hi all, has any one had issues with towing electrics. Our yeti tow bar is being fitted at skoda dealers, the confusion is regarding power to fridge when in transit, anyone else had this problem. cheers

This is an issue that comes up time and time again as concerns vehicles from the VW group; my previous Touran included. If ordering new i.e. not a car on the showroom floor, but directly from the factory, then FULL electrics needs to be specified and this adds a bit to the cost. The reason that full electrics is generally not added by an after-fit is because the cable required for the fridge needs to be run from the front of the vehicle and from a relay at the ignition switch end and this is obviously much easier to achieve whilst the vehicle is being constructed at the factory. This ensures that power to the fridge is only available when the engine is running to prevent the possibility of ending up with a flat battery. If you decide to have the extra run of cable fitted then you should ensure that this cable runs from front to back as described earlier and not simply tapped into the loom at the rear of the vehicle etc. In some vehicle this requires a fair amount of panel removal so be prepared to pay for the extra work involved. Alternatively, if your planned trips aren't going to involve long overnight ferry crossings etc then ensuring that everything you put into the fridge is very cold already in addition to throwing in a few cool blocks should keep the temperature acceptably down.

I ordered a new 4x4 Octavia Estate from the main dealer 6 years ago, still going strong.
I was advised that ordering the 13 pin electrics from the factory was a waste as it did not include battery charging and fridge power. The tow bar was fitted at the dealer's before I picked it up. It was a massive job getting all the trim out from front to back, they broke one piece of trim that had to be replaced. The whole job added £900 to the final price.
I've since had a lot of the trim out myself to fit additional sound proofing, easy when you now how and can find a guide on Youtube :)

Hmm, this has made me think. My 63 Yeti was 6 months old when I got it and I had the tow bar and electrics fitted at a local centre. It was a Westfalia detachable swan neck with fold down electrics. I assumed the fridge was connected. I need to check. I guess I just plug it all in, switch the fridge to battery and see if the blue light is on? However, is this running off the leisure battery and is that being charged by the car, or is it just draining the leisure battery. How does one tell?

Thanks.

thanks everyone for all your input, been very helpful

I'll check after winter - Thanks Colin.

Quote: eribaMotters wrote in post #10

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PhilipM,
just to confuse you further, the engine of your Yeti does NOT need to be running, you just need the ignition to be turned on. I checked this with Skoda UK because it does not seem to be correct, but that is how it is set up.

If your car ignition is turned on it would be possible to drain the car battery if you do not run the engine.

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I bought a Skoda Octavia estate with 7 pin electrics from the UK ( the dealer had assured me it was 13 pin???) I arranged for the local NorAuto to change to a 13 pin for the Fridge and interior, after 2 hours they said it would take a further 4 hours and another 200 euros so tey put the panels back as I had another appointment and off I drove.
The towbar fitter in Evesham, UK who I had used to change my previous Berlingo from 7 to 13 has quoted me £140 to change the socket to 13 pin but having now looked at the above post's and the prices paid what questions should I ask if any? I have used them before to fit 2 towbars + electrics (7 pin) and various other electrical fittings, 12volt adapter for the cool box etc

Zitat

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what questions should I ask if any?

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For me the important bit is getting the fridge working while being towed, another thing is charging the van battery while towing, a lesser problem if like me you rarely go off grid as I have a built in battery charger with my after market fitted battery which keeps it charged via the site hookups.