I hope it's sustainable . My wife's calling it "Burn My Wallet" X5. I got the door latch from autopartswarehouse, followed the steps here and a video on ebay. It worked. Thanks guys.
The door lock tumbler shaft had broken. I ordered the parts from ebay (vtraudt) - the first time the shaft broke while I was putting it together. He sent another shaft, this time it broke after installing..hope the 3rd try will work. Meanwhile I ordered the same kit, this time from UK. Hope it works.
Now on to the window regulator, tail gate latch and the coolant gauge mystery.
You guys are amazing how you've solved so many problems.