i see your point on the "it wouldn't be an rx" thing but the fact of the matter is a rotary can't compete with the engines on the day.with 16mpg city you would think it have 300+hp right?no. 232hp at best.basically a turbo 4 cyl but a turbo 4cyl could deff have better mileage.sure you can resolve the problem with turbos but rotoraries in general require more maintenace and typical don't last as long as the internal combustion engines of today.i could only see myself buying this car, not driving it and hoping it gets discontinued.being the only production car with a rotary engine today, its bound to go up in value like its older brother the rx-7.they are already worth more then my X...

What Compelled me to buy the car was not really the fact that it had poor gas mileage or low hp, it was the fact that the car was really designed quite well inside and out. The power train was a different story all together, But I have to disagree that their engines lack the life span of traditional ICEs, I know of may that have surpassed the 200,000 Mile Mark on the original engine and there really is not anything to maintain on them, mine didn't even eat oil like some people have mentioned. Just that their control systems such as the PCM and Transmission were really not that well designed. If they were designed as Weasel had mentioned the car would have been rock solid. My thoughts were that if they had a DSG the car really could have excelled with the high rpms that it generated, There also were turbo systems out there that push the HP to a little under 400 without killing the mpg.

First car, my parents let we drive was our Mercedes convertible, no idea wat it was called, but it was a 02. Then when i got my license in Aug 2010, Bought my X5, but water damage to the alternator, sat in the garage for a good 4 months. In october 2010, my parents gave me their 2001 Lincoln Navigator, drove that for 2 months, and totaled it coming back from work in december cuz of snow. The street was plowd wierd so one side was in snow and other was on actual street, truck completely lost traction on snow side and spun and hit a pole. Even though rents gave me the truck, they collected the insurance money. lol I finally pulled the X back out, got it repaired :thumbup: No issues wat so ever since Jan 2011! Keeping this for... once i finish Law school, and then thinking m6. lol

My first car is the X5 I'm driving now, but I'm only "borrowing" it in my case. Once I head off to college, the X5 goes back to my parents and I'll have to start working for my own car. Even so, I think the X5 is too much for me. It feels a little hood rich driving around a $10k X5 when all your friends think it's worth $20k+; the abuse it takes with the short 5 mile drives to school and then turning the engine off before it is even warm also makes me feel bad for driving the vehicle in addition to other crazy high schoolers jumping in and out of the vehicle.

At least it is only 1 year for me with the X5. Once I'm done using it, I'll give it a nice detail, fill in all the paint chips and scratches and try and to fix all the mechanical issues that will spring up in the next 10 months.

An Austin A35, about 1957 vintage as far as I recall.
Light blue. The rear bumper was so strong I drilled two holes in it and mounted a tow-ball without any other reinforcement. I towed a trailer with a scooter all over England.

ah the good old days! :D

Way to go, nice to see there are still smart responsible kids out there :thumbup:. My X is only doing short trips for the most part as well. I work 40 miles outside of town and will be taking it out at least once a week to warm up the engine and evaporate the moisture during the winter. Good excuse for a long road trip every other weekend.

My 1st car was a 1984 BMW 528e /5 speed w/ 285,000 miles. I was 14 years old and saved up my paper route money til I could finally afford to purchase it. $2400 seemed like alot of money to me in 1999! I've pretty much owned and driven nothing but BMW's since.

1984 528e/5 speed
1985 535is/5 speed
1988 535i/5 speed
1981 320i/5 speed
1987 325is/5 speed
1994 318is/5 speed
1996 328ic/5 speed
1999 540i/6 speed
1994 840ci/ auto
1999 540i/6 speed
2001 x5/auto


After recently selling my E31 840ci. My current stable is
1996 328ic
1999 540i
1999 540i
2001 X5

I can't seem to justify purchasing any of the new BMW's.
Im a sucker for a late 80's to late 90's BMW's.