Square hitch tow bar

[mikeelawson]

Just come back from Perth Australia and got fixated with taking pictures of UTE’s and their cross country caravans. Every Friday the highway out of Perth is jammed with beautiful packed out Toyota land cruisers.

I have noticed out there nearly all of them have square hitches that are removable. This seems imminently sensible and I wondered why we don’t see more of them in the UK or Europe. The opportunity to put different types of hitches on the back seems like a really good idea. Wondered if there is such a thing as VW removable square hitches flange? As a starter there are a very good square hitches bike rack I have seen.

Regards,

BOOMEL

 

[5i1ver8ack]

European regulations mandate the 50mm ISO towball system (ball hitch) for type approval, focusing on compact, standardized systems suitable for lighter loads (up to 3500kg) and better integration with EU vehicle designs, unlike the varied, larger receiver-style hitches common in the US, which are incompatible and often banned for safety and compliance reasons.

 

[mikeelawson]

Shame because I think they look very practical

 

[motoYAKA]

I am led to believe that receiver hitch systems are now allowed in the UK, but not sure acceptable in EU? I have seen a number of new Ford Ranger pickups with the receiver hitch in place, so presume as these are sold direct by Ford they will indeed comply with UK standards.

I have also seen these sold in the UK for the VW T5/ 6/ 6.1 range, made by Westfalia. Unable to find them on the Westfalia website, but googled and found PF Jones listing them: https://www.pfjones.co.uk/volkswage...s-westfalia-flange-receiver-hitch-towbar.html

I was also considering this system for my transporter, but went a different route in the end