l1ttle_d3vil]

isn't it only the towbar itself that needs certification, and not the installation??
therefore getting a S/H one from the wrecker would be a cheap option

if your car has mounts for a towbar from factory, you could probably bolt one on and be fine... but if you need to make up the mounts etc which actually hold the towbar on they obviously need certification.

[IH8TEC]

i definately want it as a bolt on item, i dont want the towbar fitted when i go racing

it looks like i can bolt one on, and looks very similar to how my sisters old tx3 was done and that was apparently legal when she took her car for a warrant.

[Mr Revhead]

you may run into problems if you make your own

you also should keep it on, stiffens the rear up quite nicely on cars with no rear cross member

[l1ttle_d3vil]

just spoken with my dad.

if the car needs a COF rather than WOF, the towbar must be certified.
for a standard private vehicle which goes through a normal WOF, you can fit a towbar and its legal.

BUT

if you have a towbar custom made for your car the DESIGN needs to be certified. the design only needs to be certified once though and the engineer can make as many of those towbars as he wants and fit them.

this applies to whether the car was originally fitted with a towbar or not.
you can grab a towbar off another vehicle, make mounts and fit it to your car and you'll be fine.

hope this is of some help

[evil_si]

my dad needed one for his hiace van with high floor,

he was quoted $800+ to have one made,
so i made one in about an hour and a half.
fits fine
thou mmight have helped to get the tongue angle right if i had the trailer present but it works fine and it gets wof's,

[l1ttle_d3vil]

^^ that may have been including the "design" certification, which is $600 odd.

[sleeektoy]

There's reasoning for rated towbars...

Towbar breaks/falls off/fails and the trailer wipes out poor granny cruising down the footpath on her walker, mr plod is going to start looking for blame.
Guess who the blame will stop at

Max Towed Mass braked/unbraked is usually on a sticker somewhere on the towbar, and in the owners manuals, and towbars are tested to that.
Much better and safer to get a factory one with the testing already done or from a reputable aftermarket manufacturer. Their a55es are covered by insurance and have backing in times of granny getting wiped out

[johndoe1025]

best bars do mean towbars, reliable as anything.

[soopachargen]

is this an option??
http://www.trademe.co.nz/Trade-Me-Motors/Car-parts-accessories/Toyota/Engines-drive-trains/auction-177776493.htm

if you want it checked out i can organise something with them

[IH8TEC]

that would be mint man, see how it mounts etc if its removeable, and how much he'd want for it.

thanks