***PIX OF THE NEW X5*** (Still a work in progress). Enjoy!
 

Here are few pictures of the new X5. This is a fully loaded 2009 E70 X5 4.8i Sport. Jet Black on Black. What I really like is the massage feature in the drivers side seat. Not even my M5 has this. I wasn't too sure about the Active Ventilated Seat package at first, since I never use the AC seats in my M5. However, the massage feature was well worth it. I also requested at the time of delivery that NO front bracket be mounted to the front bumper of the car. The dealer obliged, even though it's illegal not to have a front plate in NY State. I think the car looks so much cleaner and love that I have no drill holes or marks in the front bumper. I do this with all my cars.

Here's what I've done thus far:

1. High Gloss Black Kidney Grills
2. High Gloss Black X5 Rear Emblem
3. High Gloss Black 4.8 Side Emblems - I removed the "XDrive" Emblem and removed the "i" as well.
4. 6000K Xenons
5. 8500K GP Thunder Angel Eyes (White Angel Eyes)
6. 6000K HID Fogs
7. Carbon Fiber Roundels (Hood, Trunk and Wheels)
8. Medium Tinted Side Signals (Sprayed)
9. Dark Tinted Front Yellow Reflectors (Yellow is gone)
10. Llumar Tint (5% Rear, 35% Front)
11. LED Super White Rear License Plate Bulbs

Here's what's in progress:

1. E70 Aero Kit
2. Powdercoating wheels a light Graphite color
3. Tinting Tails & Rear Red Reflectors
4. Wheel Spacers
5. H&R Springs (Maybe. I'm still on the fence about this...)
6. Hardwire V1 Radar
7. SprintBooster
8. Aluminum Pedals
9. Spray a coat of silver paint on the front, orange, side signal bulbs to remove the "egg yolk" effect.

I'll post more pictures, once complete.

http://i298.photobucket.com/albums/m...191024x768.jpg
http://i298.photobucket.com/albums/m...141024x768.jpg
http://i298.photobucket.com/albums/m...291024x768.jpg
http://i298.photobucket.com/albums/m...101024x768.jpg
http://i298.photobucket.com/albums/m...231024x768.jpg
http://i298.photobucket.com/albums/m...051024x768.jpg
http://i298.photobucket.com/albums/m...351024x768.jpg

WOW you have beautiful rides!!!

Thank you. :thumbup:

Nice!!! Where'd you get the high gloss kidney grilles?

I have to say. Two very nice cars indeed.

wow, that's cool!

Very nice setup. Is that a scratch on the left side of the M5's front bumper?

I like the X a lot...did you paint the emblems (X5 & 4.8) or were they ordered that way? :thumbup:

Good taste is very rare, you have it.

Both BMW's are stunning.

I ordered an extra 4.8 set and had them painted a High Gloss Black. There's a dealer on the East Coast that sells OEM BMW Parts at a 25% discount.

Scratch? :bustingup There are no scratches on my cars. I'm extremely anal about detailing my own cars and keeping them showroom spotless. I think what you are seeing is the yellow reflector which I had painted the same color as the car, when I got the M5. This reflector on the front bumper is on the LCI 2008 M5 models only. It's similiar to what I did with the X5 and the front yellow reflector. However, the X5 reflector was tinted. The M5 reflector was painted the same color of the car. :thumbup:

I ordered an extra set of emblems from the dealer I use, here on the East Coast. He gives me a 25% discount on all OEM parts, for being an E60.net member. I then had these emblems (along with the extra set of 4.8 Kidney Grills I bought from him too), custom painted a high gloss black. I did all the rebadging myself. I used painters tape to align everything just perfectly. Debadging involves a hair dryer, dental floss or fishing line, some Goo-Gone and some Detailing Polish. :thumbup:

Since I custom ordered the X5, I had over a month to get everything prepped and ready for the arrival of the car. All the items that have been done so far were sitting in my garage, awaiting the arrival of the new vehicle.

