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VS Statesman Towbar - Installed Pics please

Greg SV6

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Hi,
I'm looking for a secondhand towbar for my 1995 VS Stateman which I'm planning to install myself.

I've found a couple online (over 100km away) with pictures but, having looked under the of the car, I can't visualize how they would fit around the fuel tank and diff.

Some examples which claim to fit a VS Statesman:
https://www.ebay.com.au/itm/HOLDEN-...711197?hash=item1ccbf1e21d:g:ZVIAAMXQVERS6dca
https://www.ebay.com.au/itm/STATESM...530666?hash=item48cfa7df2a:g:6-IAAOSwFRtdRNxi
https://www.ebay.com.au/itm/HOLDEN-...414545?hash=item420c6e9251:g:dcIAAOSw1XFbr2H~

Some of these claim to fit both long and short wheelbase but I'm not sure if that could be true - are the ads misleading or are they interchangable?

Is anyone able to share some pics of an installed towbar including mounting points to give me assurance that I'm not wasting my time and money on a piece of metal which doesn't fit?

This might be a good how-to starting point as I couldn't find any existing useful instructions.
 

woteva

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I have seen the last one you posted before. It is a light duty type where the long plate goes inside the boot.

The first 2 are heavy duty type where the square bar goes under the tank and bolts up under the rear diff tunnel.
 

krusing

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I have seen the last one you posted before. It is a light duty type where the long plate goes inside the boot.

The first 2 are heavy duty type where the square bar goes under the tank and bolts up under the rear diff tunnel.

You are 100% correct, woteva
The 3rh one is a 1200kg bar
Where the others are 1600kg,
The 1st one is the one I'd be looking at, that's a serious towbar !
[The second one is missing the 2 arms that bolt to the top of the diff tunnel area]
As it bolts up behind your bumper bar cover,
under the car either side of the spare wheel location in the boot,
and under the tank to above the back of the Diff tunnel.
 

woteva

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Would a wagon and a Statesman heavy duty type towbar be the same ?

I can't see how some adverts claim they fit Sedan and Statesman as they would be different ?
 

vs-lover

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One must ask the question...................what did the OP want to tow with the vehicle ?

Also is the vehicle lowered ? ........and if so then that limits you on what you can fit.

The underslung bar that goes under the fuel tank will no doubt continually scrape when going over spoon drains etc. while the original factory fit type which is the one with the strengthening plate that's fitted inside the boot over the floor will be a better option for standard type towing duties.

Honestly if you are wanting to tow something that needs such a heavy towbar then it would be best to have a different vehicle doing the towing. One must remember that in the earlier years standard HQ's and even smaller were used to tow vans around that really shouldn't have been hitched to a small footprinted car like they were. This was still pretty much the same way of thinking back when VN through to VS's was being sold as new vehicles.

Nowadays you would sensibly use a far heavier 4WD or Dualcab to do the towing duties.

Cheers.
 

figjam

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One must ask the question...................what did the OP want to tow with the vehicle ?

Good question.
Other questions for Greg .... do you trust a second hand towbar ? Are you not in a position to afford a new bar ? Have you searched on line for a new VS Statesman bar ? Have you seen the comparative prices, new bar Vs used bar, that you can install yourself. ?
 

Greg SV6

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Thanks for all the comments guys. I'd still be really keen to see a photo of an installed bar, from the pics and explanations I've seen (at least of the underslung bar type, I haven't been able to find the through-the-boot type anywhere around Newcastle/Sydney), I can't visualise any of these bars fitting under the long range Statesman tank and around the diff. Also I would expect the size/shape to be slightly different for the Statesman, I've seen advice on the forums to support this but some of the ads I've seen say the one bar will fit the Stato and other sedans, so I'm not quite sure what to believe.

I think at this point I just have to take a chance and give it a try, and update here with how I go :)

Answering some of the questions:
- Will be light towing - bike rack, box trailer etc. I don't expect to tow a boat or van.
- I'd be happy to get the lightweight through-the-boot type but can't find any available locally.
- I can't see any reason not to trust a second hand bar a similar age to the car.
- There are some BTA bars on SuperCheap which claim they will fit my car at $600. Similar price at towbarsaustralia. There are actually a few on SuperCheap which come up as "This Part Fits Your Vehicle" but they all look different and none of them are actually described as suitable for this car.

Aside from not wanting to spend too much money, I'm on a bit of a deadline, so don't really have time to order a bar, wait a week for delivery, attempt to install it and then find it's the wrong one and have to return it.

Thanks again for all your help.
 

vs-lover

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There's a simple answer, just get the internally reinforced unit which was designed by Holden originally to do what you want it to and this way you won't have any scraping issues with a long range tank which would have the support bar even lower than on a standard tank unit.

PS. I threw one out to scrap metal just over a month ago as no one nowadays wants to fit one on an old car. Most fitments are to much newer vehicles these days. I tried to sell mine for $20 and still no takers. All I kept was the tongue arrangement to use for something else. Honestly there's no shortage of them here in Adelaide. Can probably get one within a day or so over here in a 43 degree temperature in Adelaide today.

Cheers.
 
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Greg SV6

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Does anyone know whether the standard Sedan kit will also fit the Statesman, or do I need to find one Statesman specific?
 
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