Westfalia Euro Trailer Hitch – DIY – 54 pics

Leadfoot, this is a great set of instructions. Thanks for all the info that must have taken you a lot of time to collect!
After my dealer parts guy warned me that the parts would not fit, since this was an American JSW and the dealer service guy gave me the whole liability with non-approved accessories spiel, I just pulled the trigger today: ordered the towbar at PF Jones, a list of parts (easy to find with your #s) at ECS Tuning and the electrical hookup (Curt) from eTrailer.

I will keep my flat connector in the back of my car. Had it there on other cars too. It keeps the connector nice and dry and the cable on my trailer is long enough to pull into the hatch on my JSW. You just need to keep it off the exact center, so that it does not get into the lock.

Will let you know how it all goes!

Thanks kgieskes. It did take a lot of time, but was kinda fun. Actually your VW parts guy is incorrect since the parts fit perfectly. If you look in ETKA (or if he knew how! now it may be inactive on the dealer version in NA), the Westfalia bar is an OEM accessory, just not available for the North American market. It even has its own diagram...ask him to pull up diagram 804-00 for the removable towbar.

I had the connector in the back of my Passat and it was ok just a PITA holding it in place and shutting the lid on it...also now that I carry my dogs everywhere, sometimes when pulling the trailer, I don't want them to be able to chew on the wires...it all depends on your situation....since the holder was there as part of the hitch I opted to try to use it... Good Luck with the install and keep me posted how it works out for you....

Dave

I thought long and hard about a Westfalia for my Golf, as I don't like how the Curt and Draw-tite receivers for the Golf hang completely exposed below the bumper. But I am not thrilled with how the Westy eliminates much of the impact absorption of the rear bumper.

So I decided to follow in others' steps and convert to the GTI dual exhaust and use the GTI Draw-tite, which is much less exposed (although still no where near as hidden as the Westy). Side benefit - the GTI dual exhaust is (to me) much cooler looking. I pick up the new-to-me exhaust this Saturday, will start gathering the rest of the parts shortly thereafter.

Hm, hadn't considered the impact absorbtion of the rear bumper before. For me, I think there's 2 issues that I'll consider:
1) Slow speed impacts
2) higher speed impacts.

The energy absorbing bumpers are really there to reduce damage from minor bumps and scrapes. With the painted bumper, almost any low speed impact will damage the finish, possibly damage the plastic bumper. I don't know if the actual steel bumper bars are comparable in strength (between the stock NA bumper and the Westfalia towbar). In older cars with "energy absorbing bumpers", there was a pretty hefty steel shape mounted on actual sprung buffers, then manufacturers went to styrofoam and plastic crush shapes. I think its all a balance of how much contact the manufacturer is willing to let you have before damaging prompts you to bring your car in to be repaired. My old Volvo had black plastic bumpers, I got rear-ended by a drunk pretty hard (corner to corner), but the left corner of the rear bumper just compressed on its buffer and took out the guy's right headlight, corner lights and started in on his front fender. Ended up with just some scuffs on the black plastic. If it had been our new JSW, I'd be looking at getting his insurance company (non-existant, my "no-insurance" coverage) to pay to replace my damaged bumper cover and repaint the rear end.

Past that and I think you're talking about actual safety performance. And here, we're talking about rear crumple zones and how far another vehicle will intrude into the car. At that point, the goals are simply a controlled collision with passenger safety as the priority, cost of repair and extent of damage be damned.

Plus, it should be covered by the other person's insurance, or your "no-insurance" coverage, unless you back into something, or make some other mistake. But then again, it hardly matters what the steel bar looks like under there, the plastic bumper and its beautiful paint job is sacrificial, and that's what the manufacturers and body shops like.

Besides, this discussion is only relevant in situations between cars. An SUV or pick-up will bury its nose in your license plate, your rear lights or your rear window, thus relieving you of having to repaint your bumper.

It's the small impacts I worry about. The current US rear bumper bar is surface mounted to the ends of what would pass for frame rails (f it weren't uni-body). The Westy bumper bar mounts deep inside those frame rails, so the impact energy would be transferred to the body about a foot farther in. The crumpled frame rails would be much simpler to repair/replace if the damage is just at the very end, as opposed to a foot or more farther forward.

Hi Leadfoot, thanks for your trying to help me out with my dealer, but I sent him links to your 54 pictures, plus a link to the official VW Parts site of the UK, which showed VW part numbers for the towbar.

Actually I am excited to go do the job and am mechanically confident that I will be able to do it. I am a boat builder like boatman and though I have bought the nice with cap, I will use a jigsaw to cut out the panel. I think it will be easier to fit, but if it does not look good enough I will have the part ready to do it like you did.

