Hi Skier, your in Newcastle to, thats three of us so far. Regarding the EGR valve I cleaned mine a number of times but ended up replacing it which has reduced the exhaust soot dramatically, I have a supplier in UK cheap if needed, also one of the critical components is the crankcase oil breather if you have'nt already replaced it, you may have seen my post on the AUS forum. With the exhaust, I have a great mech in town who has done my cars for over 20 yrs, very cluey on X5s. You can send me a PM if you want happy to help where I can. Cheers.