VW Polo fitting a tow bar for bike rack - need advice!

[Spinstar]

I want to get a tow bar fitted retrospectively to a 2009 VW Polo just so we can then purchase a sturdy bike rack that fits on tow bars. Three bikes to be carried weigh around 45kg (hybrid/mountain bikes). We're thinking about a bike rack like an Atera Strada Evo.

However, our local VW dealer has said that a VW Polo tow bar only pulls weight of 50kg - but from what I can see online, the maximum tow bar weight for a VW Polo is 1000kg.

Can anyone tell me what I'm missing here? If you fit a tow bar retrospectively to a car, does that type of tow bar then pull less weight? We might want to use the tow bar to pull a trailer at times too but presumably at 50kg capacity, that's a non-starter?

Also, does anyone know how much it costs to get a tow bar fitted on a car retrospectively?

Grateful for any advice please.

It depends on the model/engine size, AQG suggests it to be somewhere between 800 and 1200kg maximum authorised mass.

The '50kg' figure is possibly the noseweight limit - the maximum downward force acting on the towbar. Some info here www.caravanclub.co.uk/media/6678669/noseweights-mo.pdf - I've not read it all but I think it explains things well enough.

If the Polo's max noseweight is 50kg and the bikes weigh 45kg, the rack will need to weigh less than 5kg (I don't know what these things tend to weigh).

Apparently the bike rack is just over 13kg, so you won't have a lot of leeway, if that 50kg is in relation to nose weight.

Hi WiMittens and thanks for trying to help out. I've now found out that the bike rack is actually 19.8kg and in fact I can't find any that weigh 5kg or under for tow bar mounting.

This means that the total weight on the tow bar would be 64.8kg which is over the tow bar limit of 50kg.

So I'm totally stumped! Short of buying another car - which I can't afford - how on earth can I transport 3 mountain bikes, with three people inside the VW Polo? I've tried a boot mounted rack but that dragged horribly against the boot and stressed the paintwork and in any case, the bike frames didn't fit over the rack 'spokes' because the frames were too small, even with false cross bars.

I couldn't lift the bikes onto a roof rack mounted bike rack, as they're far too heavy.

I thought spending money on getting a tow bar fitted would be the solution but it looks as if this is also a non-starter now because of the weight of the rack plus bikes on such a low tow bar capacity.

Can anyone either think of clever solutions or does anyone know of a specialist forum I might not have heard of, where I can ask the same question? I've already searched the easy to find sites on mountain bikes and also on bike carriers (like roofbox).

I suppose one last question too - does anyone on here have 3 + heavy mountain bikes that they easily transport on or in their vehicle - and if so, what type of car/vehicle do you have....always the chance that I could get a v old second hand model and trade in our VW Polo I suppose but this does seem drastic just in order to transport 3 mountain bikes for occasional country bike rides!

If you're happy enough towing, put the bikes on a trailer? Looking at the cost of those bike racks it's probably cheaper to get a trailer anyway.

With a Skoda Fabia (so similar to a Polo) we used a Saris Bones rack, or a roof mounted rack with a little step stool to reach or 2 bikes on the outside of the car and one dismantled in the boot.

Yes, roof rack is the answer , or combo of roof and towbar.

WMittens, the tow bar maximum capacity won't be enough for a trailer plus bikes as the maximum weight on a VW tow bar is apparently 50kg altogether. Otherwise I'd happily get a trailer. Already the quote for fitting a tow bar was just under £900 plus the bike rack at around £500 - so even if it'd been workable, it was still going to cost almost as much as the re-sale price of the Polo!!!

BikeRunSki, does a Saris Bones Rack take the weight of around 45kg in all? I think I looked into this and found that the max bike weights would be too heavy and would then damage the back of the car where the rack is fixed?

Piggychops, I can barely lift one bike to waist level let alone over my head and then position on a roof rack, even if I also purchase some kind of step stool too - but it does look as if roof rack would be the only solution for all three bikes.

