OEM-type Trailer hitch group buy
 

Folks,

I am pretty new to the X5 world, but not new to BMW's. After reading extensively about the lack of trailer hitches here in the USA, I contacted my fellow Volvo friend in Germany. He's a mechanic by night, and a computer engineer by day...anyhow...

I asked him what the options were in the EU for towing hitches in the EU, as I know their regulations are *much* more strict than ours, and there was no way that they would get away with a "draw tite" or a "curt" hitch over there.

He offered a couple options, either with a fixed ball, or a removable ball. Both are made by Thule. These hitches come with a 3500kg tow rating (7700#) and are held in by 12 bolts, in two planes, with substantial attachment to the frame.

There is not a whole lot of literature in English, but I do have a little bit, in a PDF file.

Price is 420 EUROS - plus tax and shipping. Shipping is pricey, but if we could get a few, and send a crate, it would be cheaper than just buying one.

I plan on towing with my X5 - my modified cherokee on a trailer with gear for 4 wheeling...so having a safe and secure hitch for long distance tows is of great importance to me. I will not compromise on a hitch for safety and reliability.

The hitch comes with a 50mm ball (1.96"), and in discussions with Bram, I think this is close enough to 2" that I'll not be concerned towing it with a 2" reciever. Sadly, this is the only size ball available with the kit, though you could order a 1& 7/8 ball for additonal money. This hitch is hidden, and the ball is removeable for storage.

I'll be happy to answer any questions you may have, either here or off-list.

Hope this allows some of you to resolve the towing issues...

Oh, by the way - the European harness does not appear to work on US -spec vehicles. Still double-checking that, but that appears to be the information found thus far.

What brand hitch is it- Westfalia or Bosal? Those are the big 2 in Europe.

Let me offer my thoughts as you go down this road. Several years ago the Audi allroad people had the same problem- the factory US hitch was discontinued and a lot of us wanted to tow with the allroad (3500lb capability). A lot of research went into the European parts. Here's some of what we discovered:

European hitches don't have the brackets for saftey chains. Not used in EU but required by law in the US. So some sort of brackets will have to be fabbed or you'll be illegal.

As you stated, European hitches are 50mm. The ball is a machined part of the dropout and not replaceable. This might be suitable for a 3000 lb jet ski but in the US virtually all car haulers are a 2-5/16 coupler. One trailer manufacturer that was making 6000 lb capacity trailers with a 2" coupler was sued back in the 90's when the ball broke. Most 2" balls are not rated for even 5000 lbs. This can be overcome by custom fabbing a new dropout that has a 90 degree bend and has a flat plate with a hole for a US ball to be bolted on.

Technically, the EU hitches with a kg rating are not legal for US because they do not have a rating in pounds.

Don't know if this applies to the X5, but with the allroad, the bumper is attached to the hitch just as with the original bumper shocks. but the European bumpers are different than US because of the 5 mph US standards. Having done my own installation on my X5, I know the bumper mounts to the hitch, but just don't know if a European model bumper is different than a US. I can't imagine why since they're all made in the US, but with BMW, you never know.


Regardless of these problems, a lot of Audi guys have used the Westfalia European hitches. The cure to the safety chains is to weld on 2 large steel chain links (found at most Farm and Fleet type stores). Simple and easy. The dropout is modded by cutting the EU part right at the 90 degree bend, then welding and gusseting a flat 1/4" steel plate sticking out the back with a hole for the ball. Almost any good trailer supply shop can fab this with off the shelf parts. They can even supply the steel plate with an "s" bend to get the ball closer to the ground if necessary. (FWIW, I need a 3.75" drop to use with my trailer to keep it level. If I used a straight out ball mount, the tongue of the trailer was way too high in the air which puts too much load on the rear axles and tires, and causes sway.)

These are all small hurdles in comparison to getting the actual hitch. The Curt and others that require drilling holes in sheet metal are not only poor substitutes, but are putting loads on the thin chassis sheet metal in areas not designed for the loads. Getting a hitch designed for mounting in place of the bumper shocks and utilizing chassis holes designed for these loads is 90% of the battle. Good luck, and can't wait to see what one looks like

Really the wiring harness is the problem. No?

ECS has the trailer module available - http://www.ecstuning.com/stage/edpd/...aign=postreply

trailer module is available but the wiring harness that plugs into module is on intergalatic back order with the hitch assembly.

What brand hitch is it- Westfalia or Bosal? neither his states Thule

Rather OT but you have my curiosity - you said you have an XJ for offroading? What kinda stuff do you have done to it? I had an XJ for years that I loved that had a F8.8" w/ARB, beefed up D30 w/ARB, 4.56s, 35" MTRs, hybrid long arm lift ~7" with trimming also, ARB front bumper, safari rack, etc etc. Curious to know what you're running!

ncsucarjock, I am installing a cheapo curt hitch temporarliy for towing a 4x8 utility trailer w/ 3 wheelers on it, but would be interested in this because I would have absolutely no problem modding it for a regular hitch ball and safeth chains. I am actually fabbing up my own internal frame braces similar to the OEM hitch out of square steel bar and some steel plate.

My question is would you be able to get some pics of the hitch setup? (installed or not) What would the price look like for parts/shipping. And lastly could you send me the PDF?

to answer a few questions. Bosal makes a hitch, but it's not rated for as much as the Thule hitch. For my purposes, I"m only interested in the maximum weight allowed...just seems that "overkill" is prudent when it comes to a trailer hitch.

The XJ: Mine's rather stock - I have the dana 30/35 f/r both open (for now) with a 3" lift, and 32" Super Swamper TSL's on it. Rear disc conversion, and custom made steel front bumper with tow points, and a winch that's attaches to either the front or rear receiver.

As far as the rest of the hitch is concerned, price is about $650, plus shipping. Shipping costs could be as much as 250 for one hitch, or less than 80 if we get a few and have them crated. It will take some time (5-7 weeks) to get them ordered, crated, and here on the docks in NC. Then I'll farm them out from here...so...you're probably talking 8 weeks from the time of order.

As far as safety chains go, that's an easy fix. The Ball would be an easy fix as well, with just a little time to fab something up.

I'll attempt to attach the .pdf's to this posting so that you can see what I'm looking at. I apologize that some of it is upside-down, that's the way it was sent to me.

Evan