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This fully welded, corrosion-resistant BMW 3 Series trailer hitch receiver is perfect for your light-duty towing needs. Draw-Tite's Tested Tough guarantee ensures that this hitch exceeds industry standards. Drawbar sold separately.
Features:
Specs:
Draw-Tite's Tested Tough program provides testing standards far superior to those outlined by the Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE), the go-to source for engineering professionals.
Each Draw-Tite trailer hitch receiver undergoes extensive fatigue testing and static testing with the ball mount that is either supplied or recommended for use with that particular hitch, thus ensuring results that are applicable to real life use. Fatigue testing is also conducted on hitches rated for use with weight-distribution systems.
In addition, Draw-Tite performs static testing on a simulated automobile, as opposed to the rigid fixture used for SAE testing, resulting in a more true-to-life scenario.
At etrailer.com we're committed to the products we sell, and to our customers. Our experienced and knowledgeable staff are available via both phone and email to address your questions and concerns for the lifetime of your hitch. The technicians at etrailer perform hitch installations on a daily basis, making them a valuable resource for do-it-yourselfers. The one-on-one, personal service you'll receive comes straight from an expert in the towing and automotive field. We've installed it, we've wired it and we've towed with it, so whatever your question, we can answer it.
Tech Tip
No drilling required for installation , Trimming or removal of underbody panel required for installation
California residents: click here
Average Customer Rating: 4.9 out of 5 stars (34 Customer Reviews)
This fully welded, corrosion-resistant vehicle trailer hitch receiver is perfect for your light-duty towing needs. Draw-Tite's Tested Tough guarantee ensures that this hitch exceeds industry standards. Drawbar sold separately.First, let me point out that the etrailer staff have exceeded my expectations during this transaction. I would happily recommend etrailer to anyone.
I hesitated to review this product before pulling anything with it, but I can speak to the shipping, construction, and installation of the unit. This is my first tow bar and I get the impression that if those three aspects are good, everything else will be fine.
The hitch was packed very well and there did not appear to be any damage from shipment. Shipping time was faster than I expected (Maybe UPS was having a good week!) Extricating the unit from the box was easy; it was secure but also not strapped down with unbreakable diamond filament rope or a space elevator tether.
The hitch itself looks confidence-inspiring, and it certainly looks like it can pull 2000 pounds. I chose this particular Draw-Tite model because it has a longitudinal bar that is fastened to the frame of the vehicle, directly aft of the differential. This bar is not present on other hitches for the E90 3-series. (There is an available Curt hitch that retains this feature, but the bar on the Curt hitch mounts to a point that is only present on wagon [E91] frames and alas, 6MT E91s are quite rare.) Physically, the welds look good. The mounting holes are clean. It appears to have been either machine-constructed or built by an experienced welder. The supplied hardware seems more than adequate.
The installation instructions are reasonably good but the actual layout of the text and diagrams on the page leaves a little to be desired. Also, the instructions leave one important part of an installation step as an exercise to the reader. I will discuss that later.
I would recommend you jack up the rear of the vehicle before beginning to install this hitch. It may be possible to install without lifting the vehicle, but I am a large mammal and couldn't squeeze in far enough to get the forward mount installed correctly until I lifted the rear. You can definitely get the 4 primary bolts torqued without lifting the car, and at that point the hitch is as attached to the vehicle as most other hitches on the market.
While it would have streamlined one aspect of the installation (also noted later), removal of the rear bumper was not required. The bottom driver's side trim comes off and the passenger's side must be moved out of the way. With proper tools everything is accessible at that point.
Getting the hitch into place was straightforward. I did it myself but a helper would have made things easier. I also put the hitch into place before I lifted the rear of the car. Lifting the rear doesn't really make this step any easier.
