Towing Advice - x5 3.5

[beattiecj]

All,

Appreciate any advice pretty new to the towing game. Coming from the a 1 series to this has been an interesting change.

Goal is to tow a 20ft enclosed trailer with electric brakes. Total weight will be ~5,800lbs including a spec e30 racecar, so at upper limit of the towing capacity.

Anything I need to be aware of? Was thinking Stealth hitch with coding? Any other reasonable options?

Driving a 2017 x5 3.5 AWD.


Thanks for the help.

[gvarr03]

Originally Posted by beattiecj

All,

Appreciate any advice pretty new to the towing game. Coming from the a 1 series to this has been an interesting change.

Goal is to tow a 20ft enclosed trailer with electric brakes. Total weight will be ~5,800lbs including a spec e30 racecar, so at upper limit of the towing capacity.

Anything I need to be aware of? Was thinking invisi hitch with coding?

Driving a 2017 x5 3.5 AWD.


Thanks for the help.

Invisihitch is out of business fyi. Stealth Hitch would be an option but I'd also go with BMW hitch

[beattiecj]

Originally Posted by gvarr03

Invisihitch is out of business fyi. Stealth Hitch would be an option but I'd also go with BMW hitch

Originally Posted by gvarr03

Invisihitch is out of business fyi. Stealth Hitch would be an option but I'd also go with BMW hitch

Ah, right thanks for the correction updated post.

[ComasF15]

Originally Posted by beattiecj

Ah, right thanks for the correction updated post.

Locate your vehicle placard on the drivers door sill. Max load includes your hitch weight. If max load equal 1000lbs and your hitch weight is 600lbs then you can only carry 400lbs in the vehicle.

[Ryan5034]

You’ll need a brake controller as well. I use one from Redarc. I have towed a 20’ car hauler with 4 wheelers, but it was open and 5000#. 20’ enclosed will be significantly more difficult due to wind.

[FastDriver]

I see these guys towing some heavier stuff with their X5s. So, it looks like you "can" do it. Also, it's apparent BMW rates this platform to 7,700 in Europe and believes in it, too. Apparently, it's only 6k lbs in the US, but from what I read, many believe that's due to the hitch, not the vehicle.

Having said that, I would only use the X5 to tow boats, perhaps a car on an auto transport, etc...

I would NOT use it to tow at its limit with an enclosed trailer, or a travel trailer. For those purposes, I really strongly suggest towing with a weight distribution system with sway control on a properly designed tow vehicle. BUT, BMW specifically states that they are NOT to be used with the unibody X5s. You're also getting to a point that the trailer is heavier than the towing vehicle. You don't want the trailer pushing the towing vehicle all over the road.

As an aside, even these 7,700 lbs rated hitches (invisihitch, stealth, etc...), still seem to be limited to 600 lbs tongue weight. All of the literature you're likely to find recommends a minimum of 10% tongue weight for tag trailers (15% for gooseneck/5th-wheel). So, that would say to me that even though the hitch & vehicle may be rated for 7,700 lbs, it's not good practice to exceed 6k, since the rated tongue weight does not support more. Tongue weight helps prevent trailer sway. The LAST thing you want is a 7,700 lbs trailer driving your 5k lbs vehicle around uncontrollably.

[NERO X]

I have a 50i and installed a stealth hitch. 50i and 35i are rated the same. Tow weight depends on the hitch as well as the vehicle. Talk to the stealth hitch people and they'll tell you the F15 with their hitch is rated to 7700 lbs and 600 tongue weight. Personally, I've towed a 7500 lb travel trailer with brakes and no problems. Does get a little bouncey on rough roads though, but that is just a matter of weight distribution between the heavier trailer and truck. Of course the v-8 has plenty of power too.

[Thecastle]

Sigh, so much towing misinformation here. There are a lot of good threads out there on towing with the e70. The X5s are an excellent towing platform and tow really well, if you setup the system correctly.

Okay. I’ve towed more than 20k miles with my X5M. I’ve had multiple travel trailers weighing in the 4500lb-600lbs range. I also own a ford f-450 diesel that I’ve also used to tow same travel trailer 2020 flagstaff microlite 21ds.

