loose towbar?? bad or normal

[steve.zissou]

Hi Guys,

Thought i'd check befor heading to a towbar place.

My ute has a 1600 kg flat towbar fitted and it was a bit loose (3 years and 160,000kms) so i went to tighten it and the front bold tightened up about 1 turn but the rear on wont budge (i have a habit of snapping bolts when tightening them, so i mean it really wont budge).

as a result there is about 4-5 mm between the flat bar and the bracket it bolts onto which causes a bit of movement. is this normal?
I have had a lot of max loads on it (1600kg) and i am worried that it may have either elongated the bolt (load are always ballanced) or the bold has undone itself a bit and then seized due to the movement.

I just cant remember if its been that way since day one

[geckoGT]

4-5 mm is a lot of space, do not imagine that is normal. Can you undo the bolt to check it. give it a hit with some spray first and give it a few minutes to soak in.

[poppa smurf]

are the bolts that are currently in there the correct ones

movement is not normal and is a recipe for breakage........take the offending bolts out, spray them with a lubricant try to reinstall them, if no go then replace with the proper length

the bolts must be tight,.....if there is sufficient length to have substantial grip then perhaps shim out the excessive length with washers

or go to a shorter bolt

[geckoGT]

Sounds to me they have vibrated loose and then rusted in place.

[poppa smurf]

Originally Posted by geckoGT

Sounds to me they have vibrated loose and then rusted in place.

very unusual if they have and a bit disconcerting if they can......I will now go and check mine!...Yikes!!!

[mik]

if the bolts go through a rail, often they have big washers or plates to help spread the load a bit, i would be checking for for correct fittment of bolts and washers(could be dodgey fitment from the start) ,or deformed panel from being over stressed for some reason.

[aussie muscle]

yeah, i'd fill the gap with a spacer at least. you don't want any movement of the tongue.

[svo supporter]

I'd be removing the tongue and cleaning both mating surfaces, making sure they are flat. Bugger filling any gap up with washers or anything else. It'd be a receipe for disaster.


Check the bolts aren't stripping out and put longer bolts with nuts on them, if necessary. Make sure they're HT bolts too.

[KRL-94]

sounds like they have come loose over time, and rusted into place. i attempted to remove the 2 tounge bolts on a NA fairlane. and epicly failed. i used the correct size socket, the crack bar and i started with a 2ft pipe and worked my way to 6ft. still wouldnt move.

[svo supporter]

A good way to remove an old bolt is spraying it with WD 40, CRC or alikes and leaving it sit for a couple of hours.

Then before attempting to get it to budge, hit the head of the bolt a few times with a hammer. This helps break the rust seal that forms.

[KRL-94]

Originally Posted by svo supporter

A good way to remove an old bolt is spraying it with WD 40, CRC or alikes and leaving it sit for a couple of hours.

Then before attempting to get it to budge, hit the head of the bolt a few times with a hammer. This helps break the rust seal that forms.

might give it a go. will leaving it overnight be too long?

[XARATE]

The longer the better.

If you get to a point where you feel like your going to snap it organise some new bolts the drill a small hole (~3mm usually works) up the middle of the old stuck ones. It helps remove the tension holding it in. Remove the tow bar bracket and make sure everything is clean than reinstall using the new bolts.

[svo supporter]

Originally Posted by XARATE

The longer the better.

If you get to a point where you feel like your going to snap it organise some new bolts the drill a small hole (~3mm usually works) up the middle of the old stuck ones. It helps remove the tension holding it in. Remove the tow bar bracket and make sure everything is clean than reinstall using the new bolts.

Spot on.

Further more, once the bolt starts coming free, squirt some more lubricant down the thread hole and work the bolt up and down the thread. This also helps prevent it from stuffing the thread up and breaking the bolt.

[KRL-94]

still no luck. i have 4 spare ones anyway, so i think i'll just let it go to the wreckers.

[steve.zissou]

Originally Posted by geckoGT

Sounds to me they have vibrated loose and then rusted in place.

thanks guys

This is what i thinks happened (the front one was a bit loose but the back one is bloody tight).

I think i should just man up and get a HD towbar and if i can get the old one off and apart I'll throw it on ebay for what ever i can get.

[KRL-94]

you might have more luck with taking it to scrap steel