New to me LCI 6MT X5

[javamon]

Hi all, wanted to do an introduction thread and a question before I go take delivery:

I found an fairly pristine 6MT '06 (production 08/06) not too far from me at a little side of the road dealer (seems to be a pre-auction outlet for a main vw/bmw/porsche dealer in the area). 131k on the clock. Clean carfax (serviced at BMW dealer in new england, then sold as CPO). Purportedly was traded in at the main dealer and arrived on this lot a week ago.

I went up and had a good look under, around and in the car, and took it for a nice extended test drive, including a nice snowy gravel road. As near as I can tell, everything looks and works perfect. The only cosmetic flaw I could find was the front roundel badge committed suicide (same thing happened to my e36 m3), and a slight bit of wear on the driver bolster. For a northeast car, there was a surprising lack of visible rust anywhere on the car. Miles are a bit high for my usual taste, but I've built the m3 into a track car myself, so a bit of work doesn't bother me. AFAIK, the late production m54 + 6MT should be fairly reliable (minus the standard nickel and dime items I'm familiar with as an e36 owner) - but someone can correct me if I'm wrong.

Options as near as I can tell:
Premium package + panoramic (that opens absolutely silently without any drama, an issue I've read about)
(Power rear seats + SOS I believe are a part of this package, per the options thread here)
Cold Weather package

Price:Negotiated down to $9k. Still feels a bit high, but I think the dealer is somewhat aware of the rarity and won't go any lower.

Use: This will be a winter beater/occasional daily beater. The e90 335 (LCI n54 m-sport 6MT) has been my daily for three years now, and the e36 m3 is the track rat. The 335 is perfectly fine in the winter on full snows, but in the mountains where I'm at, it can, on occasion, be a bit dicey.

Question: Good enough deal/other thoughts on picking her up? The only other 6MTs I can find on the internet are all north of 10k, and the book guides are all saying 11k.

Thanks! Looking forward to being a member

[Riggodeaux]

May be a reasonable price, perhaps a little high but the dealer can probably get it if he gets it out on the internet. You already know this, but I would give it a thorough examination, by a reputable indy bimmer tech, if possible, though you appear to have lots of bimmer experience yourself. As it passed through a dealer, I assume no service history available, unless you can get it from a BMW dealer for the service at the New England dealer. Get its codes history read at the BMW dealer if you can, and look for all the common M54 issues [ccv, oil leaks, water pump issues, suspension]; I would have a Blackstone analysis run on the engine oil and tranny [unless they were recently changed]. Good luck! For comparison's sake, I bought my comparable example at Enthusiast [an M dealer outside Cincy] in Oct 2013, with 8k on the odo, for $18k, in pristine condition with $4k+ in service they put into it for the sale. That was top of the market then for a facelift M54 stickshift version. Does it have an OEM trailer hitch ?

[Riggodeaux]

Correction, 81,200 or so on the odo on mine at purchase, not "8k"

[javamon]

Originally Posted by Riggodeaux

Correction, 81,200 or so on the odo on mine at purchase, not "8k"

I was going to say!! 8k is extremely pristine!

Originally Posted by Riggodeaux

May be a reasonable price, perhaps a little high but the dealer can probably get it if he gets it out on the internet. You already know this, but I would give it a thorough examination, by a reputable indy bimmer tech, if possible, though you appear to have lots of bimmer experience yourself. As it passed through a dealer, I assume no service history available, unless you can get it from a BMW dealer for the service at the New England dealer. Get its codes history read at the BMW dealer if you can, and look for all the common M54 issues [ccv, oil leaks, water pump issues, suspension]; I would have a Blackstone analysis run on the engine oil and tranny [unless they were recently changed]. Good luck! For comparison's sake, I bought my comparable example at Enthusiast [an M dealer outside Cincy] in Oct 2013, with 8k on the odo, for $18k, in pristine condition with $4k+ in service they put into it for the sale. That was top of the market then for a facelift M54 stickshift version. Does it have an OEM trailer hitch ?

Thanks for the reassurance! Yeah, I have a fair bit of experience with bimmers - not an expert mechanic, but hopefully good enough. Nice thing about the X5 is that you can actually get under it without a lift. It's not ideal to still have it on the ground, but I spent a good bit of time looking underneath at the problem areas my research showed up, as well as analogs to the common e36 problems, and didn't see anything in need of immediate attention.

I specifically looked for oil leaks and didn't see any, and I couldn't see any water pump weepage...but it's going to get a stewart pump and cooling system refresh as soon as I can get it done anyway. I may preventatively replace the oil filter gasket, as well, and then I'll look at a suspension refresh (everything feels extremely tight, and the components were really clean - it might have recently had one or I need to start using their detailer. I'll know more about that when I can get it in the air). And yes - I have a couple blackstone sample containers ready to go.

No OEM trailer hitch, unfortunately. I'm not sure what I'm going to do about that, yet. First things first, and that's got to be some good winter rubber. It looks like someone put some fresh rubber on it to sell, and trying it on my test drive it does indeed go in the snow, but I'm spoiled by proper winter rubber.

I'll get some pictures up tonight or tomorrow.

[LVP]

Similar stable of vehicles to mine.
E36 328 (close enough to same issues, track rat too)
E60 535 (same set of issues including turbos, just the box mine are bolted to is heavier)
E53 X5 (Ive got the V8 - you're choice for the 6 and MT is a much smarter, more cost effective route)

So, you should be aware of enough on these things. Take a look at ECS Tuning for some of their maintenance kits. This will give you a feel for what a suspension refresh would cost, or a cooling system overhaul, etc. They sell kits for everything now.

If it doesn't have a good documented history, plan on giving the car a good once over to baseline it. If it isn't leaking and feels tight, you have some time on your hands

Cheers.

[Doru]

Not sure about the prices in the US, but I think you are correct concerning the dealer awareness about the manual. By now you probably know that 130 k miles is nothing for these i6 engines. Also, regarding MT, the CCV issue is somehow less severe than the slushbox counterparts.

I have a question for you.
I'm contemplating getting an e92. Is yours x-drive? If not, how are the snow tires performing? My e39 is my DD (RWD) and the weight distribution is close to 50/50, never had any issues in the winter for the last 8 seasons. Not sure what the wt distribution on the coupe is, but I really don't want to get an x-drive. I just hope it will behave like the e39. If it's tail happy, I might reconsider.

[Joshdub]

Welcome!

For 9k, I'd jump on it quickly as long as there are no major issues. Good luck!

[StephenVA]

sounds like a deal if you can get a PPI so there will not be any surprises right away. If it is a dealers "used lot" the dealer maybe talked into performing the PPI as a way to flip the car.

Add the normal caution to anything they report without you being present when it is done. Most techs will not sell their souls to the used car lot rats. So being present will allow you to build a little connection and most are always happy to share thoughts with people who like cars. It is the whiners that get to them real fast.
I would tell the lot you need a PPI done so you will know your not buying something with the pin pulled waiting for the big bang.

[Ricky Bobby]

Jump on it. And post on the manual registry.

If it shifts smooth and isn't showing major wear rust or leaks or cosmetic issues it was probably cared for.

You may need some suspension work, cooling system (good call on the Stewart pump) and CCV maintenance are most likely in order.

My oem CCV lasted 11 yrs and 75k miles. Pretty good if you ask me. M54 plus the MT is the most reliable E53. Good luck!

[Ricky Bobby]

And yes 131k is just broken in.