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Failed Volvo Towbar - Help!

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Old Jun 11th, 2020, 15:38   #1
RMulcaster
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Default Failed Volvo Towbar - Help!

Hi, I'm new to this group, though have used other owners club forums with when we had other cars.
We have a 2009 XC60 D5 AWD S which we bought from a volvo dealership in 2014. it didnt come with a towbar so at point of purchase we also paid volvo to fit a volvo original part detachable towbar, which i now know to be a Thule / Brink.
We regularly (2-3 times a week) tow the kids ponies around in a normal sized iforWilliams pony trailer (the small one) and i do the occasional towing of our single axle small trailer (max 750kg) for general purposes.

Owing to the frequency of use, especially so in the last two years, the towbar has just been left mounted and hasn't been taken out at all. This never used to be the case in the early days when the kids were smaller

I had noticed a degree of rattle of the towball in the sleeve but did nothing about it; it was barely noticeable on the twin axle pony trailer, but very noticeable on the small single axle trailer (which are generally less stable and more reliant on the towbar than a twin axle).

This last MOT, our regularly garage mechanic advised me to get it looked at as he was not a towbar specialist but MOTs can be failed for excessive play. So i took it to the local towbar centre who took 1 look at it and wrote it off without getting on his knees! he said it wasn't safe to tow anything with it. He wanted to sell me a new one.
So i booked into see volvo again - the original dealership. I wanted to know why it had happened - clearly it needs fixing but i don't want to repeat the same failure.
Volvo could not tell me why it had happened except to say it was rare and that I would need a new "Towbar assembly"which would cost in the region of £800. This didn't mean new electrics, but did mean a complete replacement of the 4' steel bar, attached sleeve and the towball.

Clearly i now own a 10 year old car and unlikely to do this, so opting for local towbar specialist is preferable (circa £350 for a fixed flange towbar, or £450 for a Westfalia detachable).

I even contacted Brink UK - to me it seemed quite possible to remove the sleeve from the 4' cross bar and replace with new (only 3 bolts), and together also change the towball, thereby replacing all parts that are worn. "Not possible" says Brink when it is a volvo Original part, which was the same message from the mechanic.


Questions I need help with:

1. It is possible to purchase a new towball and sleeve and fit to an existing 4' cross bar? Or is this a case of volvo protecting their market on these parts? (seems very wasteful of resources and labour time to me).

2. Everyone i have spoken with (MOT man, Towbar specialist, and volvo) say this is an extremely rare issue and that I should replace with a detachable and move on. But bloke on the phone at Brink UK says he gets at least 1 a week of this exact issue.
DO i replace like for like?? or go for a fixed towbar??
Independant Towbar specialist openly stated that Brink/thule towbars are not regularly fitted by them as they feel that the westfalia system is stronger / more durable. Anyone any experience of this??

3. What did I do wrong over 5 years to cause the towbar to fail like this?
not remove it?
not clean it?
not grease it? / grease it too much??
Use it too often!! (Yes maintenance man at volvo said it can be caused by "Towing" FFS!)
Knowing the answer to this would be really helpful.

Overall, with 5 + years of motoring, my wife is really happy with her volvo and still doesn't want to change it for anything newer (suits me fine ) and I'd have to agree its been a fab vehicle, but this towbar issue has really dissapointed and we need it sorting out.

Very grateful for all of your collective wisdom and thanks for reading!

https://photos.google.com/photo/AF1QipOBw3RbYJ-nqTcC8Hih0M-mlHtco1t47vNLYibG[/IMG][/IMG]

https://photos.google.com/photo/AF1QipOQhpWarkNdrP_an3mofjKO0pTBReueq_2yqK2a[/IMG]

https://photos.google.com/photo/AF1QipPq2LqxjyQl_KoHoKDbNjuP3R6njWZhCCi-VXeW[/url]

https://photos.google.com/photo/AF1QipNtNeEv5pSfCdVh0RtLWdVFsrqmE7XJ5R7x0k4p[/IMG]

https://photos.google.com/photo/AF1QipNlU8w-lVrrAZLKMKhbxBQV7PruGOVVEzNlfF2m[/url]
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Old Jun 11th, 2020, 16:40   #2
Whyman
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I have a Volvo/Thule/Brink which is probably the same as yours.

It has always had some play in it. I was concerned at first by this and first contacted Volvo who were less than helpful. I then contacted Thule who initially wanted to refer me back to Volvo but in the end agreed to have a look at it.

The conclusion was that whilst there was some play it was not excessive. I check it at the start of each year towing the caravan and as far as I can tell it has not got any worse. Having said that I do not tow anywhere near as much as you.

