Should I remove Ducato towbar?

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I have Bessacarr E460 on an 11-plate Ducato. I read somewhere that the towbar assembly could be as much as 65Kg? I have no use for it and hope to keep the van for years as it is just right for us so should I remove the towbar? What sort of resale value? How much would a local (Glasgow) garage be likely to charge to remove it? Is there a decent demand for used towbars?

Any toughts appreciated, thanks.
 
It should be easy enough to remove it your self, provided you are reasonably agile, it depends on what someone would pay as to value, arm and a leg for a new one fitted, have a look on E Bay and see what folks are selling used ones for, should give you a starting price.
 
I removed rear steadies from my Ducato because of weight and the fact that I never used them, they were really heavy, I just scrapped them when I was at a scrappy getting rid of some batteries.
 
pvsdb said:
I have Bessacarr E460 on an 11-plate Ducato. I read somewhere that the towbar assembly could be as much as 65Kg? I have no use for it and hope to keep the van for years as it is just right for us so should I remove the towbar? What sort of resale value? How much would a local (Glasgow) garage be likely to charge to remove it? Is there a decent demand for used towbars?

Any toughts appreciated, thanks.
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I removed mine an your about right on weight sold it for £80 on gumtree 7 yrs ago worth more now. Left plug and wiring cliped up out of way if you,ve a socket set an spanners its easy to take off just run rear up on leveling ramps
 
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Thanks for replies. I think it is worth doing. Living in a flat, I don't have a driveway or storage for ramps, etc but I could probably find somewhere I could raise rear enough to get under.
 
Where are you I’m in Derbyshire happy to let you use my long drive and will help you remove I’m looking for a Towbar for an Adria coral
 
In Glasgow but will be visiting friends in Darley Dale in a few months. Are you saying you may want to buy?
 
I use my towbar in the UK but I remove it when I go to Europe to give me extra leeway on my rear axle weight, I can remove it in 15 minutes and replace it in 20 minutes, there are only 8 bolts so it isn't a big job.
If it as a standard Fiat chassis it will be similar to mine, if it is an Alko chassis slightly different but probably worth more so it might be worth checking and posting more info
 
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Not familiar with your van model but on my PVC I removed my heavy towbar but then had to fit a not so heavy but still substantial reinforcing bar behind the bumper trim. The towbar provides rear end crash protection on mine so needed to be replaced with something.
I still have my towbar in the shed...
K ;)
 
Vanterrier said:
Not familiar with your van model but on my PVC I removed my heavy towbar but then had to fit a not so heavy but still substantial reinforcing bar behind the bumper trim. The towbar provides rear end crash protection on mine so needed to be replaced with something.
I still have my towbar in the shed...
K ;)
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I was going to make a similar point.
Some vehicles towbars are fitted in replacement of the standard steel rear bar inside the plastic bumper, so removing that towbar would mean sourcing a replacement beam (The VW T5 is one example of this).
In these situations I am not sure how much weight saving there would be when taking off one substantial steel towbar but then fitting on a similar steel beam in its place? In those cases, I dont know if it is worth the hassle and probably simplier to just remove the tow ball from the bar?

Towbars can also be handy for GETTING towed (as per Molly 3's comment), and also can give useful extra grounding protection on vans with long overhangs. Overall, I think there are maybe more pros to keeping it than cons (I've fitted Towbars to my last three Vans. FWIW, typically very easy to fit; also if not protected well, can be a bugger to remove with rusted bolts etc)
 
Iirc I made about a 30kg weight saving overall
Having seen what happens when a towball snaps during towing out of a muddy field I would not use it for that purpose... ok for towing once on the road tho.
Hth
K ;)
 
Vanterrier said:
Iirc I made about a 30kg weight saving overall
Having seen what happens when a towball snaps during towing out of a muddy field I would not use it for that purpose... ok for towing once on the road tho.
Hth
K ;)
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You can put the towstrap around the bar ...
 
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