Got a tow bar fitted today at Chester Towbars. When I returned to pick the car up they (and I) were surprised to find the original crash bar at the back of the car is made of plastic. Quite a shock.

Now, however, there is a solid bar of metal in its place and a fitting for a detachable tow hitch. Nice job all in all.

Would it be possible to post a picture with the ball attached and detached please?

Here are some photos as requested.

Thank you, looks a very neat installation. Just what I want for mine when it arrives.

I fitted my own tow bar

The original rear crash bar has to be removed. This is a substantial plastic construction which I probably think is as good as or better than a steel structure.

Between the original crash bar and the inner of the rear bumper are foam buffers that support and protect the bumper skin from deformation and cracking from minor impacts.

These foam buffers used to sit on top of the main crash bar interlocking with the bumper carrier plate. Without the original main crash bar these foam buffers can still be refitted with by using silicon sealant to "tack" them into place on the slotted bumper carrier plate.

500X rear light electrics are "interesting". Having being one (if not) the first UK person to fully fit AND wire a 500X tow bar installation then contrary to rear lighting physical wiring which suggests they are "traditional" they are in-fact "multiplexed". Why Fiat chose to use per light wiring on a multiplexed system is a little puzzling as the purpose and benefit of a multiplexed system is that you can reduce the number of wires required.

Another 500X "catch" is that the rear valance and lower metal structure ribs are SO close to the typical detachable tow bar folding 13 pin electric sockets that one actually needs to remove metal to get the socket to correctly fully fold up. I solution to this (other than cutting metal) is to use a side entry back cable grommet. I was supplied one of these by Brink/Thule (who I worked with on resolving my issues) but sadly there were/are not side entry sockets by design. One has to cut a side entry intro the socket yourself. Doing so then requires the 13 wires to be bent at sharp and stressful right angles which I chose not to do for obvious reasons.

So on my 500X I have a fully detachable tow hook (which I never detach as it is extra defence to bad reversing parkers or minor rear end shunters) and a non wire stressed fold-up socket that will only fold around by 20 degrees.

I can have a full 45 degrees of rotation with a simple hacksaw double cut but I really see no need to take this step. Other than visibility I fully profiled how the socket could ground clash in rough terrain with the tow hook attached and it is really minimal. If contact were to happen then the 20 degree of movement I do have is more than sufficient to stop any damage.

Interestingly when I spoke to Brink/Thule whilst they had all the videos, notes, homologation data for their 500X tow bar (which includes the fold down socket mounting plate) they had not actually tried wiring a socket on the fold down socket plate.

I'm now guessing this post will raise all sorts of questions (which is what this forum is for) and indeed generate (I hope) feedback from those who had their tow bar fitted by a fitter/specialist/etc.

Depending on how this post progresses I'll add more info on the 7-Way Bypass Relay Unit wiring on a 500X. This involves VOSA / Legality and "perfection" vs "functional reality"