Towing with X5 / other suggestions

[spxxx]

I figured I'd post this here since there's more track rats in the E9x world vs F8x... With a 1yr old, I've decided that it's time to grow up and pickup a cheaper tow rig/daily instead of stealing my wife's Grand Cherokee (I WFH so it'll rarely be driven except around town & to the track).

I'm leaning toward a 2013-2015 X5 (35i xdrive + tow package) as I know my way around the engine and they're a good size.

Anyone have experience towing with these or have alternative suggestions of midsized (luxury-ish) SUVs that can tow 4-5k lbs easily?

[roastbeef]

how did the grand cherokee do? we have a '17 with a 5.7 and eight speed transmission. i've only moved the trailer in/out a few times (haven't actually towed anything anywhere yet), but it seems to do pretty good.

[OG Shark]

I like the X5 as a tow rig if you can keep the weight down. A tahoe/yukon or expedition might be another choice - bit more towing capacity and a little more room inside + 3rd row of seats which can be nice to have. I know you said suv but a crew cab pickup is really hard to beat as a tow vehicle. Plenty of room in the bed for all the junk (tires, etc). Typically set up better for towing. With a decent bed cover plenty of storage for the daily routine - strollers, etc. Can make for an excellent daily if need be. Alternately maybe another Cherokee or a Durango.

[dparm]

Towing with an X5 is possible but you will be limited on trailer weight and how much stuff you can take with (tools, wheels, extra people).

I would do the math on your car and trailer exact weight and then look at the X5's capacity. Do not just look at the max tow rating. I almost bought an X5M but realized it would be right at the limit of things and wasn't comfortable with that.

[Kelse92]

I know this is a BMW forum, but I'm Very happy with my Cayenne tow rig. Tows up to 7700lbs, so no problem with an e92 and a steel trailer, but for extra breathing room on weight I would seek out an aluminum trailer. V8 and air suspension is a great setup, or if you are looking for more fuel economy, get a Diesel. The Touareg is the same platform as well, but the Porsche has the nicer interior of the two.

[spxxx]

Originally Posted by roastbeef

how did the grand cherokee do? we have a '17 with a 5.7 and eight speed transmission. i've only moved the trailer in/out a few times (haven't actually towed anything anywhere yet), but it seems to do pretty good.

Dude, the Jeep has done shockingly well... AND it's the V6. My dad has an F-350 7.3L and we still choose to tow with the Jeep 99% of the time as it's annoying moving stuff from the truck bed into the cab at the hotel before events etc since most track side hotels aren't in the best areas.

The Jeep is a lease so we don't really care about the wear on the trans but it's been bulletproof for ~20 300 mile trips. Her lease is coming up and we're going to buy her something nicer and I'd prefer not beating on it while towing / making a mess at the track in the Range/Mercedes or whatever she ends up with...

[spxxx]

Originally Posted by OG Shark

I like the X5 as a tow rig if you can keep the weight down. A tahoe/yukon or expedition might be another choice - bit more towing capacity and a little more room inside + 3rd row of seats which can be nice to have. I know you said suv but a crew cab pickup is really hard to beat as a tow vehicle. Plenty of room in the bed for all the junk (tires, etc). Typically set up better for towing. With a decent bed cover plenty of storage for the daily routine - strollers, etc. Can make for an excellent daily if need be. Alternately maybe another Cherokee or a Durango.

Oh yeah, we've towed with my dad's 7.3L F-350 but I don't like having everything exposed in the truck bed overnight at seedy motels. I agree though, it's so nice just tossing everything in the truck bed.

Prefer something slightly smaller but a truck would be an ideal option if it weren't for us already having one down the street (my dad's) and the lack of secure storage (a bed cover could solve that issue though...). Could be an option!

[spxxx]

Originally Posted by dparm

Towing with an X5 is possible but you will be limited on trailer weight and how much stuff you can take with (tools, wheels, extra people).

I would do the math on your car and trailer exact weight and then look at the X5's capacity. Do not just look at the max tow rating. I almost bought an X5M but realized it would be right at the limit of things and wasn't comfortable with that.

Yeah my trailer is really lightweight (1,200lbs) and the car will be 3,300ish soon. I'm not too worried about hitting the towing limits after my experience with an NA V6 in the Jeep over the last 4 years.

