W211 saloon detachable towbar

[BTB 500]

Hi,

I have a 2005 E320 with full AMG styling it is a special edition model and i am having great difficulty with a towbar, i have contacted Witter and Bosal direct and they have both said that it was due to the rear bumper and also the sport suspension however Witter did say it would probably fit but due to the lower suspension the towball height may be to low for a caravan, The local MB dealer just said no with no apparent reason but i have now managed to contact MB UK direct and have supplied them with the VIN number and I am awaiting a reply. Could you possibly measure the centre height of your towball and let me know?

All the best

John

Are you sure your model is EC type-approved for towing? It's illegal to fit a towbar if not, and there's an outside chance this why the dealership said no.

Towing cars and light vehicles: frequently asked questions

 

[RSS]

I've purchased the towbar for mine after getting the feedback from here. Decided on the Westfalia model and ordered from PF Jones
I liked their web site, it gave lots of detail and they have a help number, might be worth taking a look to see if you car is listed (did see a few references to AMG types not supported) but maybe worth a call to confirm.

I got a bypass relay with mine which I need to call PF Jones about as there was no wiring diagram with it.

The towbar fitting instructions seem straight forward enough, the strengthening bars in the boot are not included in the kit. I'm only using it for a small trailer so I don't think they are needed. There is a reference to them in the fitting instructions with P/N's but they tell you to confirm if they are required by calling MB.

Plan to fit it at the weekend

 

[ca-uk]

Are you sure your model is EC type-approved for towing? It's illegal to fit a towbar if not, and there's an outside chance this why the dealership said no.

i'd suspect it must be - i.e. e320 cdi, amg styling package - and i have the factory fit towbar (not that i need it/use it!)

 

[bouncer]

My only question would be on the electrics as it does mention about Star testing so does this mean that with the towing kit fitted I have to get Mercedes to update the cars settings?

Automatic deactivation of the reversing
parking assistance when towing a trailer
is effected by the following coding
through the diagnostic assistance
system:
· control devices
· construction
· ZGW – central gateway
· control device adjustment
· read the coding and change if necessary
· trailer recognition (switch to “present”)
· execute coding (F5)


sTeVe​

 

[RSS]

I now have the wiring details for the bypass relay supplied with the towbar seems straight forward with a permanent live feed also required. As this does not have the Mercedes supplied electrics I doubt it will be able to detect when a trailer is fitted to disable the reversing sensors, if they activate when reversing then I can switch them off from inside the car. Apparently the towing ball fitted by itself does not activate the parking sensors not that I intend to leave it fitted with the trailer removed.

Still on to fit this weekend so will post any issues etc so others are aware.

 

[RSS]

Well the hardware it fitted but the wiring diagram I have is wrong, I'll contact supplier tomorrow but have also posted some wiring questions in the forum.

Took some pictures which I can upload when it's all done, pretty straight forward but some fiddly bits. Had to change the drop down connector fitting slightly to clear bumper.

With the towball removed and the connector swung up there is nothing on view at all.

Reversing sensors are not affected with the towball in place.

 

[RSS]

Anyone interested in the details of the bypass relay being fitted I'll post in the other thread I opened when I was trying to find out the connections.
http://www.mbclub.co.uk/forums/electronics/91711-w211-2004-wiring-boot.html

 

[RSS]

I took some pictures when I fitted the towbar, it's a Westfalia model with removable towball that I chose because it is hidden when removed.

Remove the two plastic brackets.


Three bolts behind the RH side panel.


Remove one from the rear panel.

Repeat the same for the LH side, if you have the DVD cage installed you will need to remove one bolt to swing the cage out of the way to get to front bolt.

 

[RSS]

Remove two fixings inside of each wheel arch.


The final bolt is located behind the wheel arch liner, if you pull the liner away from the bodywork slightly you can reach it with a socket extension. It was easier to point out in this picture the position of it with the bumper removed.


Finally there is a battery breather pipe to remove from it's holder inside the bumper on the RH side, removed it as you start to pull the bumper away from the car. It's much easier if there are two of you to do this as the bumper is just a plastic cover that wobbles about as it's removed.

You can see the original bumper posts as the back of the car, the alloy bar that runs between the two posts has already been removed, these posts are also removed to be replaced with the towbar assembly.