The X5 in the use is listed as having a maximum of 600lbs tongue weight and 6000lbs trailer weight. Keep in mind the maximum payload the x5 can handle is between 1100-1400lbs about the same as a typical ram 1500, f-150 and etc. this is important because if you have 600lbs or tongue weight on the x5 that means you have 500lbs on the low end for passengers and items. So make sure your x5 is empty. The higher payloads can be determined by looking at your gvwr and weighing the suv on a cat scale and subtracting the gcwr-actual weight to determine real payload.

Second many folks have used weight distribution hitches and anti-sway hitches successfully on these cars. The only place you’ll find the recommendation by bmw that you shouldn’t use this type of hitch is in the install instructions on the bmw oem Hitch. If your nervous you can reinforce the hitch at can am.

I’ll speak from experience the x5 is an excellent towing platform especially if you have the rear air suspension which takes out all of the squat. You setup your trailer correctly and actually weigh the tongue weight, and trailer..... don’t overload your car.

My F450 is in many ways somewhat better and a lot worse of a tow vehicle than the x5. The f450 because my truck is a class 4 truck, has a service body, and a 42” bucket. It weighs 13,300lbs with a fuel tank of diesel vs 5200lbs in the M. It’s maximum tongue weight is 2700lbs vs 600. What makes the 450 a bit better, is because it has a lot of margin in capacity you don’t have to worry so much about loading the trailer correctly and weighing it. It’s also more resistant to crosss winds. But that’s about it. The turning radius is so much worse on the f450 that backing the trailer is harder and driving around obstacles. The ride is much worse in the 450. The x5 is about 19ft long and the 450 is 26ft long.. also the f450 even wi5 the power stroke has way less acceleration than the m. Sadly the fuel economy is worse in the 450 at 7mpg vs 8.5 in the m.

So what I’m getting at is done right the x5 is an excellent tow vehicle, and pickups that are supposed to be superior, maybe are in one metric of towing, but ride worse, are slower, harder to park, less efficient, and generally suck to drive while not towing.... the x5 is the way to go for light trailers. Match the tow vehicle to the load and you’ll be happy. If I had a 7000lbs trailer the 450 might seem a better choice... but at 6000 or less, the 450is worse in most ways people care about.

[FastDriver]

Good info. I think that was really helpful in putting things in perspective, but just a couple things:

The higher payloads can be determined by looking at your gvwr and weighing the suv on a cat scale and subtracting the gcwr-actual weight to determine real payload.

Probably a typo, because you correctly stated that the payload for the X5 was 1100-1400 ish. You meant GVWR - actual weight, as GVWR is the maximum rated weight on all 4 tires of the towing vehicle, which includes passengers, extra equipment, and tongue weight of trailer. It's also worth looking at GAWR on the front and rear axles to ensure they are not exceeded, though I don't suspect this will be a problem

GCWR is the combined weight rating of both vehicle & trailer. I have not found, though only spent last night looking, GCWR for the X5, but if it weighs 4700-5300 lbs and is approved for 7,700 lbs, that would put the GCWR in the 12,400-13k lbs range. However, the GCWR does not play into payload.

Second many folks have used weight distribution hitches and anti-sway hitches successfully on these cars. The only place you’ll find the recommendation by bmw that you shouldn’t use this type of hitch is in the install instructions on the bmw oem Hitch.

I'd like to pick your brain a bit on that one. Some of my reading last night suggested that the unibody's flex made weight distribution impractical and perhaps harmful to the chassis. Do you believe otherwise? It certainly stands to reason that the hitches are not robust enough to deal with torquing the entire chassis the way WDHes are designed to do.

So what I’m getting at is done right the x5 is an excellent tow vehicle, and pickups that are supposed to be superior, maybe are in one metric of towing, but ride worse, are slower, harder to park, less efficient, and generally suck to drive while not towing.... the x5 is the way to go for light trailers.

The overarching important point is that it's a better tow vehicle for light loads. I absolutely concur, when compared to your F450, but I think generalizing to pickups is a bridge a bit far. My old 250 is beat by it too in every category you mentioned, save efficiency. I've gotten 13 mpg at ~19k lbs GCW.

