Buying advice sought: X5, lo vs hi miles
 

I am actively looking for a facelift E53 4.4 V8 X5. I'm in the UK with a budget of up to £7500 for which I hope to get a good vehicle about ten years old. My question is - would it be better to go for a low mileage example ie with my budget, about 60 - 70,000 miles. Or would it be more sensible to go for an example that's done 100,000 miles, by which time several major items will presumably have had to be replaced eg suspension parts etc? I plan to keep the vehicle for about two years, during which time I will be doing about 12,000 miles in total.
Any other general advice about buying would be welcome.
Thank you.

More than the amount of miles, I'd be asking for service records, and what suspension, etc. work they've already done.

You just have to research what it would cost you to perform all the scheduled/expected maintenance/repairs, factor in what's been done, purchase price, and do the math.

You might find a truck with 70K on it that hasn't been taken care of vs. and 100K truck that's been well taken care of but not had any of 'the usual suspects' taken care of vs. a 130K truck that might have more miles but has been well taken care of and the suspension has been rebuilt, etc.

Learn the factors, price them out, then make your decision. The absolute requirement should be complete service records. From there you can make an informed decision as to what has been done and what will have to be done and what may need to be done. Without that, it's a shot in the dark.

Areas of vulnerability - X5 E53
 

Thanks very much for the quick reply, which sounds very sensible.

Apart from routine service items such as discs/pads, I believe suspension bushes, ball joints & front CV joints are items that will need replacing at some stage. Also dashboard pixels and water pumps may be vulnerable.Are there any other specific things to look for in a relatively higher-miles example ?

Thanks again.

In addition to what Thrillcat said (great advice, BTW), I'd have the car inspected by a shop.

Also on the V8, check for smoking out of the exhaust. Drive the car until it is at full operating temperature (temperature gauge should be pointing at the 12:00 position). Then stop and let it idle for a few minutes like you are in heavy traffic or sitting in a drive through. Then accelerate away from the stop and check your mirrors (or have a friend watch) for blue smoke.

This is indicative of a few different things, the least expensive is about $150 and most expensive of which can cost $2000-$5000 to repair.

From my experience - look for a car with the lowest miles and best service history you can find. I bought mine with 100k on it, and it would seem that the previous owner dumped it when it started costing money (or just before). I have probably spent $3000 in parts alone over 2 years of ownership, and I did all of the repairs myself.

On top of the repairs, the damn thing has depreciated about another 6-7 grand in the same time frame. When I bought it, it was 11 years old, and I figured depreciation should have leveled off - WRONG!

It's a great car when everything is working, but it seems to have a major issue several times each year. I would not want to have this car without a backup vehicle.

£7.5k will get you a well serviced example if you want the petrol. Big engine, low economy, high service bills all make it a tough car to sell, so you'll have a lot of room to barter.

Anything that old, regardless of its service history, is still going to need ongoing (expensive) maintenance. I've spent around £1,400 (independent garage) on mine in just 4,000 miles. I suspect I'll be spending another £200-400 next year on bits and bobs.

As mentioned, ultimately it doesn't matter what the mileage is. The key is that it's been well looked after. Mine has BMWSH up to 60,000, then was owned by a mechanic who did all the work himself before I got it. Despite this, it's still needed the aforementioned amount of money spent.

I'm sure you're aware too that you will average 18-20mpg at best. £5 petrol will take you the grand distance of 15 miles.

You should really look for a 06 3.0 . The 4.4's 4.6 4.8 all have major engine problems that will cost 6-8k to fix. Depending on the year and engine...timing chain guides fail to age not mileage. Valve steam seals , coolant intake plates or cooling pipes, valve cover gaskets, water pumps and on an on.

The 3.0 don't suffer from engine problems but the entire cooling system should be changed. Both models V8 or 6 all the front end parts wear out.

Around 04 05 the did some comedic changes and also have a better 4x4 system.

The 3.0i's are virtually impossible to find in the UK. Yes, the inline 6's are more reliable, but they are gutless and worse economy then the V8's.

