BMWs NO MORE POOR QUALITY CONTROL HASTA LA VISTA BABY!

[X5rolls]

Originally Posted by ftgambit

oh ok Rolls,
Im not trying to score any brownie points with my post, you have an 06 with 42k miles thats the problem, get back to me when your closer to 100K and well see if you feel the same way, and yes the hoses were replaced at 138K FYI, so dont even think for one second they could 159K miles before being changed, lol that would be miraculous, When you have to get your CV Boots done and at 42K they should just be starting to crack if not already lets how that warranty works out for you...
They point being for a high end luxury vehicle two major rating firms both have bmw's dropping in Quality control in a big way, not just on the X5 but models across the board, Any car is great the first few years, mine was to, never had to get the engine replaced or tranny rebuilt, but Im just giving you a heads up if you plan on keeping it for more than say 5yrs, you will feel the burn in our wallet, hey but if you can get a new one every few years then more power to you, you wont ever have to worry about reliability, thats why BMW leases so many vehicles, because people dont want to deal with maintenance bud, but please dont try and convince anyone they are the most reliable vehicles JD POWER 2.5 stars probably knows a thing or two and as an owner I can definitely second that 2.5 rating.
But the one area I do give it 5 stars is safety, you feel safe sourrounded by 6000lbs of steel and airbags in every corner

You have a good point with the mileage difference between your ride and mine. I do plan on keeping this more than 5 years and I've purchased an extended warranty already to ensure my out of pocket expenses and grief factor are low. My expectations on reliability for a sophisticated performance vehicle is rational - I'm expecting things to break and therefore I will not be surprised. The extended warranty lowers the total cost of ownership and ensures I can get it fixed anywhere around the country, indy or at a BMW dealer. I'm not trying to convince you of anything except that to put all BMWs and X5s into the same lump (reliability/cost of ownership) is incorrect and misleading.

IMO by the way, letting hoses go 138k miles before they are replaced is penny wise and pound foolish. If you treat a vehicle like crap it can end up being a pile of junk. Again, highly sophisticated performance vehicles require diligent attention to maintenance and common sense when it comes to heading off expensive repairs in the future by getting ahead using widely accepted procedures. I'm not trying to bash you but think you might be more happy with a trade off for a vehicle that sacrifices performance for low cost of ownership.

Bottom line is performance costs $$. I don't care if you are in an X5, a street rod or a lighweight full suspension mountain bike.

[n2red]

Originally Posted by motordavid

....You have considerably more mileage, but there
are several very high mileage posters here, with better results.

Hey MD... Did you see me coming???

ANYHOO......

I AM one of those "high mileage posters" ..... I have about 106k on my X and it still going strong. Other than some of the pixels out on the display, ain't nuthin' wrong with it. My wife drives it to work on rainy days and to the beach (about 1100 miles round trip) about once a month, and I don't worry about it's reliability...

I DO worry about hearing her call me on the cell saying... "the constable said "nice X5" as he handed me my well deserved speeding ticket..."

Nothing personal against Japanese/Detroit/Dearborn chariots, I just think that they're a bit ho-hum..... my $.02...

[motordavid]

OT...
n2red,
Hope the soakers gave you some time off from chasing fires.
We got back to our Mtn Joint the other night. We need to hook up,
when I catch my breath!
BR, mD

[ftgambit]

Sunny, the fact that you can read the list which is still missing a few other things such as Water pooling in the rear trunk area, instrument cluster lights failing, I fail to rationalize your thoughts, I know people reading it must look like Im the angry guy who got the lemon... That could'nt be further from the truth, yes I've had my car a long time and it has a measly 160K miles on it, those of you think thats alot of miles, smoking some really good stuff please pass some down to me, so I can enjoy the view with you, lol! For a point of reference we also own a 1994 Mitsubishi Diamante LS and a 2000 Toyota Avalon, both with more miles than my BMW X5, and neither has had remotely the amount of little problems that the beemer has had no switches going out, not cluster going bad, no stereo getting fried, far less batteries than the X5 with the same amount of electronics, other than routine filter changes and a wheel bearing both of those cars combined have still had less basic issues than the X5, and mine is not a lemon..
Thats my point, many X5s are having the same issues, regular wear and tear or not, you pay a huge premium for a QUALITY built vehicle and I did as well, I can't help but feel a bit vexed when I look at all the little things failing with ONLY 160K miles

AGAIN 160K is NOT alot of miles, its sad that many of you think wow your car has only had that many problems with 160K miles..

[X5rolls]

Actually it is raining here, it isn't sunny if you were responding to me. I think you were trying to be condescending by saying Sonny as in, hey you stupid kid, I'm the adult who knows best. If you are trying to convince people you aren't a bitter grumpy old guy, you are not doing a good job.

We should agree to disagree - Your Toyota Avalon and Mitsubishi are not performance vehicles and therefore don't have the same benefits/costs associated with ownership. They will and should give you miles and miles of $0 driving with IMO milk toast performance. Probably fine cars but have no performance characteristics. Never intended to be more than a living room loveseat with wheels - and that is absolutely ok. If your preference is for limited maintenance where you can run the same oil for tens of thousands of miles, never change filters, hoses etc and they will miraculously still run is paramount, a BMW is not for you, you will never be happy.

Apples and oranges to a BMW. I think you are missing the point, performance vehicles are not the same, maybe you never really had one before and wouldn't know the difference or can't really appreciate it. The benefits are not worth the extra $ to lots of folks or everyone would be driving performance vehicles. Lots of people get confused by thinking all vehicles are the same.