I am worried about the electrical stuff. I think I bought the wrong stuff, because I found out later that the car uses PWM to save on a filament in the rear lights....

My wiring set is the same I used in my Highlander. I will send it back to etrailer and get the right set. Hopefullly still plenty in time before I even start with the job. My trailer is still under 2 feet of snow anyway and it may take weeks before it emerges and I would need to tow!

Correction: I checked my rear lights and found that I have separate light bulbs for brakes, running lights and turn signal. I should be good with the wiring set I got from etrailer. No complicated PWM in my car!

Any advice for wiring the cable to the battery when you don't have a whole car lift or pit under the car? I have some ramps, that I use to clean the bottom of my mower deck, but that will only lift the car 6". And my garage is one big mud slide with all the dirt I bring in from the road. Is there a way to wire it to the battery without going outside the car on the bottom?

I found a 12V socket in the back. This is 120W capable, which is the same as the 10 Amp fuse that comes with the Curt electronics. If I connect my trailer power to this, the only difference would be that it is switched, meaning: power off the car means: power off the trailer wiring electronics. I would see that as a plus, since my car is parked at airports for longer periods. And I like it when my car starts without problem when I get into it after a long flight

Got the hitch in from PFJones! Less than 6 days to get here. Great company to work with!

Will get two big loops welded to the vertical stem of the hitch, to be able to attach my chains. No hurry to get it all installed, since the trailer is still completely buried under snow.

Great news! Mine came in 3 days...

I have been slowly plowing snow in front of my trailer and it is now likely out of commission until April until we get some melting action....

Thanks to your pictures I got also some big ears welded on to the towbar for chains. i did not use chain links, but some 3/8" bar bent in 1 1/2 inch ears to both sides of the tube. Sorry, I could not find out how to attach a picture.
My trailer is across the road and I don't plow there, but the roadcrews put a hard frozen 3 feet high dam in front of the driveway there. But that's not the only excuse not to put the towbar on my car. My garage is one big mud pool and also uncomfortably cold. I will wait patiently until things really begin to warm up. Minimum 4 weeks up here in the Catskillls. Then clean out the garage and see what color my car was again, because is used to be black , but now it is brown grey...

This was a great thread! I found it because I was searching for a bit of help on removing the rear lower bumper cover. I backed up into a snow drift and popped the seam between the upper and lower bumper cover so I needed to take the lower off the re-seat the seam. It is interesting that I also have a 2010 jetta sportwagen but the the connections at the ends of the seam (near the fender wells) didn't have the little plastic rivets that you mentioned. Mine have the clip built into the lower bumper cover and needs to be bent down and pushed in to release it. It took quite a bit of bending and inward force to release, which is why I was looking at this thread.

So I just wanted to add that on some JSWs you don't need to release those rivets and can just pop it out with sufficient force.

Thanks for the help.

Thanks & you're welcome Clifford. I'm not surprised that have slightly modified the bumper attachment. Those rivets are a pain for sure. Not sure from what you said whether it is easy or better but good to know for others there was a slight mod by VW in the 2011 model.

Now that winter is over, I brought the access cover to the body shop for painting and it was done a day later...put it back on the car and it looks great! Pic's will come later after the Spring detail...

factory spoiler (lower bumper skirts) for Mk V Jetta Sedan

1K5 807 433 9B9 (black)
1K5 807 433 B GRU (primed)

For the Golf VI bumper, what is the VW part number for the small cover, covering the cut hole? Also, there are some clips needed I read, but I cannot see what the part numbers are.

Thanks.

Hey VW leadfoot, could you possibly let me know the height from top of ball to ground on your install. I'm planning on pulling a flatbed with the coupler at about 17" with trailer level. Just curious how level the trailer would be behind the GSW. Thanks, Gabe

wulph,

Just checked and it is 16 3/8", but remember I am on an Eibach Pro-Kit which is about a 1" drop ower than stock. Your 17" should be totally fine....

Cap part numbers

gumaku1 said:

did the ECS tuning (OEM) Euro Cap 1K9-807-397-A-GRU come with the quarter turn clips and hardware pictured in this post?

