Look what cat dragged in ;)

[TITAN]

Hi Guys.

Was looking for this forum few days and got directed from boys at e46fanatics forum

My Name is Vadim, im from Sydney Australia, 26 and have a sickness known as automotive. I tend to change cars every 12 months lol.

At the moment im driving e46 and in next 12 or so months will be looking at getting a bigger car to drive to the snow etc with the family. I was looking at Range Rover and a 300c both of which everyone told me to stay well clear from due to their mechanical issues. So now im researching X5 E53

Few questions i have:

1) Economy.. at the moment daily city driving im getting 550kms from my 62L tank. How much worse will i be looking at with say the V6 petrol e53 or the diesel e53?

2) What is more reliable, petrol driven e53 or diesel?

3) If im looking for diesel e53, what do i look out for? Are they specially marked? (Badges) and do they come in V6 or only the V8 ?

4) Overal how reliable is e53 ?

5) I heard auto transmission is what goes first... how true is this?


Thanks in advance guys

[bigwave2255]

no such thing as a V6 BMW, all straight sixes the diesel E53 will be your most economical option

its called "3.0d"

happy hunting

[sunny5280]

Originally Posted by TITAN

1) Economy.. at the moment daily city driving im getting 550kms from my 62L tank. How much worse will i be looking at with say the V6 petrol e53 or the diesel e53?

2) What is more reliable, petrol driven e53 or diesel?

3) If im looking for diesel e53, what do i look out for? Are they specially marked? (Badges) and do they come in V6 or only the V8 ?

4) Overal how reliable is e53 ?

5) I heard auto transmission is what goes first... how true is this?

I can't comment on the diesel because it wasn't offered in the US for the e53 X5.

Regarding fuel economy if you're thinking of going with a gas powered version I would recommend the bigger engine as the smaller engine doesn't get appreciably better gas mileage in comparison.

As for reliability I'm undecided about that one. I've owned two X5's but none for any really long period of time. And the one's I did buy were higher mileage.

With that said the first X5, a 2000 4.4i with 80K miles, required a new MAF sensor, new control arm bushings, and a valve body assembly for the transmission.

My current X5, a 2001 4.4i with 108K miles, has required two windshield washer pumps, new CV boots (actually I replaced the axles because it was $30 more per side to do the entire axle), new control arm bushings (these were not absolutely necessary but I did them because I saved some labor cost by combining the work with the CV boot replacement), two oil separator hoses, and the self leveling headlight sensor.

Those are the things that were required to address operational issues with the vehicles. I've also done some preventative stuff such as replacing the various fluids (oil, brake, transmission, transfer case, etc).

As for the transmission failures the jury is still out on that one as far as I'm concerned. I've read of various problems with them and, having experienced a problem myself, feel there might be something to it. But then I don't have a large sampling size to draw any concrete conclusion. Reading a help forum is bound to give the impression there's a problem. I suspect a lot of problems are due to the "lifetime" fluid BMW specified for the transmission. I don't believe in lifetime fluids and that's why I changed mine.

[taosx5]

Originally Posted by TITAN

Hi Guys.

Few questions i have:

1) Economy.. at the moment daily city driving im getting 550kms from my 62L tank. How much worse will i be looking at with say the V6 petrol e53 or the diesel e53?

2) What is more reliable, petrol driven e53 or diesel?

3) If im looking for diesel e53, what do i look out for? Are they specially marked? (Badges) and do they come in V6 or only the V8 ?

4) Overal how reliable is e53 ?

5) I heard auto transmission is what goes first... how true is this?


Thanks in advance guys

Hey there,

I have owned two X5 both 2003's. The first I have owned since new, it is a 4.4 which is the smaller V8.
1) economy, my wife drives this and it gets on average about 19mpg, not sure what the kpg is but you can do the conversion. On the higway it will get up to about 23/24mpg if we can stay w/the speed limit.
2) The diesel is not offered here in the US so I have no experience. The petrol models do burn premium fuel.
3) The models for the E53 are 3.0i which is a straight line 6 cylinder, the 4.4i which is a V8 and the 4.6is which is an X5 on steroids.
4) Reliabilty for us has been pretty good on the 4.4. A couple of warranty issues before 50K miles, but since have replaced both CV joints, a battery, and the cooling system expansion tank. It currently has 92K miles on it. We also have a 4.6is and it is less reliable, (a lot more fun to drive tho). I bought it with 60K miles and it had lots of warranty work done before the warranty expired. It too has had both CV joints replaced, the overflow expansion tank, has a leaky shock now and also might need the torque converter replaced which is a common problem on the 4.6is. It gets about 16/17mpg but sure is fun while it is getting that.
5) Based on my limited experience, transmission problems are not normal. You can search the forums for transmission issues and come to your own conclusion. My 4.6 has 74K miles and I am getting a TC fault which if not corrected could lead to a tranny failure but this is an isolated problem with the 4.6.
Good luck

[X5Sport]

The diesel is a straight 6 and if built from late 2004MY onwards will be a 218bhp/500nm torque unit with a 6sp ZF transmission for auto, or a 6sp manual option (186bhp 5sp models before that). Much more economical than the petrol models - I regularly see 35mpg plus on a motorway, 27mpg around town - petrols will be rather less with the V8's likely to be in the low twenties to high teens!! In the UK, most 'X's are diesel - but not badged as owners tend to remove the engine badges.

Diesel engines should last longer than petrols as they are less stressed (lower revving) units. The auto transmission is a known weak point, but not in every case. Plenty of owners have never had a problem. The manual may well eat clutch plates if you tow or do a lot of town driving. Very few manuals in the UK as no one wants them second hand, and in my case the dealer wanted a massive deposit if I stuck with my original choice of a manual (one reason I changed to the auto). Turbos are worth checking too as a poor oil mantenance by an owner can cause the premature failure of those too - rare though.

Whatever you go for, make sure it has a full service history and check EVERYTHING (all the switches, mechanicals, electrics etc) very carefully before handing over any money