I'm off to my local towbar firm next week to ask about fitting a towbar to my Panda. I've been told there isn't a kit available here in Australia so it's either import something or have a custom towbar made.

I do not want the gooseneck type which is all I've found on the internet. The tongue will be fitted permanently because it'll always have the base of a bike rack on it so I'm not fussed about the plastic bumper being cut to suit.

However, I've been told that the Panda uses the same platform (whatever that means) as the 500. Does this mean that a 500 towbar can be made to fit, recognising that this firm has a very good reputation for workmanship?

Also, the wiring. Having read a few posts, I'm a little confused on this and with the reversing sensors, suspect it's more than just splicing into the existing wiring as you normally would. I'm pretty sure the local firm will understand what's needed, but can someone give me some guidance as to what to ask or expect to be told?

I'm know there are other threads on here about towbars and Pandas (I've replied to a number for sure, as I have a Westphalia towbar on mine), so use the "Search this Forum" option to dig them out.

I too have reverse parking sensors and thought I'd have to disconnect them as I have a fixed tow-hook that sits directly in front of the central sensor. But no, seems the system is smart enough to work it out and the outer two work just perfectly, so to all intents and purposes my sensors work just fine, which is good. Mobile fitter said this is not uncommon either.

They're good tow cars for small trailers - in my case an Ifor Williams P6e with floatation tyres and is unbraked.

I've done a search on towbars but they don't address this issue, they all relate to kits freely available to the UK and, as far as I can tell, universally are the gooseneck style which doesn't suit my needs. I was hoping the 500 kit might work and that they'd be available here.

Regarding that gooseneck. My bike rack will have the mount fitted permanently and I'll have at least one bike on the back pretty much every day of the week so I need a solid bike rack. I have a good bike rack and wouldn't be happy to have to buy another though like all things, that depends on accumulated cost. More importantly, I'd need to see and be convinced by something that clamps to a gooseneck.

R1NGA said:

II too have reverse parking sensors and thought I'd have to disconnect them as I have a fixed tow-hook that sits directly in front of the central sensor. But no, seems the system is smart enough to work it out and the outer two work just perfectly, so to all intents and purposes my sensors work just fine, which is good. Mobile fitter said this is not uncommon either..

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That's good to know. It seems that installing the wiring is pretty much a just plug it in effort, which is also a bonus.

Just been to a local towbar manufacturer/installer. Nothing available in Australia - no surprise there. Custom towbar - $1,500 - $2,000 . That was a rough 'quote' without inspecting the vehicle but it wouldn't be my luck for it to be at the bottom end of the range.

For reference, the towbar for my MG ZR just under two years ago, also custom made by the same mob, was only $1,200... and we thought that was outrageous at the time. Dunno why the pricing has gone up so much.

A local bike shop has a carrier that plugs into the receptacle for a removable tow bar. Square shaft. It's $260 but the carrier drops backwards to allow you to open the tailgate and it folds flat so I could carry it in the boot. A positive but a pain having to buy a new carrier when I've already got a good one.

Soooooo, maybe import a towbar that takes a square shaft removable tongue. All I have to do is find one... oh, and work out how I'm going to pay for it.

At this point (coz it's Christmas and I'm broke), the only realistic option is to build a new bike from my spare parts box in the hope I can get one to fit in the back of the Panda without removing both wheels.

aussiepanda said:

Also, the wiring. Having read a few posts, I'm a little confused on this and with the reversing sensors, suspect it's more than just splicing into the existing wiring as you normally would. I'm pretty sure the local firm will understand what's needed, but can someone give me some guidance as to what to ask or expect to be told?

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The easiest way is to buy a dedicated kit. It'll have all the correct connectors etc so you don't have to splice into the car's wiring. Mine was a Right Connections kit. It was fiddly to install but it works. Parking sensors still work with towbar on and when a trailer is connected the sensors are automatically disabled.

There must be a Thule or similar bike rack that suits the gooseneck style? Maybe our UK or European members know? I bet it'll be cheaper to get a gooseneck bar and new bike rack than a one-off custom made towbar.

