6000 lb Tow Capacity on an X5? Really??

[FastCletus]

So I have a 2010 x5 3.0. It has a 6000lb tow capacity. I thought about upgrading to an X5 V8 or the X5 diesel, but the tow capacity for them is the same.
My X5 pulls my 3500lb camper ok, but I always feel like it is labored, and maybe maxed out for the car. Am I being to gentle and this thing can really pull a 5000 lb trailer. I really want to upgrade the trailer to a bigger 2 axle trailer but unsure if this 6000 lb tow is valid

[yco]

if braked yes.. but its less than 6000lb, should be around 2500kg.. if not braked 600-700kg though if i were you i d not tow anything more than 1500kg.. older the car gets, parts wear out much much easier.. any bad surprise can occur pretty fast..

[FastCletus]

Originally Posted by yco

if braked yes.. but its less than 6000lb, should be around 2500kg.. if not braked 600-700kg though if i were you i d not tow anything more than 1500kg.. older the car gets, parts wear out much much easier.. any bad surprise can occur pretty fast..

Originally Posted by yco

if braked yes.. but its less than 6000lb, should be around 2500kg.. if not braked 600-700kg though if i were you i d not tow anything more than 1500kg.. older the car gets, parts wear out much much easier.. any bad surprise can occur pretty fast..

Yes the camper I have is braked. Whole braking system is awesome. Just more worried about big hills and transmission strain and over revving engine.

[jiggz]

I think there's capability, and then there's overall ability... I don't doubt each E70 model is capable of towing 6000 pounds, but the 2007-2010 3.0 inline 6 is the weakest motor in the E70 lineup and will have to work the hardest to pull that weight, especially over a mountain pass.

Both the non-M V8's, especially the 2011-2013 xDrive50i w/ the N63, and the M57 diesel, will pull your camper with ease compared to the 3.0.

[Spyro235]

The e70 in the USA never came witht eh n57, just the m57. I have one.

I would suggest a bigger motor if you're going heavier with a trailer. I just got home from towing 6000-6500 lbs on my 18' big tex car hauler 2300 miles in 4 days, and I have a diesel. 0 stability issues, trans temps were good the whole time, and the motor didn't even have to try. Diesel is your best bet for efficiency, I got 18.9 mpg over the 2300 miles trip, including going over the poconos mountains on 80 at 75 on cruise control. Flatter parts of the country my tanks were as high as 19.9mpg, but I was blasting at 75-80, so I could've done better.

I believe the transmissions are all the same, but your 3.0 motor is just not the powerhouse that the truck deserves. So long as you're maintaining everything well, you should be fine to literally sit on redline to make it up a hill, but I much prefer the experience of my diesel. Accelerating up a hill, I never have to rev over 3k rpm, and it just smoothly gets up to speed regardless of what I ask it to do.

[jiggz]

Originally Posted by Spyro235

The e70 in the USA never came witht eh n57, just the m57. I have one.

Thanks, yes - I fixed my post above. My mind is currently the F15 world, which has the N57.

[FastCletus]

Look what I just saw. This is way more than what I am looking for. I have a hard time believing this is a good idea That is a huge trailer

[Spyro235]

That guy's an idiot. He's not using a WD hitch, and probably hasn't reinforced his oem hitch either.

Have a look at this thread, I read through it all before I bought my X5 to be my tow vehicle. https://xoutpost.com/bmw-sav-forums/...l-economy.html

People tow well over BMW's stated limits, and while I'm not saying that's a good thing necessaily, there are a few users who's judgement I really do trust, because I've read what they've done to increase the holding capacity of their hitches. I suggest you read a lot, and while I'm staying within the X5's stated limits for the most part, I'm considering reinforcing my hitch anyway. Can't hurt to have a stronger setup.

[FastCletus]

I guess my overall synopsis is the Weight I am pulling is OK for my car. Maybe I can go a little more but not too much. Hard to see but here is my set up. When towing my trailer is perfectly flat and even. I think that helps as when I tow i have no sway. All feels stable

[staianoa]

Late to this one. I tow my track car (E30) on an open trailer with built up tire rack (six to ten tires) on it with no issues. For sure a brake controller but otherwise performs well. The 8 mpg I get is less than ideal but I love the truck!!

