New member needs help from the xoutpost gurus on car purchase.
 

Hi all,

As said above, im about to get behind the wheel of an x5,

Ive got a long list of previous cars, had many euros, but this will be my first

bmw.

Im based near Sydney, Australia,

times come to get the other half a new car, this ticks all the box's

for a all round euro 4wd, that can tow the boat when needed, suited

to going away for the weekend, and just a nice daily comfortable drive with

all the luxuries.

The X5 is selling for quite a bit more than from what ive seen most of the

guys on here are from the US. Your almost looking 18-25k for a decent

model.

Can be purchased cheaper but im looking for particular features, which

narrows it down alot....

Heres where the help comes in,

Ive been researching them for a few months but some things are still puzzling

me.

Im looking for X5 2004- 06.

Must be sports pack,

panoramic roof,

prefer heated seats,

Diesel

Prefer auto.

Looking to spend around the 20k mark on it, which is definately possible,

just taking me abit longer to find the one im after with specs and reasonable

kms (miles to all you guy)

Im after the newer updated front end e53 which seems to have the newer halo

style headlights, front bar which seems to be mesh, sidesteps arches etc.


Ill post up a few pics to get the idea of the model im after.

But all that aside, can you tell me what the differences are between
this model late 2004/06 (the model im after) and the model before which looks to go from 2001-2003/4?

Also im really leaning towards the diesel ive heard alot of good feedback

about them, also about the mileage from a tank of fuel amaze me for such a

large, heavy car. But quite a few same year 3.0 Petrol models have came up

with all the options that im after.
Is the petrol 3.0 a good car, or is the diesel much better?

Is it worth while waiting a bit longer for a diesel to come up over the 3.0 petrol?

Is the extra few thousand the diesels pull in Australia, worth it for the diesel?

Is the petrol 3.0 very thirsty, ive heard the 4.4L is, ive driven heavy
6 cylinders and they tend to have low mileage?

What kms or miles should you expect to get out of a 3.0 petrol & diesel engine, before having alot of hassles as some have been in 170,000kms -225,000kms (108,000miles - 140,000mile) mark?
Ive read the diesels can go when serviced properly and kept on top of
quite high in miles without problems.

What does the service history involve from say 170- 250,000km mark ( im talking major services)?

What makes the sports pack so, is it bolstered seats, gps, tv, panoramic roof, any other options?

What is there to look out for when buying, i know alot of the euros ive had in the past have little nicks that tend to go or are problematic, what are the x5's in the model im after?


I really appreciate your help, ive had some good reads on here looking at
some of the write-ups and forum members cars, im not going to just drop off with 1 post im looking forward to doing some of the diy mod write ups on here as well and hanging around...

HELP

To give you all an idea what im talking about,

the updated version e53 is what im after, it seems to be 2004-2006/7 shape,

not the earlier style with different front bar, and front headlights with orange amber indicator, no sidesteps etc.

Well congrats!

You certainly have a lot of questions, so lets take it one at a time.

Now I cannot speak for the euro version because I have no experience with it, but they should be similar.

For the options you are looking for in that MY is doable. Most of the E53's are fitted with those options. Price wise should be doable as well. But when you say reasonable miles, what do you mean? In my eyes, $20K in a '04-06 MY, reasonable would be 80K miles. Anything less, the price jumps, anything more... well you know where this is going.

If the updated look is what you are going for, then go for it.

The difference between the '00-'03 and '04-06 is subtle. Pre-Facelifted models came with a 5 speed Auto tranny and a mechanical transfer case for the AWD system which distributes power in a 40/60 split front to rear. Some body panels were changed, but the lines generally stayed the same. Engines remained relativly the same.

Face lifted models got the updates body, new head lights, some more options, and X-Drive. Which is BMW's new transfer Case system. It uses a series of clutches and a computer. If the computer senses a wheel slipping, it can dedicate 100% of the power to that one wheel. Some newer wheel styles and thats pretty much it.

Now they didn't sell a Diesel verison in the US in the E53 lineup. So I have nothing to say about them. As for Diesels in general, are the bulletproof, no. Will they run forever? No. Will they outlast a gasoline engine? Don't know. All I know, in my pick-up, I got a Duramax Turbo Diesel and an Allison Tranny tied to that baby and she has 235K miles. She is a tank and a work horse. Any engine that is maintained properly will run forever.

If diesel is the one you want, then wait for a diesel. It also depends how much it cost for a gallon of gasoline and a gallon of diesel.

For the 3.0 here, most people have an average range of 350 to 400 miles per tank.

Higher mileage motors do need servicing. At those miles (105K) the motor will need a tune up or "Inspection" service. It normally means you need new plugs, air filter, fluid changes etc. Can it get pricey, sure. Once you get in there you will probably see something that will need to be replaced.

Sports package included a 3 spoke steering wheel (Multi function), Sport seats (but Comfort seats were an option), tuned suspention, and different wheels. There are a few other smaller things, but I cant remember right now. I think the Pano roof was part of the Premium package.

As for what to look out for when buying, do a search on the site, and there is a great article on a checklist of things to look for when buying a pre owned E53.

Hope that helps and Welcome to Xoutpost!

Thanks for the info twinturbo,
Did not know they dont have diesel e53's in the US,
Come on guys, the more feedback the better....... drop in.

Quite a reading in your post :-)
BTW the (sidestep) running board is an option for ALL E53, not just the facelift.