Status report : X5d in cold weather
 

Been skiing in VT this past week, when that bad snow storm hit the eastern states. We had temperatures dropping overnight to -17C, with windchill down to -28C. I had no problems with the car whatsoever:

- engine started right up, with normal 2-3sec pre-glow
- battery held up nicely
- no issues with DEF
- no issues with diesel fuel (I did make the point of getting there with approx 1/3 tank and filling up with "local" diesel)
- no issues with getting up quite steep hills - torque was amazing!
- no issues with my winter 18" bridgestone all-season set

As for MPG, I've averaged 21.3 mpg on 715-miles trip, which included LOTS of idling, sitting in traffic, driving 80 mph on highways, and constantly climbing hills here and there. The range on full tank was about 530 miles. Car had 2 adults, 2 kids, fully loaded trunk (up to the roof), roof box with gear, and bags on the floor in the 2nd row. There wasnt much space left in car for anything else :) I am SO impressed ! :thumbup:

Pics attached... Mine is the one with silver "YAKIMA" letters on top. The other 4.8i is genemish's, and the other 35i is of a friend (somehow snowstorm dumped more snow on his car, go figure... :dunno:)

Pics by Canon T2i with 18/270 Tamron lens and polarized filter.

GREAT post and awesome pics. I really should NEVER complain about our rain in Los Angeles. I cannot even imagine finding my X5 that covered in snow or ice. My cleaning OCD is going crazy just looking at your pictures. I too are so, so impressed with my 35d. I do not ever miss my 750i anymore!

I grew up back east. But I too will not complain about the rain in So Cal. I know what it's like to walk out and see your vehicle like that. No matter what you do, your X5 will look like crap for months in the winter. That would drive me crazy !

Nice shots. Glad the X5 worked well for you.

What does wind chill have to do with anything relating to a car?

Cool pics! Gee, I miss snow. :bustingup
GL, mD

My report... Identical trip. Identically loaded car.. 14.7mpg in my 4.8i. Can't wait for my 35d arriving next week.

And I'm trying to go from a 2005 3.0 getting 20MPG combined to a 2007/08 4.8...

Now I'm starting to rethink that decision.

Glad you guys had fun and the X's held up.

I used to have:
2004 X5 4.4 - 15.1 mpg over 1 year
2006 X5 4.4 - 16.4 mpg over 4 years
2010 X5 4.8 - 14 mpg over 14 months

35d is the way to go!

What kind of cross bars are you guys using. I just got my X5 2 weeks ago and planned some trips in the upcomming weeks and iIwill have to install cross bars and put the luggage carrier. Hows the noise with luggage carrier? ,becasue was reading that the noice with the x5 is really bad. Is this true?

Noise with crossbar and skis on top is audible. You definitely hear them inside the car.

No winter-related issues with my X35d either. I did have to add a gallon of DEF because the "No start in 999 miles" message came on even though the dealer filled it up in late October. Hopefully that will last until the next oil change. The owner's manual states that it may be necessary to add DEF in cold temps due to its physical properties. Since it's a heated tank, maybe some of it just evaporates? But other than that I'm surprised how quickly and easily it starts even in really cold temps.

Only the small reservoir is heated. The large reservoir can freeze.

If the large reservoir freezes, the smaller one will not get replenished until it warms-up enough for the large reservoir to thaw-out.

Thanks for the clarification. What is the capacity of the small reservoir? Also, when adding DEF, does it go into the small reservoir only or can it overflow into the large one?

I have about 1500 mi on my 2011 X5d and I can't express how much I love this vehicle. I was nervous when we went on a 10 day cruise and left the X5 in a hotel parking lot in sub-zero weather with two snowstorms. I was afraid that it might not start due to dead battery and/or frozen diesel tank. The day that we returned from the cruise ( kicking and SCREAMING ) the temp was in single digits. It started like a charm, and it felt sooo good to be behind the wheel of this awsome beast after not driving for that amount of time!

Before the weather turned really cold, I was averaging about 23mpg, now I'm getting 22.1 with normal city driving and 70-80 on the highway.