luxembourg

I recently struggled with my new original factory roof rack + 2 bike racks so I thought I would share some thoughts with all those who are considering such addition to your car for the summer

First of all, there are quite a lot of parts in the box and at first it all seems a bit complicated
(BMW could have asked IKEA to prepare install-instructions, but what can you do...

After you figure out what to screw where it all suddenly seems very easy and yet extremely clever and logical (it does not even come close to any of the aftermarket roof racks I have ever had with my previous cars)

First roof rack + bikes assembly took me over 1 hour and there for the moment I thought: "gosh... what a waste of time and money..."
however "un-assembly" was already quite easy and fast, and the next weekend's re-assembly did not take more than 10 minutes... That's when I thought to mention it to the Forum just to share how intelligent and solid stuff it is.

And I also gotta admit: both roof rack and the bike racks are very secure, you lock them with a special keys, and they really fit perfectly where they are supposed to.

Well, I use it now almost each weekend or whenever I have spare 2-3 hours to go and ride a bike a little, and I am really happy about this stuff.

There is just one downside though: driving with this roof rack on a normal motorway (in my case autobahn) is just... huge mistake, since even at 120km/h car feels like it's doing 190 - and the wind noise is just unbelievable... I can barely hear the radio...

Well, handling a car with 2 bikes on top is not such a fun either, but anyway - if you like to take your bike with you, and didn't like idea of buying "touring" it is some option to consider.

Here are few pics of my E60 with a roofrack installed:
(note the beautiful Moselle wine-valley on the Luxembourg-German border in the background)

xBMWx

Nice pics.

I know this was a post about the roof-rack, but your tail-pipe caught my attention. Your signature says its a 520d but you have a twin tail-pipe. What tail pipe is it? Or is it a compete new exhaust?

coolguy

Nice looking. What kind of tint is that on your windows? Looks very cool!

KU530

ok that is wrong on so many levels to see a roof rack on a bimmer other than an x5. On a side note those are some great pictures.

fjwagner

I have been looking for a roof rack for my E60 and Thule does not make one for the E60. What brand is yours? I miss the screw in system on the E39 which gave me a lot of confidence in the security of the system.

rosco

I am just about to buy a thule and the rapid fit system offers an E60 option.
Bars plus 750 (foot pack) plus 1325 (E60 saloon kit)

luxembourg

Thanks!
Yeah I had the tail-pipe replaced few months ago cause the only thing I hated about my car was this ugly, steel, black pipe which was giving me impression of "un-finished car" each time I'd look at it (although, some do like the "original" piece of steel...)
I did not want to touch the exhaust though, as I was told by the BMW dealer in Luxembourg: it might void the warranty at some point, but replacing just the pipe was apparently OK by them.
Although it was a bit difficult to place there something really nice because the size of the opening in the diffusor limits the choice of "nice stuff" but I found this one very good-looking (similar to the factory double pipe, yet a bit more "over the edge" - but it is perhaps not well seen on these pics
Guys in the bodyshop had to cut off the old one directly right after the exhaust and weld the new one instead (it has to be done with battery cut-off and with highest caution because of the vehicle's electronics and particle's filter, or something...
Anyways, it took them half an hour and they charged about 15 EUR for manwork + around 30-35 EUR for the pipe, I don't remember exactly now..
I chose the the pipe by this Polish company called Ulter Sport which is quite famous in Poland and their quality is superb (ISO 9001:2000 by TUV, etc.)
You can find more about them and their choice of products here: Ulter
They are also available in Germany (and all over EU) but I gotta admit, their PR is really bad (I had never received any reply from them, even though I wrote several times in Polish asking for several things, including some pipes and full quad exhaust for for my friend's S4, but... nobody ever wrote back...), but anyway still being advised elsewhere that they produce the best stuff in Poland, I managed to order something through the shop who did the mod.
(It's a pity I almost do an add here for them, and they never even bothered to answer one of my mails about their offer...

xBMWx

That's a real result; a new twin tail-pipe for 50 EUR all in. Good work!

Thanks for the detailed write-up and info

luxembourg

Mine is genuine - factory BMW system, produced and sold by BMW.
Roof rack is a separate part and bike racks as well.
If necessary I will find parts numbers for you if you need? Let me know.
I looked at after-market stuff but none I liked so much as the factory original. And as I mentioned, it fits perfectly where the E60 designers ment it to be, and it is a very solid and safe product.
I had the factory one for for my previous E39 and believe me: when installed this one feels even more confident and better attached than E39's one, despite of lack of screws here.

cwohughes

The car looks outstanding, what's the percentage of tint you have on your windows?