Tow Hitch Recommendations
 

Hey guys, looking into purchasing a tow hitch for my 35d. I was looking at the OEM one they have listing on ESC tuning but searching google and looking at some of the pictures, I don't feel like cutting up my rear bumper. I've seen some that have the tow hitch located right below the bumper which is probably not OEM. For those of you who have tow hitches installed, what do you guys recommended? Any pros and cons OEM vs aftermarket? I'm going to be hauling a small trailer (5x8 or 10) and a travel trailer in the future. Any advice is appreciated.

You don’t have to cut the huge hole in your bumper to use the OEM hitch kit.
I cut only enough to let the 2” receiver poke thru. I shimmed the electrical socket to rotate it downward a little bit, allowing me to plug in the trailer without any hole in the bumper. I think it’s much less obvious than OEM

You don’t have to cut the huge hole in your bumper to use the OEM hitch kit.
I cut only enough to let the 2” receiver poke thru. I shimmed the electrical socket to rotate it downward a little bit, allowing me to plug in the trailer without any hole in the bumper. I think it’s much less obvious than OEM

OEM hitch and wiring harness go for about $400 from dealership. I went OEM route for perfect fitment.

I like how that looks. Any pictures of the bottom so I can see how the socket looks?

Socket mounts to the hitch via a bracket and 4 machine screws. You can cut the bracket off and weld it back tilted downward. I got lazy and put a stack of washers under the top screws which tilts it downward. I do recall trimming the of the silver-horizontal part of the bumper (part you can’t see) to provide space for the trailer hookup plug to access the socket. Once you see it in front of you it’s obvious what to trim.

Hitch
 

I just installed Curt Hitch and OEM wiring harness, love it. I also used a Curt Easy Mount Electrical Bracket #5800. Great combo.
I ordered them separately, thinking I could to wiring harness after the fact without removing bumper cover- wrong. Best to do all three at once.

I went with the OEM hitch and harness. Hitch install was straightforward. I recommend getting the HF rivet tool and sample kit of plastic rivets to reattach your fender trim. Harness was a challenge routing it up to the front passenger area because of all the panels and sills you had to remove. As others have done, I did not cut the HUGE opening in the rear valance. I had a friend help narrow the factory provide trim frame and rotate the plug mount downward for access from below. A much cleaner appearance, but a little more difficult to install your tow bar and connector your trailer harness.

This is perfect! Why did you need to route your harness to the front passenger area?

How about a hitch that is invisible when not in use? These seem to be the standard in Europe..

Execuhitch - Manufacturer and Retailer of Hidden Tow Hitches for BMW, Mercedes, Subaru

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uXK9PtfU0vY

Edit: I'd still use the factory wiring harness though..

I LOVE my wireless Prodigy controller. Made wiring trivial and it disappears when I’m not towing.

I did not go straight down with the plug but kept it angled rearward because I was concerned about the trailer harness hanging down too far. Yes I could have put on an angled plug onto the trailer harness. I find the angled orientation easier to use than straight down.

Looks great - do you have a picture from the back but from a few meters away? e.g how it looks the full rear bumper......

Use your powers of imagination??

Sorry for slow reply. You'll need trim removal tools, screwdriver for seat belt anchors, patience, and nerves of steel. Some of the panels and sills take a pretty good yank to get them off. Also, because I have a 35d, I could not route my harness all the way to the driver's cup holder per the instructions. Instead, I store the extra cable under the passenger side floormat and tuck the connector up into one of the vent openings under the dash.

Pics of bumper from a distance.

Nice - clean install. thank you for the pictures.

does OEM hitch work with m sport bumper? most sites say it wont.. but i dont see why not. maybe more trimming?

Tow hook attachment points?
 

It looks like the after market hitch design does not include the threaded blocks which accept the screw-in tow hook. I mean the ones behind the small square covers in the bumper cover L&R. The OEM crossbar, which includes these blocks, is discarded in most installations, except for the Draw-Tite version. Is the thought that the hitch replaces the need for these?

I have a Euro hitch installed from my trip last year and now wondering to eliminate it and get a replacement bumper cover, since I had to cut it, or to install a US style hitch. If the latter, retaining the OE cross bar appeals to me.

There is a nice thread on this board from kcheves on his install. BTW, I did the install myself last year and thought it was one of the easiest things to do on the E70.

Also, I have a European light connector with an aftermarket generic module that works great but of course the beeping in reverse is maddening. So, I'd probably switch to the OEM harness and then endeavor to take on the coding....

Cover for the bumper cut
 

MudyOvl - where did you get the bit that covers the cutout in the bumper? I have searched but not found, does it come with the OE hitch? Or is it a separate item, if so where to buy? Thx in advance.

Many thanks. Going to order one of these and maybe a draw-tite hitch if I cant find a used OE nearby. (Shipping these things makes them too expensive.)

EDIT: Actually, the ECS trim is for face-lift vehicles. BMW sells the wide one for pre-facelift 71-60-0-035-371.

The trim piece came with the factory kit. I had a friend cut it down and weld it together for a narrower, cleaner install.

Thanks, good to know. Nice job.

Also got the OEM hitch and had trimmed just enough to let the receiver through, nice weekend project with a friend