Been a while, but I decided to give the x some lovin

[GSXRliterbikz]

So I've been busy with e38 projects for the last year or so. I'm up to 3 now.
So for the most part the x has been sitting in the driveway, unused and with a dead battery.
Last month though I decided to spruce her up for the usual winter abuse.
I gave her a bath and noticed the pass rear door had a bunch of rust bubbles on the bottom. So I gave the dealer a quick call to check on warranty.
To my surprise they said bring it in. They looked it over and decided to repair it.
Two weeks later I called to see what was taking so long. Turns out they decided to replace the whole door.
On their way back the alt died. I was quoted 900
Yea, sure
So I towed it home, tossed a new Bosch unit in.
Then some new tires, upper rear control arms, and a good once over to make sure she's up to snuff. The dealer messed up the pass door mirror by not putting it on straight. It made an awful noise going down the road. So I fixed that pretty quick.
Gotta say, after 4 years and 100k miles, I've done very little to it. Been a great car. Still all orig suspension except for the upper rear arms and front thrust arms.
All I need now is a air filter, and to figure out a p171/4 lean code. I suspect the disa valve. Fuel filter is new, no air leaks. New cold weather ccv.

Also fixed the folding mirrors thanks to some awesome write ups here. First time they have worked in the 4 years I've had it. Drivers side had the metal clip dislodged. And they were both loose due to the 4 tq screws underneath that were loose. Snugged um up, replaced the clip, and greased it all up. Good as new.
New fleabay led ae bulbs too.

Here is the only pics I have right now.



From last winter. Her usual spot outside



Just wanted to throw out a good experience. I stroll through here once and a while and rarely see positive threads.
I've put this old girl through some crap over the years. I always thought the trans was gonna die on me in a year or two. Despite me towing over 7k through the green mountains of vt, she's still alive and kicking (knocks on vavona).

[Roadkill]

You stroll through here and rarely see good threads????? Thanks for the kind words and support. I completely disagree with you.

[GSXRliterbikz]

Originally Posted by Roadkill

You stroll through here and rarely see good threads????? Thanks for the kind words and support. I completely disagree with you.

Well, I think by the fact that I said I have found good info here, it can be assumed that I mean there are few threads saying how good someone's x has treated them.
On page 1 right now the majority of the threads are giving a negative light on the e53. Several are expressing outright hate towards their car.
I didn't mean there is nothing good to read here.

[X5SND]

Always glad to hear another positive ownership story.

Looking at the first page of the forum is a bit like judging a book by its cover imo. The first page is always cluttered with post from new members who bought their X on the cheap, without any idea as to what they were getting themselves into in terms of upkeep vs reliability. The last couple weeks have been pretty bad with rediculous posts.

On a side note, how did you convince bmw to do the rust? I've had my X since it was a year old and have some rust bubbles along the hood and hatch seams....I was under the impression that the panel needed to be pretty much like Swiss cheese before they did anything! (Aka an uphill battle)

[GSXRliterbikz]

Originally Posted by X5SND

Always glad to hear another positive ownership story.

Looking at the first page of the forum is a bit like judging a book by its cover imo. The first page is always cluttered with post from new members who bought their X on the cheap, without any idea as to what they were getting themselves into in terms of upkeep vs reliability. The last couple weeks have been pretty bad with rediculous posts.

On a side note, how did you convince bmw to do the rust? I've had my X since it was a year old and have some rust bubbles along the hood and hatch seams....I was under the impression that the panel needed to be pretty much like Swiss cheese before they did anything! (Aka an uphill battle)

True about the "cover". I do find lots of good info here when searching.
Heck, sometimes I come here for info on my e38's. The e53 crowd were the ground breakers on a lot of the mk4 upgrades and dsp audio mods. Not to mention the navtweek/speak programs.


BMW was great for the warranty. I just called the local dealer. They said rust perforation was covered for 12 years unlimited miles. I'm at 150k on an 04.
There was no peeling paint, just a few bubbles and some minor staining. But it was obvious that it was going to peel before the warranty expired.
I was disappointed they just wanted to fix it. But they changed their mind once they opened it up.
I was very pleased with how easy it was.
I bought it from a used car dealer at 60k miles and 1 month left to a cpo warranty. So BMW didn't owe me anything.

[AquilaBMW]

Hi There! Didn't know you were part of the E53 world as well. We all get around don't we? LOL!

Glad to hear the Dealer took care of you on that door and good to know about BMW's rust warranty. Hopefully not something I'll ever deal with in California.

[GSXRliterbikz]

Originally Posted by AquilaBMW

Hi There! Didn't know you were part of the E53 world as well. We all get around don't we? LOL!

Glad to hear the Dealer took care of you on that door and good to know about BMW's rust warranty. Hopefully not something I'll ever deal with in California.

Yup. Just haven't posted here much.
Always regretted not getting a preface lift v8. I preferred the facelift look, but didn't want the hassles of the n62.
So while it's been reliable, I wish it had more power.

[AquilaBMW]

Originally Posted by GSXRliterbikz

Yup. Just haven't posted here much.
Always regretted not getting a preface lift v8. I preferred the facelift look, but didn't want the hassles of the n62.
So while it's been reliable, I wish it had more power.

How much more involved is the N62. I have kind of halted my progress to the M62 for now as that N62 worries me.

[GSXRliterbikz]

Valvetronic, dual vanos, coolant tube issues. Eek.
No thanks.
I'd take the power, but not the issues. The 745/50 shared the motor too.