Quote: Agger wrote in post #7
That's very annoying, worrying and sad. It's annoying as it has spoilt your pleasure of ownership and made you question whether or not you have made the right choice! It's worrying because you will always have doubt in your mind due to the failure of the original fitment which should of been fully tested on installation! It's sad as you now have your dream choice of tow vehicle and Eriba spoilt by the memory of this problem.
Personaly I'd be sorting out a heavy discount if not free towbar and fitment (you have to remain calm and unflustered, be professional and be prepared to threaten legal action (Why!) They have supplied and fitted a towbar which in this case is unfit for puurpose, a new one might be, but this original fitment which as I say should of been fully professionally fitted, tested and demonstrated to you.
I don't think there's any suggestion that the towbar wasn't professionally fitted. It's entirely possible that had the towbar been demonstrated (presupposing that it wasn't) it would have functioned perfectly at the time, and indeed have continued to do so.
They don't all go wrong.
If they did, Bosal would have been obliged to redesign it. If there was a safety issue they would have been obliged to recall them all for modification or replacement.
People are quick to complain - with every justification - when things fail to do what they are supposed to, but very rarely offer the counterpoint of praise when they function as intended.
I've got a Bosal detachable, and it detached when required to. I stopped taking it off because it was a faff, and I was glad of the protection it offered from infuriating park-by-feel drivers.
Our is now jammed on too, but it doesn't affect me because I choose not to detach it. Clearly that doesn't exonerate Bosal if the problem
is a design flaw. Of course it doesn't. And I have every sympathy with those who are inconvenienced or upset if it doesn't work properly.
However, you have to bear in mind that all towbars have to meet stringent requirements and approvals before they are marketed, and that detachable ones will have been designed so that if the locking mechanism jams it will jam on rather than simply allowing the hitch to drop off.
In my case I'm happy to admit that I almost certainly contributed to the lock jamming. I haven't touched it for years, never mind routinely removed it and lubricated the mechanism. It's in a pretty exposed location, vulnerable to the ravages of constant drenching with filthy water and salt in winter, and few things in that kind of situation will continue to work faultlessly without periodic attention.
None of this is an attempt to excuse Bosal if the hitch on a new towbar jams on. I completely understand and sympathise with Ken's irritation, and I would be expecting it to be sorted PDQ as well, not least because it'll still be under warranty.
All I'm trying to do is put it in some kind of perspective. Just because there have been some documented cases of locking mechanisms jamming doesn't mean they all have, or that they all will. Sh*t happens. Nothing is perfect. Things break and fail because they can.
My own view, for what it's worth, is that to allow it to spoil your enjoyment of the car and caravan, rue their choice or spend sleepless nights fretting about the structural integrity of the towbar or its installation is an unnecessary overreaction.
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