Wrecked X5 back from the dead
 

Thought you all might appreciate this. Short story first: I was driving this 2009 X5 3.0 and hit a deer in november. Even though not much damage was done, insurance totaled it so I bought it back and rebuilt it. It just passed state inspection and is fully back together at this point :driver:

After the deer:
https://i.imgur.com/XOKKJCU.jpg?1


Back from insurance :wow:
https://i.imgur.com/11JhDzo.jpg?1


https://i.imgur.com/WMr3VoY.jpg?1


https://i.imgur.com/Bj2bKfr.jpg?1


Back together:
https://i.imgur.com/419GDC6.jpg?1

Long story: This was my dad's X5. 3.0, sport packaged, 148k miles on the clock but extremely well cared for. It was having an issue where it would randomly die and fail to restart. After the second time it happened, I drove the X5 over 1000 miles while my parents were on vacation. Of course it never misbehaved, but I liked it so much I bought one - a 4.8i -that is actually the same color & has the same running boards. They look like clones :rofl: When my parents returned from vacation, the X5 left my dad sitting yet again, so it returned to me for diagnosis and I checked *everything*, eventually finding the fuel pump to be faulty based on a current ramp test. As a side note, this was aggravating as the faulty pump was almost new after being replaced as part of the recall campaign!

After I replaced the pump, I drove it to work once as a test drive and of course hit a deer on the way home. The deer broke the headlight & the fender, plus a tab on the bumper and tore a small hole in the fender liner where a screw attaches to the headlight bracket. My dad's insurance stated they only use *new* parts and came back with a $6000 repair bill which just pushed the X5 over their threshold for a cosmetic total (clean title). I ended up buying it back at $3000 + towing, then bought a used headlight for $250 and a fender in the same color for $330 shipped. Including miscellaneous hardware & adhesives, the total repair was around $700.

The condition the X5 arrived from the insurance initially annoyed me. The running board were off, mirror removed, trim removed, etc. - plus all the parts tossed inside. I have later realized they did a good job. They pulled the vehicle apart presumably assuming it would be fixed. With a new fender, they would spray that and blend the paint into the hood & door. All the hardware was in ziplock bags and labeled. The only thing that annoyed me is that the speaker connectors were broken; I have no idea if that was unavoidable or not.

This X5 now lives with my friend who I sold it to for a good price. Ironically it's in better shape than my 4.8!

well done.


(I would have thought that fuel pump had a 2 year part warranty...)


;)

Thanks! I don't remember the specifics, but I did confirm it was out of warranty :( I think it would have been difficult to have BMW honor the warranty even if it was valid since it was a very intermittent problem. For the most part it ran fine!

Here's what I found:

Old fuel pump:
https://i.imgur.com/NiHhTKR.png

New fuel pump:
https://i.imgur.com/wBTQIxB.png

Old:
https://i.imgur.com/gZMFRIB.png

New:
https://i.imgur.com/QV7dePI.png

The line is current draw over time. You can literally see as the brushes in the fuel pump connect to each commutator bar. I believe this one has 8 bars which means there should be 8 distinct bumps and then the pattern will repeat. Clearly something is up with the old one... the new one will actually smooth out more as it wears in. I doubt I'd have luck claiming warranty on a functioning pump based on this :dunno:

Moot now, but Id say you have a TON more data showing it has issues. ;)



But yeah, some dealers will try and insist THEY must do the diagnosis in car. Knowing a parts guy helps.


I had a similar deer interaction on my 12 D about 2,3 years ago. 11k, They paid for the repair.

:wow:

If you came into my ER with this on your ECG, I'd be promptly delivering to you a 200J biphasic shock!!!

Well done, gotta love those 4.8 E70s...

I have a feeling they would have insisted on their own diagnosis. I haven't been impressed by the dealers around here unfortunately.


Glad they fixed it! I'll say this much, the E70 felt VERY solid during the impact. It's also a good thing I wasn't driving my E90 which still has a claymore for an airbag and is also so low I wouldn't be surprised if the deer came through the windshield :yikes:

:bustingup

Thanks! I love the 4.8 and should be able to handle any trouble it throw my way.

Are you allowed to keep the deer? Field dress it....

Lol. Apparently the answer is yes in Virginia, but you need to call the state police to make it legal.