Which kind of leads me on to....should I be looking into changing cars altogether, just so I can mount a tow bar bike rack - which would be the most manageable solution for me? If so, what kind of cheapish car/vehicle would take the two bar weight we need (ie about 65kg total of three bikes plus the bike rack)?

You're not understanding the difference between nose weight and towing weight. You can tow a trailer with three bikes in without issue.

And why are you getting quoted £900 to fit a towbar? A towbar for your polo is less than £100. Fitting is probably a couple of hours, let's call it three - £150. You should be able to get the towbar fitted for under £250.

Rich, this is really interesting. Please can you explain further? The local garage has told me that the "draw load on the bar is 50kg". I took this to mean that the maximum capacity that a VW Polo can pull, with a detachable retrospectively fitted tow bar, is 50kg.

Now what I don't understand then is why a trailer - which without anything in it/on it must surely weigh quite a lot - can have three bikes weighing total of 45kg on it and still be OK for the tow bar.

Also, if a trailer is a viable option, could we also sometime take a canoe or kayak on a trailer too?

Trying to get my head round this and wondering if this is to do with the fact that a trailer would have wheels, thus distributing the weight on the wheels and thus, less weight on the actual tow bar???

I have a saris bones 3 and it is fab! According to dr google max weight it can carry is 48kg.

I have had loads of racks and this is by far the best

Elysian, I think the Saris Bones may not fit the bike frames - ladies/young persons? Can you link me to where it says the max weight is 48kg as I thought it was less? Many thanks.

Rich, this is really interesting. Please can you explain further? The local garage has told me that the "draw load on the bar is 50kg". I took this to mean that the maximum capacity that a VW Polo can pull, with a detachable retrospectively fitted tow bar, is 50kg.

Did you read the link I put further up?

A trailer has (at least) two wheels and a coupling that connects to the tow bar of your car. The entire weight of your trailer (let's say 1000kg, or 98,067N for the pedants; I'll stick to kilos for now) acts downwards through the two wheels and the towbar.

If everything was perfectly balanced over the two wheels (i.e. the trailer could balance without tilting in one direction or the other, without being attached to a car or other support) each wheel would be supporting 500kg. However, this is not safe because there is a risk the trailer will tip backwards when you're driving, disconnect itself and smash into someone/something.

So a trailer should be loaded with a bit of weight acting down on the towbar coupling - e.g. 40kg. This means 40kg is acting down through the coupling and your car's towbar when they are connected. The trailer still weighs 1000kg, only now 40kg is being supported by the rear end of your car, and 480kg is being supported by each of the two wheels.

A car is homologated to a certain towing mass (the Maximum Authorised Mass) which as I said before is between 800kg and 1200kg depending on the model and year of Polo; I'm guessing that the 50kg limit is the maximum weight that can rest on the towbar. This is not the same as the maximum weight of a whole trailer because, well, the trailer also has two wheels of its own that carries the weight.

Rich, this is really interesting. Please can you explain further? The local garage has told me that the "draw load on the bar is 50kg". I took this to mean that the maximum capacity that a VW Polo can pull, with a detachable retrospectively fitted tow bar, is 50kg.

Yes that would make it a fairly pointless exercise wouldn't it! The nose weight is the vertical load exerted by the trailer on the towbar, it is fairly normal to have a large trailer or caravan with a nose weight around this figure. As you have already figured out the load is carried by the axle(s) of the trailer. If VW state 800kg for example as the max towing weight then you could pull a fully loaded trailer with a gross weight of 800kg that has been loaded so that the nose weight is 50kg - does that make sense?

OK. Thanks. That's all much clearer. Just seen your post about the quote I got for a towbar fitting Rich. This is from my local VW dealership from where I purchased the car and was told it'd need to be fit by them or a similar recommended VW dealership. The exact quote was £880.00 and the car with them for a the day.

Could I get a tow bar fitted by any garage or would that compromise anything about future services/MOTs/insurance through the local dealership?

Finally, never pulled a trailer. Anything I need to know?

Well the dealership would say that wouldn't they? Just google a local towbar specialist and give them a call for a quote. The car's out of warranty now anyway so fitting an aftermarket towbar isn't going to make much difference.

www.saris.com/.../Bones/Bones_3/10690_Bones3.pdf

not sure if the link will work but if you paste it into google it should be ok. max 16kg per bike/48kg total.

