Towing and parking sensors

[Pontius]

Hi All,
Have a 23 plate Kombi with detachable tow trust towbar. When the bike rack is connected the lights on the rack work fine but in reverse, the sensors ping continuously. Are they supposed to and I just have to turn off the sensors manually on the dash or are they supposed to be deactivated when the rack is connected?

TIA.

 

[manfrotto]

I assume your bike rack does not have its own lights? The VW towbar electrics detects trailer lights connected to determine if it deactivates rear parking sensors, so if you bike rack doesn't have lights it won't deactivate the parking sensors.

 

[Deaky]

If your bike rack does have lights then it sounds like you have a basic bypass relay for the towing socket and not a dedicated loom. You can either swap the towing electrics which will detect a trailer connected, disarm the reverse sensors, change the stability program, turn the fog light off on the van so only the trailer lights up and also gives you a rudimentary alarm on the trailer, or keep pushing the P button to silence the sensors.

 

[Pontius]

Have Thule veloapace. All lights on it. They all work fine and van lights also work at the same time. Had it done at Leighton and initially the boot stopped opening altogether afterwards. They said everything they had done was correct but took to Dav-Tec who said some nodules missing in the coding and sorted the boot out. Just wondering if it needs more coding?

 

[Deaky]

Sounds like you do have a dedicated loom. Maybe the coding in the PDC module 10 needs looking at.

 

[Absolut5]

Coding sounds to be off, they shouldn’t sound

 

[dandan88]

Mine don’t sound either with caravan or cycle rack on the tow hitch. All fitted by @Absolut5

 

[manfrotto]

Have Thule veloapace. All lights on it. They all work fine and van lights also work at the same time. Had it done at Leighton and initially the boot stopped opening altogether afterwards. They said everything they had done was correct but took to Dav-Tec who said some nodules missing in the coding and sorted the boot out. Just wondering if it needs more coding?

Have you tried connecting something other than the bike rack ( just to eliminate that from the equation) ?
When I installed my towbar electrics (it had towbar prep already) no coding was required.
You could also double check that you have towbar prep - the ECU for it is under the drivers seat, and there should be a code on the build sheet (normally under the dash below steering. For a VW T6 Transporter, the towbar preparation code is 1D7 if the vehicle has factory towbar preparation, and 1D0 if it does not.

 

[Paynewright]

I fitted my own Westfalia tow bar and electrics - it took me a couple of goes to get the coding right. Now no reversing sensors when the trailer board plugged in.

 

[Pontius]

Thanks all. Don’t have anything else to connect to it to check. Is an aftermarket tow trust Towbar. I do t know what Towbar prep is.
Will get someone who knows about these things to look at the coding and sort it