I walked away from even the thought of buying an X5 multiple times, mainly after visiting X5 forums like this. Are you kidding me? problems like these at these early miles?

finally, though, I had to buy an SUV and it came down between lexus RX and X5. Picking the X5 for its driving dynamics was a no brainer.

For the first few weeks of my ownership, various sensors/things went wrong and all were covered under the orig warranty.

It has been running flawlessly ever since and I am extremely happy with my choice.

Yes, I do not recommend a BMW to friends who drive hondas and toyotas, and I tell them that they will not enjoy the x5 if they feel this should behave like their reliable cars.

People make many mistakes when comparing this car to others. Trust me, a ford explorer would need a lot less maintenance than this one does. But look at how it drives and the feedback it provides, compared to an X5. (think suspension parts, how delicate they need to be to provide that type of performance/feedback/accuracy.) Look at the size of engine and the performance/engine-size or performance/mpg that it provides.

With every electrical option/gizmo, something can and will go wrong. one can't compare it with another car that doesn't even have that gizmo.


Plus, if you bought your x5 used, see what percentage of its new car price you paid for it. A $20k X5 is not the same as a $20k Pilot. You can't have the same life expectancy from a $20k car that was going $55k new, vs. a $20k car that went for $29k new.


I used to hate BMWs with a passion, for all the reasons that everyone knows about: no longevity in the parts (especially electrical stuff), things that break down which will NEVER break down in a japanese car (door handle, etc.), all compueterized/electrical crap that goes wrong, etc. But now I kinda like what BMW does... it spends its money/enegry on driving satisfaction, and focuses on the market that prefers that over longevity and reliability.

If longevity/reliability of parts are more important to you (due to cost, time, whatever) than the drive, BMW is definitely not for you. That is why used BMWs are going for a lot less (percentage wise, compared to their new car pricing) than other brands.

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Currently driving: 2011 E70 x35i , 2011 E90 335d
Previous BMWs: 2007 E90 328i , 2005 E53 3.0i, 2011 F10 535i (6spd manual)