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1K9-807-397-A-GRU is the cap for 2007-2010 Golf and JSW
I ordered the textured rear valance 1K5-807-433-9B9 for the jetta sedan, which takes hitch cap 1K5-807-397-9B9 and tow eye cover 1K5-807-441-A-9B9

Just wanted to comment on the Westfalia hitch install. Following VW_leadfoot's outstanding instructions for the mechanical as well as the electrical connections I had the whole install complete in 5-hrs, single handedly. Granted, I took 12-v power for the modulator from the plug in the trunk but if I get the time & inclination I can always go direct to the battery. Knowing what to take apart made a world of difference in the whole process. Thanks Dave. I also have to say that the GSW pulls my flatbed better than my '03 Passat wagon V-6. The solid connection of the swan-neck into the receiver transmits no additional bounce or noice to the car as you find with the NA style hitches. Pricey? Yes, but worth it. Way better than my previous hitch experience.
Gabe

wulph said:

...Following VW_leadfoot's outstanding instructions for the mechanical as well as the electrical connections I had the whole install complete in 5-hrs... Thanks Dave. I.....Gabe

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Thanks Gabe...glad it helped out! I have been using mine to haul building materials as of late as I am building another shed on my property...I love it!




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Can anyone give me an estimate of the size/weight of the package that PF Jones sent the towbar? I have a couple of friends in the UK that are coming here this summer, and we were talking about taking the package on the commercial flight (provided it wasn't too big/bulky)...rather than having PFJones send it.

fastball said:

Can anyone give me an estimate of the size/weight of the package that PF Jones sent the towbar? I have a couple of friends in the UK that are coming here this summer, and we were talking about taking the package on the commercial flight (provided it wasn't too big/bulky)...rather than having PFJones send it.

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I just had one delivered last week. I think it was 26 kilos, about 58 lbs. I'll measure the box tomorrow but it was quite a bigger than the towbar.

fastball said:

Can anyone give me an estimate of the size/weight of the package that PF Jones sent the towbar? I have a couple of friends in the UK that are coming here this summer, and we were talking about taking the package on the commercial flight (provided it wasn't too big/bulky)...rather than having PFJones send it.

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I honestly don't think it would be worth having your friends do it. It would be a real pain and the airline is def gonna charge you oversize and overweight fees that would easily be over $100


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

OK, thanks guys. It was just an idle thought during a phone chat. Good to know.

Awaiting some live chat from PFJones before I commit to this hitch. I will need to also order a bike carrier to attach to the ball which I another expense I was not wanting, but this hitch has a better "look" as in out of sight. Just hoping I can install it as well as the OP did, nice work!

Here are the dimensions of the box in case you want to call the airline and see what the cost.

9" x 26" x 44" and the shipping weight is 18 kilos (40 lbs).

FWIW ... a couple years ago I flew to Germany and took my bicycle along. I got a shipping box from a bike shop, disassembled the bike, packed it and a bunch of other things in the box. It was $26.

I wouldn't have them use the box. Have them unwrap it and put the loose parts in the luggage and the towbar is well wrapped in bubblewrap. Have them bring packing tape and it'ss be easier to carry it is it just the towbar.

These instructions are great, I just followed them to swap mine out for a friend's oem us bumper. I'm trading my TDi in tomorrow, and wanted someone to benefit from the westfalia setup, it's great.

One thing to add about the press-on clips, the ones you pretty much have to pry off with a flathead, it's ok to mangle them a bit. After you deal with the drivers side bolts, simply take a larger, I think I used the 16, socket and center the mangled clip on the threads. Then press it back on firmly. Good as new!

The thing that gave me the biggest trouble is the body clips in the wheel well. one out of the four I just dealt with was a MAJOR b**ch. Other than that it's pretty painless.

Good luck and DIY

Has anyone bought the full rear bumper spoiler kit and have instructions for it? I just bought a 2013 Jetta TDI Premium and the whole rear bumper cover is one piece and is painted. I can't find instructions online anywhere on what modifications will have to be done to get the removable access plate for the Westie tow bar.

kennedcx said:

Has anyone bought the full rear bumper spoiler kit and have instructions for it? I just bought a 2013 Jetta TDI Premium and the whole rear bumper cover is one piece and is painted. I can't find instructions online anywhere on what modifications will have to be done to get the removable access plate for the Westie tow bar.

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Here you go. these are euro parts. the tow bar (hitch) is also shown as an accesory

looking at the ball tow hitch cover (part#11) looks like you should be looking for parts with model PR-1D2. 9b9 is satin black finish, GRU is primed parts for painting.

bhutchins said:

Here you go. these are euro parts. the tow bar (hitch) is also shown as an accesory

looking at the ball tow hitch cover (part#11) looks like you should be looking for parts with model PR-1D2. 9b9 is satin black finish, GRU is primed parts for painting.

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Would it be possible to get this same info for a Mk6 Golf? I've been through the various threads on the westfalia and don't recall ever seeing the part numbers.