Can an X5 survive a daily 100mi logging road commute?
 

I bought my 2001 3.0 back in January with 212,000km. 9 Months and 35,000km later I have found I really like this as a bad road banger. I make this commute 3 to 5 times a week. Through deluge and dust bowl, dodging bears and deer, & playing chicken with logging trucks. The X5 has had many glitches but never broke down (there now I have jinxed myself) I have drove it hard and covered it in mud and have no regrets. I am into it for maybe $4kCDN and this car owes me nothing. :thumbup:


The link is to my youtube of a recent commute as an example of the daily grind my X5 endures.



Looks like I will have to make a call soon about whether to pump a couple of grand into steering and suspension, or cut and run. I have owned well over a hundred cars and am not generally sentimental or willing to throw big bucks at something I can replace for much less, but this one kinda has its teeth into me....:dunno:


Anyone know what shocks/struts are best for severe service? Not looking for ultimate road handling; durability is key. Soft ride would be a bonus.

I just bought 4 new Sachs gas shocks from RockAuto. Approx $700 CAD, I believe. Not super cheap but this rides like a new sports car. I also had to replace both front shock mount towers as the rubber discs had blown out after about 2 hrs of driving on a logging road and well they had 248,000 kms on them parts too :)


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Fix it, if its been good to you it deserves for you to be good to it.

I think you will be going through tension struts,, rear upper control arms and rear ball joints as if it were Halloween candy, not too mention you'd need LCAs at some point. But since you are not suffering depreciation it could be worth it for a while. Need a shop that is not going to break your wallet each time you need something though.

When you need “it” buy it from FCPEuro and only buy it once [emoji106]. May even consider buying your shocks from those guys too, might cost you a little more upfront, but when you need them again, you just pay shipping. As was mentioned above, when the suspension needs refreshes - FCPEuro is pay once and fixed for life - as long as you provide the labor yourself. For what you want to do with the X, that actually makes a lot of sense.


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Agree with fixing it and going up on a tire size, or larger wheel/tire package together, will help with smoothing the ride.

I say keep it. Every time I have thought I should just get something that "might" be better for my commute, I regret getting rid of the car I had. As you stated its the little things that seem to be the problem most of the time. If you have had no major issues, keep going.



P.S I would love to have that commute!

I have had many long commutes, and despite the extra wear & tear, this is the one I prefer. Not much traffic, and what there is being mostly professional drivers. I move at my own pace and don't get stressed because of stupid shit other drivers do. The scenery is great and each trip is something new. My road rage/ blood pressure are much lower on this route than any urban commute.:thumbup:


cheers
K

Looks like a lovely commute and a steady hand on the wheel.

Thought there was no audio when I uploaded; I didn't scream like a little girl when I played chicken with that monster truck did I?:rofl: