Shopping for an E70
 

Hey all!

Shopping for an E70 to replace the E53 that my wife drives. We've got the growing family thing going, and she's hooked on BMW, so I can't convince her to get anything other than an E70 with the 3rd row...

Anyway, her E53 is a great car, we both love it, but it isn't equipped with the seating that we really need at this point, and we're tired of taking the E53 and the E46 out wherever we go.

We're shopping for preowned cars, I have no real preferences for powerplant. My E46 and her E53 both have the tried and true M54 powerplant. For all of its faults, I like the M54. It's relatively easy to work on, as a DIYer, parts are plentiful, and fairly inexpensive.

Is there anything that I should be aware of when it comes to the E70? I understand that the N62 4.8 V8 can be a little maintenance-intensive, and I should be prepared for timing chain issues and valve seal issues, but is the N52 3.0 better? I don't have a preference for either, but my wife really likes the aesthetics of the V8 exhaust tips :rolleyes:

Thanks, everyone! Great to be on a dedicated X Forum, since the ones on Bimmerforums have a tendency to be a little...unattended.

if your looking at 4.8 you likley can find a LCI 2011+ 35xdrive for a similar price.
they are better on gas and faster then the 4.8, and have less issues than the 4.8. they also have a more updated Nav if you are looking for that option

i got mine with 45K miles for 37K CPO with navi in october and prices have been falling pretty fast since the new F15 came out.

i was looking at 4.8s and quickly realized it wasnt a good choice

Yeah, I'm starting to get that idea of the 4.8s myself, since I've been hearing about the now-infamous valley leaks, in addition to valve seals, timing chain guides, and oil consumption.

I'll be sticking with the straight-six, I think. Thanks for the input!

There is another inline 6 that comes in the X5 don't forget ;)

Please make sure you take a good close look at that 3rd row - it was my biggest regret with my 2009 - they are nearly useless.

Otherwise, the serviceability of the pre lci 3.0 is pretty good, especially if you do your research and buy parts online.

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Thanks for the replies, guys!

I am a big time DIYer, so buying parts online and doing the replacements in my garage is no big thing to me.

As for the third row, it will mostly be used for children, as I have an 8 year old and a 5 year old who will likely be back there, and any car seats will end up in the middle row. I'll make sure that I get a good feel for the legroom back in the back though. that's a good point, Savant. Thanks!

Conedoctor, what is this other inline six of which you speak? I know of the NA N52, I know of the twin turbo N55, and I know of the diesel, not to mention the X5M (totally not interested in the M, unfortunately.)

Is that a fact? Just got a 2011 all optioned out with 3rd row and M-sport and it was NOT cheap :)

I've had my 4.8 for a few years now and have not encountered any issues whatsoever. Did the muffler delete and it absolutely sounds amazing.

Good luck with your search

Don't know how much they have been falling but I picked up a 13 on Monday 3.5i with M and all decked out on options fairly cheap considering it would cost double if priced out new. Granted I did lease and yes has 3rd seat which just makes for nice extra trunk space

Better on gas maybe but not faster than a 4.8, I had mine for going on 3 years no engine problems.

Only issues was cat converter (recall) and active steering leak. All fixed under warranty.

I meant the diesel (M57N2)

We like ours so far.

Thanks for all of the replies guys!

I am DEFINITELY interested in the diesel, since I like the idea of owning a diesel, for the torque and fuel economy. The only drawback for that is the dang-near prohibitive cost of diesel fuel here in Washington. Diesel costs, on average, about 90 cents per gallon more than premium, and I don't think the savings in fuel mileage will matter much compared to the extra price of fuel, plus the additional cost of the vehicle itself. If I still lived in Texas, on the other hand, where diesel is only slightly more expensive than premium, I might consider it a little harder.

The N52, from what I have read, produces right around 270 HP, which is more than the M54 that my current X5 produces. I imagine that it translates to slightly better city performance and highway merging/passing situations. Is the V8 significantly faster, with the 350 HP that it produces? Not that I want a speed demon of a car, but it would be nice to have the extra power when needed...

N52 is rated 255hp at the most powerfull version for X5 and 530i station wagon.The "problem" with it is that there is virtually no torque until 3500-4000 rpm,after that it pulls very hard and all the way to 7000 rpm redline.For me it actually feels less "torquey" than M54.
I love this engine in my 530xit,and i am not afraid to rev it when I need that extra power,but it may be too "laggy" for some people's taste.You want to drive one to see if you like it.

Okay, cool. Thanks for the input, bawareca. Looks like I'll be visiting one of my local dealerships to test drive cars with both engines, in order to get a better feel for them.

You are right about the M54, it definitely feels like it has plenty of torque off idle and really starts to come into its own at about 2000-2500 RPM, then pulls hard to redline. While I'm sure that the N52 is actually the faster motor when pushed hard, it all depends on where the torque hits as to how "streetable" that torque actually is.