Member Since: 12 Mar 2014
Location: bucks
Posts: 471
I discovered I can make a safety harness out of heavy duty carabiners that should hold it in an emergency and will I think give me some warning.
24th Nov 2019 7:20 pm
DirtBuddha
Member Since: 25 Feb 2019
Location: West Sussex
Posts: 31
latnutgub wrote:
Just saw this in the DM. Looks like the towbar dropped right off. Always have a big chain on mine.
Hope the driver and pax are ok.
That was actually my mate Andy. He was towing his caravan using the detachable LR towbar... and this goes to show just how lethal those things are!
He's ok and luckily no-one was hurt. It could so easily have been very different.
11th Feb 2020 7:29 pm
anotherrick
Member Since: 17 Feb 2020
Location: Burnley
Posts: 33
I've lost the key for and can't find the post that explained how to remove it without a key.
7th Mar 2020 12:10 am
Attodisco3
Member Since: 07 Jan 2020
Location: Sevenoaks
Posts: 60
This is a bit worrying. I have just purchased a detachable from a member on here. I have noticed the terrafirma security plate which I have purchased. Will this stop the bar falling out on its own accord or should I just buy a fixed. I just wanted a bar to use on the odd occasion....!
1st Jun 2020 11:56 pm
supersiecosse
Member Since: 24 Aug 2020
Location: Dumfriesshire
Posts: 60
Reviving and old but still current thread for me at least............
Checked my 'Detachable Tow Hitch' on my 2014 D4, for said trouble after scouting thru this thread and
discovered mine is akin to a hanky flappin' in the wind.
Bit concerned by this obviously, considering I've been towing my Caravan and trailer recently. Would never have thought to inspect this issue before seeing this thread.
Any other vehicle I've had has never been affected like this so I never presumed a Landrover would be unfit for purpose.
Is the Terrafirma security plate a good option besides a fixed bar?
Maybe some strategically placed welds on the hitch would take out the slack?
13th Sep 2020 11:28 pm
df_tom
Member Since: 10 Mar 2017
Location: Stuttgart
Posts: 127
How would you explain you haven't f*cked it up by your uncertified welding?
The detachable tow bars are proven to be complete rubbish and not fit for purpose. Get a fixed one, and if JLR refuse to pay, these are neither expensive nor any difficult to fit.
Could you really live with the consequences?
27th Sep 2020 10:59 am
James W
Member Since: 27 Mar 2008
Location: Wirral, UK
Posts: 3067
"The detachable tow bars are proven to be complete rubbish and not fit for purpose"
Can you qualify that statement please.D4 XS, gone, much loved, never forgotten
2018 FFRR SDV8 Autobiography - Gone to someone with less sense and more time to enjoy it
2016 Toyota Hilux Invincible - Liberating experience
27th Sep 2020 12:05 pm
df_tom
Member Since: 10 Mar 2017
Location: Stuttgart
Posts: 127
a) LR made a recall and, from whatt we read here on the forums, even go as far as fit a fixed one instead (sometimes).
b) watch this thread as well as many others in here about tow bars unintendedly detaching while being used.
To me it's clear, i could not live with the consequences of me operating such a device, it failing as could have been expected, and the trailer hurtling about, hitting, hurting or killing someone.
Too error-prone, too susceptible to corrosion, and as i have seen it, you can't really tell if you're safe. It's just not like an american-Style bolt-through-pipe kind of device, where the state can easliy be asessed.
If you leave it attached, unused, and some other dingabt smashes their radiator on it in the parking lot, you are part liable here in Tschörmenie. So you leave the thing away, and let the socket rust...
Last edited by df_tom on 27th Sep 2020 4:46 pm. Edited 1 time in total
27th Sep 2020 4:42 pm
supersiecosse
Member Since: 24 Aug 2020
Location: Dumfriesshire
Posts: 60
df_tom wrote:
How would you explain you haven't f*cked it up by your uncertified welding?
The detachable tow bars are proven to be complete rubbish and not fit for purpose. Get a fixed one, and if JLR refuse to pay, these are neither expensive nor any difficult to fit.
Could you really live with the consequences?
