Once you have had a towbar fitted, many people are prone to forgetting about it, assuming it’ll look after itself well enough. Although a towbar is a sturdy and durable piece of kit, it does require some care if it is to fulfil a good lifespan. What’s more, a towbar in a poor condition can be a safety issue and can even contribute to a failed MOT so it’s important you do check up on your towbar periodically. To find out more about towbar maintenance, read on.

Towbar maintenance tips

If you practice good towbar maintenance, you will prolong the life of your equipment and ensure that when you’re towing, you’re doing so safely. Towbars are designed to require minimal maintenance so you needn’t worry about carrying out extensive work to keep them functional. However, giving them a once over every couple of months, or when you hitch up a caravan or trailer, is a good idea.

Towbar maintenance activities to keep your towbar in good condition include:

• Keep the towball clean and free from a buildup of dirt, grease and other residues – use white spirit or brake cleaner on a cloth to wipe away any accumulated dirt
• Keep housings and attachments free from dirt and corrosion
• Clean all components with a cloth alone – lubricants shouldn’t be used
• Check all mountings, fixings and parts for wear, tightness and damage – should you find anything amiss, organise for replacement parts or take your car to a towbar specialist for advice and repairs
• Consider a towball cover for fixed towbars – these will help protect your towball from grease, mud and dirt buildup
• For detachable towbars, put the dummy in instead of the towball when you are not using it – this will protect the towball from unnecessary wear and dirt

Towbars tested during MOT

If you have a towbar fitted to your vehicle, it will be included in checks as part of your MOT to make sure it is fit for usage. It is, therefore, important you keep it well-maintained to ensure you don’t receive a fault for something which is easy to prevent.

During an MOT, your towbar will undergo a thorough visual inspection and parts will be checked for play/looseness. The towbar, towball, fixings, locking devices, bolts, brackets and surrounding body and chassis of the vehicle will all be checked. Should anything be found insecure, excessively worn, broken, corroded, missing or inappropriately sized or modified, you can fail your MOT.

Towbar2U offer an excellent range of towbars to customers throughout England. All of our towbars can be fitted by our well-trained, skilled team through our mobile fitting service which allows you to obtain a professionally fitted towbar at a time and location convenient for you. We pride ourselves on our great service and safe, efficient and competitively priced towbar installations. Get in touch with our helpful team today for more information.