The aforementioned problems aren't guaranteed. I know of a 4.4 that has 200,000 on it and hasn't had anything done engine wise apart from coolant stuff and the gearbox.

I'll bet you a weeks paycheck have him pull off the timing cover and chucks of his timing chain guide are gone and or cracked. Ticking time bomb.

Yes the 3.0 are not the fastest. I hate to see someone buy a E53 V8 because it WILL suck them dry.

You can say the same about a wife and kids to be fair. ;)

Yup - try paying for a good daycare. It's literally as much as a mortgage payment.

When I was shopping for an X5, I drove a 3.0 and 4.4 and ultimately chose the V8 as I just love the pull off the line and passing acceleration.

I also considered a 5-series and the 3.0 felt fantastic in there.

My conclusion is that for a sedan or small SUV like the X3, the 3.0 is great. But for a big, heavy SUV, make mine a V8.

My X5 started smoking shortly after I did the first oil change (I think the previous owner or a dealership may have used a stop leak to cover it up). After the initial sticker shock of repairing it, I decided that I love driving it so much and would like to keep it for a long time that I'll save up and do it.

BTW, there was mention of 18-20mpg. Maybe if the drive is entirely highway at slower speeds like 50mph. I average 15-16mpg driving daily on the highway at 65-70mph with some side-street driving on my commute.

65-70mph in the UK would see you getting 22-25mpg in the 4.4. We have vastly superior quality fuel here. Another reason why we don't see so many of the engine problems as over the pond. To give an example, the minimum RON here is 95, and has been for a long long time.

Oh I didn't realize that. You guys probably don't have the ethanol garbage in your fuel too.

At most 5%, but a lot of the premium fuels claim to have 0%.

Mind saying that, our higher MPG is nothing to be proud of as petrol currently stands at $9.47 a gallon.

I too like the V-8 power and bit the billet and sank money into the engine. I now need a second on for my daughter and no way would I buy a V8.

The OP has a budget...Edogg tell him what the smoke cost you so he gets an idea.

See my first post in this thread. Quoted below for convenience. I have not done the service yet (still gathering quotes from local indy shops) and plan to do the service after the 1st of the year. I'll be sure to post a thread with my experience to share with others.

Telling the OP to not get a V8 because it 'may' have problems is like telling him not to buy a BMW, but get a Honda instead. For £7.5k you could get a very young Kia Sportage. But they are boring, and slow, and bland. For every smile driving wise, you've got to spend a few more pennies. I have a friend who is coming up to his third year of ownership of a 4.8 and he's done 15,000 miles in that time. From 70-85k. He has had zero problems and in fact the only thing he's done to it is change the ball joints and the oil/filter. Mine is at 95k and I've done a bit more suspension work and some pre-emptive stuff. In contrast, I had an Audi A4 that had loads of problems and ended up with a new engine. In opposite contrast I had an A6 that was renowned for camshaft problems, a CVt box that was described as a 'grenade with the pin already pulled out' and yet on that car, in 3 years and 50,000 miles, the only thing I fixed was a CV joint. Gearbox and cams were still totally fine when I traded it in at a whisker below 200,000 miles.

Just got another quote on replacing the valve stem seals to resolve the smoking issue. $2600. I'll be doing it at this shop next month as they're the most reasonable so far.

Also, I'd recommend getting an extended warranty if you can. It probably won't cover the valve stem seals, but it will cover some of the other odds and ends that break.

Risk management
 

Many thanks to all those who took the time to respond. Plenty of food for thought. Buying a used car is always going to be something of a lottery, but I'm trying to manage the risks as best I can. The 'sensible' option would be to purchase a new hatchback but life's too short to be sensible.
I'm aware of the heavy gas/petrol consumption but I don't do many miles so the additional cost over a 'sensible' car is not huge, and is affordable. So, way forward is - look for 4.4i V8 with good service history, have it inspected and may opt for a warranty (c£500 in UK for one year).
Will update when I have bought it!

Always remember, the more miles, the more repairs.
Now who will be doing the repairs?
Are you capable of doing your own?
Or are you financially set to have the repairs done.
An X5 will need repairs.