Show what you tow!

[Nuje]

I have a u-haul hitch on last two Mk4 Golfs and they've done a fine job hauling all sorts of things. Most common was a bike rack with road bikes on the back, but it also does the trick pulling a HarborFreight trailer on which we've built a box (probably weighs 500lbs empty). Use it for dump runs, picking up landscaping supplies, furniture moves, etc. A cubic yard of pea gravel, though....not recommended.

I do wish I had something that didn't just bolt through the spare tire well's sheet metal, but the u-haul (typically made by Curt) is holding up well on both cars.

 

[Chris_co]

While the uhaul hitches are ok for light use there are various other options to consider.

Bosal makes a very well designed hitch for your golf, that's more $, but much more solid in how it attaches to the car.

There are also several ways to make your own if you're handy and don't mind spending a Saturday making one. Cost is about the same as a purchased one, but the quality is arguably better (depending on your design and welding skills ) Several examples if you search.

If you're only going to be towing light trailers (under 1000lb) and not expecting to get 10k+ miles of use out of it, the uhaul version is ok for that.

If I was to get the bosal, how much weight could I tow? Tounge and full trailer?

 

[Fix_Until_Broke]

If I was to get the bosal, how much weight could I tow? Tounge and full trailer?

More than the car is able to handle, more than you should without trailer brakes, etc.

I believe they're formally rated for 1500kg (3300lb) and maybe 100kg (220lb) tongue weight? The springs on your car are much more of a limiting factor on tongue weight than the bosal hitch. The Golf's have the shortest distance from the ball to the rear axle so you'll have less of a sensitivity to tongue weight than Jetta's or Wagons.

As Nuje mentioned above, the Curt/UHaul is good at lighter duty applications.

Are you looking to do a lot more towing in the future? What else would you like to use a hitch for?

 

[Chris_co]

More than the car is able to handle, more than you should without trailer brakes, etc.

I believe they're formally rated for 1500kg (3300lb) and maybe 100kg (220lb) tongue weight? The springs on your car are much more of a limiting factor on tongue weight than the bosal hitch. The Golf's have the shortest distance from the ball to the rear axle so you'll have less of a sensitivity to tongue weight than Jetta's or Wagons.

As Nuje mentioned above, the Curt/UHaul is good at lighter duty applications.

Are you looking to do a lot more towing in the future? What else would you like to use a hitch for?

Yes I would like to tow a small pop up camper or tear drop to go camping in.

 

[Fix_Until_Broke]

Than I'd pony up for the Bosal system or build your own.

 

[vandermic07]

I second F.U.B.

 

[jef@rosstech]

 

[Metal Man]

This isn't a very good picture of the trailer, but I tow this 5.5' X 8' trailer. Today's load was shingles and assorted garbage, it was 680 pounds. I bought this trailer new in 1999 for about $1,000 and I certainly have gotten my moneys worth out of it. I was thinking the other day about what vehicles I have had to tow this with so I'm going to list them here.
1990 Jeep Grand Wagoneer
1980 Rabbit diesel
1999 VW NB TDI
2002 Jeep Liberty Gas
2006 VW Jetta TDI
2006 Jeep Liberty Diesel
2008 Chevy Aveo
2012 Nissan Leaf
2003 Jeep Liberty Gas
2014 VW Tiguan

 

[Metal Man]

jef@rosstech Where did you by the Stern pinball?

 

[kcunniff]

Picked up my Midsota trailer from Pensacola last week (ordered in January), and am very excited!

IMG_2890.jpg

• kcunniff
• May 24, 2021

Midsota UT6208

 

[SilverGhost]

Picked up my Midsota trailer from Pensacola last week (ordered in January), and am very excited!

IMG_2890.jpg

• kcunniff
• May 24, 2021

Midsota UT6208

That looks very familiar! I Just sold my set of BBS RCs to a guy on west coast of Florida with a GTI and some other VWs.

Jason

 

[kcunniff]

Hi Jason, the person you reference is not me. Those wheels came at my option when I purchased the car new in 2005.

 

[NarfBLAST]

Spring is here, another season of towing and mowing for a family member an hour away. Its like a miniature vacation, each time I go out there:

 

[Chris_co]

Picked up my Midsota trailer from Pensacola last week (ordered in January), and am very excited!