Especially with 100+ more ft/lbs and the towing package, I'm not against adding airbags etc to help with rear suspension sag. I was also looking at Tahoes etc with a larger V8 as the 4.4L X5 would probably be a maintenance nightmare (I'm looking for a 2014-2016ish model)

Would love folks experience with the 4.4L X5 though if anyone's towed with that motor.

[SYT_Shadow]

If you're getting the G X5 you can simply spec it with the air rear suspension and not worry about sag. If you're buying used, any X5 with the 3rd row seats has rear air suspension as well.

Here in the US, to tow a Miata people want a F550. In Europe people tow their track cars with a 130hp minivan and call it a day.

With a light trailer and a M3 totalling 5k lb, I don't know why you'd look elsewhere than a X5 that is rated at 7k lb.

The V8 X5 1st gen engine must be avoided at all costs. The 445hp version in the F X5 is fine. Much more low end torque, but I'd still choose the I6 for maintenance/reliability.

You said yourself, you're happy with a NA V6. With 100ftlb more stock in the X5 you're most likely set.

[spxxx]

Originally Posted by Kelse92

I know this is a BMW forum, but I'm Very happy with my Cayenne tow rig. Tows up to 7700lbs, so no problem with an e92 and a steel trailer, but for extra breathing room on weight I would seek out an aluminum trailer. V8 and air suspension is a great setup, or if you are looking for more fuel economy, get a Diesel. The Touareg is the same platform as well, but the Porsche has the nicer interior of the two.

That was my ideal option based on the experiences I've heard with the V8 Cayenne's but with the limited use of the car I'm trying to set my budget sub-$30k... I might end up splurging but it's still TBD.

[spxxx]

Originally Posted by SYT_Shadow

If you're getting the G X5 you can simply spec it with the air rear suspension and not worry about sag. If you're buying used, any X5 with the 3rd row seats has rear air suspension as well.

Here in the US, to tow a Miata people want a F550. In Europe people tow their track cars with a 130hp minivan and call it a day.

With a light trailer and a M3 totalling 5k lb, I don't know why you'd look elsewhere than a X5 that is rated at 7k lb.

The V8 X5 1st gen engine must be avoided at all costs. The 445hp version in the F X5 is fine. Much more low end torque, but I'd still choose the I6 for maintenance/reliability.

You said yourself, you're happy with a NA V6. With 100ftlb more stock in the X5 you're most likely set.

Haha so true... people in the US want a V8 SUV to take their kid to soccer practice and pickup groceries. If I could find a wagon with 6k towing capacity I'd be all over it!

[askjeeves]

I tow regularly with my e70 x5m. It's got plenty of power, and rear air suspension. My trailer is about 1800 lbs and I normally tow my e30 (about 2500lbs) plus two sets of wheels, tools, tents, chairs etc.. I've also towed the m3 (stock weight) a few times. Especially through Florida it's easy to forget you're towing anything. Even through north carolina and South Carolina towing the e30 was effortless.

The only other truck I've towed with was a uhaul rental pickup which was a basic entry level model. The difference was noticeable, favoring the x5.

I know there are some people towing enclosed trailers even with their x5s. Seems to me like that would be pushing it, but their comments have always been positive.

[roastbeef]

Originally Posted by spxxx

Dude, the Jeep has done shockingly well... AND it's the V6. My dad has an F-350 7.3L and we still choose to tow with the Jeep 99% of the time as it's annoying moving stuff from the truck bed into the cab at the hotel before events etc since most track side hotels aren't in the best areas.

