No Towbar? .... Gulp

[mikesands]

One of the main reasons for buying the LS430 was that I would buy a nice big caravan later this year and we'd go off round the country. But it looks like there is no-one making a towbar to fit a 2001 LS430. I'm looking for a detachable, so if anyone has one I'll buy it off you.

Mike

[lexusmadman]

One of the main reasons for buying the LS430 was that I would buy a nice big caravan later this year and we'd go off round the country. But it looks like there is no-one making a towbar to fit a 2001 LS430. I'm looking for a detachable, so if anyone has one I'll buy it off you.

Mike

[lexusmadman]

hi mate i had the same problem , i have just had one fitted to my ls430 2003 1 month ago by a company called watling engineering in st albans , they made it up for me , a detachable one at a cost of £500 fitted plus vat , i took the car there for 7am and got it back at 5 pm same day , lovely people and brillant service and a lovely day walking round st albans there web is www.wating-towbars.co.uk phone number 01727 873661 i got the infor off of this forum all the best colin

[mikesands]

hi mate i had the same problem , i have just had one fitted to my ls430 2003 1 month ago by a company called watling engineering in st albans , they made it up for me , a detachable one at a cost of £500 fitted plus vat , i took the car there for 7am and got it back at 5 pm same day , lovely people and brillant service and a lovely day walking round st albans there web is www.wating-towbars.co.uk phone number 01727 873661 i got the infor off of this forum all the best colin

That's brilliant thanks. My daughter lives near Letchworth so next time I'm down I could get them to do it

Cheers

Mike

[Nitmoi]

Don't forget that you need an extra transmission oil cooler according to folklore.

[SteveLS400]

Don't forget that you need an extra transmission oil cooler according to folklore.

Hi

Mike will definately need a gearbox cooler to tow anything bigger than a small un-braked trailer.

[mikesands]

hmmmm ... mixed opinions on this. They said that was the case on my previous GS300, but I didn't get a cooler fitted and never had any problems towing a 1200kg boat on a 400kg trailer. Was worried hauling it back over the Pennines but it was fine.

Mike

[SteveLS400]

hmmmm ... mixed opinions on this. They said that was the case on my previous GS300, but I didn't get a cooler fitted and never had any problems towing a 1200kg boat on a 400kg trailer. Was worried hauling it back over the Pennines but it was fine.

Mike

I have no doubt that in most cases you wont have a problem. BUT there will be circumstances where the fluid will get very hot, for eg, imagine being in a jam on the hill after the bottom of the M5. Once the fluid gets overheated, it breaksdown and no longer protects the transmission. In my view its a no-brainer that a cooler is a lot less than a new gearbox. What does it say in your handbook?

[mikesands]

hmmmm ... mixed opinions on this. They said that was the case on my previous GS300, but I didn't get a cooler fitted and never had any problems towing a 1200kg boat on a 400kg trailer. Was worried hauling it back over the Pennines but it was fine.

Mike

I have no doubt that in most cases you wont have a problem. BUT there will be circumstances where the fluid will get very hot, for eg, imagine being in a jam on the hill after the bottom of the M5. Once the fluid gets overheated, it breaksdown and no longer protects the transmission. In my view its a no-brainer that a cooler is a lot less than a new gearbox. What does it say in your handbook?

I take your point Steve .... and I'm not that experienced in these things, but if you are stuck on a hill couldn't you just put it in neutral and make sure you held it on the brakes until you need to move. The price Lexus want to fit the towbar and cooler is about 1/3 of the price they sold the car to me !

Mike

[SteveLS400]

hmmmm ... mixed opinions on this. They said that was the case on my previous GS300, but I didn't get a cooler fitted and never had any problems towing a 1200kg boat on a 400kg trailer. Was worried hauling it back over the Pennines but it was fine.

Mike

I have no doubt that in most cases you wont have a problem. BUT there will be circumstances where the fluid will get very hot, for eg, imagine being in a jam on the hill after the bottom of the M5. Once the fluid gets overheated, it breaksdown and no longer protects the transmission. In my view its a no-brainer that a cooler is a lot less than a new gearbox. What does it say in your handbook?

I take your point Steve .... and I'm not that experienced in these things, but if you are stuck on a hill couldn't you just put it in neutral and make sure you held it on the brakes until you need to move. The price Lexus want to fit the towbar and cooler is about 1/3 of the price they sold the car to me !

Mike

Hi again and I take your point about Lexus pricing.. Is it a recommended fitment? If not then risk it. Can the firm Lexusmadman recommended fit a cooler at a sensible price?

The point about the sticking it in neutral is not the issue; its the stuck in traffic in hot weather with no engine cooling apart from the fan thats the point. The extra surface provided by the transmission cooler can be vital.

Another point about the hill senario is that of holding car and trailer on the footbrake. Whilst not directly relavant to your thread, its worth noting that when I was into V6 Rovers, I came across a couple of situations where holding it on the brake regularly actually warped the disks!

[SteveLS400]

Hi again.

I think you were right to flag up this issue. These cars are good towing vehicles due to the weight and power and I guess many inexperienced towers wouldn't give it a thought - rather like you learn the need for a stabalizer after youve had a nasty underpant-filling episode!

