Originally Posted by lahermano

Hi Folks,

I have had my X5 2005 for 2 years now and here are all the problems i had and fixed.

1. Radiator Expansion tank : Blew up hairline leak bursting all the coolant while on the highway. Car overheated.. stupid of me to drive 10 miles stop and go without coolant. Fortunately no head gasket failure. INDY fixed costed $450

2. Car over heated despite the repair from INDY. So did my own research and did a complete cooling system over haul DIY
- changed water pump (Metallic one), Thermostat, coolant, upper radiator hose. costed. $350 parts + tools

3. Replaced the spark plugs : DIY cost $65 for spark plugs from Amazon

4. broken Door handle : Replaced the carrier DIY : $50 for parts from ebay

5. panaromic moon roof stuck : No repair.. considering the cost.. so just careful not to lift the glass up for now.

6. Wiper motor failures : Both the wiper fluid motors failed with rust. Opened the motors, sanded the rust away. oiled up then used silicone sealant to avoid water contact. No COST DIY. New motors are around $20 piece on ebay.

7. Valve cover gasket : Found oil loss consistently. So replaced the Valve cover gaskets. Found the spark plug gaskets so Brittle. Had to be very careful to clean it all. Costed $100 parts DIY

8. A/C condenser aux fan not working : Too expensive to replace.. so trying to retrofit an aftermarket motor into the old frame. Any ideas ???

9. Auto head lights behaving erratically. doesn't turn on while dark. delayed start.

Don't you all think these repairs are too much in 2 years of ownership.
questions me on the reliability.. I learnt a lot on DIY activities.. but is it worth it ??
This is my first BMW and none of my other cars i had to go thru this much of DIY stuff.

Just a thought. Please share your experiences..