2001 D5 S80 - Tow Bar and electrics

HI folks

Looking to buy an S80 as per the header.
It is at a distance so cannot just nip round for a look.

Does any one know if the 2001 Volvo tow bar came with thirteen or seven pin
electrics in the UK

TIA

Dave

 

In an earlier contribution to this discussion,

I don't know for sure, but would guess 7 pin. Is the car you're (possibly)
buying already equipped for towing? If so, are you sure that it's got the
official Volvo towbar and electrics - because there are 3rd party
alternatives available?
--
Cheers,
Roger
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Word of warning: I had a 3rd party towbar fitted to my 850 by a muffler
and tow-bar shop. The clowns who installed it, wired the trailer
electrics into the rear lights. BEHIND the control relay ... 3 years
later, the relay melted down.
$150 for a new 2nd hand relay from a wrecker's yard, $300 for the auto
electrician to set things right, and the stink from the melted relay
lingered for a year or so in the boot. I would've been better off
getting the Volvo shop to put an original part in .....

f.w.i.w. -Peter

 

In an earlier contribution to this discussion,

Yes, indeed. You can't just wire the trailer lights in parallel with the
car's rear lights because that will upset the bulb failure unit - which is
presumably the 'relay' to which you refer. That doesn't mean that you *have*
to use the official Volvo wiring kit - there *are* satisfactory
alternatives, as long as you - or whoever installs it - knows what you/they
are doing.

Most current third party systems provide their own relay, which is triggered
by a very small current taken from the existing lamp circuits, and thus
doesn't upset anything. My 2007 V70 is equipped with such a system.
--
Cheers,
Roger
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Yes it equipped for towing with a genuine Volvo tow bar. I have physically
seen the car, test drove it etc. but forgot to look at the electrics. It just
did not occur to me until a friend said it could be 13 pin.

It is 100 plus miles trip to go see the car I live in the far North of
Scotland. Hey ho guess I'll find out on Wednesday when I pick it up!

Dave

 

In an earlier contribution to this discussion,

What are you going to tow with it, and what plug(s) does that have? Assuming
the car is 13pin, and that you have a caravan with 2 x 7-pin plugs, you can
get Y-piece adapters which should work ok. Or, if you only want to tow *one*
trailer/caravan, you could rewire that with a 13-pin plug.

My ancient caravan and small trailer (which I use for taking rubbish to the
tip) both have 7-pin plugs - so I'm very happy that my 2007 V70 (with 3rd
party electrics) has 2 x 7-pin sockets. [I have modified the caravan wiring
to the latest spec - to separate the earth returns on the 7S etc.]

If you have a caravan, what age is it? ISTR that the 7S wiring spec changed
in about 1998 so - whatever combination of plugs and sockets you end up
with, you'll need to make sure that everything is compatible, and adjust if
necessary.
--
Cheers,
Roger
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I will be towing a 2006 Bessacarr. Well aware of the specs etc. I will
re-wire the caravan to 13 pin if the car has that. Not keen on adapters.

Dave

 

In an earlier contribution to this discussion,

Should be fine . . . unless you ever want to tow amything else.
--
Cheers,
Roger
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How does the rear suspension cope when towing your caravan?

Been towing with 4x4 for 20 year so need to trim the noseweight to get down to
75kg!

Dave

 

In an earlier contribution to this discussion,

No problem - but the rear suspension on the V70 (estate) is almost certainly
stiffer than that on the S80 (saloon).

I have a real struggle to get my noseweight down to 75Kg. For example,
there's no way I can carry more than one gas bottle in the front locker of
my Bailey Pageant Magenta, and stay legal!
--
Cheers,
Roger
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I was out this PM trying things out with the gauge. Found exactly that!
Going to try the van on the car before making adjustment!

Do you have the D5? I have read that the suspension on the D5 was firmer than
the petrol versions.

Dave

 

On these cars, the towing wiring is connected to the rear fuse box with
a plug rather than directly wired in. If the car has 13-pin electrics,
you should be able to purchase the 7-pin version of the towbar wiring
and swap it in.

 

Thanks Richard but rewiring the van is by far the cheaper way to go and 13 pin
is a better solution in my view.

Dealer contact made at last. I now know it is a 13 pin so can buy the bits I
need!

Thanks folks for your replies

Dave

 

In an earlier contribution to this discussion,

Yes, my 2007 V70 is the D5 Special Edition Sport - with the 185PS engine and
6-speed manual gearbox[1]. I think the 'Sport' models have firmer
suspension, anyway. TBH, the ride when driving around solo is pretty
appalling, but load it up - and it comes into its own.

[1] Suprisingly, it will chug along in 6th on a motorway quite happily with
the caravan in tow, with the engine only doing about 2000 RPM at relatively
light throttle
--
Cheers,
Roger
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