GOTCHA: The forward mount is designed to be sandwiched between some steel spacers and the frame of the vehicle. The diagrams on the instructions only show the desired spacer placement, not how to actually install these spacers. The inside spacer must be slipped in through one of the outer weight-relief holes in the frame rail before it can be aligned properly with the center weight-relief hole. Once you have aligned the inner and outer spacer with the forward mounting hole (which can be frustrating), you can use the (neato!) bolt retaining wire to pull the carriage bolt through the frame. This is the one part of the installation where the instructions fall short, in my opinion.
Tightening the 4 primary bolts to the frame is considerably more difficult when you have a giant piece of steel in the way. Also as I mentioned I am a large mammal and it was more difficult to squeeze my hands back there. I considered removing the rear bumper at this time, but ultimately waning daylight and laziness left me with no option but to hold my mouth right and grab a few more tools.
Ultimately, I was able to torque all 4 primary bolts to 62 ft-lbs as instructed, even with a large and pretty unwieldy Precision Instruments torque wrench. This is not to say it wasn't a pain in the ass to tighten a bolt when you have 30 degrees of movement.
Trimming of the bottom driver's side was easy with a dremel. The trim piece can be cut while still retaining structural integrity.
This tow bar looks like it will do everything I need it to do. I am very pleased with my purchase.
Product arrive as promised very well packaged. They have good videos of installations for the BMW you are looking for. I installed on my 2007 BMW 328i Sedan. The product fit like a glove perfect and I only had to cut a little bit of the plastic cover underneath close to the exhaust.
I had done the job my self with the car on jack stands on the rear only. If you are patient on the 2007 you don't even need to remove the rear bumper, there is enough space on this model to remove the bolts on the bumper from underneath the car. It is not easy but it is not terrible difficult.
The good part is when the bolts are removed the etrailer hitch goes in like a glove, one person not much space the things just slid in. The piece is precise and made for a BMW is clearly a good product.
I did buy one of their trailler lights package and it went without any problems, connecting signal left, signal right, tail light and brake light signals. Tested on the trailer and everything worked like it says.
The best part is when the joint ball connection is removed the hitch is barely noticeable on the bimmer that is so cool, so can barely see a little square underneath the bumper, so your bimmer is still so cool looking.
It was a lit bit more expensive than other offers, but with results on installing myself I can tell the product is really and they know what they are doing and offering and I didn't have to ask for help on anything, their videos give you all the information you need.
The etrailer website did not have a hitch for my car. 2006 BMW 330xi (e90 sedan X model). I couldn't find an exact model for my cars anywhere but saw someone saying on Forum that he made this work. I bought it and installed it. There was a plastic trim that needed to have a notch cut off and the 12x washers were not enough to to give the gap space for the bolts, you will need to add an extra washer. (16x washer in total. 4x per bolts).
The hitch looks very good. Also very sturdy. Definitely much bigger and heavier than I had expected.
It was a little bit of a challenge for me to install it by myself lying on the ground in my driveway. I first backed my car on to some 5" high plywood ramps to give myself some work space. Then I put on my high powered LED headlamp and got under the car. With a little help from WD-40, the 18mm nuts were easier to remove than I'd thought they would be for a 10-year-old car. The 18mm ratcheting box wrench I bought was the perfect tool, and I only needed to add some leverage (vise grips clamped on to the end of the wrench) on one stubborn nut to get the four of them off.
I used a rolling floor jack to raise the hitch into place. The tricky part was to get the end of the long beam that extends toward the front of the car up high enough so that the main part of the hitch was at the proper angle to allow it to clear the bumper and other obstacles so that I could jack it up to align the mounting holes with the four threaded studs. I very carefully and slowly jacked and adjusted the angle of the hitch. When it was in the exact right position I rolled the jack forward about 2 inches and all four mounting holes went smoothly onto the studs.
Tightening the studs was a slow process due to the very limited work space but, with patience, I managed to get them all tight with no problems. After a minor struggle getting the large cross member bolt and spacers into place, I tightened up the big 19mm nut and I was done.
I was really impressed how precisely the hitch matched up with all the mounting points on the car. Good quality control. The hitch is very unobtrusive looking when I'm not using it and the rubber plug/cover makes it look really good.