Well I'm glad I never mentioned packing it with uncertified 'Tinfoil and Sealant' and slabbering it with underseal!
Fear not Mr df_tom......I shall not be approaching the backside of my D4 with a Welding torch. (Or Tinfoil for that matter).
27th Sep 2020 4:44 pm
df_tom
Member Since: 10 Mar 2017
Location: Stuttgart
Posts: 127
Lol.
The tinfoil method would be the s.o.p. in southerly countries , judging from my spanish LR-like Series 3. THese guy did figure you can't weld the tinfoil, but rivets might do just fine!
One more plus for the fixed towbar: as far as tandem axle trailers are concerned, you could adjust the height of the ball just so the trailer is level. Together iwth the air suspension..
27th Sep 2020 5:01 pm
supersiecosse
Member Since: 24 Aug 2020
Location: Dumfriesshire
Posts: 60
Quote:
The tinfoil method would be the s.o.p. in southerly countries , judging from my spanish LR-like Series 3. THese guy did figure you can't weld the tinfoil, but rivets might do just fine!
Some 30yrs ago I may have employed some of these methods to my vehicles of "yester-year". Opel Kadetts' and MK1 Vauxhall Cavaliers'..(aka Opel Asconas'). Time, Money and Equipment with a good bit of aged wisdom now affords me better repair and maintenance practices...
27th Sep 2020 5:11 pm
James W
Member Since: 27 Mar 2008
Location: Wirral, UK
Posts: 3067
df_tom wrote:
a) LR made a recall and, from whatt we read here on the forums, even go as far as fit a fixed one instead (sometimes).
You've made a bit of a leap there. The recall was not because the towbar itself was "completely rubbish and unfit for purpose", it was because lots of them were being used and stored incorrectly and the rear crossmembers were rusting, and the towbars themselves deteriorating.
Buy and use what suits your needs/style/preference, but this hysteria isn't useful for people looking for useful information about towing on here, particularly those who have bought a Discovery with a detachable towball.D4 XS, gone, much loved, never forgotten
2018 FFRR SDV8 Autobiography - Gone to someone with less sense and more time to enjoy it
2016 Toyota Hilux Invincible - Liberating experience
28th Sep 2020 8:58 am
Motty
Member Since: 18 Nov 2018
Location: Atherstone Warwickshire
Posts: 108
I tow a caravan with mine. I brought a plate that bolts around the tow bar through the crossmember. There £30 off eBay. I also remove it and stow it when not in use. Had no issues
28th Sep 2020 9:15 am
FidoNick
Member Since: 18 Jan 2021
Location: Purton, Wiltshire
Posts: 120
Okay - you've got me a little worried now! (after reading not quite all 60-odd pages of comments).
I pick up a 06 plate D3 in a week or so and have seen the detatchable tow bar in a box in the boot. Clearly used but with the newer (larger) green removal thing.
From the signs of ball wear it has obviously towed (or it's 2nd hand), but I have no idea how it has been treated. When I get my mitts on it I'll check for wobble / locator pin play etc., but is there any advice on how to check for condition, considering its age and the recall expired over two years back? WHat are the chances of LR doing a free check for me?
It's irrelevant whether I tow regularly, with big loads or small - I don't want the thing coming off at any speed with any loading. For what it's worth, I tow livestock for an animal charity occasionally (very occasionally at the moment), so yet another reason to consider any impact of failure.
BTW I took a look on Horse & Hound and quickly came back here for more educated comments. (let's hope so )
21st Jan 2021 9:28 am
FidoNick
Member Since: 18 Jan 2021
Location: Purton, Wiltshire
Posts: 120
Detatchable tow bar blanking cover.
More continuance on the detachable neck....
With the tow bar detached, is it worthwhile inserting the blanking cover - such as here:
Yes, it'll stop some muck getting in, but any moisture whch gets in will probably stay there much longer. It's also much lighter (obviously), so there won't be any ratling causing any wear to the socket.
And it's another thing to loose. Would I be better just smearing some oil/grease in the socket between uses?
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Hope the driver and pax are ok.
(Or Tinfoil for that matter). 
)
