10 used car clunkers to avoid/By Forbes.com

[cfmistry]

Originally Posted by fraserp

well i agree with normal wear on certain things but consider this -- door handle carrier, window regulator, expansion tank, oil seperator, pano-roof, when you compare the BMW to other expensive and lesser automobiles, this is a disgrace. I still love my X. My sister has a 2001 Lexus RX300 -NO problems except for normal wear. she will not sell it. she loves my X and I still love my X.

Couldn't agree more, and I love my X to death. Nothing else I've driven compares, except a Cayenne. But by most people's standards the X5 a POS in terms of reliability. The items you mentioned above are considered common and routine for most of us on this forum (not to mention valve cover gaskets, valley pan gaskets, TRANSMISSIONS, etc).

Many of you have mentioned anecdotal evidence of Hondas, Toyotas etc. that have crapped out on you. But truth be told, the quality reports speak for themselves. And even when those cars did have problems I assure you the cost was nowhere near that of an X5 transmission replacement or valley pan gasket that occurs routinely by 150k miles. You absolutely cannot compare X5 reliability to Highlander or 4Runner reliability, the same way you would not compare their powertrains. But even if you compare the X5 to, say, an ML500 or Range Rover Sport, the long-term reliability falls short. As evidenced by this article.