Anyway, thanks for all the compliments guys. I appreciate it. :thumbup:

It looks great so far! Keep posting pics as you progress!

Can't wait to see both the X and the M in person at the Tri-State Meet! :thumbup:

Thanks Michelle. My wife is due with our baby girl at the end of June, so depending on how she is feeling (and how big she will be), I might just come alone that day with the X5 and leave the M at home. If she feels like driving that day, then she'll drive the X and I'll drive the M. Regardless though, I will be there. :D

looking good so far.... cont... on :thumbup:

Thank you very much. You couldn't be more right. It's very easy to get carried away with these cars, as there's many choices to swap out parts and change things around. Remembering that these cars are high end luxury vehicles and not Honda Civics is key. It's all about keeping the scheme the same and utlizing the colors that are in the paint when adding your accents. Fortunately, the X5 doesn't offer many choices or additions, so it keeps things simple. The M5 on the other hand has many options. Luckily, these parts are rather costly, so it keeps me in check. Kind of... :p:;)

REALLY niCE and REALLY CLEAN!!

question- which dealer do you order from? i need to get the aluminum step rails and i want to do the kidney's like yours, but maybe matte finish not high gloss..

Looks great! The only thing I would change are the wheels, the 214 style wheels just don't do it for me. I had them on my sapphire black X5 for 9 months until I decided to shell out the extra money for ferric-gray 215's. Together with Aerokit and front window tint the X5 is near perfect.http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_TKqEBb0ErK...730-728643.JPGhttp://1.bp.blogspot.com/_TKqEBb0ErK...732-732334.JPGhttp://4.bp.blogspot.com/_TKqEBb0ErK...735-736722.JPG

Garry Romani (Parts Manager) - BMW of Newport (Rhode Island). Tell him you are an E60.net member and you will get 25% off. I believe there's a dealer on the West Coast that does this too. I can't remember the dealers name though...

Garry is where I got my Aero Kit from at 25% off. ;)

I might be following in your footsteps too. I'm going to try the 214's for now. To be quite honest, I'm not in love with the 215's though. If I do decide to upgrade to 21's or 22's, I'll be going with something else most likely. I'm a huge fan of the Hamann Race Edition wheels. Those are the 3 piece forged wheel with black mesh centers and a nice lip. Those are true classics, but they are not cheap. We'll see... I'll keep the 214's on for the summer and see how they look, after I get them powdercoated.

Nice rides :thumbup:, you have a tough choice, which one to drive today ;)

Sorry for the muck up;) Those reflectors must only be for US spec M5's, I mean I don't have them on my M5 and mine is also a 2008 model.
Once again, congrats on your rides:thumbup:

What can I say, LUV IT!!!

Neither. I actually work in Manhattan and take the train into the city, each day. I drive my 2001 Durango to the station and let the seagulls do their business all over it :rofl: . The Durango is my official Train Station, Home Depot and City only car. The BMW's never make their way into Manhattan. It's much too risky. I actually love the Durango. It's a 2001 and has never caused me any issues. If it gets dinged up or scratched, I don't really care.


No worries at all. :thumbup:

Yeah, those reflectors are the WORST. Why they had to put them there, of all places, is beyond me. Not even the Pre-LCI's had these reflectors. What I also hate is that US Spec'ed M5's do their launches at 1.5K RPM, whereas Euro Spec'd M5's do their launches at 4K RPM. Very annoying. Oh well...

Great job on the mods. I don't know how you can resist leaving these rides at home everyday. I work from home and itch to drive the X even if it's just to hit the drive-thru. I also keep my Rodeo around for NYC trips a couple times a month but undoubtedly I struggle with the choice. Not too bad to go into the city with the X as long as you don't have to park it anywhere for any length of time. Actually I've been thinking of getting one of those bumper buddy mats (don't want the aero getting marked for good)... just for parking.

