Bazz530i

Hi there!

I've been reading a lot on this forum before posting, but there's a mod that I just can't figure out. I've recently bought a fully speced '09 530i e61 which has all the bells and whistles, HUD, full leather, Sport Automatic Transmission, M-suspension, etc. Except, M bumpers....

I love the looks of the car but it's not sporty enough to my taste and I would love to add a retrofit M-tech bumperkit, easy I thougt. The dealer tells me this bumper package isn't available for my car because of the electrical tow hook(option: SU3AC)? It's a beautiful extra which gives me the opportunity to tow a caravan and drive without a visible hook when not in use. My dealer tells me the rear bumper doesn't fit with this kind of acc. And calculated a ?1400 extra for a regular detachable one, which means paying many euro's extra and losing the luxury option...

Is there anyone who has a retrofit m tech bumper set in combination with the SU3AC option? Or perhaps is it possible to modify the bumperset to fit?

Please advise, because i feel like I'm driving my dad's car. :-D

iamnatio

I am having the same issue. I have the same tow hook and my guys tell me it has to be removed or refitted with the conventional detachable tow hook. I plan on simply removing it as I personally do not plan on using a tow hook.

Does the ?1400 also include the work to remove the tow hook and replace it with a detachable one?

Bazz530i

Nice to know I'm not the only one! :-)

Yes, the 1400 is including the work, it seems to be pretty simple, but there's also another bumper holder which seems to be required wich alone costs ?400...

I will probably be using the hook for bycicles only, but with 3 kids I think it will be pretty useful. Perhaps I will try to find a BMW specialist who is willing to try and fit, the dealer simply refuses because ETK says it's not possible, my question is WHY?

Bazz530i

quad_m, how do you feel about this? I saw in your profile you're a M specialist?

dR.jonezz

Get some nice 20 inch wheels for the car and it doesnt feel daddy's car no more P

Sublime

???

vash68

I do not have a hitch receiver, however, I just went tru M-tech kit installation, and the kit came with two rear bottom diffusers: one for no tow hook and the other one with a small detachable panel/openning for tow hook.
Are you guys saying that the latter diffusor will not work with your BMW tow hitch?
Will it work with any aftermarket hitches then?

Bazz530i

Yes, thats what the dealer tells me. It seems that the panel for detachable hook is to small for the electrical bmw tow solution...

I'm trying to find people who have the same hook and a m-tech bumper kit.

vash68

Dumb (ritorical?) question: what did BMW design an optional M-tech rear diffusor for if it doesn't fit its own tow hitch?


FWIW, on a positive note I confirmed with at least one aftermarket hitch seller (bavauto.com) that my M-tech bumper/diffusor will accommodate their hitch receiver.
Look for 2009 BMW 535xi wagon, part #11182

iamnatio

Yeah, tell me about it. Problem is BMW has 2 different types of tow hitches. The common one and the one that seems to be detachable is the one that works with M-tech diffusors. There is another tow hitch that can be brought out by a push of a button and due to the electronics I assume it takes up much more space. I wasn't even able to find this specific tow hitch on RealOEM, which is sorta annoying cause I want to try to see if I could remove it myself. They are charging me an extra $117 to remove it. I was hoping to install the kit myself but this tow hitch is a little annoying. lol

@Bazz530i Have you got someone to remove the tow hitch for you?