My bike is a ladies and it fits fine, as does my dp's which is a much larger frame.

www.roofbox.co.uk/scripts/rbvehsel4_tab.php/car-specific-accessories/buzz_rack_buffalo_4_bike_tilting_tow_ball_carrier_no_brh404/Qx%40w%2C6M42VAwp3%40Rb%7B~cC4ure5LA2V
This is under 12kg, still too heavy, but there might be lighter styles. I have a vw touran with retrofitted tow bar for the same purpose, but the nose weight is 75kg, and we're not far off the limit with the Halfords carrier and the 4 bikes. We used a company from the Internet to supply & fit, I think £250 all in and the car was outside my house the whole time.

Thanks everyone...now this is really confusing because I've just called a different branch of the same dealership and they've now told me that they can fit a fixed tow bar that will take a draw bar load of 85kg?!?

They said they couldn't understand why the other place said you could only fit one with a 50kg drawload. However, he wasn't that sure whether the draw bar load was the same as the nose weight?

Am I right in thinking it is and that 85kg draw bar load would then work for 3 bikes plus the rack at around 65kg?

He told me that it would cost well over £900 + to get a tow bar fitted however and said that this was because they use reputable VW parts and that a local garage wouldn't use these nor would parts be covered by the VW warranty, which their VW dealership would be.

Not sure what to think - but at least it looks more promising...except for the massive cost!

We use our Saris Bones for DS's bike. He's 6. The bike is not big. Why not got to a shop and look at one? Or use a roof rack for 2 bikes and a Bones Solo for one bike. It only uses one central clamp.

Actually, I'm wrong. The Bones Solo had 2 prongs, but they are much closer than those on the Bones 3.

BikeRunSki, the problem with a roof rack if I can't lift up the mountain bikes to place on a rack, as they're so heavy. But I think the only options left for me are either 1) the Saris Bones 3, if that would work for the bikes, their weight and the car, 2) a tow bar and bike trailer or 3) a new car!!

The other car dealership that I spoke to earlier, have now got back to me again to say they were wrong! They now agree with the other dealership that the max draw bar load is only 50kg, so I couldn't for a tow bar mounted rack with the three bikes. Just when I'd got my hopes up.....

So back to the Saris Bones 3....I emailed their help desk and asked about small frame bikes and said that even with false crossbars, the bike frames were too small for another kind of rear mounted rack. I asked them to let me know the minimum bike frame size that would work.

They got back to me just saying use false cross bars - but as I'd already explained, it's the actual width of the widest part of the frames, even if you fit a false cross bar - that has been just too small - so could they clarify the exact minimum bike frame size to fit and also whether the weight of the bikes might cause damage, over time, to the car. But they've not responded to this.

No local bike shop has stocked a Saris Bones - so I'd have to order online without viewing this. Having already lost about £100 to Halfords, last year, for their rear mounted rack that didn't fit the bike frames and also immediately started to come apart, even without the weight of the bikes, I don't want to buy another rack that may also not work. Hence my desire to be really clear in advance about what would really work.

Just as a matter of interest, what kind of vehicle would take 3 mountain bikes slung in the back intact, without needing a bike rack at all - and would also take a driver and 2 passengers? Am I looking at a white van kind of thing or what?

You need a Berlingo/Kango. Depending on frame size you might need to take the front wheel off.

Possibly an Astra van with back seats.

Or for £900 you could get lighter bikes!

He told me that it would cost well over £900 + to get a tow bar fitted however and said that this was because they use reputable VW parts and that a local garage wouldn't use these nor would parts be covered by the VW warranty, which their VW dealership would be.

Of course they will say this! Call a local towbar fitter, they will use towbars from the big towbar manufactures (who often make the OEM ones) and the work and parts will have warranty. Main dealers love people like you (and I don't mean that disrespectfully) to make a quick buck. Very few people would take a 6 year old car to a main dealer to get a towbar.