Show what you tow!

NB_TDi · Mar 30, 2010

Guess it pays to have a real hitch. I had my trailer fall off the ball and do nothing to my hitch.

TDIJetta99 · Mar 30, 2010

wow... that hitch is definitely NOT meant to tow anything heavy... Even the mounting looks crappy.. Looks like there's only 2 bolts holding it to the car... That trailer didn't look all too heavy either but I guess with a blowout that changes things a LOT on the hitch end.. Good thing you had the chains on..

LOL I'd probably end up breaking the whole thing off the back of the car with what I put mine through.. Your new and improved one looks like it will hold up much better... I still don't know how I feel about the 2 bolt mounting though...

Fix_Until_Broke · Mar 30, 2010

Actually, it's much more stout than it looks I think.

The chains attach to the point right below/behind where the original drawbar broke and it held up to the tug from the hitch breaking and dragging the trailer with a blown tire at 70 MPH.

The two bolts are 5/8" Grade 8 in shear so they have a yield load of 73,631 lbf so I think it's good there.

Immediately behind the two mounting bolts on each side are some forward mounting cross braces that attach to the "frame" up behind the rear tire. This distributes the load nicely between 4 locations on the rear of the car and triangulates the structure nicely. I have pictures but can't post them here at work...

EDIT - Picture of forward reinforcement

[/IMG]

The two mounting bolts attach to the car through a 1/4" plate bracket mounted between the "frame" and the 5 mph bumper. There's a piece of ~1-1/2 box tube welded to the plate with a 5/8" nut welded inside the top end of the box tube. The bolts go in from the bottom and hold the cross bar.

The only thing I think I've seen that is more stout is some guy from Wisconsin removed his crash bumper and used 3x3x1/4 stainless box tube for the cross member, ran rails down the frame like the bosal setup and then welded a bosal like deal down from the middle of the 3x3 cross tube and then back up the outside of the bumper cover.

How is your hitch mounted?

The trailer is probably 2000-2500 lbs - those tables are steel with 1/2" thick tops, 2x2x1/4 steel legs/frame work.

NB_TDi · Mar 30, 2010

My hitch bolts into the tow hook. It also has 4 bolts on each side of the body. farther into the car. Bolt strength isn't the issue. It's the fact that you have no redundancy.

Why not just spend the $100 and find a used hitch that is proven to work. Plus the draw bar is replaceable and removable. You're locked in with one height. I can run any height I need.

Golden Dub · Mar 30, 2010

Thats crazy, I am surprised it didnt smash into the back of the car!

TDIJetta99 · Mar 30, 2010

Fix_Until_Broke said:
Actually, it's much more stout than it looks I think.

The chains attach to the point right below/behind where the original drawbar broke and it held up to the tug from the hitch breaking and dragging the trailer with a blown tire at 70 MPH.

The two bolts are 5/8" Grade 8 in shear so they have a yield load of 73,631 lbf so I think it's good there.

Immediately behind the two mounting bolts on each side are some forward mounting cross braces that attach to the "frame" up behind the rear tire. This distributes the load nicely between 4 locations on the rear of the car and triangulates the structure nicely. I have pictures but can't post them here at work...

The two mounting bolts attach to the car through a 1/4" plate bracket mounted between the "frame" and the 5 mph bumper. There's a piece of ~1-1/2 box tube welded to the plate with a 5/8" nut welded inside the top end of the box tube. The bolts go in from the bottom and hold the cross bar.

The only thing I think I've seen that is more stout is some guy from Wisconsin removed his crash bumper and used 3x3x1/4 stainless box tube for the cross member, ran rails down the frame like the bosal setup and then welded a bosal like deal down from the middle of the 3x3 cross tube and then back up the outside of the bumper cover.

How is your hitch mounted?

The trailer is probably 2000-2500 lbs - those tables are steel with 1/2" thick tops, 2x2x1/4 steel legs/frame work.

That's probably fine for what you tow depending on how you drive.. What I would be concerned about is when you put weight down on the tongue, it wants to bend the bolts, kind of like rotating the hitch down.. I can see something like that breaking off after repeated dips in the road with a decent amount of tongue weight, like having a full sized motorcycle on a trailer.. tongue weight with mine is around 150lbs, total weight around 1200, but it smacks the suspension on the bump stops at highway speeds when there is a decent dip in the road, or when going across intersections. Mine buckled the spare tire area a little from the braces that extend back from the hitch... I had a load of wood on my trailer and went through an intersection at 40mph.. The trailer was probably over 3000lbs when I did it..