I would also suggest that F150s and the like that are fully optioned would properly pamper you in ride and creature comforts. Some would be surprised at just how nice some of those truck interiors can be. One other consideration that I'd add, though it would take some data to be sure, is that I would expect pickups to handle the wear & tear better. That said, I would happily tow things in the 4k lbs range with the X regularly, like a smaller boat or towing a car on an auto trailer. Above that and I would rather stick to something more purpose oriented. I have the luxury of having a dedicated towing vehicle, though. If I were in different shoes and only had the X, then I'd use it.

[Chicane_S54]

Originally Posted by gvarr03

Invisihitch is out of business fyi. Stealth Hitch would be an option but I'd also go with BMW hitch

You do not want to use a glamour hitch like that to tow a 5800 lb boat or racecar. You need a heavy duty hitch. I have a Curt. Even the new OEM hitch looks weak in my book. To the OP you need a rock solid CLASS III hitch and nothing less. You can do some research online there are some horror stories with those glamour hitches.

http://f15.bimmerpost.com/forums/sho...1025750&page=6

[FastDriver]

Am I missing something, or is the updated version much stronger in those welds? Also, it seems stealth has improved the attachment block to Stainless. I am by no means stuck to them, it does look like a very nice product at first glance.

[Thecastle]

Originally Posted by FastDriver

Good info. I think that was really helpful in putting things in perspective, but just a couple things:

Probably a typo, because you correctly stated that the payload for the X5 was 1100-1400 ish. You meant GVWR

Yes, I meant GVWR.

Originally Posted by FastDriver

I'd like to pick your brain a bit on that one. Some of my reading last night suggested that the unibody's flex made weight distribution impractical and perhaps harmful to the chassis. Do you believe otherwise? It certainly stands to reason that the hitches are not robust enough to deal with torquing the entire chassis the way WDHes are designed to do.

So BMW never disclosed why they include the disclaimer no WDH hitches in their OEM receiver hitch instructions. Which leaves folks to do a lot of speculating, without input from the factory. What we do know is that the same OEM hitch is sold in Europe as in the US probably without any localization of the instructions. In EU trailers are setup very differently See EU regulation 94/20 EC WDH usage is illegal in EU countries. Also it's my understanding that the maximum weight trailer you can tow in the EU without a commercial drivers licenses is 3500KG or 7700lbs hence the max tow rating of most EU SUVs. See a trend there? Maximum tongue weight in EU trailers is typically set to 8% of trailer weight. So no need for WDH, for a consumer, as it works out to 616lbs (8% of 7700) of tongue weight....

American trailers are heavier, balanced differently and as such require more tongue weight to tow stably by design. Hence why folks look to WHD to overcome the limits of their receiver hitches max tongue weight. You know the F-150's max tongue weight is 500lbs without WDH?

Anyway there is nothing inherent about unibody frames that prevents the use of a WDH. It's all about the strength of the hitch and its attachment points. In general unibody is stiffer, stronger, lighter and more expensive than body on frame vehicles. Notice body on frame has been abandoned by nearly every vehicle except trucks? Trucks keep them I suspect my cynical side says because they're cheaper to make and increase the profits of the car makers (trucks are the most profitable vehicles the US car makers sell). Its also a big reason why they ride more poorly and have more jiggle, is less rigidity.

Anyway, lots of X5 owners have used WDH/Anti-Sway hitches with no ill side effects. Also a lot of other unibody owners have had no problems with WDH. read the airstream forums (Tuareg, Cayenne, Range Rover, Subarus, and etc.) . CanAm in Canada provides designs and instructions to enhance the mounting strength of X5 hitches if you're concerned about using a WDH. Though with the right trailer its not necessary.

I do not expect unless you go crazy with WDH, that pushing 150 lbs from the hitch to the front axel and trailer axels is NOT going to bend the attachment points of a hitch designed to hold 600lbs of static weight (probably way more when in motion). It also happens to be the same mounting point as the rear bumper crash structure... Heck I've had over 850lbs of tongue weight on mine using WDH. I didn't know this as the car gives no indication of being overloaded until hit the cat scales first time and discovered my issue. Now I always weigh my tongue weight with a sureline scale I purchased to make sure I'm not going overboard on my X5.

[FastDriver]

Thank you! That was a very nice post. It makes sense to me.