The Jeep is a lease so we don't really care about the wear on the trans but it's been bulletproof for ~20 300 mile trips. Her lease is coming up and we're going to buy her something nicer and I'd prefer not beating on it while towing / making a mess at the track in the Range/Mercedes or whatever she ends up with...

i have to admit, i have been somewhat impressed with our grand cherokee. the v8 has plenty of power, and the eight speed transmission is geared well for this truck. it has the tow package with an oil/trans cooler, as well as the air suspension, which levels the jeep. it has been an overall good value. it has a screen with a digital trans temp, oil temp, oil pressure, and voltage all in one screen on the infotainment screen.
this one has slightly bigger brakes, but not the srt brembos. i'm not sure if the larger brakes come with the tow package, or the v8 (they are separate packages). the jeep community is somewhat worthless with this kind of stuff. looking up part numbers and ordering parts is kinda sucky too, they don't have an ecs tuning or fcp like us.

the bad- i'm not confident its going to age well. it has about 44,000 miles on it and an evap/emissions vacuum thing already took a dump. took $13 and 15 minutes to replace, but still. now the a/c is acting weird. i think its the vent switches catching, but i'm not sure, hvac is not my specialty. my wife runs the a/c constantly, so it does have some accelerated wear.

my nissan is a heavy girl and i probably won't tow it with the jeep, but i store it on the trailer and it pushes it up the driveway and up the curb no sweat.

this was the second highest mid size suv for towing, the first being the porsche cayenne. the durango is probably the same too. the cayenne was 7,700lbs, and the grand cherokee is 7,400lbs.

[Kelse92]

Originally Posted by spxxx

That was my ideal option based on the experiences I've heard with the V8 Cayenne's but with the limited use of the car I'm trying to set my budget sub-$30k... I might end up splurging but it's still TBD.

My 2012 S with 70k miles was 26k in September. Look around, they’re out there

[roastbeef]

Originally Posted by Kelse92

My 2012 S with 70k miles was 26k in September. Look around, they’re out there

we almost bought a n/a cayenne s with about 75k on the clock. i popped the hood and thought, "i could work on this." decently sized bay, good 'ol v8 without a bunch of tubes and crap everywhere. mrs beef wanted something with a little more room in the back for the dogs.

[bbnks2]

The v8 and the diesel WK2 GRAND Cherokee tow great. Even the V6 tested well although the torque is lower. The hard part is finding one with the tow package. Without the tow package they are only rated for 3500. With it they are rated for 7400. The torque on the diesel and v8 is better than the BMW and Toureg. My ecodiesel tows really well and gets good gas mileage doing it compared to a gas truck. The Diesels are rare and not the most reliable but they come with all the components from the tow package by default. I believe it's the ZF-8 transmission BMW uses as well. Makes for a great daily.

Diesel Toureg is just as rare as the diesel jeep and much more expensive but another great daily option. The problem I had with looking at the X model bmws was again the lack of vehicles with a tow package. You had to add a hitch to the x5 but otherwise it looks like a great option. the 300wtq on the turbo is a bit low but we all know it will tune to 450wtq easy. The Jeep and the Toureg both come with 400wtq+ stock though.

When you really start listing out affordable trucks that you can daily and reliably tow 5000lbs+ with the list gets pretty short. Most of the options get really poor mpg towing as well. Something like an expedition or durango looks great on paper then you get to that 6mpg while towing lol.

[spxxx]

Originally Posted by roastbeef

i have to admit, i have been somewhat impressed with our grand cherokee. the v8 has plenty of power, and the eight speed transmission is geared well for this truck. it has the tow package with an oil/trans cooler, as well as the air suspension, which levels the jeep. it has been an overall good value. it has a screen with a digital trans temp, oil temp, oil pressure, and voltage all in one screen on the infotainment screen.
this one has slightly bigger brakes, but not the srt brembos. i'm not sure if the larger brakes come with the tow package, or the v8 (they are separate packages). the jeep community is somewhat worthless with this kind of stuff. looking up part numbers and ordering parts is kinda sucky too, they don't have an ecs tuning or fcp like us.

the bad- i'm not confident its going to age well. it has about 44,000 miles on it and an evap/emissions vacuum thing already took a dump. took $13 and 15 minutes to replace, but still. now the a/c is acting weird. i think its the vent switches catching, but i'm not sure, hvac is not my specialty. my wife runs the a/c constantly, so it does have some accelerated wear.

my nissan is a heavy girl and i probably won't tow it with the jeep, but i store it on the trailer and it pushes it up the driveway and up the curb no sweat.

this was the second highest mid size suv for towing, the first being the porsche cayenne. the durango is probably the same too. the cayenne was 7,700lbs, and the grand cherokee is 7,400lbs.