IMG_2890.jpg

• kcunniff
• May 24, 2021

Midsota UT6208

What did you have to do to your golf, other than installing the tow hitch, in order to get it "tow ready"

 

[3L3M3NT]

What did you have to do to your golf, other than installing the tow hitch, in order to get it "tow ready"

These links should help you get your car ready for towing.
https://forums.tdiclub.com/index.php?threads/a-4-trailer-lights.379375/
https://www.idparts.com/repair-wire-000-979-133-1mm-125c-000979133e-p-1375.html
https://www.idparts.com/repair-wire-000-979-131-gold-1mm-205c-000979131ea-p-2521.html
https://www.idparts.com/pin-connector-tail-lights-dimmer-1j0972924-p-1797.html
https://www.idparts.com/pin-connector-191972701-p-2166.html
https://www.etrailer.com/Custom-Fit.../Golf/2004/119178KIT.html?vehicleid=200416933
https://www.etrailer.com/Custom-Fit...n/Golf/2004/C56175.html?vehicleid=20041176593

 

[kcunniff]

What did you have to do to your golf, other than installing the tow hitch, in order to get it "tow ready"

Hi Chris_co, aside from installing the Westfalia hitch (including a 4-pin wiring harness, with converter), I switched out my stock springs for Jetta Sportwagon springs (P/N: 1J0511115CP) and I included replacing the old rubber rear coil spring isolators with new polyurethane parts (there are different options, I went with one from www.suspension.com). This raised the rear up about 1.5" over stock, and should provide for some better stiffness for towing. Aside from the new springs, my suspension is fully refreshed with new rubber, TT LCA bushings, Bilstein struts and shocks, and new tie rods from 2 years ago. Have good tires and alignment, check your brakes, change fluids, and ensure you have your towing accessories and safety equipment. The car performs very nicely.

 

[Mozambiquer]

Prosperity are a few things that occurs between your ears, not something you handle.
One genuine worker can accomplish more by near the very edge of home plan to thwart incidents than a carload of Safety Vest signs..
Close to the day's end, the goals are fundamental: prosperity and security.

What's it with the influx of scammers on here?

 

[GreenGoop]

Hi all. I have a 15 VW Golf TDI 6spd MT.

I commited to buying a utility trailer that serves as a primitive RV called Taxa Woolly Bear. It is 1270lbs empty and 140lbs tongue empty. You can see pictures, specs and diagrams here: https://taxaoutdoors.com/habitats/woolly-bear/

Loaded it will be 2000lbs and 250-300 tongue weight.

My hitch is a EcoHitch rated for 2000lbs and and 300 tongue.

I am in the US where the VW is "not recommended for towing" and am getting pushback from every angle - online, uhaul (who I asked to install my brake controller and 7 way pin), even the trailer manufacturer themselves.

My biggest concern is the tongue weight. I will be lugging this around US forest roads for an entire year, doing a tour of forests and sleeping there.

I'm not afraid of the 2000lbs tow weight as much as the tongue weight since even in EU the Golf is only rated for 165lbs tongue weight (but a whopping 3600lbs tow weight).

Based on posts here and elsewhere, it seems doable, at least short term. But I will be towing this every 2 weeks to different forests. It's going to be a decent amount of stress on the body where the hitch itself connects, but am hopeful. If the part where the hitch connects to the body breaks on me mid-drive, it will be catastrophic for me. So I nervous and going in blind. But this is a trip I *need* to do for myself.

The Woolly Bear trailer will be ready for pickup on August 17 (2 weeks). Quite nervous.

When transporting it, I plan to unload the battery, cooler, and any heavier items from the trailer and into the car to lessen to tongue weight load as much as I can because I feel that's the weak spot based on VW EUs max recommended rating of 165lbs tongue.

I will provide update(s) as to how it's going once am on the road with it.

Thanks to all the confidence boosting posts here. I was on the edge of canceling my order until I saw similar VWs tow even heavier things here. But I'll be towing a lot more frequently than some of you, I feel.

My biggest fear is if something breaks, it will take the muffler with it, or worse, send the trailer careening into a car behind me or causing the trailer to sustain significant and costly damage.

I will update when I can.

