Add another ~1500m this week

[PropellerHead]

I was thinking on one particularly smooth piece of Texas Interstate that the ole 4.8 has been running really well this year. She just sits there.. content at 84MPH soaking up asphalt. She knows... something exciting is in place tomorrow for the boredom of today.

And so it was. Delightfully uneventful. Quiet but for when I hammered the gas. And all of that made me think:

How? What? Why?

is it that I can so gleefully and freely venture off in an 11 yr old car? What makes *me* think my cooling system can handle Houston, TX heat an humidity?

• Ohhhh, yeah. I replaced all of that because it was old, not because of the miles I expect from the parts, before anything failed.
  
• I spent a few weeks testing and finding the solution to my concerns about the transmission or parts related.
  
• I've been seeking the oil change interval right for me. I have found it, and I have adjusted it based on my experience, not the lights.
  
• My trusted indy and I have an agreement. If it leaks, seal it. If it squeals, replace it.
  
• I milled around at 35, flirted over another hundred, and negotiated what might be the sh!ttiest streets my X5 has ever seen.

And we drive on dirt.

[AV8R4AA]

Your PM box is overflowing ��

[Ricky Bobby]

And that my friends is BMW ownership bliss. Replace parts not just on mileage but on age, keep your fluids fresh and if something is broken, fix it.

[TiAgX5]

That about sums it up.

Take care of it, it takes care of you.

My last distance run was 2 weeks ago, Coppell TX (D/FW area) to Diamond Mine State Park, Arkansas, round trip of almost 500 miles. X was running for over 7 hrs straight, did the trip on one tank, Even with temps over 110F and AC going.

[Joshdub]

That is the way I have been with my E30. When I it I took it off the road for about a year and a half to do a transmission swap and completely go through everything. Since then I have just followed maintenance intervals and replace things in big groups as they age. After 6 years, many road trips, and many track days it has only failed to run three times. 1) heater core, 2) coolant temp sensor, and lastly/currently: DME failure (I believe, I have a rebuilt one on its way. I hope that's what it is). Luckily all three times have been at home. After this current one is fixed, I wouldn't hesitate to drive it across the country.

[525iT_Feen]

Originally Posted by Ricky Bobby

And that my friends is BMW ownership bliss. Replace parts not just on mileage but on age, keep your fluids fresh and if something is broken, fix it.

.

Be good to them and they will be good to you.

[srmmmm]

Originally Posted by TiAgX5

That about sums it up.

Take care of it, it takes care of you.

My last distance run was 2 weeks ago, Coppell TX (D/FW area) to Diamond Mine State Park, Arkansas, round trip of almost 500 miles. X was running for over 7 hrs straight, did the trip on one tank, Even with temps over 110F and AC going.

We probably passed by each other as we did the Arlington to Broken Bow, OK trip that weekend. Nothing like jumping in a vehicle with 284,000 miles on it, hooking up a 190 HP watercraft and towing it 240 miles at 75 mph in 104 degree temperatures, and still getting 18.5 mpg!

The next big tow is Labor Day weekend to Lake Ouachita outside Hot Springs.

2002 X5 3.0 284,979 miles
2004 325i 122,000 miles

[admranger]

What's the consensus on the radiator lifespan? Mine has just short of 99k on it. Thermostat has been replaced, as has expansion tank (and many of the main hoses...).

[srmmmm]

Originally Posted by admranger

What's the consensus on the radiator lifespan? Mine has just short of 99k on it. Thermostat has been replaced, as has expansion tank (and many of the main hoses...).

I'm still on the original radiator with no issues. But the coolant has always been topped off or replaced with BMW product whenever the cooling system was serviced.

Expansion tank is changed every 100,000 miles and hoses/coolant are replaced every 150,000 miles unless visual inspection during other service shows a need.

2002 X5 3.0 285,050 miles
2004 325i 122,000 miles

[TiAgX5]

My radiator almost made it to 12yrs/200k miles.

It started to seep at the seam between the aluminium core and plastic DS tank.