guru

The 2 inch square piece on the right side of the rear bumper fell off. Does anyone know what's behind there (seems to be a hole there) and is this just a snap-on part that I can buy and put on myself?

scorchie

The square piece covers the hole. You can buy the snap on part and put it on yourself (you may need to read the owner's manual for instructions).

-s-

guru

What is the hole for? At least my car is black so the color match should be easy.

MBE55AMG

It is a towing insert. I believe something screws in for towing from the rear.

jangy

Yup, you have the screw with a ring on the end in the trunk. You screw it in and have a tow link on your car. Therefore no need for the tow people to wrap the cables around your axle.

larryssf

Noticed that square hatch off to the right side of the bumper and wondered what it was. Again, the Forum to the rescue.

What do you think the chances are that a oridinary tow truck operator will use it. I guess this implies that you better only use MB road services. Probably a good idea unless you are in the middle of nowhere.

MBE55AMG

True, I mean, MB Roadside Assistance isn't there to just sit around. They need calls from us.

scorchie

No disrespect intended, but this is all covered in the owner's manual. If you take a look in there, you may find a lot of neat features about your car that you are missing out on!

-s-

SAguirre

I would like to add that the E class is full of little things like this. You really need to read the manual and I assure you will find at least 10 features that you did not know about!

This little cap on the bumper is a very common thing on most new cars (and some old ones) that have a design that does not lend itself to having a hook welded to the bottom of the car. The problem with this is that if your car gets towed (because of parking or something) the tow truck driver will not have access to the trunk to get the threaded hook. On the other hand, they might have a universal hook (since the threads are the same as BMW's and might be standardized). But, when they take the little lid off, might leave a scuffmark where they stuck the screwdriver in and wedged the lid open.

When I have my Audi Emissions tested, they need to put it on a dynamometer on both axels. The person doing the e-test this last time could not find the hook, so he decided to hook the lanyard to the bumper skirt/cover. I came out to the testing floor and I was yelled at, so I yelled right back at the idiot and showed him how to hook the car up. He apologized afterwards, but I am kind of ticked that I have to point these things out. It is as if you have to have your subconscious think of what some person might overlook and catch it before it is too late.

Steve

PSG

Do you think it actually fell off? I ask because last week mine "disappeared". I thought that it might have been taken off (I was parked in a school parking lot for an evening) as the probability that it might just fall off seemed unlikely.

PSG

cdiken

Is the official name for the feature.

The eye-bolt is in the trunk in the tool kit. It screws in by hand.

There is also a towing eye-bolt receptacle in the front bumper.


IT IS A GREAT FEATURE....used mine a couple weeks ago. I was backing out of a gravel driveway and dipped left rear wheel into soft mud. Sunk to the hub instantly....stuck.

Plus, no cell phone service. Middle of nowhere. Some state hwy dept employees working nearby had a chain, and 5 men played tug-o-war with the CDI and got it out. They said they were not allowed by policy to hook their truck to it.

I was so happy for the feature, the only other option would have been 5 men pushing all over the sheetmetal with hands/gloves covered in grit.


All should know this feature because chances are Cooter the tow truck driver does not, and he may winch you out by your suspension parts or something that could cause damage.

KB


P.S. Guru, your cover was probably stolen/vandalized. It is on a keeper string, so even in the unlikely event it separated itself, it would still be dangling there.

jameson75

I was told that it was a useless thing on the bumper. The only thing that it was used for was to hold the car in place during shipping. The dealer said that it was used only one time when the car was being shipped.

guru

It is possible that it was taken....What a silly thing to do, stealing a part that costs 10 bucks, but this is NY. I had a hard time understanding how it could have fallen off....

benzboy

Another answer from a dealer who does not want to admit they just don't know!