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  #11  
Old 02-10-2018, 03:51 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Pushrod View Post
How many miles did you get to before the valve seals really became a problem? I'm anticipating I'll have to do them eventually.

Agreed, it's a crazy amount of work to replace 32 valve seals that cost nothing. So it seems with most any repair on the N62 engine. The parts are minimal but it's 20 hours+ of labor to execute the repair.

Totally agree on the electric steering on the modern BMWs. I had not driven one of the electric steering cars until recently. I had a buddy who bought one and he said it drove like a Honda, but I never tried it out for myself. I agree. No feel at all in comfort mode, and sport mode is barely passable. Doesn't feel like a sports car at all. I like the steering in my X5 better!
I'm at 112k. It wasn't bad but just embarrassing after drivethru

Thinking of getting a diesel also
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  #12  
Old 02-10-2018, 07:34 PM
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Originally Posted by Pushrod View Post
This would be my hope if I do repair my X5. I love the car and if I could go another 70k without having another major repair, I'd be all in.
LOL.

Mine's at just under 130k miles. Some things I've experienced that you will as well are:

A couple of wheel bearings.
Front sway bar ($3,000)
Rear air springs
Front thrust arms.
Front sway bar links, (more than once).
Coolant expansion tank
Pulleys/belt tensioners
Intermediate driveshaft bearing
Valve guide seals ($2,500)
One fr. upper control arm
Entire CCV system
One valve cover (warped)
Battery (it's on it's 3rd)
Alternator
Front strut tower bearing and bump stops.
Plus lots of normal wear and tear stuff like tires, brakes etc. Averaging 14.5mpg on premium isn't too cheap either.

Face it, it's an $80,000 car you're driving, and as crazy as it seems to dump all this money in, it's still a fraction of the cost of driving a new one. Someone else has already paid the price for the $70k of depreciation. Do I wish it would be as reliable as a Toyota? Absolutely. But there's really nothing close to the combined performance and utility in the market except a newer and more expensive X5.

Although I must say, if you don't need to tow anything heavy, I'd really think about a slightly newer 535 xdrive or 535xi wagon. Price $12,000-$15,000 loaded. It's exactly the same internal dimensions as the E70 X5, and the rear seat folds 100% flat. It's as fast with a turbo 6 as the X5 with a NA V8. It's all wheel drive, and handles better. Better gas mileage, and a bit more reliable. The inside and most controls are a carbon copy of the X5. Plus, it's tuneable if you want more power.
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  #13  
Old 02-10-2018, 11:03 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Skyline View Post
LOL.

Mine's at just under 130k miles. Some things I've experienced that you will as well are:

A couple of wheel bearings.
Front sway bar ($3,000)
Rear air springs
Front thrust arms.
Front sway bar links, (more than once).
Coolant expansion tank
Pulleys/belt tensioners
Intermediate driveshaft bearing
Valve guide seals ($2,500)
One fr. upper control arm
Entire CCV system
One valve cover (warped)
Battery (it's on it's 3rd)
Alternator
Front strut tower bearing and bump stops.
Plus lots of normal wear and tear stuff like tires, brakes etc. Averaging 14.5mpg on premium isn't too cheap either.

Face it, it's an $80,000 car you're driving, and as crazy as it seems to dump all this money in, it's still a fraction of the cost of driving a new one. Someone else has already paid the price for the $70k of depreciation. Do I wish it would be as reliable as a Toyota? Absolutely. But there's really nothing close to the combined performance and utility in the market except a newer and more expensive X5.

Although I must say, if you don't need to tow anything heavy, I'd really think about a slightly newer 535 xdrive or 535xi wagon. Price $12,000-$15,000 loaded. It's exactly the same internal dimensions as the E70 X5, and the rear seat folds 100% flat. It's as fast with a turbo 6 as the X5 with a NA V8. It's all wheel drive, and handles better. Better gas mileage, and a bit more reliable. The inside and most controls are a carbon copy of the X5. Plus, it's tuneable if you want more power.
Thanks for your feedback! Great to hear you are at 130k and still on the road.