You're probably not going to get into trouble at 8% hitch weight, despite the rule of thumb suggesting 10%, but much less than that is playing with fire. Load induced oscillation is a white knuckle experience I don't care to repeat in this lifetime. I personally won't intentionally run sub 10%. So, if tongue weight rating is 600 lbs, then it'll be a max towing of 6k for me for anything longer than a quick pull down the street.

[Thecastle]

Originally Posted by FastDriver

Thank you! That was a very nice post. It makes sense to me.

You're probably not going to get into trouble at 8% hitch weight, despite the rule of thumb suggesting 10%, but much less than that is playing with fire. Load induced oscillation is a white knuckle experience I don't care to repeat in this lifetime. I personally won't intentionally run sub 10%. So, if tongue weight rating is 600 lbs, then it'll be a max towing of 6k for me for anything longer than a quick pull down the street.

You're right you probably won't have any issue towing at a reasonable speed with only 8% of the trailer weight on the tongue with a us trailer. Very few people ever actually measure their tongue and trailer weight so I'm sure lots of folks never get this right for their setup. So there is margin in the numbers... I can't tell you how many times I see pickup drivers towing un-level (especially lifted), and clearly too much weight for their truck. Or worse a trailer nose up at the hitch, with a side by side sitting behind the axles of the trailer with the trailer butt about a foot above dragging, going at 85.

Anyway EU trailers are designed with 8% tongue weight in mind, US trailers are generally 10%, and 5th wheel/Goosenecks are 15%. Of course giver or take. EU generally limits towing speed to 100KM/hr 62mph. In the US maximum legal towing speed is 85mph, though generally 80mph in western states. For higher speed towing you want more tongue weight for stability. Where I live I regularly see people towing all kinds of things at 80-90mph. Its kind of a Texas thing, and yes there are trailer tires and LT tires rated for 87mph+

The trick with handling a trailer that is beginning to sway is to use your trailer brake controller to clamp on the brakes. It will stop sway. Then tow more slowly until you can figure out where your balance problem is.

[FastDriver]

I noticed you mention it twice now and have to ask: do you know what physical changes on european trailers might alleviate a balance issue with lower tongue weights? I admit my skepticism of that. I lived in Germany for 5 years and can say that where we buy an extra pickup, many more there will have a small utility trailer and a ball on their passenger car. But that's not the kind of trailer we're talking about, and I don't think I ever noticed any differences.

I did, however, catch the fact that the legal towing limit is 7,700 lbs, and it makes a little more sense to me that at those lower weights, the chances of the trailer driving the vehicle are much lower when compared with me towing 13k lbs in a 6,900 lbs truck.

ps. I just noticed your car list. We have similar vehicle habits. My small runabout car is a 2002 Saturn vs. your '13 Cooper S, my tower is also a 2000 7.3L (F250), the SO drives a '14 X5, and I have a couple of old toy Fox-bodies.

[ajshanny]

I use my 2018 X5 35d to tow an open Trailex car trailer on which I load my Cayman GT4. The X5 has the self-leveling rear suspension and the whole setup tows like the trailer is not even there. I use an Invisihitch and a Tenkosha wireless brake controller. I have not had any problems with any of this equipment. The trailer itself weighs about 1,000 lbs and with extra wheels and tires on the tire rack probably 1,200 or 1,300 lbs. The GT4 weighs about 3,100 with a full tank of fuel. I also have a utility box mounted to the rear of the trailer and an electric winch on a platform behind the coupler. The winch is about 60 lbs I think. All in, the load (including the trailer) is probably around 4,500 lbs and tongue weight ranges from 500 lbs to 600 lbs the way I have the car loaded (depending on whether I have the extra wheels loaded on the tire rack).

I previously owned a 2017 X5 35i without the self-leveling rear suspension and it towed the same load fine as well, but I felt it could have used a bit more torque to go up hills and for passing. I am spoiled so I traded in the 35i for the 35d and have not looked back. It's also nice to have the self-leveling suspension on the 35d. As for the hitch, it has been awesome. Once I connect the receiver and lock it in place it does not move or make noise at all. The only downside is that I bought the receiver with a 2" rise to work with the height of trailer I own, and if I want to tow a trailer that has a lower coupler height then I am out of luck because Invisihitch is out of business from what I understand and their setup requires a different receiver to get a lower ball height. I believe that Stealth hitches are similar to Invisihitch, and I have heard positive things about them, so I would probably go that route rather than OEM.

