To keep or not to keep the X5
 

I purchased a Pathfinder because I needed the 3rd row and I can't afford one of the new X5's with the 3rd row.
Now I don't know if I should keep my 01 4.4 X5.
It has 117k miles and I'm always affraid some other crap might break, and as u all know, it gets expensive.
Truck drives great, the wife ( which by the way didn't like to drive it before, now won't drive nothing else) of course.
:dunno:

Drive it till the wheels fall off and enjoy every second of driving the ultimate driving machine! and than after it wont move anymore try to part it out and make some money off of that =] if you got a garage to leave the x5 in while selling the parts will also be good too. but i dunno if you wana go through the hassle just my oppinion. i think when the day comes when my x dies i wana leave it in a garage and just restore it like those classics!

Its up to what your willing to deal w/ in regards to maintenance. Your mileage is past the point where the suspension, trans and cooling system issues are gonna start giving their biggest problems. For me, I've often considered trading off BMW performance and handling in exchange for less stress and more reliable vehicles. Its gotten more and more disheartening over the years reading about even brand new/newish BMW's having problems even when they're only 20k into their life. Its just up to what your willing tolerate and your willingness to keep putting money into it. There are days I love them and I just tell myself that I've got a 3 $50-60k MSRP'ed vehicles for only $18k each, but sometimes when I'm working on them makes me wanna push them off the cliff when something breaks.

That is a tough call. I like what Yii said though. If the X5 is anything like the old Mercedes and BMWs of yester-year then it will be around for a long long time. I for one can not get used to the cheaper materials used in average cars. For the same reason I was not able to go from Japanese cars to American. I first got an E class and now an X5, nothing else comes close.
I do worry a LOT about the cost of ownership though.

Oh man, the Pathfinder drives ok, but the materials inside are garbage.....at least I still have my 3 series coupe which is not going anywhere.
I have changed just about everything on the X5 that could go wrong, the only thing that worries me is the tranny going out on me.

Change the tranny fluid and filter every 50k and you should be fine...mine are.

do you need 2 SUV's? If not, I would consider selling the X5 and picking up a similar age E430 or E55 Mercedes. Far more reliable vehicles than an X5, and excellent bargains right now, IMHO. Similar space and highway ride to the X5. BMW's of the same era are not quite as reliable. Lexus LS430 is another one to consider as those will run to 250K miles without many issues. Slightly more boring to drive than the X5 or Benz sedans, but nice interior appointments.

Anyway - just a thought. I would not personally want 2 SUV's, but in some households both drivers want or need an SUV, so do what works for you.

:iagree:

I agree, and I would say keep it. You already fixed everything, it will be fine. I am still on the original transmission. And I have all ready decided when it goes I will rebuild it.

Any pointers on how to keep our transmissions as long as you have?