 

[Mozambiquer]

KIMG0425.JPG

• Mozambiquer
• Aug 3, 2021

New hitch from Netherlands

Finally got a hitch ball for my Passat. Had to get it from dutch auto parts. Maybe I'll be able to tow now.

 

[GreenGoop]

The newer cars are different than yours. They seem to have higher temps than the older cars by some degree. My old 2013 Passat tdi and now my 2015 Beetle tdi run around +/- 203F on a normal basis. Others have reported running hotter temps when towing of around +/- 230F.

My 15 Golf TDI runs average of 212F normally with no load aside from myself. I drive like a grandpa, too, so I don't push it or anything. Going up hills it goes to about 220-230F.

 

[SilverGhost]

Hi all. I have a 15 VW Golf TDI 6spd MT.

I commited to buying a utility trailer that serves as a primitive RV called Taxa Woolly Bear. It is 1270lbs empty and 140lbs tongue empty. You can see pictures, specs and diagrams here: https://taxaoutdoors.com/habitats/woolly-bear/

Loaded it will be 2000lbs and 250-300 tongue weight.

My hitch is a EcoHitch rated for 2000lbs and and 300 tongue.

I am in the US where the VW is "not recommended for towing" and am getting pushback from every angle - online, uhaul (who I asked to install my brake controller and 7 way pin), even the trailer manufacturer themselves.

My biggest concern is the tongue weight. I will be lugging this around US forest roads for an entire year, doing a tour of forests and sleeping there.

I'm not afraid of the 2000lbs tow weight as much as the tongue weight since even in EU the Golf is only rated for 165lbs tongue weight (but a whopping 3600lbs tow weight).

Based on posts here and elsewhere, it seems doable, at least short term. But I will be towing this every 2 weeks to different forests. It's going to be a decent amount of stress on the body where the hitch itself connects, but am hopeful. If the part where the hitch connects to the body breaks on me mid-drive, it will be catastrophic for me. So I nervous and going in blind. But this is a trip I *need* to do for myself.

The Woolly Bear trailer will be ready for pickup on August 17 (2 weeks). Quite nervous.

When transporting it, I plan to unload the battery, cooler, and any heavier items from the trailer and into the car to lessen to tongue weight load as much as I can because I feel that's the weak spot based on VW EUs max recommended rating of 165lbs tongue.

I will provide update(s) as to how it's going once am on the road with it.

Thanks to all the confidence boosting posts here. I was on the edge of canceling my order until I saw similar VWs tow even heavier things here. But I'll be towing a lot more frequently than some of you, I feel.

My biggest fear is if something breaks, it will take the muffler with it, or worse, send the trailer careening into a car behind me or causing the trailer to sustain significant and costly damage.

I will update when I can.

I would just make sure on how secure the EcoHitch is mounted. And inspect it regularly to make sure no cracks or damage is happening. I learned my lesson and went through a couple iterations of my hitch before landing on a solid setup. And I towed this with it;

And this;

This after towing a 4500lb Uhaul across country from Montana to Florida. It can be done, but you have to be smart.

Jason

PS: I would still work to get tongue weight down a little - maybe 190-225lb? Also airbags INSIDE the rear coil springs help with squat.

 

[GreenGoop]

I would just make sure on how secure the EcoHitch is mounted. And inspect it regularly to make sure no cracks or damage is happening. I learned my lesson and went through a couple iterations of my hitch before landing on a solid setup. And I towed this with it;

And this;

This after towing a 4500lb Uhaul across country from Montana to Florida. It can be done, but you have to be smart.

Jason

PS: I would still work to get tongue weight down a little - maybe 190-225lb? Also airbags INSIDE the rear coil springs help with squat.

Thanks for that! What 'lesson' did you encounter?

 

[SilverGhost]

Thanks for that! What 'lesson' did you encounter?

On my Golf the original hitch was bolted onto same points as the bumper - this I found was only strong enough to hang the metal bumper on, not pull a couple thousand pounds. The body started to crack and seams pull apart. I installed structural members into the "frame" and bolted to the same locations as OE approved hitch. That solved the hitch trying to break off the car .

The rear springs are only rated to carry a couple normal adults. And cargo is more about a reasonable volume, not a lot of weight. So any decent amount of tongue weight makes the back squat. Inserting helper air bags INSIDE the rear coil springs allowed me to keep stock height and ride without load and ability to quickly adjust ride height back to level when loaded.

