TowBar Hitch

[Dave L]

Hi All,

I went to jump into the Kluger this morning to come to work and noticed that the hitch & ball has been stolen by some (insert very naughty words here) person.

Suffice to say, lesson learned.

If you have a towbar on your Kluger and you leave the hitch & ball attached to your car, invest in a hitch-pin lock and LOCK the hitch to your car.

I am so angry at the moment. We've only had the car two weeks (and this is the first car we've owned with a towbar....so I wasn't aware of hitch-pin locks etc. until I Googled it this morning).

I guess it could've been worse. They could have taken the Kluger and left the hitch behind !

BTW - anyone know a reputable place in Melbourne to buy replacement hitches for a Toyota OEM towbar (which I assume is still made by Hayman Reece) ??

[holmesie]

Bugger - such a petty thing to steal <_< I HATE HATE thieves...

Touch wood I've never lost a hitch, but I guess I live in an area where things are a little bit safer. I always like to leave the hitch in place as added protection for a rear-end bump, not that it would really help I guess

[ss--ss]

I bought one of those hitch locks from ebay for around $20.. however after I put it on it's a bit loose & rattles when driven, so now just leave it in the garage & bring it out when needed

[fish475]

This was my solution, but if they want it they will get it.

When I worked at Lavington NSW, I was using a high tensil bolt that had rusted the bolt and nut a little under tightening tension.(on a commodore at the time) That saved my square tow tung at the time from being knocked off. The bolt set up was the same as picture on the Kluger. The b**t**d's had hacked sawed through the bolt in there endevours to steal it all whilst in a public high vis carpark.

Edited December 17, 2009 by fish475

[forest24]

Hi All,

I went to jump into the Kluger this morning to come to work and noticed that the hitch & ball has been stolen by some (insert very naughty words here) person.

Suffice to say, lesson learned.

If you have a towbar on your Kluger and you leave the hitch & ball attached to your car, invest in a hitch-pin lock and LOCK the hitch to your car.

I am so angry at the moment. We've only had the car two weeks (and this is the first car we've owned with a towbar....so I wasn't aware of hitch-pin locks etc. until I Googled it this morning).

I guess it could've been worse. They could have taken the Kluger and left the hitch behind !

BTW - anyone know a reputable place in Melbourne to buy replacement hitches for a Toyota OEM towbar (which I assume is still made by Hayman Reece) ??

there are a few hayman reece distributors in melb , I got my tow bar fitted by a dealer in coburg,

have a look at their web site for a dealership in your area http://www.haymanreese.com.au/index.htm

[Blackkluger]

hi guys, simply go to a $2 shop, take the pin thing with you and i ended up getting a slimline padlock(costs $2!) and it obviously can be cut, but it deters the opportunistic theives.

I had this with the old commodore and works well, havent had a problem in 4 years using this, even when parked in unsavoury suburbs of melbourne! lol

where we like i quite often accidentally leave my other car unlocked, nothing dissapears... spoke your area is not so safe and hence, your home insurance would be higher too?

[BigBad64]

Do Toyota sell these hitch pin locks or do you have to get an aftermarket one?

Would this fit?

http://www.haymanreese.com.au/consumer/pro...nlock/index.htm

[Dave L]

I contacted a place today and they suggested that because it is an OEM Toyota towbar, their specifications are slightly different to that of a standard (Hayman Reece ?) towbar.....so it's probably best to go through Toyota for a replacement hitch.

I need to book the car in for it's 1000km check in January so I'll speak with them then and see what they say.

Once we get the replacement I will certainly be purchasing either the hitch-pin lock OR the simple padlock thru a hole....

In terms of being an unsavoury suburb of Melbourne, I think it was just wrong place at wrong time. We've parked our other cars at the same shopping centre for years and have never had a single problem (albeit our other cars have never had a towbar - especially one that was not secured to the car better)....

To be honest, I didn't even stop to think about the fact that it could be stolen - which is why I started this thread, to bring it to the attention of others that may also not be fully aware just how easy it is to remove and walk away with.

[Matty P]

I bought a generic hitch lock from Stupidcrap autos today for $30.

It fits fine and seems to work OK, but I suspect it may rattle a bit as it's not as snug as the genuine pin. Time will tell...

At least it won't get stolen

[BigBad64]

I bought a Hayman Reese lockable hitch pin from Pedders yesterday for $30.

http://www.haymanreese.com.au/consumer/pro...nlock/index.htm

As per Matty P maybe not exactly as snug a fit but I suspect a would be thief would take one look and put it in the too hard basket straight away. I like leaving the tow-bar and bike rack base on so that if one of the tail-gaters can't stop in time they hit that and damage their car not mine.

Dave, did you see the following article in today's Herald Sun?

http://www.vicpolicenews.com.au/more-news/...-christmas.html

If you're in this part of Melbourne maybe you could get your towbar back.

Thanks for the heads-up re this issue and Merry Xmas. :D

[Dave L]

BB64,

You are fantastic !

One of those towbars will be mine. I am waiting for the Constable to give me a call back but at least there's a reasonably good chance I will get it back now.

Thank you SO much !

Dave :)

[Dave L]

Just a conclusion to this unbelieveable turn of events.

My Wife went to the Police station this morning and they were really helpful and we ended up finding our exact towbar (including pin and surclip).

As the guy had pleaded guilty, they didn't need to hold onto the towbars as evidence, so we were allowed to take it home.

It's now safely at home until I purchase a lock for it - though it will probably live in the boot unless I need to tow anything.

Again, thank you BB64 for posting the link. This has certainly made our Christmas that little bit better....

Have a great Xmas everyone !

Dave

[holmesie]

What an incredible story...

Edited December 24, 2009 by holmesie

[BigBad64]

Good result.

I was actually in Maccas just browsing through their store copy of the Herald Sun yesterday morning when I saw the article.

Sometimes things work out OK.

Merry Xmas to all fellow Kluger owners.

Edited December 24, 2009 by BigBad64

[Blackkluger]

Your very lucky, must be christmas:)

[whofan]

Just wanted to add a thanks for this message thread.

When I purchased my Kluger (second hand) it had a Hayman Reece towbar fitted which I was quite happy about.

I'd never considered theft until I read this thread.

I went to the Caravan and Camping show in Melb last week and bought a Hayman and Reece long hitch lock, they were discounted but I suspect the may have even got the price wrong at the cheackout as I was charged only $21.

I took my change and walked briskly to the exit

As the hitch lock is not a really tight fit I thought it would move about and make all kinds of racket, this hasn't been the case so pleasantly surprised there.

I too like to have the tow ball on even when not towing as a deterant to other ef-knuckles who can't park properly.