So far, I've done the following:

Sway bar links
Rear suspension air bags
Oil level sensor
Alternator bracket seal
Valve cover gaskets
Upper timing cover gaskets
Camshaft adjuster seal
Camshaft solenoid gaskets
Brake vacuum pump gasket
Eccentric shaft sensor seal
Crankcase vent valve
Position sensor O-ring
Oil pressure sender
Spark plug tubes
Fuel injector seals

Current repair list:

Water pump
Valley pan
Coolant tubes (2)
Expansion tank cap
Thermostat O-ring
Thermostat Assembly
Water pump gasket
Water pump O-ring
Intake manifold gasket

I have read about the sway bar issue but haven't had it yet. Mine has the adaptive drive so I've heard it's really pricey if / when it does go. I was told my suspension was in good shape, so hopefully I can avoid any issues there for a while. Probably one of the benefits of being a Florida car originally.

I haven't replaced the alternator or the battery yet. I'm guessing the battery must have been replaced shortly before I purchased the car, or it would for sure be dead by now.

The 535i is an interesting idea. I love the 6 cyl turbo engine. I had the same engine in my E92.

To be honest, the sub $1k repairs I'm not terribly worried about, it's the $3k ones that tend to hurt, especially if they happen close together.
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  #14  
Old 02-11-2018, 12:12 AM
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I like byM5's thoughts. There are three types of BMW owners; those that can afford to have someone fix their ride, those that can fix their own ride, and those with pieces of sh@. Which one are you?
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  #15  
Old 02-11-2018, 12:36 AM
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skyline hit the nail on the head!

I'm at 136K on my N62. I'm freakin sick of fixing all the major problems on this car and if i didnt DIY I would have sold it long ago because the cost would be astronomical to maintain at a shop.

the only reason I keep the car is because I love the driving dynamics as a utility type of daily driver, it looks good, and it's paid off!

but yea, among other things, I've done the valve stem seals, alternator bracket oil seal, motor mounts, all upper oil seals, coolant pipe, water pump, and valley pan gasket. All major time consuming repairs.

Pushrod, I'm afraid you still have to worry about the valve stem seals. That was by far my most time consuming repair of any car I've ever worked on, short of completely removing an engine
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  #16  
Old 02-11-2018, 09:13 AM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by lt2mc View Post
There are three types of BMW owners; those that can afford to have someone fix their ride, those that can fix their own ride, and those with pieces of sh@. Which one are you?
Seems I'm a little of all 3.

I can afford a pricey repair at a shop once in a while, just not several in a short period of time.

I do some of my own work (brakes, rear air springs, sway bar links) but when it requires major surgery I don't really have the time / tools / place to perform the repairs, especially since this is my only vehicle.

It seems just about any N62 would qualify as a POS when it comes to repairs, since they are essentially ticking time bombs from what I can tell.

Last edited by Pushrod; 03-08-2018 at 05:58 PM.
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  #17  
Old 02-11-2018, 09:32 AM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by jmitro View Post
skyline hit the nail on the head!

I'm at 136K on my N62. I'm freakin sick of fixing all the major problems on this car and if i didnt DIY I would have sold it long ago because the cost would be astronomical to maintain at a shop.

the only reason I keep the car is because I love the driving dynamics as a utility type of daily driver, it looks good, and it's paid off!

but yea, among other things, I've done the valve stem seals, alternator bracket oil seal, motor mounts, all upper oil seals, coolant pipe, water pump, and valley pan gasket. All major time consuming repairs.

Pushrod, I'm afraid you still have to worry about the valve stem seals. That was by far my most time consuming repair of any car I've ever worked on, short of completely removing an engine
Great info, thanks!