Safety chains don't do anything if the hitch comes off haha..

steelmb · Mar 30, 2010

TDIJetta99 said:
That's probably fine for what you tow depending on how you drive.. What I would be concerned about is when you put weight down on the tongue, it wants to bend the bolts, kind of like rotating the hitch down.. I can see something like that breaking off after repeated dips in the road with a decent amount of tongue weight, like having a full sized motorcycle on a trailer.. tongue weight with mine is around 150lbs, total weight around 1200, but it smacks the suspension on the bump stops at highway speeds when there is a decent dip in the road, or when going across intersections. Mine buckled the spare tire area a little from the braces that extend back from the hitch... I had a load of wood on my trailer and went through an intersection at 40mph.. The trailer was probably over 3000lbs when I did it..

Safety chains don't do anything if the hitch comes off haha..

Ihave to agree totally with this. A third mounting point towards the front of the car would solve that problem, I believe.

Fix_Until_Broke · Mar 30, 2010

I edited post 222 above with a picture of the reinforcement. There is one on each side - they're also 1/2" x 2" flat

I don't intend on changing any of your minds on my hitch setup/design, but I'll address the comments made thus far.

NB TDi said:
My hitch bolts into the tow hook. It also has 4 bolts on each side of the body. farther into the car. Bolt strength isn't the issue. It's the fact that you have no redundancy.

Why not just spend the $100 and find a used hitch that is proven to work. Plus the draw bar is replaceable and removable. You're locked in with one height. I can run any height I need.

You're correct on the redundancy part (unless you consider 2 bolts redundant which I guess it is). There are many other items that don't have redundancy either.

I dislike typical reciever hitches as they clunk and rattle with every bump in the road. Hitch height has not been an issue for me, but you're right that the recievers have an advantage of quick changes and adjustable heights.

TDIJetta99 and steelmb said:
...What I would be concerned about is when you put weight down on the tongue, it wants to bend the bolts, kind of like rotating the hitch down....

I believe I've addressed this concern with the two mounting bolts. The forces on the ball actually split and transfer into both tension and shear on the two bolts. The twisting (either by pushing or pulling on the hitch) ends up pulling on the bolts. As the load on the ball wants to twist the crossbar, the bolts are keeping it from twisting by holding it to the vertical tube. A C-clamp would perform the same function. The bolts are ~12" long so they're like a big (strong) rubber band with lots of "stretch" in them so they should never see load reversals. The bolts should have enough preload on them (~30,000 lbf each) to keep the joints together which more/less eliminates fatigue issues with the bolts, even if the joint does seperate.

I think the drawbar started to fail due to fatigue and then when the tire blew the stress was concentrated at the location of the crack and ultimately broke it.

As I mentioned before, I magnaglowed the rest of the hitch cross bar structure and found no signs of cracks or fatigue. Trust me, I don't want a failure anymore than anyone else does. Last thing I want on my concience is someone else getting injured.

Click to expand...

steelmb · Mar 30, 2010

Fix_Until_Broke said:
I edited post 222 above with a picture of the reinforcement. There is one on each side - they're also 1/2" x 2" flat

I don't intend on changing any of your minds on my hitch setup/design, but I'll address the comments made thus far.

You're correct on the redundancy part (unless you consider 2 bolts redundant which I guess it is). There are many other items that don't have redundancy either.

I dislike typical reciever hitches as they clunk and rattle with every bump in the road. Hitch height has not been an issue for me, but you're right that the recievers have an advantage of quick changes and adjustable heights.

TDIJetta99 and steelmb said:

...What I would be concerned about is when you put weight down on the tongue, it wants to bend the bolts, kind of like rotating the hitch down....

I believe I've addressed this concern with the two mounting bolts. The forces on the ball actually split and transfer into both tension and shear on the two bolts. The twisting (either by pushing or pulling on the hitch) ends up pulling on the bolts. As the load on the ball wants to twist the crossbar, the bolts are keeping it from twisting by holding it to the vertical tube. A C-clamp would perform the same function. The bolts are ~12" long so they're like a big (strong) rubber band with lots of "stretch" in them so they should never see load reversals. The bolts should have enough preload on them (~30,000 lbf each) to keep the joints together which more/less eliminates fatigue issues with the bolts, even if the joint does seperate.