I found MkIV brakes able to handle over 3000lbs predictable and stop safely under all but the most demanding situations. That said I had a brake controller installed for the camper. The boat never went more than a couple miles at city speeds and the utility trailer never that heavy. All you need is coming back down a long incline from a camping to heat the brakes and miss the last turn or slide thru a stop sign to ruin your day.

Trailer lights on later VW is not a Uhaul affair. Options are 1) get a decent 4 way and add in the power, electric brake signal, reverse wiring your self - I know of a couple kits that are plug 'n play for the 4way part. 2) get a OEM trailer wiring kit from UK and adjust coding for US lights. A couple people have gone this route also. FYI - I went through a couple generic 4 way kits before I learned the lessons about connecting trailer wiring to VW.

Jason

 

[NarfBLAST]

I was surfing the "free" listings on Kijijiji (Canada's corporate version of Craigslist) when I saw this:



They were way bigger than I expected:



Made it home safe:



Yes, I towed 1340 litres worth of Cognac barrels on the busiest highway in the world, safely, with no turbo...



...while wearing my new lucky shirt:



I maintained 60 to 70 mph (100 to 110 km/h) the whole way except for a few hills when the car slowed down to 55 mph (90 km/h). The speed limit on all of the highways I travelled was 60mph (100 km/h). Yes, I kept up with traffic, I even passed a few cars and trucks that were traveling inexplicably below the speed limit.

I had excellent visibility behind me, in fact I could see my trailer tail lights at all times, and I can assure you that there were no annoyed tailgaters:



Going to turn these into some awesome planters, just have to add about a hundred wood screws thru the steel bands to keep them from falling apart before I cut them in half. Yes, I made sure to scavenge a complete set of metal bands, as you can see in the photos some of them had fallen off as the wood dried and shrank. There was enough tension left to roll them up a ramp and into the the trailer without any of the remaining bands moving so I figured they wouldn't disintegrate on the ride home.

It was still a thrilling ride, a real scavenger hunt with real loot! It has been two hous since I got home I think the adrenaline is still going, I may have trouble getting to sleep tonight.

Good times!

 

[Mozambiquer]

I just found out my boss has a 5.5'x10' utility trailer he got that had been involved in an accident. He only wants $600 for it and it just needs a few things repaired. Maybe I can have something to tow behind my TDI now.

 

[[486]]

is that an r32 golf with r32 nissan features added?

Coulda double stacked them if you had better straps.
If the bands are falling off, you can take them off, heat them up then hammer them back down while they're still hot to tighten them back up

 

[Volkswagen hippie]

How much work does that trailer need ?

 

[NarfBLAST]

is that an r32 golf with r32 nissan features added?

Yes! The mythical r32 squared! More here: https://www.instagram.com/carfrontswaps/?hl=en

If the bands are falling off, you can take them off, heat them up then hammer them back down while they're still hot to tighten them back up

Yes, my father used to do that with his wine barrels. I plan on cutting the ends off so I'm thinking I better just use wood screws thru the bands to keep everything in place longer and through various weather conditions outdoors.

 

[SnowGoose]

My TDI is my work van and the family hauler. It tows an aluminum 6 x 12 utility trailer that weighs 500 lbs. regularly:

trailer.jpg

• SnowGoose
• Aug 20, 2021

Typically carting around a zero turn lawnmower that, with the trailer, maybe runs to 1,000 lbs. I've hauled a load of weights (literally weight lifting equipment) that topped 2,000 lbs:

weights.jpg

• SnowGoose
• Aug 20, 2021

Occasionally I move a John Deere Gator, which is 1,500 lbs. including the trailer:

gator.jpg

• SnowGoose
• Aug 20, 2021

Once, I even towed a tractor:

tractor.jpg

• SnowGoose
• Aug 20, 2021

 

[TurboABA]

I haven't gotten around to installing a hitch on my Jetta, but have considered it......
It's hard to justify the hassle\expense when I have access to 2 other SUVs that are more than capable of towing anytime\anything that I need at a moment's notice. The difference in diesel costs when pulling anything that I usually throw into the utility trailer (mostly firewood or under 1T of weight) resulting from pulling with the Jetta vs the Touareg is quite negligible and unless I do it A LOT, the ROI timeframe will be "forever".