BTW, I hate people who don't give a crap about other people's property. This past weekend we were at the pediatrician's office (Manhasset) for no more than 30 mins and I come home to see a dab of black paint on my rear door - yes there was a black SUV next to us when I left. I clay-barred it off eventually and there's a very slight indentation (a definite sign of a door) - you can't leave the vehicle alone for a second without something happening to it. Hell even in my Rodeo I've sat at a parking lot waiting for my wife and some lady in a nicer car opens her door right into mine.

Looking at your pictures just made me more excited about getting my Aero Kit mounted. Let me ask you a question. Are you currently running spacers on your X5 with 214's? I'm debating on the sizes. I'm thinking 15mm for the rear and 10mm for the front. My concern is that 15mm might be tight for the rear and 12mm is better suited.

B/T/W - I'm in Long Island as well. We should meet up one day. :thumbup:

Nice cars:thumbup:

Makes me miss my M5.....
http://members.roadfly.com/haroldc/e60m5_hartge_a.jpg

Harold - We've met before at some of the past M5 meets. I was good friends with Ed (bonehead). I remember your car from one of the Floyd Bennett Field meets a few years ago. Sorry to hear that you gave up the car. I loved the 21" Hartge's you were running on that thing. Your car looked so tight.

Wow, looks like we have the same taste! :thumbup: I am picking up my Jet Black (2008) 4.8i at the end of the week. There's not too many jet blacks out there, most people get the sapphire. I would kill to have the carbon black which I hear is finally going to be an option this year!

I have also looked into a few upgrades before I take delivery and I am also leaning towards the all black look although I think painting even the emblems might be a little overboard. :D

I looked into the carbon fibre roundels. All I could find were 'stick on' vinyl which go over the existing emblems.

I looked into the aero kit, but I think to get the complete look I might get the M Sport kit. It's a lot more money, but I like the fact that the bumpers and wheel arches will be all black. The kit will also mean eliminating the running boards and swapping out the roof rails! The new parts will give it a much more agressive look rather than just painting the existing bumpers. It's so obvious when people do that!

As for wheels, I checked into the Hamann 21" black with chrome lip but they are just WAY out of my budget! We're talking over $12K!! I may have to find something else that looks similar.

I also have the ventilated seats - I didn't realize they had a massage feature. :dunno: But if they do, heck all the better.

As for springs, from the research I did, Hamann seems the way to go although again they are twice the price! They seem to have just the right height. Spacers, not sure about which brand to go with. It would have to be nothing more than 20mm.

Can't wait though! Make sure you post some more pics of your progress! :thumbup:

nice ride, i also have the 2009 4.8i x5. fully loaded, black saphire ext, black interior, massage for drivers seat and passanger seat, head-up display. Here are some photos before sending it from america to europe. This friday it arrives in Romania.
What do you think about this exhaust?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vQXTluJR7pY

Going from the 19" 212s, just had a local guy in Lindenhurst mount the wheels/tires after buying their Toyos. I don't believe they used anything at all - looks pretty perfect already in my opinion.

My goodness!! That M5 is F*C*I*N HAWT!! I hope you bring both the M5 and the X to the meet in June!

RR:thumbup:

Thanks!

I'm going to try. I'll need the wife to drive the X, if I am to drive the M. We'll see...

I actually considered the M Kit for a long time. But after looking at it further, I actually like the look of the Aero Kit better. I like the stock, sport front bumper with the mesh grills. Also, dealers can't order the M Kit as a "Kit", here in the US. Currently, you would have to order it piece by piece, including ALL the mounting hardware. It made no sense. It's only offered as a "kit" outside the US. I even tried Canada and that was a chore when talking to some dealers up north. I'm sure it will eventually become a kit, here in the US, once the M X5 is out, but for now, it's not offered as a whole.