As one may guess, I get a great many looks sliding my 328i down to the docks to put my 14' Alumacraft craft down the ramp! But this hitch is made how equipment used to be made! Top notch!
Product came fast and fit perfect. Everything was included in the package. Awesome product and service. Definitely a professional company to order through...thanks so much....
Installed on my BMW 3 series with no problem and works great. Using it for a trailer hitch style mountain bike rack. Perfect!
I installed the hardware myself in less than 45 minutes. The longest part (which was still easy) is getting the dust shield and covers out of the way. Only one of the shield's on the bottom needed to be trimmed at all for everything to fit back exactly as it should.
I'm not electrically inclined, but I got my electrical engineer brother to install the wiring in about 20/30 minutes while I did the hardware. Another really easy task.
And the hitch is super low profile, and everything looks great now that it's done.
Hitch was relatively easy to install on my 2011 BMW 328i - instructions were great. The right tools help and try to get the car elevated - makes it all much easier! Plan to use for bike rack.
The hitch works really well in a 2007 328xi BMW. I did get it installed by a mechanic, so I am not able to comment on the difficulty of installation, but it did require removing the rear bumpers to install. All in all, a good buy.
This is my third hitch from Etrailer
Ordered the hitch for my Beemer. Free shipping- always a plus. It arrived in just three days and the day before Thanksgiving. I watched the video to install and it on their website- that was very helpful indeed. It was suggested to pull the bumper off. I did not. It took a bit more time to install with the bumper on, but less work in the end. Total install time, about an hour.
The hitch fit perfectly. Thumbs up!
Very close tolerances on a BMW. It fit and I'm very happy.
Following a somewhat exhaustive search for a hitch that would fit my specific vehicle, I purchased the Sportframe 24857. It was indeed as advertised, a "bolt-on". I use it in conjunction with a bike carrier, and have been very pleased with it.
I am not very hands on but this hitch was a breeze to instal. Delivery was quick. Only negative I have is my wiring instructions seemed to be missing but there was a digital set on the website and a video showing how to instal it. Glad I didn't spend twice is much to have someone else put a hitch on for me.
Awesome product, fit my vehicle perfectly with no modifications required! Draw-Tite, you can't get any better than that. Also, Hitch came in sooner than expected, box was a little torn up but, hitch was fine, thank you Etrailer! SM Out!
I am extremely pleased with this product! Automotive maintenance is definitely out of my comfort zone, so I had some trepidation about attempting to install this myself. But it ended up being very straight forward. The product fit perfectly, and the installation video on your website was invaluable. I'm very appreciative!
Product installed as well as could be expected. The fish wire suppled was a must. It was good that I had a buddy help me because it would have been difficult if I had to do it by myself. Needed three hands. I save $250 by installing this myself.
After a year I still love it. I pull a 4x8 trailer behind my 3 series and everything is solid. Get plenty of looks but it’s been great!
Watched some videos for similar product, read the instructions, got the right tools, didn't take bumper off, didnt have a jack to raise car (im small) and was able to do it with a friend to help. Difficulty was accurate about a 6/10. Very happy with product.
Integrated so well on my 2007 BMW 328xi!! Had to do a bit of hacksawing on the mud guard that connects to the bumper but that was the only "off plan" change. My buddy helped me with this and it took just under 2 hours to install. Note that we didn't use any power tools and that it was rather easy to install, just tedious to do so. The Küat is ordered and on its way!
Great service as always. Hitch not installed yet but is a qualiy piece.
Product installed in about 45 minutes with simple hand tools. Perfect fit...
Installed this hitch myself in a day on a BMW 328 ... worked out great. Been using it for a year so far.
Solid construction and easy to install.
Works as advertised. Excellent hitch.
Great service which started with a phone call to confirm my address. The order was shipped the next day and I received my order today. Great service for such a large, heavy item.
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Bkw1122
6/9/2022
GREAT PRODUCT! Excellent Quality. Great value. Will buy another for the new car.