I totally hear you on being sick of the issues with the N62. It bites to be spending more time fixing a car than actually driving it. I take public transit to work most days, and often my car will go unused for periods of 10 days or more, so it sucks to have to spend a bunch of money on a car that I barely need most of the time. That said, at least I can manage to let it sit in the shop for a week without really needing it! It also makes buying a newer CPO seem somewhat of a waste, as I'll be paying a bunch of depreciation on a car that sits in my garage most of the time. I've seriously had thoughts about just buying an 'appliance' car like a 2002 Camry and never having to worry about it.

I agree, the driving dynamics and features of the X5 are very difficult to find, especially in an SUV (SAV), and i love the way it looks. I truthfully love the car, and was planning to drive it into the ground when I purchased it. I searched long and hard for this one to find exactly the feature set I wanted, including the V8. The first time I hit it hard going through a cloverleaf onto the highway and the thing barely rolled and stuck like it was on rails, I thought, "Whoa, how does this tank of a car do that??" Perhaps having the 20" wheels and adaptive drive helps, I don't know. It's amazing how BMW managed to get such a big vehicle to drive like a sports car.

It sounds like if I fix the current issues, the only other 'for certain' major repair I would have to attack in the next 50k or so would be the valve stem seals at a cost of ~$2500 at an indy. 50k is about 4-5 years at the rate I drive, so less than $50/mth after this current outlay for the coolant pipe. $50/mth is still way less than a car payment. I know there's no guarantee that I won't have the sway bar issue or some other major issue, but those seem to be more rare and not a given like the alternator seal, the coolant pipe, and the valve stem seals.

One other bit of info: The tires are currently at about 75%, and the brakes were just done, so I should be good on those fronts for a while.

Thanks for you help!
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  #18  
Old 02-12-2018, 01:16 PM
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I forgot about valve stem seals in my "I think you're over the hump" comment. That is quite the repair.

I DIY, and we're about a year off from buying a house and one of the first things will be getting a lift and heating installed in the garage, which will make my life 10x easier. With winters in MI, there's about 3-4 months where I just have my fingers crossed that nothing will happen. Fortunately we have a backup car...it's a '99 Mountaineer with 243k miles that I've thought was on it's last legs for the past 50. Minus a battery and alternator a couple years ago it just keeps going.

Our X5 is at 147k, purchased at 128k. Paid for the oil t-stat housing work since it happened on New Year's day. Otherwise I've done air bags, battery, rebuilt vacuum pump, and a couple oil changes. Parts for brakes are in the garage for this weekend, and just ordered tires yesterday.
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  #19  
Old 02-12-2018, 02:24 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Pushrod View Post
"Whoa, how does this tank of a car do that??" Perhaps having the 20" wheels and adaptive drive helps, I don't know. It's amazing how BMW managed to get such a big vehicle to drive like a sports car.
It truly is an amazing vehicle; yet as we all know, flawed. Kind of a love/hate thing. When I was driving my X5 today on a twisty back country road, at WAY beyond the legal limit, I thought, do I really NEED an M car? This thing is darned fast and handles great already. Seven years with two different X5's and never been pulled over; apparently PO's just see it as a soccer Mom machine and let it go...little do they know how fast it is. Yeah I still need a 500hp car, but I'd probably just loose my license.

As for the 20" wheels, they make a noticeable difference; I use 19's for 4 months a year, (Blizzaks), and the 20"'s make a noticeable difference. Not so much for traction, as it's pretty hard to get the car to break loose on anything but snow or gravel. But high speed stability is greatly improved. Normally, unsprung weight is a bad thing, and the 20" wheels/tires weigh a ton, (especially the rears,) but it seems to be uniformly beneficial to the X5. Perhaps it's just the lower tire profile, but I think it's more than that.
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  #20  
Old 02-12-2018, 02:29 PM
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I agree, the driving dynamics and features of the X5 are very difficult to find, especially in an SUV (SAV),
Difficult? Can you point to something even close? The only thing close I can think of is a Range Rover, and they are not only quite a bit more expensive but less reliable than an X5; and still quite a bit softer. The ML and GL Mercs are all mushy, as are the big Lexus SUVs. Am I missing something?
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