 

[RSS]

Bumper removed and I've pointed out the guide plate that you need to line up when refitting to locate it back onto the car.


When removing the old bumper posts and fitting the new ones you will find it easier to drop down the heat shield and rear exhaust mount to get to the bolts.


Two new bars fit into the chassis, waterproof boots and plugs for the ends of these bars are supplied in the kit.

 

[RSS]

There are no holes to drill to fix the bars into the chassis simply removed the rubber grommets, on the RH side I simply moved the battery out of the way to fit the bolts so the terminals didn't need to be disconnected.


Towbar in place, this has all fitted into the space behind the bumper, certainly adds more strength to the back of the car if you are unlucky enough to be hit.


Alloy bumper bar in place, the electric socket I moved later on to fit it behind the bracket that is welded on the towbar to give more clearance from the plastic bumper when it was swung down.

 

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This is the LH strengthening bar, you have to get these direct from MB and to be honest I think they are a waste of time. The size of the hole in these bars for the bolts to go through are so big you have to use large washers. If there was any movement the bar (pressed steel) would move under the washer by a good 5mm before it came up against the bolt.


The RH bar will not allow the standard RH boot panel to fit, I ended up removing it as I wasn't going to the expense of replacing the boot panel. The trailer I'm fitting this for is a small garden one so there is very little weight, I was only fitting them so I wouldn't have to bother if I towed anything heavy in the future. As the towbar fits direct into the chassis anyway I can't see that these additional bars add much strength.


So there you have it, all fitted, with the towball removed and the connector swung up there is nothing on show at all. I'm very pleased with it as it keeps the line of the car looking standard. The towball comes in its own case that sits in the spare wheel well, takes seconds to fit and remove. The lock is sprung loaded so as you push it into place (after removing the plastic dust cover) it snaps into place and locks.

 

[easyonthegas]

Thanks for the pics

Thanks for the pictures showing the back of the car after fitting the Westfalia's.
It's definately made up my mind that this is the one to fit!

 

[sspeed]

I have only just read this "Howto" and I have to say what a superbly done article it is.. very professional indeed with very good and clear photographs (Unlike Haynes manuals)..
Excellent.. Well done.

 

[RiggersMb]

Hi guys

Fitting my tow bar this week hopefully Tuesday must say nice write up and pics
Just one question
How do you disconnect the rear parking sensors .?
Is the a main connection that you unplug
Thanks

 

[RSS]

From what I remember its a simple connector that unplugs, you can trace the wire back from the bumper before you pull it away from the bodywork. It must have been insignificant as I didn't mention it in the write up. Anything else you need to know just ask.

 

[o2drive]

Hidden bar

Hi there I to have had a bar fitted very nice man at Andover Towbars I notice your bar still uses the original alloy bar.mine bar is a complete replacement of that and the extra support bars fit inside the rear chassis rails your bar looks less substantial than mine but you have said you are only towing a small trailer.

 

[RSS]

The kit I used makes use of the original alloy bar that sits behind the plastic bumper as standard. In addition to this there is another steel support that runs between the rear chassis rails and this sits behind the alloy bar. You can see this in the pictures above, almost a 2 man lift to get it into place.

I only use a trailer but the kit is for any towing needs but I didn't fit the RH side brace inside the boot as you need to change the internal side panel and I didn't think it was worth it for my use. If I ever do look at towing a caravan etc I might look at having a revised brace made up so that I can keep the original boot side panel. I quite like the additional pocket space the current side panel gives.

Not sure if all the towbar kits in the market actually point out these additional braces to fit in the boot. The kit I used gave you the MB part numbers and say that these are recommended by MB but I'd suspect that not all kits point this out. These braces are only thin pressed steel but are used to reduce any body flex of the rear panels but as mentioned you must be doing some serious heavy towing for that to happen.

I'm pleased with the kit, no issues at all and it's used at least once a month.

 

[RiggersMb]

Hi many thanks for the up date
fitted the witter tow bar today maybe I could have picked a cooler day took all of six hours including a new set of mud flaps as the car had lost one a few differences for the saloon which I'll post tomorrow only thing I need to sort is the electric drop down it's siting just about 1 inch too high
Thanks John

 

[RSS]

Was the same for me with the Westfalia kit, I had to move the swing down electric point lower to clear the bumper. Managed to use a different fixing point on the connector bracket.