[FastDriver]

Thanks for the feedback!

[Thecastle]

Originally Posted by FastDriver

ps. I just noticed your car list. We have similar vehicle habits. My small runabout car is a 2002 Saturn vs. your '13 Cooper S, my tower is also a 2000 7.3L (F250), the SO drives a '14 X5, and I have a couple of old toy Fox-bodies.

Yes we do.

I actually use the X5M mostly for towing. The 2000 F-450 is my companies work truck and the X5M is my company car. The 550i is my daily and my wife drives the cooper which she totally loves ;-). We prefer the X5 because it has a tighter turning radius and short length making it much easier to back the trailer into our storage garage or a tight campsite. Plus parking the X5 is much easier, in part because its 19ft long vs 26ft for the truck so it fits better in national park campsites. A big factor is the X5 rides much much better and gets better fuel economy while towing 8.5-10mpg (generally 9). The F450 gets 6-7 mpg. Part of my business builds wifi networks for hotels/RV parks etc as part of my business, so I'll pull the trailer with the tuck and live live in the trailer until the job is completed. On vacations we always take the X5. Both notice have WDH hitches. I'm sure we'd get some interesting looks using the bucket truck to tow our tailer into a national park..

[FastDriver]

lol! Nice setup! Yeah, I don't mind riding around in the X5s on the longer trips with all the electric doodads and gizmos. The leather and design are pretty comffy, too.

[HydroStream6]

We have a 2500HD in addition to the X. The HD is an aircraft carrier, crew cab, long bed. The X is much much easier to manage turns, back up, etc. No issues with launch ramps, pulling the boat out, etc. Manages 12+mpg. Fully loaded for the day she's close to 7000. The torque of the tuned 4.4L with huge brakes makes it a nice experience. Proper tongue weight and WDH is key.

Now of course if I'm going to be pulling 10k, I'd go for the HD.

[Thecastle]

I agree, the turbo engines that BMW makes with their diesel like torque and diesels make for great towing SUVs. I had a 2008 4.8i X5, with 360hp/360lbft and fully loaded, dhp, air suspension, and etc. It had a 6spd transmission and I found that I had to keep it in 5th and basically nearly always floored to keep going 70mph on the interstate and drop it to 3rd-4th with any hills. With the engine constantly laboring and having to shift all the time (manually) I didn't find the towing experience relaxing. So i traded for an X5M 555/500lbft and its night and day. It stays in 6th (6 spd) nearly all the time, except on the steepest hills and is quiet and relaxed while towing. Ironically the 4.8i averaged about 7.5mpg towing, the X5M gets 9 generally so it gets better fuel economy. I would rather have gotten a 35d for better fuel economy, and may for my next vehicle (looking at a 2016-17 M, and 35d/50i). The N63TU's seem to be a big reliability improvement over the N62/N63/S63 so I wouldn't rule one out.

My biggest grip with the X5s as tow vehicles is the small fuel tanks, and really small mirrors. With a 22 gallon tank it translates to about 150-180 miles of range while towing, and there are no aftermarket larger tanks to upgrade to that I've found. The diesels would be better but still 22 gallons isn't large for towing. Also accurate payload numbers from the factory would be nice too. But excellent ride, short length, good turning radius, power, brakes, its really a great towing machine. Too bad they don't offer the diesels anymore and a X5 M50D would be a dream tow vehicle.

[FastDriver]

I think people get a little carried away with towing power requirements. An old Suburban my family owned had a 350 Chevy that made 190hp and 300 ft-lbs of torque and pulled a 5k lbs boat all over the country with just a 4-spd 700R4.

The forums told me I should tune the F250 7.3 because it only makes 235hp/500, but I found that it does a marvelous job perfectly stock, even with upwards of 13k lbs and even pulling up and down the Rockies through 2 moves. Averages 12 mpg towing heavy.

So, I'm not the least bit intimidated by towing with 300/300 and twice as many gears.

I don't care about getting up the hill first. I care about reliability and economy. We tend to focus on engines and power, but I think we've gotten past the engines being the constraint, these days.