Towbar and towbar electrical equipment (VW Golf 1)

The following fitting instructions apply to towbars manufactured by C P Witter Ltd. of Chester specifically for the Golf, Jetta and Scirocco models.

Depending on the model, two types of towbars are used - one for the Golf model produced from 1974 to early 1984 (except for the convertible) and Scirocco from 1974 to 1981, the other one is for the Jetta model produced before 1983. Installation instructions are provided below.

Jetta (figure C:15)

1. Remove the rear bumper (see chapter "Body and body equipment") and lift the boot floor covering in the spare wheel well.

2. Insert two plates with bolts (F) into the body side members through the existing holes and loosely, without tightening the bolts, secure the front crossmember (A1). To ensure a smooth fit of the plates, remove the mastic in the places where they are installed.

3. Attach the rear cross member (A) to the longitudinal member (C) at point (E). Position the assembled members under the vehicle and attach the longitudinal member to the front cross member at point (G).



4. Position the rear cross member exactly in the center of the car and drill two holes with a diameter of 11.2 mm at points (D) (7/16 inch). The right rear bolt is inserted through the towing eye reinforcement plate, and a separate plate (D1) must be placed under the head of the left bolt. Secure the entire structure with the bolts from the kit and tighten them securely.

5. Attach the ball stud and electrical connector (socket) mounting bracket to the end of the towbar longitudinal beam. Connect the wires to the socket(s) as described later in this section.

Golf and Scirocco (figure C:16)

1. Remove the rear bumper (see chapter "Body and body equipment"), lift the luggage compartment floor covering and remove the spare wheel.

2. Place the crossbar (A) against the rear panel so that its lower edge rests on the floor; to make the crossbar fit snugly, remove the mastic from the floor. At points (D) along the edges of the crossbar, drill two 9.6 mm (3/8 in) diameter holes. Attach the crossbar to the rear panel by placing the reinforcement plates (D1) on the outside of the bolt heads. Drill two central holes at points (E) with a diameter of 11.2 mm (7/16 inch).


3. Loosely attach the crossmember (C) with bolts at (E). Center the crossmember on the vehicle and drill two 3/8 in. (9.6 mm) holes at (F) in the front of the spare tire well. Secure the crossmember (C) at (F) with the supplied bolts, using large flat washers under the bolt heads.

4. Tighten all bolts, attach the ball stud and electrical outlet bracket to the crossmember. Connect the wires to the outlet(s) as described later in this section.

NOTE: Tighten all bolts after 80 km of driving with a trailer.

Towbar electrical equipment

After installing the towbar, it is necessary to install an electrical connector (socket) to connect the trailer to the vehicle's electrical system.

Below are the installation instructions for the Hella Transflash electrical kit (figure C:17).



When installing this kit there is no need to install a high power flasher relay as the kit includes a "secondary" flasher that controls the hazard warning lights and flashers on the trailer.

The kit also includes an additional electrical connector (socket) with sockets for connecting (charging) an additional battery, power supply for the refrigerator of the caravan, a reversing light and a warning light on the instrument panel.

1. The Transflash relay should be mounted with the terminals facing down. Mount the relay at the rear of the vehicle, in the trunk near the wiring harness. Position the relay so that it cannot be damaged by accidentally shifted luggage.

2. Install a lamp on the dashboard to indicate that the turn signals are working or that one of the lamps has burned out. Mark the location of the trailer signal lamp so that it is clearly visible from the driver's seat and matches the other instruments. If necessary, install an additional bracket for the lamp under the dashboard.

3. Check that the direction indicators and lights are working properly. Correct the faults before continuing the work. Disconnect the battery.

4. From one end of the multi-core cable, strip 50 mm of the outer black insulation, being careful not to damage the insulation of the cable wires.

5. Strip 16mm of insulation from the ends of each wire in the cable. Twist the strands of each wire together.

6. Connect the wires to the socket contacts according to their color. The contact numbers are indicated on the socket body (figure C:18). Make sure each wire is securely connected to the socket contact and that the wire strands do not short-circuit adjacent contacts.



[The original can be seen on the portal: VWmanual.ru]

7. Remove a short section of outer insulation from the free end of the cable. Grasp the bundle of wires with pliers and, with your other hand, grab the outer insulation and push it as close to the socket as possible, using force to run your hand along the insulation.

8. Insert the cable into the rubber grommet and slide the grommet along the cable until it reaches the socket flange.

9. Pass the cable through the center hole of the socket mounting bracket. When attaching the socket to the bracket, the end of the outer insulation of the cable should pass through the hole in the bracket to protect the wires from chafing. Secure the socket to the bracket using the three bolts, nuts and washer provided. The hinge of the socket cover should be on top.

10. Install the socket mounting bracket on the vehicle between the towbar longitudinal beam and the ball pin. Pass the end of the cable into the trunk through any available hole, or specially drill a 13 mm diameter hole behind the bumper.

11. Insert the rubber grommet into the hole and pull the cable through it. If the cable passes through the grommet with difficulty, lubricate it. Carefully pull the cable into the trunk to take up the slack. Wrap the cable with electrical tape near the rubber grommets to prevent it from sagging. Carefully remove all the outer insulation from the section of cable inside the car, leaving a 26 mm piece of insulation protruding from the rubber grommet.

12. Connect the wires to the Transflash unit as described below:


For wire location and color, see "Electrical connection diagrams". When connecting the rear fog lights, cut their wire and connect its cut end coming from the switch to the blue wire of the cable going to terminal 2 (54G) of the socket. Using the red-brown wire included in the kit, connect terminal 58b of the socket to the remaining cut end of the wire going to the rear fog lights of the car.

Additional socket

Install an additional socket if necessary (this will require a double bracket for mounting the sockets). Connect the wiring harness to the receptacle as shown in Figure C:19. The spare contacts of the receptacle can be used at your discretion, but the current flowing through each contact must not exceed 16 A.

Checking the work

1. Check all connections, then connect the wires to the battery. Remember that if the breaker wiring or the rear light wiring is not connected correctly, the breaker may be damaged due to a short circuit.

2. The trailer wiring must be connected to the 7-pin plug according to the diagram (figure C:18).

3. Connect the trailer to the vehicle and plug the trailer connector into the vehicle's power outlet.

4. Turn on the vehicle's parking lights. The parking lights of the vehicle and trailer, as well as the license plate lights on both vehicles, should light up.

5. Turn on the ignition and press the brake pedal. The brake lights of the car and trailer should light up simultaneously.

6. Turn on the left turn signal. All left turn signals on the vehicle and trailer should flash together. In addition, the trailer turn signal indicator light should flash alternately with the vehicle's indicator light. Repeat the check for the right turn signals.

7. Disconnect the trailer connector and turn on the left turn signals on the vehicle. The additional signal lamp should not light. Check that the turn signals on the vehicle are working correctly, repeat the check for the right turn signals.