Thinking about purchase

[Muckster]

A friend suggested this forum for me to figure things out. You guys are probably wayyyy more advanced than I am on vehicles as a whole, and especially these beauties. Anyhow, we're considering a 2007 E70. I haven't even had time to get questions out there regarding the packages and such as it's a friend of a friend selling and the guy has been out of town since piquing my interest.

I'm not the most mechanically inclined. I've read tons of bad reviews on edmunds user reviews about electronic failures, computer failures, etc. What say you?

[motordavid]

The 2007 was the first MY for the E70; many here would caution the typical first year glitches and gremlins, fwiw.

There are a litany of items that can/do go wrong, potentially...not that all may or will happen to any particular car.

Since the 'info' on 'your' car you is so vague, eg miles, options, etc., it is difficult to be more specific.

Service history, (at least the work done by a BMW dlr), should be available via the seller 'running' his key at the dlr, a price ballpark,
and a PPI inspection by a good BMW Indie are all things I would want to know, before getting too far down the interest level street.

Use Search Tab here, on any page, mid upper right side, third tab from right, and do some noodling and reading, imo.

Xs are great cars, decent in snow with good snow tires, and remarkable handling for its size and weight; they are not easy/fun/cheap to repair, post-warranty.
GL, mD

[JCL]

Originally Posted by motordavid

The 2007 was the first MY for the E70; many here would caution the typical first year glitches and gremlins, fwiw.

....Xs are great cars, decent in snow with good snow tires, and remarkable handling for its size and weight; they are not easy/fun/cheap to repair, post-warranty.

Agree completely, MD sums it up well. Be prepared for unplanned repair and maintenance costs. It can be cheaper if you do your own wrenching.

[Muckster]

Thanks guys. I'm ready to repair some stuff and try to be open to unexpected repairs. But look at all the complaining on 2007 BMW X5 Consumer Reviews and you can see what has scared me.

I love my buddy's 01 and other friend's 05 and seeing the stuff you guys are doing on this site has excited me too. So I figured I'd ask people that obviously like their vehicles to see what they think.

[JCL]

Those friends vehicles you mention are E53 models, the first generation. The E70 got larger, heavier, and had more options (more to go wrong, particularly with the electronics).

Interesting that the two of us who replied to your original post both have or had E53s, and both of us decided not to own E70s. You need to hear from some posters with 2007 model E70s.

Good luck.

[ard]

Whats the opposite of "sweet spot"? nadir?

Anyway, buying a 5 year old first model year X5 without a warranty and not too mechanical is such a spot. IMO. Try for an 08,09 and see if you can extend the warranty with a **BMW Backed** plan (cpo or gold) to 6 years 100k.

A

[BGM]

I had an e53 for 9.5 years with no major issues and now I have an e70 with no major issues as well. As mentioned, steer away from 1st model year.

[blondboinsd]

2007 Model Here. Late Build. No Major Issues. 84k on the Odometer. Check the PPI History prior to buying

[rh71]

'09+ would be better if you're concerned about reliability. They fixed a lot of things in the '08s but even those required you to bring it in for some firmware updates.

[Muckster]

I should mention almost all driving is highway and doing about 20000 miles a year. Car has 70k miles on it