H&R makes springs for our car, so no need to go the Hamann route. I should also point out that H&R makes the springs for Hamann. Hamann's springs are actually, H&R. Most people don't know that, but I was in touch with H&R a few years ago regarding my E60 and development of a new suspension system. I was talking to their R&D team on a weekly basis, for months. At the time, Hamann was the only company that offered it at the time and they proceeded to tell me that this system was actually made by them (H&R). They finally offered the same kit under the H&R brand and I saved a ton of money, as opposed to going with their system under the Hamann brand. :thumbup:

As for Spacers, I just need to determine what's the appropriate width for this vehicle. I've had spacers on all my BMW's, so I'm very familiar with them. I just need to figure out the ideal set-up for this particular car, based on the correct offsets of the 214's and the remaining gap between the wheel arch and the outside of the tire/wheel. I'm going to use a tape measure and see. I know 10mm will be perfect for the front, but am unsure of the rear. Once you open and mount spacers, you can't return them, so I need to make sure I get the correct size for the rear. It's either 12mm or 15mm. Fortunately, I don't have to be worried about rubbing, since the car sits so high. However, I don't want the wheels sticking out beyond the wheel wells or my X5 will look like it came out of a Cheech and Chong movie. :bustingup

how to remove the emblems? thanks.

Do you mean the roundels? If so, I only know how to remove the front roundel. The rear roundel on the X5 is a much bigger piece, that is not the standard roundel size, found on most BMW sedans.

To remove the roundel on the front, have the following (i am very anal, so this might seem a bit excessive):

• Blue Painters Tape
• Microfiber Detail Cloth
• Tiny knife (i.e., small swiss army knife)
• Smallest flat head screwdriver in your tool box

1. Tape a few layers of blue painters tape around the circumference of the roundel, especially the area where you plan to pry from. Get the tape as close and tight to the egde of the roundel, as possible.
2. Next, lay the detail cloth over the tape and along side the edge of the roundel where you plan to start "Lifting" from.
3. Take your knife and get underneath the roundel, so that you can fit the screwdriver underneath.
4. Now pry up the roundel until it pops off. You might need to make your way around the circumference, so you're not using to much pressure in one area. The roundel is attached with 2 plug pins that are inserted into rubber plug holes in the hood.
5. Once removed, clean off the area where the old roundel sat and remove the tape. Align your new roundel into the existing plug holes and press firmly into place.

Done!

Thanks for the instruction. How about side 3.0si emblems? Thanks again!

That's debadging, which is a completely different process. Here's what you need for debadging:

1. Blue Painters Tape
2. Dental Floss or Fishing Line
3. Hair Dryer
4. Goo-Gone or Goo-Off
5. A towel or rag
6. Detail Applicator
7. Car Polish
8. Microfiber Towel

Step 1
Align Blue Painters tape with emblems (I lay a line of tape ABOVE and BELOW the emblems you are about to remove). Mark with a pen, the distance between each emblem/number or character. The more marks, the better, so you know exactly the distance between each.

Step 2
Heat up emblems to be removed with hair dryer. The goal is to heat up the glue on the double sided tape, which is holding the emblem in place.

Step 3
Slide Dental Floss or Fishing line behind emblem and slowly wiggle back and forth until the emblem comes off

Step 4
Apply Goo-Gone to towel or rag and remove any remnants of the double side tape and/or glue.

Step 5
Take detail sponge/applicator and polish and clean area down. Buff with microfiber towel.

Step 6
Now you are ready to reapply new badges.

Step 7
After removing backing on double sided tape of the NEW emblems, take a hair dryer and heat up the fresh tape, so the glue is nice and sticky.

Step 8
Line up NEW emblems in the position you want, based on the blue painters tape and the markings you left with the pen. Use this as a guide for the new placement.

DONE!

Sage advice and detailed instructions -- should make this mod a lot easier for me as well. Thanks a lot for posting. :thumbup:

No problem. I've debadged just about every BMW that I've ever owned. I've already rebadged my M5 4 times. I had a Carbon Fiber M5 Badge at first, then had a black and white chrome badge and then went to a dark, shadowchrome badge with monochrome (black, white and grey bars). I should open a business just for debadging and rebadging. Hahahahaha! ;)

I don't know the exact measurement but without spacers the rears go right out to where the fender flares start... this is the best I can show of the rears without spacers...

