newbie reporting for duty
 

Hi All!

I'm Erik, live in the netherlands and have been looking on this forum the past weeks because I was looking to buy an X5.

Based on what I learned here I decided on a black 4.6IS from 2002 with 180k km on the clock. It was at a good price with a few things that need adressing:

- radio has no reception; there's an aftermarket antenna on the window so I'm guessing the previous owner has fiddled with this. I was thinking of upgrading to a modern android unit
- there's a squeek coming from the engine when revving, I expect the serpentine belt and tensioners need replacing
- at lower speeds there is a clicking noice from the front left wheel, I'll have the brakes and bearings inspected

Otherwise I'm very happy with this car, I figured life is too short for boring cars so wanted something with a big V8! I'll have it checked out by my mechanic soon and hope he doesn't find any skeletons in the closet haha!

Hope I can be a constructive member on here, nice to meet you all! :D

Welcome, you will love having an E53!!

Sent from my SM-A730F using Tapatalk

Welcome to the family! You have found the gold standard forum for learning about and maintaining your new X5. There are a lot of the V8 members on here. :thumbup:

Cheers Gents! I'll try snapping a picture when it's a bit lighter and nicer out. Lots of info on here, I'm more of a motorcycle guy so still getting the hang of all the jargon, these things have a lot more electronic gizmo's than I'm used to!

You will find the X5 a little warmer this time of year too :rofl: Looking forward to seeing her!

haha, well as long as it's above freezing I'm ok, so far so good!

The Beemie is at the shop so no pics yet. Seems like the PO was a bit lax in fastening bolts:

serpentine belt tensioner was loose, so belt was almost new but now damaged.
Headlight was foggy; cap not fastened so dried and tight now
a few coils were loose, so all tight now, plugs looked good
radiator shroud was loose

so far minimal repairs and maintenance, except the heater fan makes some noise (I didn't notice it) and that will require taking the dash out... I'll probably cluster that with a new radio unit. Thinking about an android unit that looks like the OEM radio.

One more question: I want a hitch! But my mechanic said the only one that fits with the sports bumpers is a removable one. Anyone have a good adress where to get these? Or original equipment?

Cheers!

Welcome to the forum. Search hitch on the forum as there are hundreds of posts on OE and aftermarket hitches with the fit an finish issues.

Okido, well it's not a great pic but it's been dark mostly here, and crap weather haha!

https://i.imgur.com/hDazOvm.jpg

Got the car back, apart from the belt and loose bits there was nothing wrong, even the original brake lines looked rust free!

However, I did get a check engine light after a few days and noticed a coolant smell for a bit. Light went away again and smell is gone too, but will get it checked soon, want to get an adroid unit installed anyway and might shell out for a new interior fan while he's in the dash anyway....

other than that: this thing is great! The wife calls it 'the beast' :)

"The Beast" looks fantastic! :thumbup:

well after over two months of ownership it's not been very smooth sailing sofar, but I do like driving the beast :)

Sofar I had a android unit installed. That was a bit more involved than planned because the previous owner apparently butchered the wiring putting in an aftermarket amplifier. But now that it's installed I'm very happy with the result.

I also had a hitch installed, aftermarket but it's for bicycles.

then the battery went dead, so had that replaced too. there was also a small coolant leak somewhere. Pressurising the system showed no leaks but there was a bit of a coolant smell.

then the viscous clutch locked up and exploded the fan, so new radiator, shroud and fan with clutch installed.

https://i.imgur.com/olAWnHB.jpg

So... something that has popped up recently was a traction control warning with the ABS light, once in combination with an automatic gearbox that didn't feel upshifting after 3rd... weird. I was thinking maybe a wheel sensor is acting up? It's been good the last 4 rides so definitely not consistent.

I also found this loose connector under the hood... anyone know what this is for?

http://i.imgur.com/rOuLraU.jpg

this forum has been a real wealth of knowledge sofar, so a big thanks for all the replies!