Looking at 08 X5's Bunch of Q's
 

I've had 3 M3's love bmw. my wife is coming from an E350 and likes the GL. I'm hoping to find a nice X5 to convince her otherwise..

1. MPG w/3.0 - searching reveals 15/16 city 20/22 highway - valid?
2. 3rd row seat - seems rare in my searches. standard on a GL
3. Sport pack on a 3.0 - seems pretty rare. I wasnt SP for the seats and the sport steering wheel

4. Can i swap the steering wheel out for an M wheel? I love my E90 M3 steering wheel.

5. DVD - this seems very rare, sucks. I have 2 kids under 2 so this is a big deal. Any cheap aftermarket, tasteful options?

6. Of course I prefer the 4.8. AND, they seem to come better equipped than the 3.0's. What MPG can I expect with a 4.8? I dont mind spending a couple extra $k on a 4.8 loaded up. But the MPG is the killer here.

7. My search has found extended warranty through fidelity as a good option for around $2k for 3 years. Valid estimate?

8. Extended maint @ $1800 - since the main expense is brakes, I dont think this is worth it. I plan to buy an X with 25k miles or less and only drive about 12k per year so probably wont get my money's worth...

Thanks guys... I have a 3 month window to find the right car I hope that's enough...

First off, :xoutpost:

As of an e70, if youre very worried about MPG, the diesel may be your way to go. Otherwise, i would really go for the 4.8i, the gas mileage would not be that much worse than a 3.0. i have an e53 4.4i and i get around 15 city, and 20 highway--i would say the 4.8i is going to be similar.

Sorry, i cant really help with the third row seat, but as of TV, there is a vendor on this website who can definitely hook you up with something nice, i'm pretty sure his name is lawrence, you'll see him all over the electronics threads.

My car is an 04 and i'm just ending my maintenance plan, i love maintenance and Certified Pre Owned--i've gone through repairs that really make the warranty worth it. I'm not sure about fidelis warranties, why not stick with Certified Pre Owned? If youre looking at an 08, the original manufacturers warranty should still be on it (4 yrs/100k miles), and you can extend it into CPO.

I hope this helps, i'm sure someone else will chime in :thumbup:

1. MPG w/3.0 - searching reveals 15/16 city 20/22 highway - valid?
I have a 4.8, see below.

2. 3rd row seat - seems rare in my searches. standard on a GL
It's really a hit or miss on the X5, some have it some don't. I personally don't because the backseat is way more comfortable when you are not equipped with the third row.

3. Sport pack on a 3.0 - seems pretty rare. I wasnt SP for the seats and the sport steering wheel
Again, it's a hit or miss.

4. Can i swap the steering wheel out for an M wheel? I love my E90 M3 steering wheel.
I believe there is an M-Sport pack that adds an M wheel so I dont see why not.

5. DVD - this seems very rare, sucks. I have 2 kids under 2 so this is a big deal. Any cheap aftermarket, tasteful options?
DVD is pretty rare however there isn't any X5's that don't have the DVD system. Again, it's hit or miss there is so many ways to equip an X5 it will be hard to fine exactly what you want right off the bat.

6. Of course I prefer the 4.8. AND, they seem to come better equipped than the 3.0's. What MPG can I expect with a 4.8? I dont mind spending a couple extra $k on a 4.8 loaded up. But the MPG is the killer here.
I can average about 18.2, 18.6 if my foot is being really light, with mixed driving, however when I drive in the city it quickly drops to about 14.5.

7. My search has found extended warranty through fidelity as a good option for around $2k for 3 years. Valid estimate?

8. Extended maint @ $1800 - since the main expense is brakes, I dont think this is worth it. I plan to buy an X with 25k miles or less and only drive about 12k per year so probably wont get my money's worth...
Keep in mind oil changes are also included and wiper blades and pretty much everything on the car. I would get the extended maint.

Hope that helps, you can go to a dealer and tell them exactly what you want and they will be able to get it for you by doing a dealer trade and then you get the car you want, down to the DVD system and 3rd row seats.
You really cannot go wrong either way you equip this car. I have a 2008 4.8 non sport package and the car is perfect I wouldn't change a thing about it.
Another thing I would recommend getting a car with is Comfort Access, a feature that totally spoils you. I have gotten into other cars with conventional keys put my foot on the brake and tried to press a start button that didn't exist. I also have the comfort seats which are VERY comfortable and very supportive on long trips you do not fatigue as fast as other cars you are much more supported.
If you have anymore question ask away.

Consider a diesel. Have her drive one. She'll be surprised.

Maintenance plan is a sucker play, unless you just cannot figure out how to change you own wiper blades or how to find an indy BMW mechanic to do basic, simple maintenance. I would buy either a CPO car, or get a BMW-backed extended WARRANTY.

Nobody does "dealer trades" for used cars...

My budget is under $40k. can i get a diesel under $40k? If so I probably would go that route. wanted a ml diesel but you simply cannot find them.

Yes, i have ca on my m3 sedan and its awesome.

so re: your mpg - do you get 18.6 on highway only, or in mixed? our driving will be 60% city thus the 3.0.

No idea of the used market, but the residual was what 62%-ish when the diesels were leased for 24 months. So a 2009 off lease might be somewhere in that range. (I actually have no clue, but look up the residuals that people were talking about with the new diesels...)

With about 60% city driving we average 15.5 MPG with our 4.8. It's really hard to keep it above 18 MPG on long highway trips unless you're VERY gentle with the throttle and you stay below 65 MPH.

I do maybe 80% city and only get 14mpg, barely, on a 3.0. It may be the 20" tires though. When I start out doing highway only I get 18-19mpg. You may see the in-between of 16mpg or so.

For 40k, you can find an '07 4.8 or an '08 3.0... not much chance to get an '09 diesel although if you're worried about mpg, that's the way to go.

Most of the time its highway, I'd say its 50/50 though and to get 18.6 I have to have a very very light foot. If I don't have a light foot, which is hard with the 4.8 and the exhaust I have, it'll drop to 17.6 which still isn't too bad.
With about 60% city, if you drive very lightly, you could probably get 15-16mpg.

With a budget of under $40K you aren't going to find any '08 4.8's unless they are really high mileage--maybe a 3.0 but that's even a stretch.

pretty easy to find a low mileage 08 3.0 under $40k, ton of them out there. Little tougher to find a 4.8 but their out there. autotrader.com

Would do the 3.0 99% for sure due to higher mpg. its a family car. I have an M3 to jet around in from time to time.

I'm even considering an 09 now since you can pick them up in the low $40k's. Might be worth a few extra for a year newer.

I guess I'm talking about CPO'd and under 30K Miles---on autotrader.com there are only 2 in the whole country under $40K with those criteria. But if you are going non-CPO and more miles then yes there are probably more. I would stick with CPO.