Sell my X5 or drive it into the ground?

[squidzilla]

You have done most of the big stuff. If you want you can replace the alternator and voltage regulator now and get that over with. Do your battery if it is 5 years or older.

Same with the fuel filter and fuel pump. Again, at your mileage those things are hit and miss.

If you had a Honda or something as a daily you could do all of this stuff very slowly. Between detailed forums posts and you tube I think anyone can learn to DIY if you have the time. Harbor Freight gets you good tools cheap.

As the original owner I would feel best about doing those things to the car since I know all of its history. Most of us, even with service records, are left in the dark to a degree.

[StephenVA]

I think we all have beaten this topic to death already.

There are lots of choices with vehicle purchases- New Vs Used? Warranty VS None? Own vs Lease? DIY vs $$$ and on and on. Everyonegets to make choices. Most on this forum tend to make SMART choices by DIY to reduce cost of ownership and to improve reliability on 10+ year old performance SAV.
If you plan it right most of these vehicles will go way passed 150,000/15 years and still look good and get remarks that start with "Is that New?"
DIY, learn from the forum = happy owners
Give your repair shop of choice $$$ (Dealer add 40%)when something happens will usually make you great friend of the shop owners, but not much else.

DIY and drive until there is nothing left. That will be ROI.

[jsoto]

Originally Posted by trader4

I would disagree. IMO, if you have an original BMW alternator and it's
working, I'd leave it alone. If you replace it with a brand new one
from Bosch or Valeo, it's expensive. And if you replace it with a $200
rebuilt one that you buy from the typical channels, you're depending
on the quality of the rebuild, which is done by some volume, low cost
vendor in Mexico or similar. They take in cores, quick test them, and
in many cases, only replace what tests bad. The core you send back
is working, it's unlikely they are going to replace the VR for example.
The next guy winds up with your old VR. If you take out your working
alternator and replace it with a rebuilt, that next guy is you.
.

Fuel filter, sure that should be changed. But fuel pump, again, I would
not screw around with what is working.

All in all, I don't buy into a lot of the preemptive replacement of parts
that in many cars, last the lifetime of the car.

My water cooled OE went bad in year 4 1/2 as well as in year 6.
It's been 6-7 years since then with a Bosch ~OEM~ and so far, no issues yet on on non OE alternator

[Qsilver7]

I got lost on the comments about the inability to get through winter???? I can only assume that those that live around the Great Lakes area and can't get through a winter...are running all season tires instead of dedicated snow/ice tires.

Based on my winter driving experience with my 06 X5 and the Michelin X-Ice xi2 winter tires that get mounted in the winter...I just can't comprehend an X5 having the difficulty that was suggested in some of the earlier threads.

When my snow blower broke its belt this past winter after only cleaning off about 5 feet in front of the garage...the X5 backed out of the garage into the snow filled driveway and onto & down the street with about 20" of unplowed snow without a hiccup. Then when the ice storms or freezing rain comes and puts a nice glaze on the road or on top of the piled up snow...again, if driving properly for the conditions...there still wasn't slipping and sliding...in fact, you could feel the thousands of sipes in the tires grabbing when accelerating and while stopping and turning.

Those that do have snow tires and still have issues...then perhaps you have the wrong type of snow tires for your winter conditions (performance snows instead of snow/ice tires)...or it's time to replace them because the threads have gotten too low.

[Joshdub]

I don't understand those guys either. I bought mine specifically for winter. Now that it is getting nicer, I only really drive the X5 when taking the dog somewhere or I need the space (which is almost never).

As far as buying another used car for more "reliability", the devil you know is better than the devil you don't. Chances are that used car is going to need its own version of everything you already did to your current car. Not to mention the bore factor of a Honda/Toyota. I'd rather buy a nice bycicle.

[X5rolls]

I love my X5 and also have alternative transportation even for the snow if I need it. BUT.. this is a vehicle that I won't own outside of a comprehensive warranty. I purchased one before it hit the 50k mileage mark, ending factory warranty. Got a very good (and expensive one) that covers nearly everything, bumper to bumper and has a $0 deductible. Everytime something goes wrong that I can't quickly and cheaply fix, I take it to my dealer, they toss me the keys to a brand new BMW and call me when it is ready. There have been a few items here and there that have not been covered but the warranty has paid for itself 5-6 times over. I'm running out of that one in 8k miles or in Sept - whichever is first - I've investigated another warranty, from the dealer and while not cheap, provides me with another 3 years and 36k miles - $0 deductible and the tossing of new keys anytime I take it there.

I never want to get rid of my X5, I love it so much.

Please consider going that route - some dealers may even offer financing of the warranty. You can also negotiate the price - I got a very good discount by being patient, doing my homework, reading ALL the fine print and being ready and willing to walk if I didn't get the price range I wanted. Do it in person when you get to the end - FI people can deal. Good luck.

[bestvaluestore]

Originally Posted by babyduke

2005 X5 3.0i sport 120K miles

I normally don't keep my cars for too long but something about my X5, I am not getting tired of it and want to keep it forever. FYI, I bought it new and it drove beautifully for about 7 years. Maintenance's done regularly and it's kept in the garage so still looks glossy. But in the last 3 years or so, mechanical problems started to appear.

- Had to get hoses, fittings, pcv replaced after serious oil leak during arctic winter

- Another minor oil leak, gasket replaced

- Coolant sensor and thermostat replaced

- Rear door carrier replaced

- Wear and tear items like CV boots, window regulator, wheel camber, etc... all corrected

What other costly problems may be knocking at my door soon? What to do prevent costly repairs? Many people have been telling me it's time to sell it while it still have some trade in value. Because of it, I'm kind of afraid to take it for a long trip.

What to do? Chicago winter scares me and this car isn't quite built to battle it IMHO.

Yes,if you feel it is time to part ways,just get rid of the car and get another.Nothing last forever.everything changes.

[bestvaluestore]

Originally Posted by babyduke

2005 X5 3.0i sport 120K miles

I normally don't keep my cars for too long but something about my X5, I am not getting tired of it and want to keep it forever. FYI, I bought it new and it drove beautifully for about 7 years. Maintenance's done regularly and it's kept in the garage so still looks glossy. But in the last 3 years or so, mechanical problems started to appear.

- Had to get hoses, fittings, pcv replaced after serious oil leak during arctic winter

- Another minor oil leak, gasket replaced

- Coolant sensor and thermostat replaced

- Rear door carrier replaced

- Wear and tear items like CV boots, window regulator, wheel camber, etc... all corrected

What other costly problems may be knocking at my door soon? What to do prevent costly repairs? Many people have been telling me it's time to sell it while it still have some trade in value. Because of it, I'm kind of afraid to take it for a long trip.

What to do? Chicago winter scares me and this car isn't quite built to battle it IMHO.

Yes,if you feel it is time to part ways,just get rid of the car and get another.Nothing lasts forever.Everything changes.

[bcredliner]

Key words--I want to keep it forever.

[kvc]

If it's your only vehicle and you rely on it daily, then I believe you may be justified in trading it for something a bit newer and possibly more reliable. If however, you have another vehicle at your disposal and as you say, you 'want to keep it forever' then I suppose anticipating some repairs at the car's current age and mileage, should be expected and you'll just have to prepare as best you can.
I have a 47 year old car in my stable, and if I were to do a longish trip, then I would have no hesitation as I know it's been maintained reasonably well. That said, I would definitely take some parts and basic tools along for the ride too...