Again, your list looks long. However, not all BMWs are trash like you say and obviously from those who are also commenting, not all X's are trash either. I would also bet that if you took better care of your vehicle you might not have as many issues as you do. Your hose example is an indication along with expectations that they should be like a Toyota or Mitsubishi combined with 160k not being a lot of miles. It is a lot of miles for performance if it isn't maintained well and things will break at a higher rate than a more mainstream vehicle.

It’s going to be increasingly difficult for you to trash BMWs and the X here and find support. Most people on this forum love their vehicles and don’t like to read gross generalizations that are error filled. Maybe you should go to the Toyota forum and make some generalizations about how great ALL Toyotas are and see how much support you get.

[ftgambit]

X5rolls I copied my post from bimmerfest another member named Sunny, was not referring to you, lol!!! Anyways, Im not grumpy and Im not old, Im 30yrs old and bought it in my early 20s, I like nice cars, and by the way the AVALON and MITSUBSHI both have more Horsepower than my 3.0i so your entire Logic with HIGH PERFORMANCE has just been nullified, other than maybe some handling differences which have nothing to do with electronics and again you make presumptions without reading through things thoroughly, I said the hoses were replaced at 138K, I didnt say I never replaced them before that, that was the last time they were replaced before they went bad at 160K, and I take good care of my X5 thats the only reason its still running Oil Changes,Alternator,POwer Steering hose,Window Regulator I replaced all of those myself, the other two cars have never had a power steering hose leak or the window regulator fail, not sure how my windows are HIGH PERFORMANCE LOL, you need to think through a bit more what you are saying because most of the problems with the car have nothing to do with the handling or engine which you refer to constantly as HIGH PERFORMANCE, its called...
RELIABILITY and DURABILITY!!!

[sunny5280]

Originally Posted by ftgambit

Sunny, the fact that you can read the list which is still missing a few other things such as Water pooling in the rear trunk area, instrument cluster lights failing, I fail to rationalize your thoughts, I know people reading it must look like Im the angry guy who got the lemon... That could'nt be further from the truth, yes I've had my car a long time and it has a measly 160K miles on it, those of you think thats alot of miles, smoking some really good stuff please pass some down to me, so I can enjoy the view with you, lol! For a point of reference we also own a 1994 Mitsubishi Diamante LS and a 2000 Toyota Avalon, both with more miles than my BMW X5, and neither has had remotely the amount of little problems that the beemer has had no switches going out, not cluster going bad, no stereo getting fried, far less batteries than the X5 with the same amount of electronics, other than routine filter changes and a wheel bearing both of those cars combined have still had less basic issues than the X5, and mine is not a lemon..
Thats my point, many X5s are having the same issues, regular wear and tear or not, you pay a huge premium for a QUALITY built vehicle and I did as well, I can't help but feel a bit vexed when I look at all the little things failing with ONLY 160K miles

AGAIN 160K is NOT alot of miles, its sad that many of you think wow your car has only had that many problems with 160K miles..

Why did you post this here? My post to you appeared in another forum on a completely different web site. Why did you duplicate your response from there here?

[ftgambit]

Sunny because I posted the same article on both forums in case some people dont read both quite simply, but I didnt see your post on here after I typed, but its quite comical I already have x5 rolls mad thinking I called him Sunny, lol!

[TrickerZ]

I thought maybe I had bought a lemon when I got my X5. I took it to an Indy in the area for the suspension inactive message and he told me to buy another car. He flat out said the X5 is the biggest piece of crap out there for a performance SUV. He said if I wanted something Euro, get a Mercedes and if US or Japanese is an option, there are many more good SUVs. It's pretty bad when the guy you are paying to fix your car tells you you shouldn't bother fixing it and just get rid of it.

I haven't had a chance to look at any of the newer X5s, but from what I hear, they haven't fixed anything. Just taking the doors off to get to the regulators (both rear needed to be replaced), I felt like this was a poorly built car. 4 of the clips broke off the panel since they're held on with crappy glue, the panel was poorly made and not secured very well. I would have expected at least one more screw. The only saving grace is that it's a pretty easy car to work on. I also find it counter intuitive that they have fluids running right along several computers (sunroof drains, ABS under steering fluid, etc.). I also find it sad that they don't offer very many fixed parts. The window regulators could be fixed by just making the metal tabs a tiny bit bigger so all the stress isn't on the plastic, yet they don't. In my opinion, they want things to fail to help the service industry.

I regret buying the car, but now that I have it, I will make my own engineering design changes whenever something fails. Eventually I will have an indestructible X5. I've been reading these forums and taking preventative measures for anything I can.

I do like the X5, but I would like it a lot more if it had a hint of reliability. The power/handling and the climate control are great. Everything else is mediocre at best, though. I was really surprised at how uncomfortable the seats are on long trips. My MOMO racing seats are more comfortable. I'd like to see if the comfort upgrade seats are any better.

[sunny5280]

Originally Posted by ftgambit

Sunny because I posted the same article on both forums in case some people dont read both quite simply, but I didnt see your post on here after I typed, but its quite comical I already have x5 rolls mad thinking I called him Sunny, lol!

I don't care if you posted this to two web sites. The fact you posted a response to my post from elsewhere here where others cannot see what I originally wrote (as well as my response to you) is stupid. The people reading here have no context for your responses. And, as x5rolls responses shows, can be confusing.