The guy did suggest that you might be able to buy a new socket the part the removable bit goes into and or the removable ball. I looked at this and it could probably be removed without taking the rear bumper off but did not follow up with Volvo.

If I had my time over again I would probably go for a fixed on next time.

Just a point your car cannot fail the MOT for the tow bar if the towbar is not fitted
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Old Jun 12th, 2020, 10:46   #3
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At one stage I did thoroughly clean everything both one the towball and the housing/receiver and it did seem to make a slight difference.

Each time I use it I make sure everything is clean and test it for movement.

I have looked on the Brink website and in the handbook they show the housing as a separate part but no indication of part number.
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Old Jun 12th, 2020, 11:34   #4
RMulcaster
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Thanks Whyman, at least its reassuring to to hear what you say.

Yes it seems obvious to just unbolt the sleeve from the 4' cross bar and replace it and the towball as both worn parts, and yes - no need to remove bumper. And according to Brink in Northants, this used to be a way forward, but not any more. Brink withdrew from UK back to Holland a year ago and whats left is an independant with distributer rights only (Brink UK), so there is a gap to bridge there between the companies. and...
Brink in Holland have a deal with certain manufacturers, volvo being one of them, so essentially they produce two towbars for every car; a Brink one, and also a Volvo Original part version which is about 95% similar. If your towbar is classed as a Volvo Original part then there is NO way Brink will sell you just the sleeve or any part of it - that is the contractual deal between them and Volvo, meaning you MUST buy from volvo and you must buy the whole lot including 4' bar (£400 supply only). You will know if its a volvo original part because the sticker on it will say "Volvo by Brink", or "Volvo by Thule if it was between 2006 -2016 (same thing though).

You can see folk selling the towball on places like ebay, even new ones, but unless you can change the sleeve as well, then its not known where the wear is and thus there is still a risk so not worth trying that route.

Basically I can only conclude I haven't cleaned it often enough, and have only once or twice in total have applied engine grease to lube the system. Add in the fact we tow often (Ifor = 760kg, 2 x ponies = 300x 2) about 1300-1400KG, with occasionally higher (bigger pony!) and the only answer I can come up with is that the Brink detatachable system is just not up to the job over the long term with towing higher train weights.

Like you say, it will probably be fine, but now we have heard a towbar specialist say its not safe and for 90% of the time its my wife and I'm not there, then i feel its a risk we cant take and the pill to swallow is a god dam new tow bar and be done with it!
And again, like you say, given all of the above, I think i will go with a fixed towbar; not worried these days about the look of the vehicle and fixed is just a bit more piece of mind.

So for all the enthusiasts out there who have stuck with this - if towing and towing reasonably heavy loads is part of your day to day routine, (and by that I don't mean professional level towing like pickups and Landrover defender territory), then definitely a fixed towbar is the only answer over the long term.

The car is booked in for a new fixed flange towbar on Tuesday - so please do message me if you can think of a way to replace the Volvo Brink sleeve before then!!

Thanks Everyone
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Old Jun 12th, 2020, 11:55   #5
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And for those still interested, here is the photos in a public ablum. If I get round to it, I will do a short video showing the amount of rattle and add it.

https://flic.kr/s/aHsmNM8d2w
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Old Jun 14th, 2020, 12:23   #6
huron
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Take the two parts to a good welder and get them welded together, easy fix for a tenner.
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Old Jun 15th, 2020, 11:25   #7
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Quote:
Originally Posted by huron View Post
Take the two parts to a good welder and get them welded together, easy fix for a tenner.

huron - i like your style! that is the exact way i was brought up as well - make do and mend, or, that there's always a way to fix it. Sadly my wife doesn't quite share the same out look on things and needs to know it is 100% safe beyond all else. its a constant conflict!
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Old Jun 15th, 2020, 11:39   #8
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Quote:
Originally Posted by RMulcaster View Post
And for those still interested, here is the photos in a public ablum. If I get round to it, I will do a short video showing the amount of rattle and add it.

https://flic.kr/s/aHsmNM8d2w
I have now added a short video of the rattle on the towbar to the same Flickr page for those interested. This is taken outside, but the noise inside the car from this is really loud when driving over anything but silky smooth tarmac.
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Old May 7th, 2021, 15:57   #9
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Sorry - I should have finished off this thread:
Outcome was a new towbar. This time fixed, not detachable. professionally fitted by Chester Towbar centre. Cost £350 and they didnt even replace the electrics, but at the end of the day, we all now know we're safe, and Mrs M is happy towing by herself again.

lesson here is this - detatchable towbars are reported as fine and comparable to fixed and for most domestic and leisure towing, small trailers and caravans, they most probably are. But when using the Xc60 and detatchable towbar for a horse trailer and two horses regularly, i.e. pulling circa 70-90% of the max recommended safe tow weight, then the unit will fail prematurely. Just one to keep an eye out for.

