New X5 owner with a few quesitons

cdnalpina · #1 02-23-2012, 03:18 PM

Hi Everyone,

I just recently purchased a 2001 X5 4.4 with the sport package, black on black. It was bought primarily for my wife as a safe (and fun) kids hauler. I am no stranger to BMWs but I am a stranger to the X5 and I have to say this is a fantastic ride.

There are a few gremlins I am working through, some of which I have found some answers to and some I have not. So if I can impose upon the gurus of this forum to help me I would greatly appreciate it.

Trunklid open message

The lower gate is quite hard to close so that it stays latched. You really have to give it a hard close to make it latch. The same goes for the upper gate. Confirming that they are latched properly, when I go to drive the X, it gives a 'trunklid open' message on the cluster and the rear light in the gate is on. I have since removed the light (as driving at night it is very annoying). What would be the possible cause(s) of this? I had a similar issue with our E39 540i touring and it ended up being the microswitch. Could that be what I am looking at here?

Fog Lights

One of the fog lights was burnt out due to moisture getting into the housing. I 'rebuilt' the fog light and put new bulbs in both and they don't turn on at all now. I am suspecting a fuse but when I looked at the fuse diagram with the X, there was no specific listing on the card for the fog lights. Would anyone happen to know the fuse location for the fog lights? I know I can test each and every fuse (and likely should anyway) but the passenger seat/foot well is not exactly the most convenient place to settle in for a fuse testing session.

Self levelling suspension inactive

I have read up on too many of these posts now, common headache it seems. In the case of mine, the previous owner told me that his mechanic (reputable) diagnosed it as a sensor being the problem. If that is the case, would I be looking at #18 and #19 in the RealOEM link below?

RealOEM.com * BMW E53 X5 4.4i LEVELL.DEVICE, AIR SPRING AND CTRL UNIT

Other than getting it scanned, is there any way to prove out the sensors? Are these a common source of problems for the rear suspension going inactive? I have not found a lot of posts on the sensors themselves, so that is why I ask. In the case of my x, the ride height is normal and I have heard the compressor run when starting the X, after having added or taken out a load.

I appreciate your help and guidance in advance.

Cheers,

Rob

drgeeforce · #2 02-25-2012, 06:35 PM

Coolant Expansion tank they commonly blow out after 6-7years. My 328i was replaced after 9yrs, my X5 gave out after 7yrs.
Serpentine belt OE gives out after 60-75K replace as scheduled. the $ is worth it.
Transmission starts giving you "problems" after 80K find a tranny guy you can trust.
Self-Leveling is a common problem around 60K I've replaced all four sensors and all four bladders, and still have problems. I think it's a heat issue.

I've noticed a lot of problems popping up right after warranty expiration. Other than the above, I had nothing but fun and rock solid driving safety with my X5.

cdnalpina · #3 02-26-2012, 12:23 PM

Many thanks for the reply and the heads up on those items. The expansion tank failure is also something common to the E31, E31 and E34 cars, so I guess it could be deemed a general BMW thing. I will add that to my hit list as I am not sure when it was last replaced. I had planned on getting new belts and replacing them - cheap insurance. Thankfully I have a very good friend who owns a tranmission shop but still is never a cheap endeavour when digging into them.

Regarding the level sensors, my X5 only has the rear self levelling, and according to RealOEM there is only one. Does that make sense to you (given that you said you have replaced all 4 in yours)? Or is it just the X5's with the four corner air suspension that have one on each corner?

Again, thanks for the guidance.

UCrewX5 · #4 02-26-2012, 12:38 PM

in 2001 the self leveling suspension was only available in the rear, not the front. And it came standard on X5's with the Sport package.

I have 209,000 miles on my 2001 X5 and haven't experienced any problems with the self leveling suspension, so I don't have any direct feedback to offer.

cdnalpina · #5 02-27-2012, 10:03 AM

Sounds like you lucked out and got a wednesday built X

Mine has 127,000kms (about 80,000 miles), I hope this is the most I have to worry about for a while...

Holski · #6 02-28-2012, 06:39 PM

Self levelling suspension inactive

I have read up on too many of these posts now, common headache it seems. In the case of mine, the previous owner told me that his mechanic (reputable) diagnosed it as a sensor being the problem. If that is the case, would I be looking at #18 and #19 in the RealOEM link below?

Have you tried the fuse? I've had this error message pop a couple of times, Changed the fuse, which in the boot(trunk), on the right hand storage panel, and all was good.

cdnalpina · #7 02-29-2012, 02:59 PM

Thanks Holski - I will give that a whirl first!

Is there also a relay that has anything to do with the self levelling suspension? I have had a lot of experiences with my other BMWs, where pulling and reseating a relay corrects a problem because the contacts were not quite making good contact.

Holski · #8 02-29-2012, 06:09 PM

My relays have been fine mate. Try this link.
http://www.xoutpost.com/bmw-sav-foru...p-relay-2.html