Tow bars c 220 estate 2019

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Slavey

New Member
Joined
Aug 4, 2020
Messages
5
Location
Glasgow
Car
2019 220 c class estate premium plus
Just picked up a 2019 c class estate premium plus that was advertised with a tow capacity of 1800 kg . And On the drivers door pillar it has gross weight train weight and both axles weight to now be informed Mercedes Benz can’t fit a tow bar. Is this right just can’t see how the car and log book can have a tow capacity and Mercedes say they cannot fit one .it has to have been fitted at build I was told. Just makes the car useless to me as I have a caravan. Cheers
 
Almost similar situation here except mines a 2019 e class estate. Mercedes quoted me over £2000 to fit one. Try inputting your car reg on a 3rd party supplier and you’ll soon find out it they are telling you the truth
 
If it has the Gross Train Weight (GTW) on the VIN plate then it is certified.

Plenty of third party firms will fit the correct towbar although you will need a specialist for coding and/or updating the VEDOC.
 
Almost similar situation here except mines a 2019 e class estate. Mercedes quoted me over £2000 to fit one. Try inputting your car reg on a 3rd party supplier and you’ll soon find out it they are telling you the truth
Yip I was told that it would be up to £2500 which is 💩but would pay it just to make sure it doesn’t effect the warranty.then they tell you that they can’t fit it.
 
If it has the Gross Train Weight (GTW) on the VIN plate then it is certified.

Plenty of third party firms will fit the correct towbar although you will need a specialist for coding and/or updating the VEDOC.
Yip have called a lot of fitters and the coding is the problem as it has led dash and they say it will keep flagging up warnings.must approach Mercedes to see if ok for third party to fit and them to code it . Or layer and car back to them under sold under false information. More worried it voids the warranty.
 
Yip I was told that it would be up to £2500 which is 💩but would pay it just to make sure it doesn’t effect the warranty.then they tell you that they can’t fit it.

Assuming you have only just got it?
Go back and see the sales person who sold you it and told you this and plant your behind and don't leave till you have the outcome you require.
 
I can make you feel better. ;)
A mate just got (last month) an E Class AMG line and asked me about fitting a towbar for his caravan.
I had one look at the VIN plate and had to break him the bad news, worse thing is I told him to let me know if he was looking at anything.
He has now had to buy another car just to pull the van.
 
I had the same issue when ordering mine.
It’s because the sunroof weight would mean the back axle load would be exceeded.

I dropped down to premium and had the tow bar fitted.
 
It’s definitely worth checking the VIN plate (on a secondhand car) before buying if a car will be used for towing, even if there’s a tow bar fitted already.
 
Tried approaching dealers. They said they cannot code if tow bar is fitted by 3rd party. They also mentioned voiding warranty.

i think they are blagging it as if bar is installed using genuine parts, they can’t use this as an excuse to void warranty
 
Thank you for contacting Mercedes-Benz Customer Service.

I am writing following our telephone conversation earlier today in relation to the tow bar and the information from our Mercedes-Benz Technical Team advising a tow bar not being possible to be retrofitted to the car.

I have liaised with the Technical Team and requested clarification on this matter. They have advised that due to the car have the Hands Free Access to the boot and the motion sensors being located in the rear of the car, if a tow bar was to be fitted, then this may impact the sensors and this feature may not operate as normal.

The Technical Team have advised this feature can be disabled and a tow bar installed, however, it is not something they would recommend. We would recommend liaising with the Mercedes-Benz Retailer for further information on the tow bar being fitted should you wish for this to be carried out.
 
Tried approaching dealers. They said they cannot code if tow bar is fitted by 3rd party. They also mentioned voiding warranty.

i think they are blagging it as if bar is installed using genuine parts, they can’t use this as an excuse to void warranty
Try speaking to a large and established towbar fitter as they’ll be able to do the coding work. A one-man band may or may not be able to.

Alternatively ask you main dealer who they sub-contract towbar fitting to, because I’d bet a shandy that they do.

Tying up a ramp for someone who hardly ever fits a towbars to do it (ie slowly) and could be doing more profitable service work is madness.

Their towbar fitter will do it for them off-site or around the back, on the ground, and they add a margin on top.

Whereabouts are you?
 
Try speaking to a large and established towbar fitter as they’ll be able to do the coding work. A one-man band may or may not be able to.

Alternatively ask you main dealer who they sub-contract towbar fitting to, because I’d bet a shandy that they do.

Tying up a ramp for someone who hardly ever fits a towbars to do it (ie slowly) and could be doing more profitable service work is madness.

Their towbar fitter will do it for them off-site or around the back, on the ground, and they add a margin on top.

Whereabouts are you?
Hi mate I’m up in Glasgow.spoken to I think it was p f or pj Jones from down south and he said he could fit and code it but will have to find out about the warranty situation.will speak to local dealers in the morning. Just so annoying they don’t tell you when purchasing as I said I would have to get a tow bar fitted. Cheers
 
Hi mate I’m up in Glasgow.spoken to I think it was p f or pj Jones from down south and he said he could fit and code it but will have to find out about the warranty situation.will speak to local dealers in the morning. Just so annoying they don’t tell you when purchasing as I said I would have to get a tow bar fitted. Cheers
The sales person - even at a main dealer - could be blissfully unaware that that there would be a problem. People who don’t tow - and many who do - might not know that there’s even a risk that a car may not be type approved, or may not be able to tow without additional modifications (beyond the towbar).

The key thing to establish is whether the risk of voiding warranty is a theoretical (or dare I say it pedantic) one associated with an unknown (to Mercedes) entity performing modifications to the car, or whether it’s because the car has mechanical or specification differences such as insufficient cooling.

Cars have an additional requirement for cooling when towing, and so one way of making a car less expensive to manufacture - and also reduce weight and drag - is to fit reduced capacity cooling systems if the manufacturer does not intend to type approve a vehicle to tow legally. I could understand that voiding the warranty.
 
Cars have an additional requirement for cooling when towing, and so one way of making a car less expensive to manufacture - and also reduce weight and drag - is to fit reduced capacity cooling systems if the manufacturer does not intend to type approve a vehicle to tow legally. I could understand that voiding the warranty.

Surely it could be argued, and I have on more than one occasion, that if a car manufacturer quotes towing figures, the car must be capable of towing as is, not with the additional cooling.
I would almost guarantee that if the dealer were to fit the tow bar it would be subbed out to a tow bar fitter.

.
 
I'm pretty sure the issue is related to the Premium Plus Pack cars having the keyless go / foot activated boot release. It's not related to the panoramic sunroof that also comes with the premium plus pack.
Pf Jones indicate some towball systems can and cannot work with amg line Premium plus pack cars, so that would be my start
 
Hi mate I’m up in Glasgow.spoken to I think it was p f or pj Jones from down south and he said he could fit and code it but will have to find out about the warranty situation.will speak to local dealers in the morning. Just so annoying they don’t tell you when purchasing as I said I would have to get a tow bar fitted. Cheers
Important in Glasgow as well, so would be interested in knowing the results of your research.
I not fussed about the warranty angle.
I fitted a witter removable tow bar to my old bmw 335xd and it was very good - and invisible when removed
 

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