The 2016 "What was the best thing you did with your E53?"

[PropellerHead]

What was YOUR favorite thing you did with your E53?

This time of year, I like to reflect on the journeys- both ethereal and physical- that I have taken along with the E53. For us, this was another coast to coast year. I racked as many miles this year as I have in this E53.

We started out with a habit I got into after reading Roundels for over 30 years. These pics make for a great reflection:

December, 2015: Lucky 7's!

And then the trip from which we just returned in South Florida:

Now, 20k may not seem like a lot to folks who commute in their E53, but do consider my daily commute: Down the hall ab 10'.

So, what kind of fun did we invite for the year? We explored this great country from sea to shining sea:

This Summer on the California coast:

And this December in South Florida:

In between, we did some of my favorite things:

Redwood National Park:

Crater Lake National Park:

(On the way to) Mt. St Helens National Park:

Hiking in Yosemite:

A cazillion soccer tourney's. Don't let anyone tell you that this isn't fun. One of our favorite things to do as a family is out of town tourneys. THey'r elike little vacations from home. They're worth every penny.

And even the mundane... 3-4 trips to get salt for the pool. Always nice to have a little utility in the mix of our activity vehicle!

In summary- The most favorite thing I did in my E53 was let it take me everywhere I wanted to go. I had 2 hitches in my get along. One in the Idaho desert that delayed me for about an hour of my 8,000 mile trip West... And the 2nd- just this week when I caught a ginormous chunk of metal on the Florida Turnpike. Sliced right through the tire I had bought the week prior.

What did that cost me? Well..

Parts and Maintenance (including 5 tires and a premptive alternator replacement):

$5800

Remember what we say about reliability and the E53? 20k miles up near the century mark and I only really had one part fail. I'd take this thing across country the very minute I have the next chance!

Fuel:

$3600

Insurance:

$2000

Mods:

$6200

More on this later but here's a dirty wheel pic for you:

[StephenVA]

Love them brakes,:

[crystalworks]

This game sounds fun. "Put me in coach!"

Started the year at ~97600 miles after putting 6500 miles on it in the first 4 months of ownership. You buy em to drive em right?

Jan - Mar saw me preparing the X5 for our impending exodus to the east coast. A nice mix of mods and maintenance. Nothing too spectacular saving the opening of the permaseal headlights to upgrade the angel eyes.

Then in late March we took a 3 week trip all over Florida to visit my wife's sister who moved to Tallahassee and my Dad's side of the family in Melbourne and Miami. We packed the X to the roof as we also grabbed my wife's mother to go along with us as she was missing her daughter who has lived in Tallahassee for a few years now. It was very comfortable for all travelers.

My daughter got her first taste of the beach and the ocean. Like her father, she turned out to be quite the fish despite very chilly water. Had to be in the high 50's ish.



Really glad we made this trip so my Grandmother could meet her great granddaughter in person finally. Turned out to be the last opportunity though as she just passed on her birthday this month. She was 87. I was pretty close to my grand parents growing up and she will be missed as has been my Grandfather. I was so happy to have my daughter spend a few nights in the house that her aunt and I had spent so many summers growing up. It has since been sold, so it was another last opportunity. Funny my Grandfather's office still smelled like him (almost 10 years since he passed), as weird as that sounds, it always takes me back to my childhood.



Then on the way to Miami, the E53 Sword of Damocles ceased swinging... and dropped. Transfer case actuator gear went out on me... but fortunately my Uncle uses an indy there for his BMW's that knocked it out in a couple of hours for ~$230. Not too bad. Met my cousin's daughter who was born earlier in the year, and made it for her christening. Went to a few nice parties with family, and of course stayed on the beach, which the offspring unit really enjoyed.



Round trip we put ~3600 miles on the X and averaged about 18mpg over the course of the trip.

