First Drive in an 35d

[grover432]

Originally Posted by Craig

I keep mine on a battery tender every night. I've never had a problem starting my car and it's been very cold here this winter. The X6 sounds like a great deal. I don't care much for the look of the X6, but for that price, I would buy it.

Good luck!

Craig

Do you really lift the hood and attach a tricle charger every night? I think I would find that a nuisance. In the mean time, the dealer has a different X5 for me to try tomorrow morning (it will be -25C tonight). I'm going to check out the tires to see if they are Michelins. I'll be listening for the engine vibration or droning sound at idle.

As for the X6, I'm not partial to it either, but if the deal works out as suggested by my friend, I should be able to drive it for the summer, order an X5 for MY2010 and trade the X6 in the fall for not much less than I paid for it. I'll have to see how the deal works out (if it works out!).

grover

[Craig]

Originally Posted by grover432

Do you really lift the hood and attach a tricle charger every night? I think I would find that a nuisance. In the mean time, the dealer has a different X5 for me to try tomorrow morning (it will be -25C tonight). I'm going to check out the tires to see if they are Michelins. I'll be listening for the engine vibration or droning sound at idle.

As for the X6, I'm not partial to it either, but if the deal works out as suggested by my friend, I should be able to drive it for the summer, order an X5 for MY2010 and trade the X6 in the fall for not much less than I paid for it. I'll have to see how the deal works out (if it works out!).

grover

Yeah, It's a pain, but the shop foreman said, it's a good idea to keep the battery charged. I drive short distances, so he said it wouldn't keep the battery charged. On my older BMW's I could plug the charger into the cigarette lighter and it would charge the battery. Even my Porsche 996tt worked that way as well. I don't have to charge it every night, but I'd rather not have a problem. I have no vibration or droning sound at idle. The engine in my car is smooth. Let me know how your test drive goes.

Craig

[JCL]

Originally Posted by grover432

Went to test drive the X5 35d this morning; -25C plus wind chill. the SUV wouldn't start - battery was low. I'll have to try again tomorrow morning.

Cars don't feel wind chill, it was just -25C.

I went out this morning to my Hyundai rental, it was -31C actual. Didn't bother to plug it in last night, it was in a hotel parking lot and the plug-ins were a distance from the lobby. Started fine. Same last night, and this afternoon. Steering was a little stiff for the first 5 km.

It is sad when a Hyundair rental from National is the more dependable option.

[Craig]

Originally Posted by JCL

Cars don't feel wind chill, it was just -25C.

I went out this morning to my Hyundai rental, it was -31C actual. Didn't bother to plug it in last night, it was in a hotel parking lot and the plug-ins were a distance from the lobby. Started fine. Same last night, and this afternoon. Steering was a little stiff for the first 5 km.

It is sad when a Hyundair rental from National is the more dependable option.

Most likely, the X5 was just sitting on the lot without being driven. The dealer where I purchased my car has trickle chargers on all the cars in their showroom...

Craig

[Penguin]

> It is sad when a Hyundair rental from National is the more dependable option.


I agree, but the Hyundai is probably more reliable.

In the past five years I have purchased a BMW Z4, a Ford Focus, and a Ford Taurus. The Fords never had a single problem. The Z4 has had several, including a radio replacement, coil recall, fuel pump recall, windshield replacement due to a rain sensor delamination, and a few other small problems. After the Z4 was out of warranty, it got a check engine light. I diagnosed and fixed it myself for $50, but it never should have happened (the rubber intake boot/hose between the air filter/MAF and the Throttle body cracked and was letting unmetered air in. Not a big deal, but it's the first time I have seen a "rubber" component deteriorate so quickly).

BMWs are great vehicles, but not the most reliable, e.g., auto transmission failure before 100,000 miles is not that uncommon on BMWs.

http://www.consumeraffairs.com/autom...bmw_trans.html

[grover432]

Originally Posted by JCL

Cars don't feel wind chill, it was just -25C.

I went out this morning to my Hyundai rental, it was -31C actual. Didn't bother to plug it in last night, it was in a hotel parking lot and the plug-ins were a distance from the lobby. Started fine. Same last night, and this afternoon. Steering was a little stiff for the first 5 km.

It is sad when a Hyundair rental from National is the more dependable option.

I agree that cars don't feel windchill, although it aways seems that a car parked in an unheated garage is "less frozen" than one parked in a windswept parking lot in -35C weather.

In the mean time, I tried another one they had parked on the lot yesterday morning. It was -19C when I started it, but had been -25C overnight. I don't believe it had been started in a few days.

It turned over a bit slowly but fired right up and settled into an even idle. At cold start up in winter, I think one can expect a fair bit of noise and vibration compared to the sounds you will experience in the summer. I don't find the added noise objectionable, but it was definitely noticeable, compared to the X5 they drove out of the heated showroom for me to drive last Friday.

On the issue of cabin heat, I was expecting the ceramic heater to blow warm/hot air as soon as I turned it on, but it didn't. It was warming up within about 5 minutes though which is comparable to a gas engine vehicle, so I'm not too concerned about winter heat.

I didn't notice any vibrating or droning sound in this test drive vehcle (at ldle) and even though it was shod with the same Bridgestone tires, the ride was much better. The dealer indicated that after some structural damage in the service department recently, things have been very busy and the PDI may not have been completed correctly. I'm going to attribute the stiff ride in my last test drive to overinflated tires.

I found this vehicle a great drive (for what it is - i.e. I'd prefer a 5 series X drive, but need the utility of an SAV) and the power from the diesel great. THose wanting better straight line performance could opt for the 4.8, as I can see that the 35d doesn't have any where near as much "punch" as the 4.8 once you are above 80km/h. For driving soplight to stopllight, I think the 35d is the better choice.

[Craig]

What are you going to do, purchase now, or wait for the X6 deal, or wait for the new I drive in 2010?

Craig

[wdc330i]

Originally Posted by Penguin

> It is sad when a Hyundair rental from National is the more dependable option.


I agree, but the Hyundai is probably more reliable.

In the past five years I have purchased a BMW Z4, a Ford Focus, and a Ford Taurus. The Fords never had a single problem. The Z4 has had several, including a radio replacement, coil recall, fuel pump recall, windshield replacement due to a rain sensor delamination, and a few other small problems. After the Z4 was out of warranty, it got a check engine light. I diagnosed and fixed it myself for $50, but it never should have happened (the rubber intake boot/hose between the air filter/MAF and the Throttle body cracked and was letting unmetered air in. Not a big deal, but it's the first time I have seen a "rubber" component deteriorate so quickly).

BMWs are great vehicles, but not the most reliable, e.g., auto transmission failure before 100,000 miles is not that uncommon on BMWs.

Consumer complaints about BMW Transmission Problems

Hmmm. Seems mostly like the GM transmissions...

[grover432]

Originally Posted by Craig

What are you going to do, purchase now, or wait for the X6 deal, or wait for the new I drive in 2010?

Craig

I'm not sure. but I'm not going to raise it in discussion with my wife again out of fear she'll shoot me in the head. She just wants me to buy something and stop talking about it.

I'm thinking that I may wait until September for the 2010 LCI X5. After sitting in a new Lexus RX350 yesterday and looking at the nav screen, I can't believe BMW won't be installing the new iDrive in the E70 for 2010. From my perspective, with all of the technology in the vehicle, the iDrive becomes the center of control and I find the screen difficult to read in bright sunlight (OK, maybe I just need glasses).

The only thing rushing me into making a decision is that the current offer on the Acura MDX ($10,000) may end this month. OK, I know I'm all over the road here, but I started loking at cars a while back and then got talked into looking at an MDX as a good utility vehicle by a friend, given the lure of a retail purchase rebate.

I started wondering why Acura would be making such an offer and discovered that Lexus has new product which is more fuel efficient and has better technology. Lexus has no rebates and the RX's are selling extremely well, while MDX started selling well only after the rebates were introduced. I also wandered into the BMW dealer for another look at the familiar to me BMW line (I've owned 5 BMWs over the years).

I sum things up like this: The BMW has the best drive and good fuel economy, but is also the most expensive and based on my experience will have the greatest number of problems during ownership and the worst resale. My test drive vehicle had a rattling passenger front seat and some noise from the rear hatch - stuff that shouldn't be left to the dealer to correct before delivery. I expect more of the same as time goes on, based on my past experience wth BMW. If you want the BMW drive, you have to buy the most expensive vehicle of the group and live with the greatest number of trips to the dealer. But, ohhh the drive!

The MDX is the least expensive with outdated technology and the poorest fuel economy in the group. It will get a redesign this fall to catch up. It is OK to drive - transportation - and I expect it will not have many service problems, although resale will suffer in 3 or 4 years as it will be considered to be a "gas guzzler" then, compared to what is on the market and esspecially because fuel prices will certainly be higher then than they were last summer.

The Lexus offers a comfortable vehicle (RX350) with great reliability, but it is supposed to have a soft and boring drive (I'm test driving one on Saturday) along with pretty short front seat cushions which don't seem that comfortable. The nav screen is amazing and the mouse system makes it easy to use. I realize it is just a toy, but it allows easy access to many daily use functions. I don't think it ismy type of vehicle, but I'd like to drive one. THe RX450h is intriguing with it's promise of low fuel consumption and one doesn't have to worry about where the cost of diesel fuel is going after this economic crisis is over.

So what to do?? Driving the X5 convinced me that of the 3 vehicles, it is the one I would most want to get into every day. The diesel will save me from stopping at the pump every week, but the $$ savings may evaporate when diesel fuel costs go back up. The Lexus isn't my style and the MDX while a bit of a guzzler, has price a low price going for it.

My first choice is to pick up the used X6 35 if it becomes available. I'd drive it until the new 5 series arrives and if I am able to get by without the extra seats, then I could talk myself into a new 5. It is really what I want. No matter how well the X5 drives, I keep thinking about how much better the 5 is to drive every day. The X5 is a close second though - which is why I got interested in it in the first place.

So there you have it - one confused consumer!!

[Craig]

The RX is a women's car in my opinion. Look who's driving them on the road. I've driven several through the years when I take my LS in for service. This is my 5th Lexus. The RX does have a soft ride and is boring. I drove a 5 series 528xi as a loaner and I prefer the X5 over the 5 series sedan. The MDX has such an ugly front end. I also looked over these same vehicles while waiitng two years for the diesel X5. Good luck with your decision. Lexus will also have a new GX SUV out this fall. I couldn't wait that long. I needed to replace my old SUV. I'm sure the GX won't have the fuel economy of the diesel X5...

Craig