AusPanda said:

The easiest way is to buy a dedicated kit. It'll have all the correct connectors etc so you don't have to splice into the car's wiring. Mine was a Right Connections kit. It was fiddly to install but it works. Parking sensors still work with towbar on and when a trailer is connected the sensors are automatically disabled.

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The towbar place (Allin Towbars for those in Adelaide) said that a dedicated loom kit would be their first choice so you're right there. Would I be right in suggesting I don't need to get the kit until I need to tow a trailer? That'd at least delay part of the cost (and guarantee I need to tow a trailer without lights knowing me )

There must be a Thule or similar bike rack that suits the gooseneck style? Maybe our UK or European members know? I bet it'll be cheaper to get a gooseneck bar and new bike rack than a one-off custom made towbar.

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I haven't seen a gooseneck carrier in person but I've seen photos and to be honest, I can't see how it'd offer the stability of an 'under the towball' system with the wide base and larger contact area between the base and the towing tongue. I asked about this in the bike shop I was in this morning - they'd had one and he confirmed it wasn't as stable.

I think the removable tongue type is the way to go, and I've seen one on the internet with a removable gooseneck and square shaft. Now all I need to do is find it (oh, and get the money).

Lots of people are recommending Thule and their carriers always get good reviews. Thule Australia carry a carrier that clips onto the towball and folds flat for a sensible price (so why are their products so expensive in the shops?). So I thought, 'buggerit', and sent them an email asking if they could supply a towbar and carrier. Be interesting to see what the reply is.

I would appreciate some real world feedback on those towball carriers (they seem to just clip on )

I have a Thule bike carrier. It attaches to the swan neck style tow bars.
You use a supplied spanner to tighten it up.
It's absolutely solid. I've even stood on it to get to the roof of my van.
The max weight is 45kg

I agree with the other comments, get the swan neck wth dedicated wiring, and the new bike rack.

Here's my bike carrier
triumph7 and catnash use them too.
They can maybe give you some feedback?

I've only ever used my on my van, so can't comment on how it is on a panda.

So I'm panicking for nothing. That'd be normal.

I hadn't really considered a carrier that bikes sit on rather than hang from, probably because they weren't commonly available when I bought my current one ten years ago. How quickly does it go on and off the car? Can you lock it on the car so it can't be stolen... easily (anything can be nicked if the crook is keen enough)? If it comes of easily, does it fold down (to put in the boot)?

I've been doing some reading on Aussie bike forums regarding carriers. I'd never really twigged that so many of them are clamp onto the towball types. The Thule 970 seems popular and that's one that clamps on by pressing down on a cross piece. Folds up nicely too.

I've got a Thule 970. Terrific bit of kit - fits onto the towball in seconds, no tools needed, folds away very neatly, and holds the bike very securely, even at high speed. I've been using it for 7-8 years and it's not showing any significant wear and tear. The bike will probably obscure the rear lights and number-plate, so you'll need a rear number-plate board (I haven't been able to try it out on my Panda as I don't yet have a towbar for it).

gar074 said:

I've got a Thule 970. Terrific bit of kit - fits onto the towball in seconds, no tools needed, folds away very neatly, and holds the bike very securely, even at high speed. I've been using it for 7-8 years and it's not showing any significant wear and tear. The bike will probably obscure the rear lights and number-plate, so you'll need a rear number-plate board (I haven't been able to try it out on my Panda as I don't yet have a towbar for it).

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Thanks mate. I appreciate the feedback.

(can I blame you when it all goes horribly wrong? :devil

My pre-conceptions are being whittled away. Now all I need is to decide on the towbar. It'll be interesting to see if Thule Australia get back to me but considering the range of prices I've seen on Thule racks, I'd probably be better served to shop around for a decent tow-bar. Maybe that depends on what's available?

aussiepanda said:

can I blame you when it all goes horribly wrong? :devil:

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Caveat emptor!!

UR towbars in Italy have three different types of towbar to suit the Panda (I think).

