A4/S4 TOWBAR FITTING

[S4_dan]

hi,

looking to fit a towbar to my S4 saloon, so got a couple of questions to ask!

1) Where is the best place to purchase a towbar and electric wiring kit? How much roughly?

2) Easy to fit or is it a garage/dealer/specialists job?

3) Towing! Anyone use their S4 for towing a caravan / heavy trailer? Whats a reasonable limit in weight to stop at?

looking to go away in my mates caravan for a bit and maybe purcahse one myself.

his van is the longest and widest legal limit for a van on the road (in the uk!)without a wideload sign and flashing beacons!! he pulls it with a Disco but he says mine should pull no problem?

TIA,

Dan

 

[S4_dan]

Anyone???

 

[mykaloon]

hi,

looking to fit a towbar to my S4 saloon, so got a couple of questions to ask!

1) Where is the best place to purchase a towbar and electric wiring kit? How much roughly?

2) Easy to fit or is it a garage/dealer/specialists job?

3) Towing! Anyone use their S4 for towing a caravan / heavy trailer? Whats a reasonable limit in weight to stop at?

looking to go away in my mates caravan for a bit and maybe purcahse one myself.

his van is the longest and widest legal limit for a van on the road (in the uk!)without a wideload sign and flashing beacons!! he pulls it with a Disco but he says mine should pull no problem?

TIA,

Dan

Dan

I've picked up genuine Audi towbars through ebay most times. If not, I think Bosal, Brink or Westfalia all make towbars for Audi and you can get these online through various outlets at well below what your local dealer will charge.

Fitting the towbar itself should be straighforward - hardest bit is removing all the fixings (some well hidden) for the rear bumper. Take out the metal structure/bumper behind you plastic bumper and the towbar slides into the channel is sits in, bolt through boot floor where previously removed metal bumper was fixed. May need a slight cut to underside of plastic bumper depending on model of car/towbar.

The trickier bit (imo) is the electrics. Caravans normally have twin electrics - 1 to power lights etc and 1 to power firdge/freezer etc in caravan to keep things cool/frozen whilst you travel - twin electric not essential but is worthwhile if your going through the motions for the singles anyway. May also need a special bypass relay if you have a bulb failure detection system as this will go haywire when you plug in your electrics.

As a general rule for towing - 85% of your car weight should not be exceeded.
The lower the % will increase the handling/stability of the caravan. Torque is the crucial thing in towing which is why so many caravanners opt for diesels but I'm sure your S4 will have plenty of torque.

Hope this helps

Mykaloon

 

[QuantumJohn]

The handbook has all the towing weight limits. I think for the S4 its 1900kgs. Check the weight of the van against this.
The heavier the trailer the easier you should take it as it places a lot of strain on the S4 cooling system and the abs may well cut in a bit if you have to brake hard in the wet as you have that extra weight behind you.

John

 

[BrianM]

Theres a good place in Sheffield that sells towbars and other leisure stuff, its called Towsure http://www.towsure.com/ visit or mail order, or try Ebay for bargains. Alternatively try Indespension as they are very good for supply and fit and have depots all over the country http://www.indespension.co.uk/
Both will advise on fitting and electrics.