Hi all,

I have just completed my sync 3 retrofit and the next thing on my to-do list is add a towbar to my 2014 focus titanium navigator. Im after a removeable towbar but I came across a genuine ford electric release tow bar system, where the towbar is stored behind the bumper (not sure if anyone is familiar with this). I had a look for the Tow Prep connectors earlier but didnt really know what I was looking for. - I came across a grey connector behind the right side removable carpet patch (in the boot) and Im sure that when I was looking, I saw a green connector wrapped in tape (on the left side), which I brushed off as I thought it was just part of the harness, until a second ago when I read through the a forum about tow bar installs on a focus and saw the same connector.

After all of that nonsence, can someone clarify whether these are the connectors from the trailer prep kit?

Secondly, does anyone have any experience in installing the ford electric towbar system to cars that didnt come with it (I have seen a video of it done on a kuga but the wiring and layout looked very different and I was confused).

Many thanks,

The electrically retractable towbar was only available from the factory. Ford officially stated that retrofitting is not possible. Therefore, there is not a single form of support from Ford.

It is however possible to retrofit the electrically retractable towbar, but you need to be absolutely sure that every single part and wiring is included. Many of the electrically retractable towbar parts are no longer available (or have never been available) as spare parts from Ford.

If you really want the electrically retractable towbar, I strongly recommend disassembling it yourself from the donor vehicle. This is the only way to be absolutely certain that every single part is included and to see how all parts are installed. As said, there is not a single form of support from Ford. No technical documentation, no wiring schematics, etc.


Also be aware that the electrically retractable towbar is a very sensitive piece of equipment. First, there are the electrical errors. Second, there are there are the well-known mechanical errors. After a few years, many of these fail due to failure of the internal plastic gears. This is extremely difficult to solve due to the unavailability of internal parts. I strongly recommend making absolutely sure the electrically retractable towbar is in fully working order without errors before even considering buying.

The most common fix in case of broken plastic gears is removing the electric motor, manually putting it in the extended, locked position and re-installing the electric motor. After this the towing hook is no longer electrically retractable and must be considered a fixed towbar.

In my opinion a removable towbar is much more reliable and less hassle to install.

Many thanks for this reply @JW1982. I am gonna do some research for good removeable towbars then :)

I had a Westfalia detachable towbar a few years ago. Good quality and completely hidden with the swan neck removed.

I've had a few removable towbars and I prefer the Tow-Trust ones. The mechanism seems to be very easy to operate when installing or removing the neck compared to some others.

Many thanks for the suggestions! My other question is whether the trailer tow module has to be a genuine ford one or not?

I would use a genuine trailer tow module if intending to tow a caravan as it knows when a trailer is connected and alters some settings in the car (disables rear parking sensors and fog lights, adjusts abs, esc, trailer sway control and may affect gear change points on an automatic).

If you are only intending to tow a little un-braked trailer the cheap generic wiring will be adequate for occasional use.

I strongly recommend using a CANbus controlled trailer tow module. This can either be the original Ford module or an aftermarket one like for example a vehicle specific Jaeger or ECS CANbus controlled module (which have the exact same functionality as the original Ford module).

I strongly advice against a universal trailer tow relay. I have seen this go wrong quite a few times and a fried BCM is a lot more expensive than the vehicle specific CANbus controlled trailer module.