Do your own due diligence but I think you may find the UR towbar the best value and I can vouch for quality.

One of the biggest concerns for me was shipping costs from Europe. UR (I think) had one of the most reasonable prices for shipping. Some of the shipping quotes were just silly. My towbar took 5 days from payment cleared to arriving at my door.

I should've added that remember that the wiring kit from Europe will have the circular 7-pin large connector. It isn't hard to change it to 7-flat if you want that, but you'll have to change/fabricate a new securing bracket. Or get an adaptor, which is what I've done.

There's no pricing and very little information on that site so I'd have to ask... but I'd do that anyway. I do like the look of their product. Did you consider the detachable unit? Would you think it had any advantages or disadvantages? Could you PM me the price you paid please?

My little boat trailer uses the 7 pin round plug so that's not a problem for me, especially with the way the plug folds out of the way when not in use.

Trying to make sense of the other manufacturers is just confusing, mainly because of the number of people selling them and the assumption you can just drop in for a fitting. No biggy, I'll fight through that closer to purchase.

Thanks to Christmas and my employer being closed for Christmas and me not being paid when I don't work, I won't have the cash till late January... when she's due for registration So I'm busily building a bike that'll fit in the back of her with only the front wheel removed - my normal bikes are too long in the wheelbase for that so I'm tidying up an old track bike.

Looking at the videos on the Umbra Rimorchi website, it looks like although the Europeans use a round, 7 pin plug, it's a push in and twist arrangement. Is that correct? Here in Australia, we use a simple push in plug. Which raises other questions of compatibility. Am I going to have to buy an (expensive) wiring loom and then buy an adaptor on top of that?

I'd suggest buying either the 7 pin UK type wiring or the 13 pin Euro type wiring (that's the one I have) then buying the corresponding trailer side plug and wiring that to your trailer, bike carriers etc.

ebay 7 pin trailer side plug

deeyup said:

I'd suggest buying either the 7 pin UK type wiring or the 13 pin Euro type wiring (that's the one I have) then buying the corresponding trailer side plug and wiring that to your trailer, bike carriers etc.

ebay 7 pin trailer side plug

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That eBay unit looks like what we use here. Is there a different 7 pin plug used in Europe? Maybe I'm just misunderstanding what I'm seeing on the Umbra Rimorchi website but it certainly looks like he gives it a twist.

You'll have to excuse me a little but it's hard to compare things across the internet, particularly when you start suspecting standards that you didn't even know existed.

The Euro plug is a 13 pin, but in many cases only the same amount of wires as the 7 pin are wired up. From what I remember when I wired up my van towbar which is 13 pin too, there are a couple of wires which connect to a small switch in the towbar socket which activates when the socket door is open.

Anyway, the euro plugs do indeed push in, then you rotate them about 90º to lock the thing in.

I have the 13 pin wiring on my panda and van, but my bike carrier and my trailers all have the 7 pin plug same as the ebay one earlier.
I use this Euro 13 pin to 7N converter in between.
Works great!

Just found this video on youtube.
[ame]https://youtu.be/sTsX_KjAsFU[/ame]

I have an idea that all new caravans in the UK now come fitted with 13 pin plugs. They are an improvement over the old system as both the standard lighting and the supplementary power for the fridge etc. is carried down to one plug instead of the old 2 plug design. This is the reason I'd say that most people are going the 13 pin route nowadays? plus the plug can't just fall out as it locks in.

If I were you, I'd go with the 13pin setup (but with just the 7 pins wired) and get a bike carrier with the 13 pin plug on it.
Job done!

This is my towbar with the 13 pin electrics. It's removable but I leave it on to discourage people parking too close!
It's made by Thule. I went with Westfalia wiring kit as the socket is already assembled as opposed to the Thule wiring which required you to wire the thing up. The downside of the Westfalia is you have to drill a bigger hole to pass the wires, 36mm. A hole is a hole though so I went with that.



you are more than welcome to borrow my cone cutter if you want to?
I'll post it to you, just post back once done