Hi has anyone got any pictures or had a towbar fitted to a smax tatinum sport x as i canot find any info and ford will not fit at factory so iam in the dark as to buy it or not?
You might find this link provides more info. Not sure about the 'type approved' mentioned above but in this post the issue seems to be the body styling.
------------- Ollie
2016
Monplaisir - Provence
Camping Les Gorges du Loup
Thanks for the info all will probably order and have the bar fitted by an approved fitter i know he can also do the reprogramming for the lights
Regards Rob.
One here with a detachable towbar fitted. Theres nothing in Ford brochure that says one cannot be fitted, its probably just difficult to cut bumper neatly & will devalue car at trade in because towbars are generally removed on used cars. I presume large bumper cut is the reason this one was not removed
Some sport models are not type approved and this is stipulated by the manufacturer because the vehicle is designed and built as a performance car and nothing more very much like the Ford Focus ST sport hatchback. Basically you cannot obtain a towbar specified for that specific vehicle so if you do have one fitted it would be non standard which would be deemed as unsafe. If you contact your insurance company regarding this, their response is likely to be that they would refuse to insure the car on the grounds that the car is not type approved for towing. The chassis on a sports car is not designed to tow and that's the reason why the manufacturer will declare the vehicle as not type approval for towing. It's like comparing a shire horse with a race horse whereby a race horse will gallop fast where as a shire horse is used for pulling heavy loads therefore it would be useless in a race and vice versa expecting a race horse to pull heavy carts. The same principal is applied to certain cars due to either their design or low kerbweight.
Somewhere on the car will be the vehicle weight plate. If that has NO towing weights then you cannot tow with it. Contravention of that voids insurance and can lead to the car and caravan being impounded, storage charges applied, and in the worst case, being destroyed.
I had a bar fitted to my Galaxy Titanium X last year by Towbar Express. They are nationwide, use their own fitters in a branded van, come to the house to do the job and will also do all the reprogramming there and then. Their people on the phone are extremely knowlegable and the price they give you is the price you pay. My swan neck (non detachable) and dedicated loom was about £450. I found them to be very good.
I have checked my V5C re towing weights, sections O.1 and O.2 and these are blank showing no info whatsoever re technical permissible maximum towable mass of the trailer braked or unbraked. My car is not yet 3 years old and is type approved for towing (CR V), is this info shown only on cars newer than 3 years?.
My V5C also does not show the max permissale mass (F1) or mass in service (G). These will no doubt be shown on the vehicle plate and will check tomorrow.