I think the drawbar started to fail due to fatigue and then when the tire blew the stress was concentrated at the location of the crack and ultimately broke it.

As I mentioned before, I magnaglowed the rest of the hitch cross bar structure and found no signs of cracks or fatigue. Trust me, I don't want a failure anymore than anyone else does. Last thing I want on my concience is someone else getting injured.

Click to expand...

The reiforcement will certainly help the twisting of the upright tubing but it is still the 2 bolts that I see as week point. You seem to have access to a magnaflux outfit, so I would suggest checking the bolts with that every so often.

Click to expand...

McBrew · Mar 30, 2010

I just want to address one thing that you said, Fix... about receive hitches rattling. This annoys me, too... but I have solved it by using a Curt anti-rattle device. I have tried four different anti-rattle devices, and this one works great. The only caveat is that you have to have a hollow ball mount, which is a little harder to find in 1 1/4" flavor.

Basically, the anti-rattle is a replacement hitch pin that is threaded at one end. There is a part that goes inside the ball mount, and when you tighten it up, it pulls the ball mount tightly against the side of the receiver. No more rattle!

http://www.etrailer.com/p-F-315.html

Frankencar · Mar 30, 2010

I just drilled and tapped the hitch for a 1/4-28 grade 8 screw and it pushes the reciever to the bottom of the hole - no more rattle!

Keven · Mar 30, 2010

delvi__acevedo said:
yes I do 30mm, I dont know the weigh

Well those wheels look absolutely awesome. If I wasnt so broke, those would be on my car too. Good choice! Have they affected your gas mileage?

TDIJetta99 · Mar 31, 2010

fix- Ya I think you have it covered with the supports and the 12" long 5/8" grade 8's... I didn't see the 5/8" part in your above post so I assumed they were smaller bolts.. They are some pretty hefty bolts indeed.. Personally I wouldnt worry about them breaking anytime soon..

As far as the rattling goes, mine stopped rattling when it seized itself into the rest f the hitch... I tried getting it out a few weeks ago and there was no chance at all.. They don't rattle too much when there's some tongue weight.. it mostly does it with a light empty trailer or the tow dolly..

Thorne · Apr 7, 2010

TDIJetta99 said:
As far as the rattling goes, mine stopped rattling when it seized itself into the rest f the hitch... I tried getting it out a few weeks ago and there was no chance at all..

Ditto. Nothing quite like launching boats in salt water to stop that annoying rattling noise...

NB_TDi · Apr 7, 2010

I can honestly say my hitch and draw bar don't rattle.

coalminer16 · Apr 7, 2010

Can't say I hear it either. I hear the ramp on the trailer while empty more then anything else. But I take the hitch out of the receiver while not in use. To many bruised shins.

TDIJetta99 · Apr 7, 2010

I never heard mine make any noise without a trailer on, mostly it was with either an empty trailer or the tow dolly...

bsalbrig · Apr 8, 2010

Fix_Until_Broke said:
Actually, it's much more stout than it looks I think.

The chains attach to the point right below/behind where the original drawbar broke and it held up to the tug from the hitch breaking and dragging the trailer with a blown tire at 70 MPH.

The two bolts are 5/8" Grade 8 in shear so they have a yield load of 73,631 lbf so I think it's good there.

Immediately behind the two mounting bolts on each side are some forward mounting cross braces that attach to the "frame" up behind the rear tire. This distributes the load nicely between 4 locations on the rear of the car and triangulates the structure nicely. I have pictures but can't post them here at work...

EDIT - Picture of forward reinforcement

[/IMG]

The two mounting bolts attach to the car through a 1/4" plate bracket mounted between the "frame" and the 5 mph bumper. There's a piece of ~1-1/2 box tube welded to the plate with a 5/8" nut welded inside the top end of the box tube. The bolts go in from the bottom and hold the cross bar.

The only thing I think I've seen that is more stout is some guy from Wisconsin removed his crash bumper and used 3x3x1/4 stainless box tube for the cross member, ran rails down the frame like the bosal setup and then welded a bosal like deal down from the middle of the 3x3 cross tube and then back up the outside of the bumper cover.

