From my observations, some of the local tow bar manufacturers should lay back on throwing stones. Have bought a car in the past that needed a bit more #8 to sort out the certified tow bar.
lookoutas,
Oct 15, 5:59am
Perhaps you should back up the truck a bit here. Tangents and assumptions are created by 5/8 of FA information. Your OP didn't mention who was doing it - in which case they should be in the best position to answer your question.
What the goat strongly suggested is exactly what you are intending to do. And then you have mrfx mentioning 'thinking' Which is all anyone could do. Notice that no-one got around to mentioning that only black tow-bars could be welded. It must have been getting close.
jane38,
Oct 15, 6:10am
Oh for gods sake I came on here with a simple question and it turns in to a petty tiff.Do you want a blow by blow account.Grow up!
lookoutas,
Oct 15, 6:46am
Going by your name, you are right. Unless you are a guy using a woman's account, then you are totally wrong.
Your question as asked, was accurately answered in paragraph 3 of post #13 in accordance to the information given. Then I agreed to that as being correct at the end of #16. In #20 you ripped the goat up for suggesting exactly what you finally disclosed you were intending to do. We can not read what you don't write.
tweake,
Oct 15, 6:52am
to true. there was issues with a big name manufacture and i assume a few small ones who copy their design, with navara tow bars causing chassis to break.
one thing that may be a problem (possibly the cause of the OP issue) is manufactures making low rated tow bars as a cheap option. ie making 1500kg towbars for utes that have 3ton+ tow rating. the enviable happens and people put 3000kg loads on 1500kg towbars.
jane38,
Oct 15, 8:20am
Wow you are different aren't you.
snoopy221,
Oct 15, 8:26am
So am i but alas as much as one would like to refer you to someone reputable as it has been posted here there are people who. (Note good on ya for seeing a crack and getting it sorted) The registered company that made the towbar that caused the fatal accident mentioned herin WERE NOT CHARGED. WHY? because they changed the company name TWICE and are CURRENTLY STILL IN BUSINESS.
mrcat1,
Oct 15, 8:29am
Where do you get this information from? I had 4 Navaras over the years and I'm always towing and never once have I had any chassis problems, nor have I ever heard of any in NZ.
mrcat1,
Oct 15, 8:36am
The police tried this in Te Kouma years ago by telling people to unhitch boats that were supposed to be too heavy for the bars and vehicles, from memory the whole thing got thrown out of court. How can you enforce ratings on bars when they don't have a design certification and not made by certified welders and then given a load certificate by the design engineer once its made and fitted like they do with heavy vehicles. My ute has a fully designed bar with certification that is renewable in 10 years time by a design engineer for a new 10 year certification.
I know of the problem in Europe and England, but none here in NZ, and possibly the problem over there is the salt they put on the roads for deicing and the spray off the wheels is allowed to sit in a area of the chassis and then it rusts, seems to be the majority of failures is due to rusting chassis is one area.
mrfxit,
Oct 15, 9:44am
I see where you are going with this BUT, to me, it points to a general chassis design fault far more then a towbar design fault. The chassis design in question, simply can't handle the weights involved. The only way a better design could have helped is to have massively extended the supports far further back along the chassis to compensate for poor chassis design. Basically reinforce those chassis's to carry the extra weight
tweake,
Oct 15, 9:49am
most where in aussie. but same brand of tow bar is sold here. by mem there was a recall on some of them. i have pics from someone who had damaged chassis due to it. i provided pics off my tow bar to compare the differences. but i think most dealers here fitted NZ made ones. however at the time i did see the lower spec for sale. as most utes tend to get towbars fitted by dealers i doubt many low spec got sold. but its still a trap to look out for. if i remember right the visual difference is the attachment points, the low spec ones only mount on the side of the chassis and not underneath.
sorry to be vague but it was a decade ago. its just a trap to watch for, the labels are often worn off now so no easy way to tell what spec the towbar was built for.
mrfxit,
Oct 15, 9:50am
To answer your question decisively . YES, you can legally do any welding repairs/ alterations needed to achieve the desired result.
1 Proviso.
Any repairs must be carried out in an acceptable & (at least semi) professionally efficient manner. Ie: Do a good job of it with sound methods (cutting/ grinding/ welding etc)
martin11,
Oct 15, 7:23pm
There was one also down the main south road near Timaru yours ago caused by a tow bar snapping . person killed
purplegoat,
Oct 15, 7:25pm
I can't read what you havent written . , somebody asking on here would tend to indicate a half arrsed backyard repair is on the cards , after all if you had gone to a reputable engineer you would already know the answer to your question
sr2,
Oct 15, 8:08pm
LOL; a perfect example - I rest my case! (See #23).
mrfxit,
Oct 15, 8:18pm
Why does it have to automatically be a " half arrsed backyard repair". I know of a few fully qualified experienced pro's doing home jobs in their backyards & others with no qualifications but many years of pro experience doing backyard home jobs.
On a side note, my niece has a very friendly well mannered Goat for a pet, (rare, but does happen)
jane38,
Oct 15, 8:49pm
I asked a simple question which some people with a lot more clues than you have kindly answered.Now run along and be a good boy and get ready for the first day of term tomorrow.
mrfxit,
Oct 15, 9:25pm
Extra info. It will only fail a wof if it's loose on it's mounts or visibly broken, BUT apparently not a specific defined part of a std vehicle wof check unless it has a trailer attached. No trailer & a suspect/broken bar would (I think) be treated as an accessory = fix or remove but no reference to quality
tweake,
Oct 15, 11:08pm
for every good home welder there will be a dozen who have a budget gasless welder and no idea how to stop a crack. pour cold weld on and grind it down to look good. bit of paint to hide it. sell the car and let the next owner have the problem.
one of the things today is that you get to hear about incidents that happen a lot more. everyone has a camera. i have no doubt that years ago there was plenty of home built bars and trailers that failed, you just never heard about them. we are now more aware of the problems hence far more inclined to see that things are done well.
mrfxit,
Oct 16, 2:59am
Personally, I would NEVER use a mig/tig or otherwise welder on something like a towbar frame. Electric arc only.
I presume some of the full commercial mig's could be ok, but still not happy with the idea.
tweake,
Oct 16, 4:27am
its not a process issue. its down to the operator. your probably better with a stick than a lot of home guys are with a mig. i suspect all manufactured bars are done with mig. its generally the cheapest production method.
rsr72,
Oct 16, 4:49am
Some expensive OEM towbars on imported cars do not have a chain fitting at all as countries of origin do not require the use of 'safety' chains.
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