A few months later I took the trip to Las Vegas with my Mom over Mother's Day weekend for a nationals tennis qualifier. I thought she'd enjoy it (she loves Vegas) so I invited her to go with me. We had a ball, though the trip started off with a bit of a hiccup. E53 reputation strikes again! Leaving Las Cruces, NM I noticed the check arrows on the cluster. Mom was driving and of course had no idea what it said before the message disappeared. Turned out to be low coolant warning due to:



Cracked expansion tank. 6 phone calls, 1 rented Camry, 200 extra miles, ~$160, and 4 hours later I had the new tank in and the system bled. Returned the rental and headed back on the road to Vegas. LOL Mom took it pretty well... only briefly showing irritation when the Enterprise clerk was "taking too much time because she was flirting."

This was a nice double rainbow from the casino resort we stayed at.



Total for that trip was ~2400 miles through which the X averaged right around 19mpg.

Also took it for a few other short trips around TX, but nothing spectacular and no pics there.

Year summary:

Miles: 12840

Insurance: $1020

Maintenance (guesstimate): $1200

Mods (guesstimate): $2500

Fuel: $1703

[PR1AWRet]

Rebuilt transmission, new timing chains and tensioners, CCV, all the hoses behind the intake (5), new o rings on the in injectors. Basically if it had to do with the intake removal, timing covers, chains and I could reach, I replaced it. I also replaced the front suspension and steering components. The struts, steering rack and hoses weren't replaced. Did a bunch of corrosion removal and painting on the front under belly. $5K. I did a bunch of work in 2015 too.

I now have a piece of mind and not worry about anything crapping itself drive train wise. Now if I could find a hood that isn't corroded in my color 442 here locally.

[wpoll]

What a great idea for a thread.

2016 started with 180,000kms on the clock and a road trip around the South Island...

The Gates of Haast.



Fox Glacier



Punakaiki Rocks



Late February we shot up to Christchurch to work on the TT2000 Long Distance Motorcycle Rally.

April saw our 25th Wedding Anniversary and we took a short trip to a very quiet back-country hotel for some together time... (My wife and I - not me and the '5!!!)

Kyeburn Diggings



As winter came on, the diesel seemed to be running colder and colder, so it was time to replace the thermostat...



Around June, we hit 10,000km since the last oil change, so fresh oil and a filter were applied.

September was my son's 22nd birthday and as a surprise we took him to a local race track - Highland Park - and he had some hot laps in a McLaren 650S...



...followed by a weekend in Queenstown.



Shotover Valley



October was spring and my brothers 50th birthday and I zoomed up to his place in South Canterbury to help him celebrate, as you do.



The year continued with lots of daily driving and some more maint, this time front control arm bushes, diff fluid changes, and new air filter and engine breather, followed by another oil change. All ready for another year of duties for this old workhorse...

Year summary:

Distance Driven: 19,000km

Insurance: $600

Maintenance: $1200

Mods: $100

Fuel: $2590

*edit* plus road tax: $1178

[crystalworks]

This has the potential to become my favorite thread on Xoutpost. Keep the stories, trials, and tribulations coming everyone!

[MINIz guy]

No cool trips or nice pictures of the X5 here.

A transmission fluid drain & fill made the mode drastic impact on the drivability. It still pukes out oil and has warped its rotors again, but it's not getting those things fixed anytime soon. It's going to be a $4k workhorse and I hope to push it to 180k+ miles before it quits.

[OrangeFurious]

Haha - I just saw this thread after doing a write-up in the 4.6/4.8 thread.

I can't say I had any E53 adventures per se, but it's been part of a ridiculous year. In 2016 I bought a house, got remarried, blended my kids with my wife's and traveled constantly. The X5 has been part of all that - hiking trips, endless Home Depot runs, moving multiple households, school and grocery runs, showing the kids how to maintain a vehicle. Neatly interwoven in the fabric of a crazy year.

Here's looking forward to getting some stupid fun out of all the work I put into it this year.