How is your hitch mounted?

The trailer is probably 2000-2500 lbs - those tables are steel with 1/2" thick tops, 2x2x1/4 steel legs/frame work.

That hitch needs a stiffer forward brace to keep it from twisting. The grade 8 bolts might be good for 73,631 lbf but what you are mounting them to is not. Sure the hitch wont be hurt (except for the forward brace) but it stands to bend your sheetmetal that you have it mounted to.

burpod · Apr 8, 2010

this: http://picasaweb.google.com/burpod/Rabbit#

just towed it back with my jetta last week.. w000t. not too shabby 30-34mpg from st. louis through torrential rains etc

touaregv10tdi · Apr 9, 2010

This is not what I tow, but interesting article.

http://blogs.motortrend.com/1006298/car-news/wanna-bet-vw-touareg-tows-155-ton-jet/index.html

TDIJetta99 · Apr 9, 2010

I remember that one.. they made that thing REALLY heavy to be able to get enough traction to pull that plane.. Still cool..

coalminer16 · Apr 10, 2010

I remember reading that too. They had a lot of weights and the tires way past max PSI and the tire company said they had to stay under a certain speed or it would blow the tires with that much weight and pressure.

As a side note I will have pictures of me towing a hide-a-bed and a futon on my aluma trailer 130 miles with my 81 rabbit car. I think I had the hitch maxed out on the weights listed (100 tongue weight, 1000 towing, stock vw hitch).

NarfBLAST · Apr 11, 2010

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Fifth Gear: VW Touareg Tows A 747
Fifth Gear: VW Touareg Tows A 747

The Fifth Gear team hook up a VW Touareg to a Boeing 747 and take it for a spin!

3 years ago 510,523 views
nedge2k

VeeDubTDI · Apr 18, 2010

If I remember correctly, they put 7,000 lbs of ballast in the Touareg so that it could pull the plane.

Stealth TDI · Apr 18, 2010

I mounted a bike rack to my trailer:

My autocross wheels were still aboard when I snapped this photo. I can't think of a time when I'd have bikes AND autocross stuff on the trailer. But one never knows, I guess.

VeeDubTDI · Apr 18, 2010

Wow Scott, that's quite a contraption!

McBrew · Apr 20, 2010

Why don't you have racing tires for the trailer? They don't have a trailer-towing class? ;-)

Stealth TDI · Apr 25, 2010

Doing something different. I hate taking my car to tire shops for new rubber. They take forever; plus, the best hours for getting anything done is when I need to be at work. As a result, I like to drop wheels off for work. So I've loaded up eight wheels/tires to drop off on my way to work:

Tiedown straps anchor the wheels in place while the cables serve as retention safety in the event of a tiedown failure. The weight in back makes the tongue a bit too light, almost a negative weight. So I added some cinder blocks to ballast the front:

I'm not sure what the tongue weighs now. But it's a bit more than zero.

I'll pick up the wheels on my way home, happy in the knowledge that someone didn't impact-torque my lugs to back-breaking levels, leave grease smudges in my car, or goof up the pinch weld any more than the dealer already had years ago.

Scott

NB_TDi · Apr 25, 2010

Gearing up for my towing season. I've been real busy with updating my tent trailer a bit. It's a 1993 Starcraft. I've added a lot of new things like digital thermostat, new lighting. I'm working on more too. Adding laminate flooring, new counter top, water pump, new taps. Also painted the outside, not done yet. I'm also replacing a lot of exterior pieces too. I painted the fender flares and replacing the outlets too. On on the lookout for a new awning. I want something that latches to the side of the trailer, not just poles to the ground. Also looking for a better add-a-room.

Here are some recent pictures...

My new POWERED tail light converter:

"Front" of the trailer. Notice the lack of decals! All of the pin striping is removed only thing left is the brand and model. Porch light is removed, new one is being installed:

"Back" side of the trailer:

Here is an old photo for reference:

Hopefully this summer is better than last!

S_Sanders · Apr 27, 2010

I finally got an opportunity to take my camper for a trip, and take some pictures to share with the forum.

The camper is a 2010 Livin' Lite Quicksilver 6.0 with hauling deck www.livinlite.com. Empty weight, including the A/C, is 650 pounds. The Golf tows it extremely well.

Edited to finally make photos display.

Show what you tow!

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