Aero Kit & Towbar
 

Can you fit the Aero Kit if you have a towbar? I did search but found nothing. Thanks

Should be able to.

No, they are not compatible. However, I think you may be able to tweak it and make it work somehow. of course you will have to cut a hole in the aero kit and you will need an extension bar. thats my guess.

I agree. They are not supposed to be compatible but I can't see why one cannot cut a hole in the Aero Kit to make it work. Should still be able to look good (except for the towbar :) ).

Look at the Aero Kit installation instructions on the X5world Home page for details of rear fitting.

Here's a couple photos.

I'm impressed! :thumbup: That looks really good!!!

Did you install the towbar and/or areo kit yourself? Was the towbar installed before the aero kit?

Now I want to do that...

Thanks

Hi, I had the dealer fit it, they send out the kit to be painted and the dealer fits the kit. Our dealer has installed quite a few so they have it down pretty well.

I got the dealer to fit the towbar at the same time.
With oem 20" wheels they change out the rear mudflaps again so to fit the kit. Not sure whether they come with the kit or there an extra.

That looks fantastic. Would it be possible to take a couple of closer pics up underneath so we can see where they cut the rear piece?

Yes, I would like to see more pictures from underneath too.

Can you confirm that that's a OEM BMW towbar (and would you know the part number)? I have seen the pics that Denalio had previously posted and it looks different to yours.

Can you please post your service centers information so that I can contact them and the person who did this? it looks great

Hi, I will take some more shots tomorrow and post the info.

Thanks for the info. I will show the pics to my dealer - as usual they have no idea that it can be done.

Watrob,
did you talk to the guy that did the install? or did you just drop it off at the dealer? This is exactly what I and I am sure a few others have been waiting for. Do you think that you could possible get in touch with the guy that did it and see if he can give us a write up, and maybe some pics of the install? I would venture to guess that if he can or will do that, we can get several people that are interested to throw a few dollars his/your way.
most important info I would like would be.
What did he cut the bumper and aero kit with?
What extension he used for the hitch?
How he lined it up for cutting?
any help is truely appreciated, I will be attempting this myself soon.

bump. Can you post some pics of any modifications needed for the rear bumper aero kit piece to get it around the tow bar?

Also, does anyone have a pic of the euro tow bar installed and is there a way for us to get in the US.

please note:
no disrespect intended, but this is not a OEM tow hitch, BMW Aust has them custom made cause the oem hithc is to robust to fit as shown.

I believe the hitch in watrob's pictures is the same one I ordered for my E70. It is manufactured by Draw-Tite and the receiver opening sits lower and extends outward slightly further than the BMW set-up. Because of this, it works better with the Aero kit, and I believe it would even look better on E70's without the Aero kit.

I have attached a picture and installation instructions. BTW: I ordered the trailer wiring kit from BMW.

No, that hitch is different to watrob's. Look at the "loops" on the side of the hitch receiver opening. I'm not saying that it won't work with the Aero Kit.

his is custom made per the lips(fingers) of the people that put it on his x.
also his I believe is placed perfectly to fit in between the two aero peices so that they can be cut and slipped onto the hitch portion with out needed a full circle. haing a full cirlce would not yield the results he has because it would not fit precisly around the hitch.

but that drawtite looks like it fits underneath the bumper which is cool, no cutting, wonder how it looks. looks like it would be a better fit then oem, however, might be a bit low.

This is the reason I went with the Draw-Tite over the OEM, since it doesn't require (visible) cutting of the rear fascia. I hate the look of the OEM hitch, it is the worst looking set-up of any designed by the OEM. It's a shame, since the last generation X5 had a great set-up.

I agree, it does appear low, but since it's only the receiver opening showing, I don't beleive it will be that noticable. Sure beats a big, unfinished hole in my rear bumper with the muffler showing.

I'll post pics once mine is installed.

Hi All,

Our towbar is different to the one in the States & Europe. Its made by Haymen Reece and is only available through a BMW dealer in Australia as the oem part.

It takes about a year before this towbar comes available through normal outlets and you will still have to use the BMW cable socket for the trailer light connection.

The dealer was BMW Motorline here in Daisy Hill, Brisbane, pretty larger dealership, they do good work.

You will find most BMW dealers here in Australia will have the same work skills.

They fit the towbar first then cut the Aero kit carefully to fit around the towbar, it come down to how many times they do this install.

Here is photo of my first E70 towbar install and without a aero kit on this one.

You can see they re-designed the towbar so the plug socket now screws to underneath part of the back bumper or onto the aero kit. You can see this on my new E70. (Photo loaded earlier in the thread)

Hi SpeedR,

Hayman Reece in Aust make the oem towbar for BMW here. They have since re-designed it as shown in the photo of my first install due to it being a missy install.

Yes it does look very close to like the one you have purchased. The new oem towbar we have now is also rated to 2700kg as was the previous one, I am not sure what yours is rated too.

But the current towbar now certainetly looks a lot better and a easier install as well.

Watrob,

Thanks for the pics. Yours looks very similar to the one I ordered. Mine is rated the same - 6,000 lbs / 2721 kg. My boat and trailer, a Mastercraft Prostar 209, only weighs in at 4,800 lbs with fuel & gear.

Where in Australia do you live? I have very good friends in Perth.

Hi. I live on the east coast in Brisbane.

I had this done last month to my 2008. It is all BMW products. I will take pix and upload shortly.

Heres the UK spec demountable unit on an Msport kit

Attached are my pics:

Looks good! Is that the standard BMW tow bar; was it dealer installed and how much did they charge for installation?

Thanks!

He said it was all standard BMW parts.

Ace why do the rear sensors look wierd. do you have some kinda cover ovr your bumper?

Sorry, you're right. I didn't scroll up enough. Would still like to know if done by stealer and what the cost was.

Regarding the rear sensors, it looks like they forgot to put them back in...

The work was done by a custom body shop that only does work on hi-line imports BMWs, Mercedes, Porsches, etc). He installed the hitch in order to do the custom cuts/fitting, but did not connect the wiring harness. The local BMW store performed that work...charged me for 4 hrs. labor to program it ($400). One note is that since my car is a 2008, the software kept crashing...they had my car for 3 days, but only charged for the 4 hrs that it should have taken. The service manager did tell me that they have a new server and software coming that will cut the time to 2 hrs.

As for the PDC sensors, they are there....my body shop left them the OEM black color.

strange, this looks like its an original part, made for the trailer hitch... looks too perfect...

guys sure that BMW doesent make Aerokit for trailerhitch:dunno:

The problem with this hitch is that there are no longer threads for you to put the tow hooks. But then again, I suppose they can use the hitch if the need arises...

http://www.xoutpost.com/attachments/...6052008132.jpg

What the heck is this.....:bustingup:bustingup
A tail? or the X givin the car behind it the finger:bustingup:bustingup
take that $*% off:bustingup

Nothing wrong with the hitch, but the condom on it is a bit much IMO.

Man... I'd hate to be the guy sitting on the bumper and then accidentally slipping down... yyeeaaaooowwwwcccttcchhhh!!!!!!

acejam4 - do you have the part number for this hitch?

Just picked up my new M Sport X5 with towbar installed today!

How are you liking the Draw-Tite hitch? Do you have a photo of your installed hitch that you can post?

I got a quote today for $642 or half of what the dealers want for the OEM hitch. Seems like a good alternative, especially since the bumper doesn't have to have a hole cut out of it.

Hi, nice X5.
I too need a towbar for my Msport.
Do you still have your X5?
If so can you post some more close up pics of the towbar?
Have they cut the bumper at all?
Any more info regards who installed it and at what cost?
Thanks