[BlackX5]

There is a max tongue weight and a max tow weight. That trailer may be at or near 6000 pounds, but the tonque weight could be over 600 based on the way the back of the X5 is squat down. The tongue weight can be regulated by the position of the trailer wheels in relation to where the weight is focused on the trailer. And you can tell in the picture the wheels are pushed way back to the rear of the trailer and most of the weight is all up front on the tongue. So in this case, based on this type of trailer, it probably is unsafe. Because most of the weight is forward and unbalanced on the trailer wheels.

Originally Posted by FastCletus

Look what I just saw. This is way more than what I am looking for. I have a hard time believing this is a good idea That is a huge trailer

[GTBrandon]

Does anybody have experience towing with an X5M, curious what average weights and set-ups were.

[askjeeves]

Originally Posted by GTBrandon

Does anybody have experience towing with an X5M, curious what average weights and set-ups were.

I use mine to tow. I've got an open steel braked trailer that's a little under 2k lbs + se30 that's around 2500lbs. One set of wheels goes in the se30. Another set of wheels + tools and other stuff goes in the back of the x5. I hardly notice the trailer behind me.

I'm intrigued by people towing enclosed trailers. I figured that would be pushing it.

[Thecastle]

Originally Posted by GTBrandon

Does anybody have experience towing with an X5M, curious what average weights and set-ups were.

I tow all the time with my X5M. In fact that’s what I primarily use it for is my tow vehicle. Otherwise it sits in a garage as a very occasional use vehicle. I will say it’s the best tow vehicle I’ve ever had the pleasure of using and I’ve used many for towing our trailer.

I tow a 22.5 ft trailer with mine, a 2020 flagstaff microlite 21ds (previously had a 2017). Empty the trailer weighs about 5k lbs, has brakes and empty has 620lbs of tongue weight. I’ve lightened the tongue some buy switching to lithium ion batteries and etc. but we have a sure line scale and as typIcally setup we have about 670lbs of tongue weight. We use a blue ox swap pro weight distribution hitch and a wireless brake controller.

When towing we keep nothing in the car, other than ourselves to keep from exceeding our max payload of the car. We run the car tires at 44psi to increase load rating. Self leveling is a godsend in getting the trailer set to level towing,

The car has been excellent for us. Many long trips to various national parks over the last 4 years. Before then we towed our trailer with a 2008 x5 4.8i. Which was barely powerful enough, to maintain highway speeds.

After 67k miles on the clock with 10s of thousands towing we have now had to replace the rear shocks, leaking and airbags for the 1st time. Pretty good if you ask me on a 2011.

We prefer the x5m over our f-450. The f450 rides worse, because of its poor turning radius it’s harder to back a trailer in a tight spot. It doesn’t fit in any parking spaces, and sticks out with a trailer, and gets worse fuel economy even though it’s a diesel. No difference in sway. Sway is primarily a problem of improper trailer loading, not leveling the tow vehicle and trailer. Most people don’t weigh their trailers and wonder why they sway.

[gan23]

The feeling is the same here. I have both e70m (oem hitch) and F85 (steath) and I feel that towing is easier with the bmw than a Silverado 1500 because the car has so much power and I don’t have to push the pedal so much to the floor to keep the car at 70 with the trailer while staying in 8th gear.

Here are some observations about the capacities of the F85
https://f15.bimmerpost.com/forums/sh...php?p=26565898

[Thecastle]

Most light duty trucks have no more towing capability than an x5. Their marketing department exaggerates towing capabilities. If you look at the payload capacity of most trucks as people buy them they are in the 1100-1400lbs range. Which is the same as an x5. So full size pickups are all payload limited, mainly because of how obese they are and soft suspensions to keep their flexy body on frame designs from shuddering you to death.

Plus with pickups their longer which means fitting them in a campsite with a trailer is harder especially in national parks. Worse turning radius means backing is tougher, huge blind spots again making maneuvering harder. Less power, poor handling, and weak brakes and it’s a challenge to tow. Light duty Pickups are generally a towing downgrade. You wouldn’t want to ride in my f450 with it’s g rated tires at 110psi on anything but smooth roads... it can find bumps and shudders on roads you can’t see imperfections