That's the exact feeling I've had about our Jeeps, I have no concerns regarding the engine after beating on 2 lease model V6's but the transmission does not inspire confidence... both have had this strange shudder while upshifting, the last one was fixed with a flash update but this one just started doing it 2 months before our lease ends at 32k miles.

We were looking at the Grand Cherokee L V8 for my wife as they have come a long way regarding interior creature comforts but at the higher end you're paying $70k or more for a Jeep when there are a lot of other options for less. (Since we'll probably never tow with her car)

We still might go with one shared SUV but that hasn't worked out well the last few years as wifey doesn't drive stick so it's a headache when I steal her car to tow + I tend to break things :

[admranger]

F15 is a fine tow chassis. I have my E90M3 break down on my move from DC to SE New Mexico. I towed it from Oak Ridge, TN to mPorium in McKinney, TX. Turned out to be just the alternator and not rod bearings.

The car and the X5, fully loaded for a cross country move did just fine. I set the cruise to the speed limit and the X5 40e (4-cylinder!) with the hybrid set to save battery (50% battery capacity saved) never missed a beat. It never slowed down through the hills of TN, downhills weren't a problem either. Picture was taken before we schlepped the three loads of crap out of the hotel room into the car. I will say driving a hurt M3 onto a slick steel trailer in the rain was a lot of fun...full send and hope was our final strategy. Worked great. As you probably know, mPorium was fantastic and got things sorted in no time.

The uHaul trailer is heavy as hell so I was pretty much maxed out for carrying and towing on the X5 (two adults).

If money isn't an object, then the AeroVault enclosed trailer is the way to for towing your Bugatti to the track. Even if money is an object, it's a sweet piece of kit and they hold their resale value from what I could tell when I was looking to scoop one up on the used market.

[sc_tr0jan_m3]

This thread has been super helpful to expand my search for a tow car this year. Thanks all! Keep posting

[SAMM3Y]

I'd love a diesel 3500 sprinter with the 7500lb tow capacity. Be great for all types of activities, camping, motorcycle track days, dirt bikes, car track day towing etc. I currently tow with a 1/2 ton hemi 4x4, it tows well, has hd suspension that rides nicer with a load. For SUV's, most of what I'd consider has been mentioned, maybe add Mercedes gl, Ford Expedition,

[spxxx]

Originally Posted by admranger

F15 is a fine tow chassis. I have my E90M3 break down on my move from DC to SE New Mexico. I towed it from Oak Ridge, TN to mPorium in McKinney, TX. Turned out to be just the alternator and not rod bearings.

The car and the X5, fully loaded for a cross country move did just fine. I set the cruise to the speed limit and the X5 40e (4-cylinder!) with the hybrid set to save battery (50% battery capacity saved) never missed a beat. It never slowed down through the hills of TN, downhills weren't a problem either. Picture was taken before we schlepped the three loads of crap out of the hotel room into the car. I will say driving a hurt M3 onto a slick steel trailer in the rain was a lot of fun...full send and hope was our final strategy. Worked great. As you probably know, mPorium was fantastic and got things sorted in no time.

The uHaul trailer is heavy as hell so I was pretty much maxed out for carrying and towing on the X5 (two adults).

If money isn't an object, then the AeroVault enclosed trailer is the way to for towing your Bugatti to the track. Even if money is an object, it's a sweet piece of kit and they hold their resale value from what I could tell when I was looking to scoop one up on the used market.

Oh I've been seeing some of those e40i models for less than equivalent 35i models, the idea of buying a hybrid hadn't really crossed my mind but this is good info.

Is that just the N20 4cyl engine + electric motor?

[admranger]

Originally Posted by spxxx

Oh I've been seeing some of those e40i models for less than equivalent 35i models, the idea of buying a hybrid hadn't really crossed my mind but this is good info.

Is that just the N20 4cyl engine + electric motor?

Yes. So timing chain guides are a concern iirc. Hybrid range is pitiful, but they come with rear air suspension, so there's that. It's quick enough off the line, and the hybrid feature is handy when towing. Regenerative braking on downhills. Electric boost on uphill runs.

Now, I never towed up the equivalent of the grapevine or Tehachapi pass or, heaven forbid, the Baker grade, but I-40 across TN is plenty hilly.