E53 4.6is or 4.8is (advice/comments)

[electricalserv x5]

I seen a road and track test drive against the cheyenne and x5, the x5 handled better and had better pick up, now that was against the 4.6is .it is a little different than the 4.8 i ,the new 4.8 i is 500lb more than the 4.6is.
And the cheyanne was 1.8 seconds lower then the slower and the 4.6is

[bbultman]

Originally Posted by Sergdman

can I ask what kind of mileage you have and what have been the major repairs that you have done.
thanks

I have 141k. I've only owned it for a few months. It does have a torque converter issue that I am digging into. No codes and talking with ZF NA seems to be pointing to the valvebody. I really think the Dinan software has 'saved' the trans by setting higher lockup pressures and shift points. I think some trans issues are due to too much TC slipping for a seemless shift. IMO, I like the higher shift - feels more sporty. As for previous repairs, I know there was some suspension maintenance - typical. Beyond that, not sure. Everything appears orignal. My 4.6is is a beast. I don't have the supercharger....I can only imagine what that is like and I know guys who have similar mileage with 450hp with no issues. Forum info is tricky....lots of people with issues venting...nothing wrong with that. This is the place. My guess is there's tons of X5 owners with few problems that aren't members.

[Icer006]

Originally Posted by electricalserv x5

I seen a road and track test drive against the cheyenne and x5, the x5 handled better and had better pick up, now that was against the 4.6is .it is a little different than the 4.8 i ,the new 4.8 i is 500lb more than the 4.6is.
And the cheyanne was 1.8 seconds lower then the slower and the 4.6is

yeah, probably not a Cayenne with twin turbos.

[Phr3d]

experience strictly from reading a lot.
hmm.. '01 4.6is, babied to death and gorgeous is worth percisely painful for trade-in, so you buy one -here- for not much money.
You prefer the pre-facelift.
You have Gobs of money left over to chase everything killcrap mentioned and more (and there is a Lot more, just not specific to 4.6/4.8).
You will have a sweet ol' X'er and confidence that the probs have been fixed correctly cuz you were there.
since you don't want a MT, seems one choice.

[Sergdman]

Hey guys, well I am still actively looking. I am 100 percent sure that I will be buying a 4.6is. Spoke with someone who had one with 70,000 miles and had transmission put in by dealer. A couple of other sellers I spoke with had over 90000 and original transmission. This is a stressful purchase. Man I hope that I get a lucky and buy one that will not crap out at least not anytime soon

[TwinsPoppa]

Originally Posted by Sergdman

Hey guys, well I am still actively looking. I am 100 percent sure that I will be buying a 4.6is. Spoke with someone who had one with 70,000 miles and had transmission put in by dealer. A couple of other sellers I spoke with had over 90000 and original transmission. This is a stressful purchase. Man I hope that I get a lucky and buy one that will not crap out at least not anytime soon

Whatever you go with just try to get the "best" vehicle with a good known history.

IMO, a high mileage vehicle that has a lot of the trouble items already replaced and known maintenance/service history is better than a low-mileage unknown vehicle.

When you have problems, and let's face it you will regardless/eventually, best thing is you already discovered xoutpost.

Good luck and enjoy!

[Phr3d]

and not just the locally-famous 'trouble' items.. suspension shtuff wears out in these heavy-weights and it can be *cough* stimulating to get the estimate. That said, it is good for 100k, so not arguing price.. just damned nice if the previous owner hadda' foot the bill, presuming you can trust the fix..

service history..
service history..
and cough up for the independent inspection if I missed someone else mentioning it - that is R E Q U I R E D.

[jbny]

And make sure you get a PPI done, whichever you choose, I love my 4.8is so far and have had the following issues.
1. Dead battery - fixed
2. Dead rear brake lamp - to be looked into
3. NAV Dead Pixel - to be looked into.

I bought it with around 40K used and it's at 72K now, previous owner did fix issues when i found it during the PPI. (hoses/front bushings..some other stuff i forgot)

[Sergdman]

Originally Posted by TwinsPoppa

Whatever you go with just try to get the "best" vehicle with a good known history.

IMO, a high mileage vehicle that has a lot of the trouble items already replaced and known maintenance/service history is better than a low-mileage unknown vehicle.

When you have problems, and let's face it you will regardless/eventually, best thing is you already discovered xoutpost.

Good luck and enjoy!

Yes, that reasoning makes sense. And I will be ready and expect problems, just don't want to pay for new transmission after just purchasing the truck. Most trucks that I have seen with 60,000-100,000miles have original trans.

[TriX5]

Many ZF5HP24s let go at 90k+ miles, including my own on the 4.4i. I am convinced this is caused by the torq converter but same end result. The overhaul of the AT is not hard but you need some patience and a little ingenuity.

My 4.8iS has gone about 12k miles in the last 2 years and the only real issues were a broken fuel pump and the bushings in the tension struts. I am not convinced by the shift logic of the 6 speed either but I would still buy the newer car anyway.