Still love the XC60 though!
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Old May 7th, 2021, 16:29   #10
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Quote:
Originally Posted by RMulcaster View Post
Hi, I'm new to this group, though have used other owners club forums with when we had other cars.
We have a 2009 XC60 D5 AWD S which we bought from a volvo dealership in 2014. it didnt come with a towbar so at point of purchase we also paid volvo to fit a volvo original part detachable towbar, which i now know to be a Thule / Brink.
We regularly (2-3 times a week) tow the kids ponies around in a normal sized iforWilliams pony trailer (the small one) and i do the occasional towing of our single axle small trailer (max 750kg) for general purposes.

Owing to the frequency of use, especially so in the last two years, the towbar has just been left mounted and hasn't been taken out at all. This never used to be the case in the early days when the kids were smaller

I had noticed a degree of rattle of the towball in the sleeve but did nothing about it; it was barely noticeable on the twin axle pony trailer, but very noticeable on the small single axle trailer (which are generally less stable and more reliant on the towbar than a twin axle).

This last MOT, our regularly garage mechanic advised me to get it looked at as he was not a towbar specialist but MOTs can be failed for excessive play. So i took it to the local towbar centre who took 1 look at it and wrote it off without getting on his knees! he said it wasn't safe to tow anything with it. He wanted to sell me a new one.
So i booked into see volvo again - the original dealership. I wanted to know why it had happened - clearly it needs fixing but i don't want to repeat the same failure.
Volvo could not tell me why it had happened except to say it was rare and that I would need a new "Towbar assembly"which would cost in the region of £800. This didn't mean new electrics, but did mean a complete replacement of the 4' steel bar, attached sleeve and the towball.

Clearly i now own a 10 year old car and unlikely to do this, so opting for local towbar specialist is preferable (circa £350 for a fixed flange towbar, or £450 for a Westfalia detachable).

I even contacted Brink UK - to me it seemed quite possible to remove the sleeve from the 4' cross bar and replace with new (only 3 bolts), and together also change the towball, thereby replacing all parts that are worn. "Not possible" says Brink when it is a volvo Original part, which was the same message from the mechanic.


Questions I need help with:

1. It is possible to purchase a new towball and sleeve and fit to an existing 4' cross bar? Or is this a case of volvo protecting their market on these parts? (seems very wasteful of resources and labour time to me).

2. Everyone i have spoken with (MOT man, Towbar specialist, and volvo) say this is an extremely rare issue and that I should replace with a detachable and move on. But bloke on the phone at Brink UK says he gets at least 1 a week of this exact issue.
DO i replace like for like?? or go for a fixed towbar??
Independant Towbar specialist openly stated that Brink/thule towbars are not regularly fitted by them as they feel that the westfalia system is stronger / more durable. Anyone any experience of this??

3. What did I do wrong over 5 years to cause the towbar to fail like this?
not remove it?
not clean it?
not grease it? / grease it too much??
Use it too often!! (Yes maintenance man at volvo said it can be caused by "Towing" FFS!)
Knowing the answer to this would be really helpful.

Overall, with 5 + years of motoring, my wife is really happy with her volvo and still doesn't want to change it for anything newer (suits me fine ) and I'd have to agree its been a fab vehicle, but this towbar issue has really dissapointed and we need it sorting out.

Very grateful for all of your collective wisdom and thanks for reading!

https://photos.google.com/photo/AF1QipOBw3RbYJ-nqTcC8Hih0M-mlHtco1t47vNLYibG[/IMG][/IMG]

https://photos.google.com/photo/AF1QipOQhpWarkNdrP_an3mofjKO0pTBReueq_2yqK2a[/IMG]

https://photos.google.com/photo/AF1QipPq2LqxjyQl_KoHoKDbNjuP3R6njWZhCCi-VXeW[/url]

https://photos.google.com/photo/AF1QipNtNeEv5pSfCdVh0RtLWdVFsrqmE7XJ5R7x0k4p[/IMG]

https://photos.google.com/photo/AF1QipNlU8w-lVrrAZLKMKhbxBQV7PruGOVVEzNlfF2m[/url]
These are supposed to be serviced every year on the volvo service , a clean and grease ... you used to be able to get the detachable part on its own from volvo parts about 10 years ago I last changed one as the end got lost , it was nearly £300..
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