9 replies to this topic

[Steve Crisp]

Hi, I was just mulling over how weak the VX towing eye was, as a few of us have snapped them off quite easily. Say we needed a tow and they used a rope. If the towing-eye broke under tow it could cause a loss of control but hopefully nothing too serious (maybe). Say it was towed using one of those pole-thingies. There wouldn't be a driver in the VX, so the car would just dissapear off into the bushes, or something much more serious than that. Who would be responsible? 1. Us because we know it's weak. 2. Vauxhall because it's not fit for the purpose. 3. The towing people for using it when it clearly wouldn't cope. Any thoughts? Should we solicit a clear "statement of use" from Vauxhall? Steve

[jimgraham]

not fit for purpose so it would be a claim against vauxhall IMO. It clearly states what the towing eye is for in the manual - surely that is where the responsibility would lie??

[da_murphster]

ohhh....worrying! I'm certain Vaux would try and wash their hands of blame, esp if car was out of warrenty. Isnt the lotus design the same, this must have been covered before if it is?

[the_bollix]

Say it was towed using one of those pole-thingies.

I'm not hot on the latest technology used in recovery but;

I was pulled out of a ditch by a pole thingy last friday and it defo required a driver/steerer. (We rolled our rally car....well, car we were rallying , on a tight left hander!!)

On the road isn't the pole thingy just a solid tow rope thus necessitating a 'steerer'.

[Thorney]

Flatbed only I simp,y told the AA that the car could only be flatbedded as it would be damaged otherwise. When they suggested they tried I politely suggested they hard hard job with me fighting them tooth and nail

[SPLAM]

Thorney, Shiny Andys Boss. I like it.

[speedyK]

The structure that the towing hook attaches to is actually fairly robust. The solution is to make this accessible. I have cut a hole in the grille big enough to get your hand into. This is normally concealed by my Union Jack roundel. The standard tow hook mounting point is retained (having the hook mounted is a requirement that is checked by marshalls at some events). Should it be necessary, it is a moments work to remove the roundel to get a stable towing point. This has already paid off: on track, when I suffered a clutch failure halfway round the circuit, I had to be towed back to the paddock. We attached the tow rope around this structure rather than the to the tow hook or risking a suspension arm. No probs.

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[garyk220]

Since the towing eye is mounted to the crash limiter, which is only bonded to the chassis, I wouldn't want my car to be towed any distance with this. The forces involved as the slack rope goes tight can be much higher than the weight of the car. Hauling the car onto a flatbed, pulling it from a gravel trap, or recovering it to the pitlane is as far as I'd use it.

[benw]

Hmmmm....it's an interesting question. In the event the car got damaged I think it would have to be a toss up between Vauxhall and the breakdown company. Vauxhall have a responsibility, by law, to provide a towing eye suitible for flat towing the car. You could argue that this towing eye isn't suitible but Vauxhall would argue that the towing eye design was approved for use by the government inspectors and is only intended to move the vehicle short distances and not for long-haul or high speed towing. The breakdown company have a responsibility to ensure they safeguard your vehicle during it's recovery. Any damage done by them has to be paid for by them unless they inform you. In this case they will tell you that you either accept damage to your vehicle or they refuse to tow. So I guess, unless the patrol man says 'That towing eye is rubbish and might snap - thus sending your car in to the scenery' they should accept some responsibility.

[Pidgeon]

Steve, your hypothesis is flawed in one respect, a single point tow has to have a driver in the car. A driverless tow requires two mounting points, usually front wishbones which would be impossible in a VX. The point of the pole is that the dummy being towed cannot drive into the back of the towing vehicle. As to liability, IMO would be the person towing in the first instance, they could try to shift the blame to VX, but that would not be our problem. My recent experience was that the patrol requested a flatbed as he could see the eye was not up to the job. His control agreed.