X5 towing experience and fuel economy

[webbcar]

Towing a double horse float with 2 horses with horse gear and 5 people. We average 14.5 L/100km. Mostly open road driving at 90km/hr

[snik]

Wow. So BMW just said screw the hitch cutout on the E70s on?


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[Skyline]

Originally Posted by snik

Wow. So BMW just said screw the hitch cutout on the E70s on?


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It's no big deal to make the cut-out neatly. But as I mentioned earlier, there's no need to make a cut out at all if you get the Execuhitch.

[Entropy]

Originally Posted by Skyline

It's no big deal to make the cut-out neatly. But as I mentioned earlier, there's no need to make a cut out at all if you get the Execuhitch.

Seems pretty spendy compared to the Curt Mfg hitch?

[Skyline]

Originally Posted by Entropy

Seems pretty spendy compared to the Curt Mfg hitch?

The extra $332 to not spoil the looks of the car with a big hole in the bumper cover were worth it to me. Since I'm only towing a small percentage of time, the hitch is fully hidden when not in use. You make your own call.

Also, I don't know the actual rating of the Curt hitch, but the Execuhitch is the BMW dealer installed option in Europe, and they rate it at 7,700lbs. The hitch that's installed in the US dealers is rated at 7,500lbs. Why there's this difference, I have no clue, but it's not uncommon in Europe to see compact cars towing seemingly impossibly large caravans, so maybe they just have different standards. When you buy from a third party, do you have any real assurance as to the actual rating of the hitch? Granted the car has a certain tow capability declared, but that assumes the hitch is properly designed for the car. The factory hitch available in the US from BMW is much closer to the price of the Execuhitch. I can not explain why BMW uses a different style hitch in the US and Europe, but the Execuhitch is a little more tricky to mount the ball assembly, (easy once you get the hang of it,) so maybe they figured they could not trust stupid Americans to do it right. It also requires you to reach under the car to get at the receiver lock and hand lever; so perhaps this was a consideration as well.

[blue dragon]

Jesus, you keep saying that and its not so. Westfalia makes the BMW hitch in Europe
https://www.westfalia-automotive.com/en/company/

[Crowz]

Originally Posted by blue dragon

Jesus, you keep saying that and its not so. Westfalia makes the BMW hitch in Europe
https://www.westfalia-automotive.com/en/company/

That's the one Im going with.

[snik]

Originally Posted by blue dragon

Jesus, you keep saying that and its not so. Westfalia makes the BMW hitch in Europe
https://www.westfalia-automotive.com/en/company/

Yep. Looks just like the OEM one sitting in my garage waiting to get mounted, for the most part.
https://www.westfalia-automotive.com...111-303137.pdf

Thanks for the link. I now have instructions.


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[Entropy]

Originally Posted by Skyline

The extra $332 to not spoil the looks of the car with a big hole in the bumper cover were worth it to me. Since I'm only towing a small percentage of time, the hitch is fully hidden when not in use. You make your own call.

Also, I don't know the actual rating of the Curt hitch, but the Execuhitch is the BMW dealer installed option in Europe, and they rate it at 7,700lbs. The hitch that's installed in the US dealers is rated at 7,500lbs. Why there's this difference, I have no clue, but it's not uncommon in Europe to see compact cars towing seemingly impossibly large caravans, so maybe they just have different standards. When you buy from a third party, do you have any real assurance as to the actual rating of the hitch? Granted the car has a certain tow capability declared, but that assumes the hitch is properly designed for the car. The factory hitch available in the US from BMW is much closer to the price of the Execuhitch. I can not explain why BMW uses a different style hitch in the US and Europe, but the Execuhitch is a little more tricky to mount the ball assembly, (easy once you get the hang of it,) so maybe they figured they could not trust stupid Americans to do it right. It also requires you to reach under the car to get at the receiver lock and hand lever; so perhaps this was a consideration as well.

The Curt hitch sits below the bumper. No cutout, but you can see the receiver hanging down below the bumper.

[bono]

To be precise - Westfalia and Oris make EURO hitches for BMW. Appears that Oris merged with Bosal?

Originally Posted by blue dragon

Jesus, you keep saying that and its not so. Westfalia makes the BMW hitch in Europe
https://www.westfalia-automotive.com/en/company/