[kenmac]

I've just had a tow bar fitted to my MK3 £360 including vat & fitting from RP Towing in High Wycombe 01494528233 very helpful and friendly

[John N]

One of the main reasons for buying the LS430 was that I would buy a nice big caravan later this year and we'd go off round the country. But it looks like there is no-one making a towbar to fit a 2001 LS430. I'm looking for a detachable, so if anyone has one I'll buy it off you.

Mike

[John N]

One of the main reasons for buying the LS430 was that I would buy a nice big caravan later this year and we'd go off round the country. But it looks like there is no-one making a towbar to fit a 2001 LS430. I'm looking for a detachable, so if anyone has one I'll buy it off you.

Mike

[John N]

One of the main reasons for buying the LS430 was that I would buy a nice big caravan later this year and we'd go off round the country. But it looks like there is no-one making a towbar to fit a 2001 LS430. I'm looking for a detachable, so if anyone has one I'll buy it off you.

Mike

Mike

The detachable towbar for the LS430 is a standard Lexus part, go to your Lexus dealer and order one! Ask for a set of fitting instructions at the same time, or you just get a box of bits! (The bad news is £400+ but ask for a discount!)

They are made for Lexus by Brink, but Brink won't sell them direct to you. I think they are the only 'type approved' towbar available for Europe, so Lexus have a monopoly. If you have a special made it won't be 'type approved' and you could fail your MOT!

The instructions will tell you it takes 45 minutes to fit! (Took 2 of us 3 hours! But it was straight forward.)

I tow a 1.5 tonne caravan with my LS430 and it is a brilliant tow car. Don't buy the Lexus wiring kit, just get a simple kit and take the power supply from the fuse box under the left hand side of the boot floor.

My advice is to fit a transmission cooler, the first time I towed my van up a long hill at speed the transmission was getting 'very' hot. I've fitted a Kenlow transmission cooler. Simple kit and simple job, and it appears to have solved the problem.

John Nixon

[mikesands]

One of the main reasons for buying the LS430 was that I would buy a nice big caravan later this year and we'd go off round the country. But it looks like there is no-one making a towbar to fit a 2001 LS430. I'm looking for a detachable, so if anyone has one I'll buy it off you.

Mike

Mike

The detachable towbar for the LS430 is a standard Lexus part, go to your Lexus dealer and order one! Ask for a set of fitting instructions at the same time, or you just get a box of bits! (The bad news is £400+ but ask for a discount!)

They are made for Lexus by Brink, but Brink won't sell them direct to you. I think they are the only 'type approved' towbar available for Europe, so Lexus have a monopoly. If you have a special made it won't be 'type approved' and you could fail your MOT!

The instructions will tell you it takes 45 minutes to fit! (Took 2 of us 3 hours! But it was straight forward.)

I tow a 1.5 tonne caravan with my LS430 and it is a brilliant tow car. Don't buy the Lexus wiring kit, just get a simple kit and take the power supply from the fuse box under the left hand side of the boot floor.

My advice is to fit a transmission cooler, the first time I towed my van up a long hill at speed the transmission was getting 'very' hot. I've fitted a Kenlow transmission cooler. Simple kit and simple job, and it appears to have solved the problem.

John Nixon

Thanks John - useful advice. I had also sussed out that the Lexus towbar isn't shockingly expensive at £468 and a specialist towbar company can probably get a trade discount. They can also supply and fit dual electrics (and the towbar) for £150 so it isn't looking impossible. Where could I get the Kenlow thing and I'll ask them to fit that too.

Thanks

Mike

[John N]

One of the main reasons for buying the LS430 was that I would buy a nice big caravan later this year and we'd go off round the country. But it looks like there is no-one making a towbar to fit a 2001 LS430. I'm looking for a detachable, so if anyone has one I'll buy it off you.

Mike

Mike

The detachable towbar for the LS430 is a standard Lexus part, go to your Lexus dealer and order one! Ask for a set of fitting instructions at the same time, or you just get a box of bits! (The bad news is £400+ but ask for a discount!)

They are made for Lexus by Brink, but Brink won't sell them direct to you. I think they are the only 'type approved' towbar available for Europe, so Lexus have a monopoly. If you have a special made it won't be 'type approved' and you could fail your MOT!

The instructions will tell you it takes 45 minutes to fit! (Took 2 of us 3 hours! But it was straight forward.)

I tow a 1.5 tonne caravan with my LS430 and it is a brilliant tow car. Don't buy the Lexus wiring kit, just get a simple kit and take the power supply from the fuse box under the left hand side of the boot floor.

My advice is to fit a transmission cooler, the first time I towed my van up a long hill at speed the transmission was getting 'very' hot. I've fitted a Kenlow transmission cooler. Simple kit and simple job, and it appears to have solved the problem.

John Nixon

Thanks John - useful advice. I had also sussed out that the Lexus towbar isn't shockingly expensive at £468 and a specialist towbar company can probably get a trade discount. They can also supply and fit dual electrics (and the towbar) for £150 so it isn't looking impossible. Where could I get the Kenlow thing and I'll ask them to fit that too.

Thanks

Mike

Mike

I bought the oil cooler from Kenlowe direct, this is the link to their web site. Phone them up and talk to them.

http://www.kenlowe.com/oil-coolers/automatic/index.html

John N