Stolen Land Rover Tow Bar
We want to make Landrover owners with detachable tow bars aware of this disgraceful act - Following a couple of hours shopping we discovered our Landrover Discovery had been relieved of its lockable detachable tow bar ! We had left on for months and never
had any worries. A week before our next trip we discovered it had gone . After every scenario from falling off etc we spoke to our dealers who told us we were the NINETEENTH victim so far this year !! We scoured the web and found many many people who had
the same theft - these Lockable tow bars can be removed by people in the know with a pair of molegrips and in very little time - we found many many for sale on e bay but we didn't know whether there was any damage done so opted to have the dealer fit costing
us over £500 - we paid extra to upgrade our electrics in that price but we were looking at around £400+ to replace the tow bar ! Take note people an expensive lesson - our new shiny tow bar is now removed and put under lock and key! Any other members had
this happen ????
Comments
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Oh dear, Smiffy. I realy don't think it was wise to tell even more people how to do it.
Maybe someone can edit that bit out, please.
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Seems more like another good reason for a fixed one to me.
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Still got grease on a pair of jeans which never washed out completely.
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I have a detachable tow "Ball" which comes off when not towing, but how do they get the towbar completely off with molegrips, would be prety impossible to get under my jag and do that...
It's the detachable bit they're nicking ........ hence take it off & put it in the boot
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Thanks Mollysmummy. Will try it. I remember my dad always had a tub of the stuff. He used it a lot when doing mucky jobs.
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A tennis ball with about 1/3 sliced off makes a very good ball cover which is also a nice bright colour to help one avoid it. And since it was free, being made from recycling something else, you will never loose it!
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I have a detachable tow "Ball" which comes off when not towing, but how do they get the towbar completely off with molegrips, would be prety impossible to get under my jag and do that...
It's the detachable bit they're nicking ........ hence take it off & put it in the boot
But they are locked on you need a key, what good are they to anyone else , do they weigh them in ? Or use them as a door stop?
After reading the OP more closely it seems the full bar and ball has gone ?
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But they are locked on you need a key, what good are they to anyone else , do they weigh them in ? Or use them as a door stop?
After reading the OP more closely it seems the full bar and ball has gone ?
That's whole point .... somehow they're using the Molegrips as a key and if you see how much they are being sold on ebay ... around £200 ... there's obviously a lucratic market for them ...... buy your bar back for £200 or take it off & put it in the boot.
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I think you will find it's the circle of life! somebody buys a second hand car finds there is a bracket fitted but no hook. What to do? buy one off Internet auction site,they probably know it's nicked but it's cheaper than the shop bought one.Can't imagine
there is a big market in scrap tow hooks,mark any new one just in case.Cant wait to see the post regarding men seen stumbling around in dark at back of cars with ultraviolet light.Talking to garage man the other day and he was saying that headlights on Mk2
Disco updated model are been nicked,and how to protect them some people will Nick any thing
Steve
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Surely if it is lockable but are still able to be stolen it is not fit for purpuse,i think i would be bending Landrovers ear and demanding some answers.
It has never been claimed to be a security lock. The key mechanism is there to ensure the numptie user has fitted the tow ball assembly correctly, as the key cannot be removed until it is all properly in place.
Worth mentioning that as instuctions for removing these without a key are being widely distributed (as in this thread) please remember that this can be done with a caravan attached. Something more is required at motorway service areas etc if all the occupants
go in at once.0 -
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Worth mentioning that as instuctions for removing these without a key are being widely distributed (as in this thread) please remember that this can be done with a caravan attached. Something more is required at motorway service areas etc if all the occupants
go in at once.No instruction that I can see. Molegrips are used to remove it ..... that gives no clues at all to me. I know that a plastic door can be 'unlocked' using a hammer & a small driver ..... but that doesn't tell you how unless you know already
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Surely if it is lockable but are still able to be stolen it is not fit for purpuse,i think i would be bending Landrovers ear and demanding some answers.
It has never been claimed to be a security lock. The key mechanism is there to ensure the numptie user has fitted the tow ball assembly correctly, as the key cannot be removed until it is all properly in place.
Worth mentioning that as instuctions for removing these without a key are being widely distributed (as in this thread) please remember that this can be done with a caravan attached. Something more is required at motorway service areas etc if all the occupants go in at once.
Well, always assumed the lock was to stop it being pinched. Mine puts up a green flag to show it is attached correctly and the key does not have to be in when you attach it. I lock it after it is attached.
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..... Mine puts up a green flag to show it is attached correctly and the key does not have to be in when you attach it. I lock it after it is attached.
That's the difference then between yours & the Bosal detachable on my Merc (I'm beginning to forget what it looks like now
) You can only remove the key when it's fully engaged on the car ... like yours, there's a green flag/collar and when the ball is removed, the key is locked in the barrel. The Westfalia on my Vauxhall was the same.0 -
..... Mine puts up a green flag to show it is attached correctly and the key does not have to be in when you attach it. I lock it after it is attached.
That's the difference then between yours & the Bosal detachable on my Merc (I'm beginning to forget what it looks like now
) You can
only remove the key when it's fully engaged on the car ... like yours, there's a green flag/collar and when the ball is removed, the key is locked in the barrel. The Westfalia on my Vauxhall was the same.Obviously a difference between Witter and other makes. Mind you, green flag or no green flag, I always give it a good test before attaching the van.
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Thanks for all the comments guys as SteveL says we always assumed it was locked to prevent it being pinched - you cannot remove the key once attached unless it's locked - and it's the detatchable swan neck that was taken - and it was locked on ! As I said
I wanted to highlight to members to prevent it happening to others - we have learned an expensive lesson but that said we were on site at the weekend and the amount of cars driving around on site with detachable tow balls still attached to the car just shows
this is a very common practice !0 -
Smiffy, Are you saying you paid your dealer £400 for a new detachable ball then . If so, what make of tow bar is yours? I had aWitter detachable full tow bar plus electrics fitted for about £300 two years ago.
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Smiffy, Are you saying you paid your dealer £400 for a new detachable ball then . If so, what make of tow bar is yours? I had aWitter detachable full tow bar plus electrics fitted for about £300 two years ago.
There are obviously OE towbars & AN Other towbars
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So! It seems they steal the Detachable Towball using molegrips to remove it, because they haven’t got the Key.
They then sell said Towball, on eBay but it has no key.
Do they provide the buyer with Mole- grips and instruction on how to attach/remove the ball?
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So! It seems they steal the Detachable Towball using molegrips to remove it, because they haven’t got the Key.
They then sell said Towball, on eBay but it has no key.
Do they provide the buyer with Mole- grips and instruction on how to attach/remove the ball?
The key part on a Witter is on the part fitted to the vehicle the removable part is entered into the key section.
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Smiffy, Are you saying you paid your dealer £400 for a new detachable ball then . If so, what make of tow bar is yours? I had aWitter detachable full tow bar plus electrics fitted for about £300 two years ago.
There are obviously OE towbars & AN Other towbars
What price are these tow bars MM I've never heard of them?
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So! It seems they steal the Detachable Towball using molegrips to remove it, because they haven’t got the Key.
They then sell said Towball, on eBay but it has no key.
Do they provide the buyer with Mole- grips and instruction on how to attach/remove the ball?
The key part on a Witter is on the part fitted to the vehicle the removable part is entered into the key section.
Not on my Witter it isn't. The key fits into a lock on the removable ball. So I assume if it was pinched in a locked condition using molegrips, it would be impossible to fit to another vehicle. So not a good buy.
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