Average life expectancy of an X5

[JohnD]

With all the posts about bad transmissions, valve cover gaskets, blown PCV lines, etc.. I was wondering the mileage, year and engine size on other people’s X5.

I have a 2001 4.4 with 58K miles and was wondering what I could expect in the future for repairs. List your biggest ticket repairs as well, and whether or not they were cover under warranty.

JD

[peacemf]

i think mine will last another 2 years (knock on anything thats wood!), but lord knows, cos you cant tell what the car's thinking!!
it might just die tomorrow!!

i'd like to see what happens with the newer model, see if they have the problems down the line.

ANYWAY, transmission and issues with the suspension seem to be the expensive stuff, the rest is noodles in comparison. ( i dont have warranty)

[supersteve]

I have a 2001 4.4 with 140,000 miles on it. So I'd say your good for at least another 100,000. At the rate your putting miles on yours (58K in 7 years) you'll probably be able to get "Classic Car" tags before you ready to turn her in (21 years 174K).

[Wagner]

Craps shoot. Some have gone 100K plus with no issues, others haven't. You have to remember when you come to a forum like this, the vast majority are here because they had an issue. So, it will seem very bias towards "issues" rather then reliability. Few people come here to post "WOW, My X5 is really reliable"

[X5Flyboy]

The big thing to look out for is the water pump - from what I've seen here, it typically fails between 60-80K miles - some get alot more, but some of those that failed resulted in loss of the engine - I replaced mine at 61K - seems the water pump has plastic vanes - if a big enough chunk breaks off, it may block a coolant passage - IMHO, it's easier to miminize the possibility of a BIG$$$$ repair, by just making it a normal replacement at a mileage you are comfortable with

87K on my 2001 4.4 - only minor hits, but I get it thoroughly looked at twice a year before my yearly trip from SC-ID in May, and then ID-SC in Sept - got over 35K on my Diamaris with dead even wear - still original rear brakes, fronts were done at 28K when it was a lease car - mine was one of the many that developed a cracked coolant tank (warranty covered at 39K) - one window regulator (cycling the windows at least once a week, or more, helps prevent failure - have not replaced one since 42K miles) - my one weird thing was virtually all my exterior light bulbs had to be replaced between 51-53K!?!

bottom line, I love my X5 - best of luck with yours

[alpac]

From my own experience and from others on this forum the 70 to 90k miles range seems to be when the X5 gets all sort of issues like water pump, valves cover gasket, CV joints, steering pump, etc... all fixable but pretty costly if you do not have an extended warranty. Mine 4.4 passed 110k recently and has been trouble free for the last 10 months. I was lucky to have an extended warranty when all these problems occurred. My transmission does not show any sign of weakness so far.

[BGM]

I have an '01 3.0 with 83K miles and has only had the CV boots replaced, one window regulator and 2 Ball Joints on the suspension. I've not had a water pump, transmission or valve cover gasket issues that have been mentioned---I think those might be more related to the 4.4 engine. Mechanically speaking there are more issues on the 4.4 than the 3.0 from what most people say. Your miles are even lower than mine so I would say you should not have as many problems (since you are stretching out over time the wear and tear more than others with more miles).

[FSETH]

I have an 02 4.4 with about 93k on the clock. I bought it nearly 2 years ago with 63k. Here is what has been replaced since;

final stage resistor
high side service port (a/c system component)
IHKA control unit (heater component)
coolant expansion tank
fuel pump
alternator
water pump
valley pan gesket
valve cover gaskets
front thrust rod bushings

All done under warranty, thank God. These repairs total over $6,500.

I also changed the front/rear pads and rotors myself for about $420.

[X5Dawg]

142K miles on my '01, did many repairs last year including rebuild of tranny. Wouldn't have done it if I didn't love the vehicle so much.

After being rearended in May and being in the shop for 2+ months, I decided it was time for a new chin and some new shoes

[primetime]

Originally Posted by BGM

I have an '01 3.0 with 83K miles and has only had the CV boots replaced, one window regulator and 2 Ball Joints on the suspension. I've not had a water pump, transmission or valve cover gasket issues that have been mentioned---I think those might be more related to the 4.4 engine. Mechanically speaking there are more issues on the 4.4 than the 3.0 from what most people say. Your miles are even lower than mine so I would say you should not have as many problems (since you are stretching out over time the wear and tear more than others with more miles).

I have the same model and year. Trust me, you'll need the oil seperator, and water pump done soon. Mine failed at around 90k miles...My valve cover gasket blew also, and then thats what the tell tale sign was that my oil seperator had failed..I had both CV boots replaced, 1 ball joint, oil seperator, valve cover gasket, valve cover itself, and a few other misc items i cant think of right now. The tranny issue is actually more common in the 4.4, but 3.0 tranny's fail too. Everything else seems to be fair game..just fyi

The oil seperator and water pump will definitely fail, its not a matter of if, its a matter of when..and from my experience and others on this forum it is usually near 100k miles...My X has 98k miles on it...