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3082/...a32583a8fb.jpg http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1290/...48011dea11.jpg

In my opinion, from a standing view, it looks perfectly aligned already but if you want perfection - which I know you do, you'll have to break out the measuring tape.

Sweet ride! Do have have any nights picsof your ride? Love to see what your lights look like.

Yeah, there's still room in the rear to push them out further. The best view is directly from the back, looking straight ahead from each side. It gives the car an even beefier stance and improves handling, due to the wider stance. I'm thinking 12 in the rear and 10 in the front for sure. I guess I'll have to be the guinea pig. I'll let you know. :thumbup:

I also looked into the M body kit a few month ago and came to the same conclusion: it is very expensive to install 'aftermarket' here in the US (parts & labour $7k was quoted to me) and I ended up concluding that the car looks less aggressive in the front with the M-kit than with the standard front + aerokit. I do like the rear bumper of the M-kit though...

Regarding spacers: my 21" 215's (285 front, 325 rear) already have no space left under the sports package fender flares so I think there is not much room for spacers with your 214's (275 front, 315 rear) if you do not want the wheels to stick out under the fender flares...

Keep us posted on your progress, I enjoy reading this post!

i have h&R 12mm spacer on my 22s ,wheel is perfectly in line with the wheel well ,keep in mind my 22s are 11.5 in width same as the 21s style 215 OE i think the 15mm spacer would fit nicely for your cars rear ,back to your x5,awesome ride:thumbup:

do you think the sprintbooster will bake a difference on the 4.8i?

It does on my M5, so yes, it will. It's all about throttle response/lag. That is what the SB improves. Even with a lead foot, the SB still reacts faster. I'm a huge fan. Had it on my past 2, 5 series and love it.

I've read and heard plenty of the pros...have you experienced or are you aware of any cons? :confused:

well, in my experience, no cons, only its alittle jumpy, and your wife might not like it at all...

also, the one i had on my e-class was faulty...

no issues. you just need to get used to it. i might also point out that even with an ECU remap, the SB still makes a big difference. no cons for me. i can't live without it. i took it out once in the m5 and the car felt so slow off the line. i'm not even kidding. it went back immediately. i even let a few friends drive with and without it and they were shocked. floored actually...that such a little item could make such a big difference on this car.

The fault was in you owning an E class. ;) :nanana: (Sorry, couldn't resist :D ).

Nice rides

Thanks. Where's pix of your E70?

Very funny. 3/31 is D-day. You seem just as anxious as me.

I will trade you my Black grill mesh for your silver grill mesh

The 3.0 is black mesh?

Ever think about painting the rims and aluminum part of the running boards the same high gloss black. I think that would be very "stealth." (and very cool)

I'm having my wheels powdercoated a nice, graphite color. :thumbup: I want a little bit of contrast, as opposed to the standard black look.

As for the running boards, I considered painting them, but the paint is only going to chip and come off after the amount of shoes, dirt, sand and grime that will get on it. It won't look that good after a certain amount of time.

Ha, we have much in common.

I too have an Indianapolis Red M5, and a Silver Grey X5 4.8i. Haven't done much modding, other than removing carbon filters on M5. Love these cars as sweet as they are stock.

Only thing I wish is BMW would pull head out of arse and put some pretty calipers and rotors on their cars, ala MB or Audi, heck even Dodge SRT has Brembos...

You need to add a few mods, esp to the M5. The difference is night and day. I could never imagine going back to my stock M5. Way too slow. :bustingup

hi nice ride..i also live in ny,,who did the tint qm...who is the dealer that sells parts at discount..thanks in advance for any info you can provide...rob

Nice X!!! Love it!

Might I suggest a Q-Tip around the "X5" badge tho? :)

Yeah, it wasn't so clean. I've since touched it up and it's now perfect. ;)

Caught the summer modding bug and would love to meet up with some of you guys that are from the LI area to check out your E70s and see how they are set up. Looking to add the running boards, tints and 214s to the car, but would want to see different setups first. Haven't seen any nicely modded monaco blue setups unfortunately...

Sent you a PM. :thumbup: