First Drive in an 35d

[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.

The dealer was a bit embarassed. The new 7 is unbelievably beautiful - they have their first example in the showroom. If it drives as well as it looks .... ahhh too much money.

[Craig]

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.

The dealer was a bit embarassed. The new 7 is unbelievably beautiful - they have their first example in the showroom. If it drives as well as it looks .... ahhh too much money.

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

[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

[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.