This past weekend I installed a trailer hitch on my 2006 4.4i. The DIY instructions made the job much easier and filled in many of the gaps where the BMW instructions assumed a knowledge of how these vehicles are put together. Thanks to all who took the time to document the process and share it with others.
A few notes from my experience:
1. The entire job can be done by yourself although I would highly recommend two people to reinstall/align the rear bumper. I have a minor nick on the top of my bumper from doing this by myself using everything I had in my garage to shim the bumper to the correct height.
2. Make sure you install the trailer harness before you mount the hitch. I got so excited I forgot to do this and there is no way to sneak the harness through after the hitch is mounted. Save yourself some disassembly and follow the instructions here.
3. The hitch kit I received was slightly different than the ones in the DIY. I am guessing BMW has changed the hitch slightly and there were no spacers in my kit and the bolts were different lengths. Everything fit so I believe the spacers have been incorporated into the hitch design.
4. The PDC connector is on the lower right side of the cargo area next the the hatch. I had conflicting information and this may have been changed over model years but the harness has a silver label which is marked PDC as well as some other things.
Again thanks to all who took the time to help others like myself with this project and saving $800 is always a good thing.
Next project....a brake controller.
08-08-2006, 12:41 AM
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