vw_leadfoot
Veteran Member
Well I finally got around to installing my Westfalia hitch last weekend on my 2010 Golf Wagen (=JSW) and all went well. It was more difficult that the model I installed on the Passat a few years back but generally it wasn’t too difficult. Many thanks to Forum Members darrenf and karltinsly for their exhaustive write-ups, pictures and information. I thought I would document my install and lend some more information to others that may want to do the same thing. I also used the Bentley manual but barely as karltinsly’s pic’s were extremely helpful especially since his car is red.
I ordered my hitch from PF Jones in the UK and it was delivered by an international courier in about 3 days from the order. The total order was 300€ or about $460 CDN. It was actually much cheaper that the Passat where I arranged my own deliver from someone in Austria. It comes with the Euro 7-pin wiring adapter which is generally unusable in North America but some of the pieces can be scavenged from from it.
Westfalia is the VW OEM supplier in Europe, and since having installed one on my previous VW, I knew it was the right way to go. I have a 4x8 heavy duty utility trailer in which I haul construction materials from time to time and will also be using it for transporting firewood, and hauling around my Honda ATV which I got in the Spring. The ball fixed to the swan neck and is detachable from the vehicle and measures 50mm in diameter. I have a Euro Thule bike rack for the 50mm ball that I ordered from the UK an few years ago. The 2” trailer coupler works perfectly fine with it. Typically there is a nut in the coupler that can be adjusted for a perfectly tight fit.
For more pictures of the actual hitch go here (see post #4): http://forums.tdiclub.com/showthread.php?t=286714
Just some background on the modifications that I did to mine BEFORE I started. In Europe they do not use safety chains the way we do here. My understanding is that they used a wire tied back to the car that if the trailer becomes uncoupled, they wire snaps and triggers the brakes on the trailer to activate. This is why on this Westfalia model there was a thin chain link welded to the neck of the hitch. As my safety hooks didn’t fit through it and it seemed a little thin, I had a welder friend remove this link and add two heavy duty 3/8” links and weld those to the neck. He even painted it up for me and it looks great. In the Passat, I had a custom bracket made up that a few people here have copied. Being tighter for space behind the bumper I opted not to go this route. I also wanted to use the pulldown wire holder, which I never did on the Passat. I got sick of hanging the wiring out through the rear hatch I bought a 4-flat metal holder form a local trailer shop which was angled and I flattened it out, dremelled it to fit the Euro hitch, drilled three holes and used the machine screws that came with the Euro wiring kit as the hitch was pre-threaded. They were a little long, so I trimmed them off once I had it all together. The other thing required for this install is to cut out an access hole in the bumper. This is actually very easy to so. If you have tons of money you can buy the whole Euro bumper kit and get it repainted…I opted just to buy the access cover panel (~$25) and I will use the cut out piece for making the back up supports. I ordered it from ECS and it took almost two months to get which is one of the reasons I waited to do this installation as I didn’t want to cut the hole and then get the cover. This way I was guaranteed it would be the right cut out size, even though it is marked on the inside of the bumper cover.
Another note before starting, it would be best to wash the car really well before starting especially in the rear wheelwells and all around the bumper.
Ok so enough of the background info, on to the install…
STEP 1: Remove Tailights (approx time ~10 minutes):
On the driver’s side open the storage compartment.
Open compartment to access rear of taillight. Use a 16mm socket with a long arm to remove the three bolts holding on the light. Be very careful not to drop them. Disconnect the wiring harness by squeezing the two narrow ends together of the housing to release it from the bulb holder.
Note the positioning of the weather stripping on the taillight on the side that faces into the car. Gently pull the taillight outward slightly diagonally. And store the unit carefully away from the work area.
I stored the three nuts onto the back of the light for safekeeping.
Goto the passenger side and remove the access cover.
Disconnect the wiring harness.
Remove three nuts as was done on the driver’s side.
Both lights should be removed at this point and safely stored.
I ordered my hitch from PF Jones in the UK and it was delivered by an international courier in about 3 days from the order. The total order was 300€ or about $460 CDN. It was actually much cheaper that the Passat where I arranged my own deliver from someone in Austria. It comes with the Euro 7-pin wiring adapter which is generally unusable in North America but some of the pieces can be scavenged from from it.
Westfalia is the VW OEM supplier in Europe, and since having installed one on my previous VW, I knew it was the right way to go. I have a 4x8 heavy duty utility trailer in which I haul construction materials from time to time and will also be using it for transporting firewood, and hauling around my Honda ATV which I got in the Spring. The ball fixed to the swan neck and is detachable from the vehicle and measures 50mm in diameter. I have a Euro Thule bike rack for the 50mm ball that I ordered from the UK an few years ago. The 2” trailer coupler works perfectly fine with it. Typically there is a nut in the coupler that can be adjusted for a perfectly tight fit.
For more pictures of the actual hitch go here (see post #4): http://forums.tdiclub.com/showthread.php?t=286714
Just some background on the modifications that I did to mine BEFORE I started. In Europe they do not use safety chains the way we do here. My understanding is that they used a wire tied back to the car that if the trailer becomes uncoupled, they wire snaps and triggers the brakes on the trailer to activate. This is why on this Westfalia model there was a thin chain link welded to the neck of the hitch. As my safety hooks didn’t fit through it and it seemed a little thin, I had a welder friend remove this link and add two heavy duty 3/8” links and weld those to the neck. He even painted it up for me and it looks great. In the Passat, I had a custom bracket made up that a few people here have copied. Being tighter for space behind the bumper I opted not to go this route. I also wanted to use the pulldown wire holder, which I never did on the Passat. I got sick of hanging the wiring out through the rear hatch I bought a 4-flat metal holder form a local trailer shop which was angled and I flattened it out, dremelled it to fit the Euro hitch, drilled three holes and used the machine screws that came with the Euro wiring kit as the hitch was pre-threaded. They were a little long, so I trimmed them off once I had it all together. The other thing required for this install is to cut out an access hole in the bumper. This is actually very easy to so. If you have tons of money you can buy the whole Euro bumper kit and get it repainted…I opted just to buy the access cover panel (~$25) and I will use the cut out piece for making the back up supports. I ordered it from ECS and it took almost two months to get which is one of the reasons I waited to do this installation as I didn’t want to cut the hole and then get the cover. This way I was guaranteed it would be the right cut out size, even though it is marked on the inside of the bumper cover.
Another note before starting, it would be best to wash the car really well before starting especially in the rear wheelwells and all around the bumper.
Ok so enough of the background info, on to the install…
STEP 1: Remove Tailights (approx time ~10 minutes):
On the driver’s side open the storage compartment.
Open compartment to access rear of taillight. Use a 16mm socket with a long arm to remove the three bolts holding on the light. Be very careful not to drop them. Disconnect the wiring harness by squeezing the two narrow ends together of the housing to release it from the bulb holder.
Note the positioning of the weather stripping on the taillight on the side that faces into the car. Gently pull the taillight outward slightly diagonally. And store the unit carefully away from the work area.
I stored the three nuts onto the back of the light for safekeeping.
Goto the passenger side and remove the access cover.
Disconnect the wiring harness.
Remove three nuts as was done on the driver’s side.
Both lights should be removed at this point and safely stored.
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