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      08-03-2013, 07:05 AM   #1
MaX6
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OEM Trailer Hitch Install- Piece of Cake!

just finished up the install.. local BMW dealer had the hitch on sale on eBay for $475.. Installation took around 2.5 hours. Install instructions come with the kit and were well written and easy to follow... The actual hitch install to the vehicle was fairly simple but cumbersome as the rear bumber has to be completely removed.. The more difficult part was the wiring harness as you have to integrate the harness into the fuse panel.. no wiring splicing- just adding wires to the panel itself.. took some studying of the panel and wiring to ensure I had it correct...

Trailer lights work fine and parking assist seems to deactivate upon instal however I have read there are additional features that can be activated via coding of the car.. not sure what those are exactly and am researching... I believe one is a downward facing camera option to assist in backing up vehicle to trailer...

The only odd thing I encountered is on the non-M X6 the lower bumper gaurd does not have a hitch cut-out.. If you see a pic of the M bumper you'll see that cutout... The cutout snap fits into the bumper.. easy and simple to add a hitch to the M... not sure why BMW only assumed M owners would be boat and jet ski owners?? WTF BMW?? anyway the instructions have you cutting that lower bumper panel.. they give you a template that sticks to the bumper and you are supposed to then cut around the template.. I used a small handsaw (bandsaw or scroll saw would be perfect for this but I had neither).. Took all of 5 minutes to cut but could not help thinking to myself the whole time how BMW has me sawing my bumper... how the #%^& they did not have the car "hitch ready" from the factory is bizarre.. nonetheless this step only took 5 minutes...


Just wanted to share my experience should any of you be interested in adding a hitch.... fyi my dealer wanted $1,500 to install (included the hitch itself)... I did it for $500..

Rob
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      08-03-2013, 11:23 AM   #2
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I just installed the invisible hitch (the cover can be put back on to hide the hitch when not in use) on my M and the bumper still had to be removed for the install.
I bought both harnesses but thought that the OEM one you used had to be programed at the dealer and I didn't have time to do that before I needed to tow so I used the spliced one. I wish I had known that that the OEM one would have worked as it would have saved me a lot of time and hassle. I was smart though in routing both harnesses so I don't have to remove the bumper again.
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      08-05-2013, 04:54 PM   #3
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I have the Execuhitch with the OE Harness installed.
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      08-20-2013, 09:56 AM   #4
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Quote:
Originally Posted by denaliman View Post
I have the Execuhitch with the OE Harness installed.
You have pictures of your execuhitch? Did you do the install yourself?
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      08-26-2013, 09:56 PM   #5
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Some pics
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      08-26-2013, 10:26 PM   #6
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Dude that is sweet I love the fact that it is hidden - definitely want to do this in the future, although at this time I don't need to tow anything, so not in a rush.
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      07-29-2018, 08:09 PM   #7
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I have the OEM hitch and OEM wiring harness but did not get the installation or wiring instructions with the hitch. It looks pretty straighforward, but I want to be sure I route all of the wires correctly. Does anyone have or can you point me to the instructions?

I've done several hotches and harnesses on other cars and always prefer to use the OEM wiring so I don't inadvertantly blow something out. THink about it this way. BMW Bake light wiring is designed, at least partially, to use LED lights. Not all trailers have LEP lights so by splicing into the brake lights, you may be overloading the system. At the very least, you are taxing the diagnostic system that tells you when a brake or tail light is burned out.

Spend the extra few bucks and go OEM, even if you install it yourself. It usually looks better and you will probably get the $ back when you go to sell.
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      09-07-2018, 01:28 PM   #8
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Checking with Victoria BMW and the harness is no longer sold separate in Canada, it is only included with the BMW hitch.

Harness part number confirmed from Vic BMW: 71 60 2 156 526

VIC BMW Prices in CAD:
They quoted five hours total install at $120/hr
$870 for the complete hardware kit
$1680 total installed including tax


I ended up ordering the harness from ECS tuning (ES#:262790) for $210.29 USD
All in shipping, duty and tax will be around $305 CAD.

Link to part on ECS Tuning

Installation Instructions
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      09-15-2018, 08:17 PM   #9
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Nice job
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