I don't like the look of the flat piece that seems to be welded on top of square section steel.. The towbar on the Mazda 6, MPV and even the old 121 is made of approx 2cm thick x 10cm wide solid steel bar..

Even the sex aid version of the tow bar seems more solid..

I have to agree with Wildcard on having a second car.. We tend to hire a car when we need it, which has not been necessary since we got the 8. It is much cheaper to do this than pay for the rego ($500) , insurance ($400) and maintenance ($400) for even a cheap car to just sit around..

I know that they say the search function of the forum is my friend however after reading this thread
https://www.rx8club.com/rx-8-racing-25/warning-trailer-hitch-62703/
I have decided search is bad.
I hate to see floor ripped out of boot in RX8 just to tow things :eek:

That one does not look very robust to me... I guess the flat plates will help distribute the load... You would have to be careful of these types of tow bar... If it came apart and the trailer came loose causing an accident my guess is that the insurance company will not cover.. :(

What we need is a real Mazda tow bar.. I don't need to pull a 30m yacht, just a modest box trailer... Pleaseeeeeeee..

When I went for my last servcie I drove in just as a woman was driving out in her 8 with a tow bar. Could stop her to ask and the service guys had no idea.

Hers was fitted through the crest. Sorry it doesnt help much but at least you know there are people who have done it.

I suggest you call up some of the larger tow bar shops and ask them. In fact I need something to do as I have been sitting/laying on my backside for the last week 1/2 so I will go a ringing.

Andrew

"There is no demand for that car so Reeces dont make one"
"There is no demand for that car so Reeces dont make one"
"There is no demand for that car so Reeces dont make one"
"There is no demand for that car so Reeces dont make one"
"There is no demand for that car so Reeces dont make one"
"There is no demand for that car so Reeces dont make one"
"There is no demand for that car so Reeces dont make one"
"There is no demand for that car so Reeces dont make one"
"There is no demand for that car so Reeces dont make one"
"There is no demand for that car so Reeces dont make one"

10 shops, same answer. Only place different was Towbar City who were great. They asked how many people were interested and if I would come in and let them have a look at the car.

I need to get into the city this week anyway, so I was going to pop in and see what they say. I have readup on the previous issues with split under body, etc.

How many people are interested in one of these?

Andrew

I wouldn't mind one for my bike rack.
Probably prefer the type that fits through the crest and has a removable square tube, like a Reece.

Yeah I was going to go for that.

When I spoke to the guy at Towbar City he was flaberghasted at the problems reported so far.

Anyway, soon as I hear from draco and xatnep I will be heading in.

Andrew

I'm interested, but I am long way from Sydney.. I would like to see one as nice as the ones on the 6 and MPV- with a removeable tounge.. :)

Thanks for checking this out for us..

Well I am sure that once one is done that its just a parts shuffle up to Brisvegas.

When you say removable tongue do you mean like a sqaure tube that can be removed and added as needs be?

Andrew

I wish I had taken a photo of it, but it was a big plate than fitted in a slot with a 20mm pin with thread that kept it in place... See if you can find someone with a Mazda 6 or MPV with the genuine tow bar... When you don't need it just remove it and the car looks like it was never fitted with a tow bar...

One of our very own forum members has a towbar fitted to his 8.
From what I have seen it is very descrete,he has the tounge sticking out of the rotor crest section in the rear bumper and when the towbar is not in use he simply removes it .

Drop kanen8 a PM if anyone is interested ;)

Regards Daz

One of our very own forum members has a towbar fitted to his 8.
From what I have seen it is very descrete,he has the tounge sticking out of the rotor crest section in the rear bumper and when the towbar is not in use he simply removes it .

Drop kanen8 a PM if anyone is interested ;)

Regards Daz

Unless he reads the forum its pointless at the moment as email is not working. If you know of him, get him to post what he knows.

Andrew

I'm interested. It looked like that problem in the states was a one off. Other guys with that particular tow bar have not had the same problem.

According to this kanen8's one and only post, TonyM has his number: https://www.rx8club.com/showpost.php...9&postcount=72

sco and phorum search strikes again. phorum as in Phark it's the Phantom

C'mon Lock & Load, you know it makes sense....

(Photo courtesy of Brother Voodoo)

That photo is scary. I hope it's a joke.

On the other hand, I think an RX-8 towing a sporty jetski would look dead sexy. A real lifestyle statement. The babes would love it.

Well Draco and xatnep have gone dead quiete so worst case I will pop in Friday. Will let you know then.

Andrew

Yes you can get a Towbar for your 8!
 

Yep you can get a Towbar for your 8, yep you can get one in Sydney, yes they work just fine, and yes they are under $1000 (only just)

When i go on Holidays each year i wanted to be able to tow at least one of these with me. (yep the Blue Seadoo looks very SEXY behind the 8).
I did all the research, rang every towbar shop in Australia and found one place that will do it. It cost $1000, took a day to engineer and install, but its an excellent peice of work.

The Mazda manual says towing capacity is 700kg's, but my Jetski and Tiny wouldnt be more than about 300kg's. They create very little drag on the car when accelerating too.

The goose neck pops out through the 'Rotor' crest and when i take the neck off (i keep a socket kit in the boot) you couldnt even tell i had one. I bet not one person knew i had one on the Rotor cruise up the coast a few weeks ago.

If you want one, drop me an email at rx8@kanen7.com and ill forward you the details. Im not sure if i should post the info, so email me.

Ill go take a photo now, and post the picture up.

Kane

Towbar through the Rotor crest
 

Excuse the dirt, I promise ill wash it this weekend.

As you can see from the pics, i slide the goose neck in through the crest and then bolt it from underneath. (2 bolts)
Power for trailer indicators/brakes is via a ribon cable that is in the boot. I run it through the closed boot seal to the trailer plug.
Takes about 2 mins to bolt it up.
Kane

And so he does read the forum.....not every one is a post whore :)

Daz

Well I went to towbar city today and the guy freaked when he saw the floor pan. He said he could see why some people had had problems. He reckons that those that had problems would have had things like bike racks attached which get a lot of leverage placed on the bar. he reckons low down load (like towing a seadoo) wouldnt cause problems. It kinda made sense.

Kane, I dont see a problem with posting details here. Worse case, go create a post in the .au forum.

Can you find out if the guy will send the parts else where with fitting instructions? and how much?

Andrew

He is so a post whore ... He is so bad, he has lapped the counter ;-)

Andrew

Towbar Details
 

Because im such a post whore... and cause auzoom says its ok :)
The shop that builds them is

Rallyspeed
10 Mclachlan road
Artarmon, NSW
Phone : 94392100

He charges about $1000 per build and install, but ask for a price, he might have dropped it.

Let me know how you go.
Kane

Yep this is the style I wanted.. https://www.rx8club.com/attachment.p...chmentid=54177

Thanks kanen8 for telling us about this.. I will give them a call in a couple of weeks...

They have a website and e-mail address

e-mail:
coreven@rallyspeed.com.au

Website:
www.rallyspeed.com.au