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Old 04-07-2019, 03:09 PM
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Being a Good Samaritan in Inclement weather

Good Afternoon everyone,

Just wanted to get some outside opinion of utility use for the greater good with an E53.

I know some SUVs are equipped with low range for climbing hills and pulling heavy loads, but I don't think the X5 has this capability... at least not on the 3.0i -- so when inclement weather strikes and there is someone off the road, can you safely pull them out without risking mechanical damage to the gearbox?

A few times this last winter I pulled my fair share of pickups out of medians and ditches on the interstate and offered rides when it was jammed into mud and debris.

Could have just gotten lucky not to over do it and break anything, what do you guys think about this matter?
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Old 04-07-2019, 03:42 PM
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I would think that as long as you don’t exceed the factory spec towing capacity or total load rating of what the factory hitch recommends (which I believe is about 6000lbs) that you would be fine.

That said, I wouldn’t do any “yanking or tugging”, just a nice smooth pull.
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Old 04-07-2019, 09:25 PM
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Those front and rear tow hooks can take some serious yanking. And yes. We have one in the rear too.
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Old 04-07-2019, 09:30 PM
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I have a rear hitch on mine, never seemed to have any problems with a tandem trailer moving debris, patio pavers and the like. Think I've only ever loaded 2900lbs of materials with it.

...But thats somewhat reassuring that is has such a capacity for a smooth pull.
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Old 04-08-2019, 07:53 AM
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Can’t find the video now. But there was an e53 stuck in one of those off roading mud holes. And some crazy off road Jeep snatch recovered the x5 by literally yanking on that tow hook. I thought the front clip would rip out. Nope. Car came out. So I think if a 5k lb x5 can be yanked out super violent, taking it easy to help someone wont be a problem.
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Old 04-08-2019, 10:18 AM
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Being a Good Samaritan in Inclement weather

I would agree the X can take a yank, I was more thinking of the t-case and diffs in the X not giving a yank. I wouldn’t call them fragile, but I wouldn’t want to blow one up either... dunno- maybe they’re tougher than I think they are, but I sure wouldn’t get a running start to yank a jeep out of 2 feet of snow with my X...
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Old 04-08-2019, 11:58 AM
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i've pulled cars out of a parallel parking spot sideways and i'd do it again. Here's a little trick that i use in such cases that puts a lot less strain on the transmission; do it sideways. You not only put less force on the transmission you also multiply the force on the chain and get a lot more control.

I did it that way in this case so i wouldn't block both lanes of traffic; i was parallel to the car i was pulling sideways out of the stuck spot (less than 2' of space front +back to other cars and a 4" tall bump if ice/snow the car was stuck behind).

I hooked up my front EYE to something substantial under the other car, and i drove back and forth about 2' and just turned the wheel exactly like you would perform a parallel parking maneuver. It pulled the front of the other car straight sideways until both wheels were out of the rut and the front of the car cleared the other parked cars.

I can't remember if i had to follow up with pulling the car forward out of there but that worked so well i used the same method (zig zag) whenever i can get the car into such a position.

I've measured 3.8g acceleration on my car that means every time i hit the throttle hard at low speed i'm pushing with just shy of a ton of force through my drive train.

If you can't pull a guy out of a ditch with a ton (literal not figurative) of force, then you might both need a tow truck at that point.

There is a video of a guy using an X5 to pull a semi out of mud; using a 'tug' method with a nylon strap and some momentum; X5 also in mud so that helps reduce the strain on the drive train i suppose.

BMW does specify the amount of force allowed on the EYE bolt and the trailer ball can handle quite a lot more, so I use the trailer ball when I do a straight pull. The front eye gives me a lot more control and in winter i leave the eye installed and my 20' chain and a couple 10' nylon lifting slings are usually also in my car.
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Old 04-08-2019, 09:56 PM
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I pulled a golf gti some shit out of my driveway clean across the street and down the block. Didn’t even feel that shit burning rubber down the block. It was a manual, in gear, and handbrake on. Cops gave him a ticket but it didn’t solve my immediate need to get into my garage and leave for the airport. Cops watched me do it too. Fun times.
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Old 04-08-2019, 10:49 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by SlickGT1 View Post
I pulled a golf gti some shit out of my driveway clean across the street and down the block. Didn’t even feel that shit burning rubber down the block. It was a manual, in gear, and handbrake on. Cops gave him a ticket but it didn’t solve my immediate need to get into my garage and leave for the airport. Cops watched me do it too. Fun times.
I wish I could have seen that.
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Old 04-08-2019, 11:11 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by SlickGT1 View Post
I pulled a golf gti some shit out of my driveway clean across the street and down the block. Didn’t even feel that shit burning rubber down the block. It was a manual, in gear, and handbrake on. Cops gave him a ticket but it didn’t solve my immediate need to get into my garage and leave for the airport. Cops watched me do it too. Fun times.
Excellent! I’ll remember that one.
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