E91 320d MSport Touring - Towbar

[number2]

Good evening all. This is a new part of the forum for me and I've come seeking advice!

I need to fit a towbar to my car - a detachable or retractable one. I have spoken to my local towbar man and they are planning on fitting a Witter detachable - the Brink retractable looked good but they have spoken to their suppliers and they can't confirm it will fit the MSport.

So.... has anyone got the Witter detachable?

a) will there actually be visible cutting of my bumper?

b) how discreet the attachment will be? It looks like it hangs down below the bumper.

c) will the Brink retractable fit the E91 MSport?

c) has anyone retrofitted the BMW one? Does this fit the MSport?

d) what other options do I have?

I assume all towbars will do the job (I'll be towing a trailer and car with the combined weight of around 1tonne) but I want minimal/no impact on the back of my car when not in use.

Thanks in advance for your help. An internet beer to each and every one of you!

David

[rich_vw]

I realise it's not on a 3 but recently had a witters detatchable fitted to my 1 M sport, would highly recomend if its anything similar.

No cut tot he bumper, althought the under tray needs some cutting (not visable). You can only see a very small piece of metal when it's off, plug has been done so it slids away out of site.

[number2]

Cheers Rich , by the sound of it, it will fit well on mine too - our rear bumper areas shouldn't be too different .

Is it the vertical one that you have fitted? (I would have thought so because the horizontal ones by their very nature must be sticking out to get the tow ball in.)

I'll follow this thread over the weekend to see what it turns up, then I'll call the towbar man on Monday .

[rich_vw]

This is the one I've had fitted...wasn't what you ment by verticle.

linky

Hope it makes sense.

R

[number2]

Cheers Rich - it looks like it is the same one. By vertical I mean the way the tow bar section is inserted into the receptacle - it's pushed upwards not slotted in horizontally.

I take it that your electrics flip up out of site too?

[rich_vw]

Get ya now, so yes, push up it is. The electrics site as per the diagrame but they left the nut loose enough to be able to turn the whole think 90degrees so it sites out of site, just the way I like it.

Basically if you didn't know it had one you wouldn't notice.

[Fats25]

Rich - I cannot see the link above anymore - is this what you were pointing at?

http://www.witter-towbars.co.uk/towbars/towbar.php

Can I ask what you paid for this, including fitting? It is a 123D hatch I am looking at fitting this to, and I have heard rumours of approx £400 supplied and fitted. But I don't know where from!

Am new to towing, in fact I do not even have a trailer yet, so looking for a bit of advice. This "swan neck" does not look like a standard Tow "ball" that I see on most cars. Does this mean the trailer needs a specific towing connection? Or does it accept a standard towing thing?

I am looking at getting a trailer like this to tow motorbikes so you can see what I mean and if it will fit:-

http://www.davecooper.co.uk/bike_trailers.htm

Also are you able to use the bike racks (like this) , that i see other cars with these swan neck type detachments?

http://thule.com/en-GB/GB/Products/Bike ... 20970.aspx