bmw 5 series or x5

stranger12

Hi all,

I own a 530d 2004 and for the past two years that i have owned it , i have not seen much of the bmw reliability .

I bought it on 114k almost 2.5 years ago and it had been remapped ( piggy back ecu) and had some issues such as rear ball joints.
I changed ball joints then ecu went, ecu fixed now excessive smell of diesel and sound from transmission so it is a nightmare.

parking sensor gone, parasitic battery drain overnight and on and on

I need to get a big family car and prefer it to be BMW so my choices are x5 2010 around 17k or 520d around 14k for 2013.

which one would you have got ?

are x5 costly to maintain?

my wife might be doing some commuting on the car.

SomeRandomGuy

I wouldn't touch an older X5 with a barge pole. Only consider it if you can afford to maintain a 50k+ car or if it has a comprehensive manufacturer backed warranty that will cover you the length of time you intend to own it.

If anything goes wrong they are expensive to put right. Just get yourself over to xdrivers forum and have a look at some of the repair bills..... 4 figures is not uncommon. Auto gearboxes can be weak and they are big heavy cars so suspension components take a pounding. The wheels are often huge and so a decent set of tyres can be £800.

gilbert_and_sullivan

I suspect lack of and poor maintenance (gearbox oil changes?) coupled with the ECU being poked about with helped contribute to most of the problems.

I wouldn't buy either unless i was in the position to buy a low owner used example that had been properly maintained, and i had enough funds and the sense to continue to do so, makers recommended servicing is an absolute minimum for its typical lease ownership under makers warranty and should be increased and intensified if you want a long trouble free vehicle life.

Not cheap by any means, but far cheaper than the results of not doing so.

stranger12

that is the thing, i can get 520d with 50k on the clock and 2012-13 for around 14k

i can get a 2009-10 70-80k on the clock for around 18k (x5)

i love x5 but expensive

what other cars do you consider that has the look and feeling of x5

please don't suggest anything french or korean or vaxhaul/ford.

all are crap in my view

tykesi

stranger12 wrote: »

please don't suggest anything french or korean or vaxhaul/ford.

all are crap in my view

Because they're not 'Luxury' like the BMW?

I bet if you'd bought one of those you wouldn't have had:

and had some issues such as rear ball joints.
I changed ball joints then ecu went, ecu fixed now excessive smell of diesel and sound from transmission so it is a nightmare.

parking sensor gone, parasitic battery drain overnight and on and on

SomeRandomGuy

Well I think KIA make some nice cars and you would get a 3 year old Sorento still under manufacturer warranty for 18k (in fact probably even less if you look around). Have you actually tried a 'crap' Korean car?

IMO any luxury 4x4 type of car be it a X5, Range rover, Q7, etc, is going to have heavy running costs and the potential for eye watering repair bills.

stranger12

Had picanto for commuting and man it was cheap

burlington6

stranger12 wrote: »

Hi all,

I own a 530d 2004 and for the past two years that i have owned it , i have not seen much of the bmw reliability .

I bought it on 114k almost 2.5 years ago and it had been remapped ( piggy back ecu) and had some issues such as rear ball joints.
I changed ball joints then ecu went, ecu fixed now excessive smell of diesel and sound from transmission so it is a nightmare.

parking sensor gone, parasitic battery drain overnight and on and on

I need to get a big family car and prefer it to be BMW so my choices are x5 2010 around 17k or 520d around 14k for 2013.

which one would you have got ?

are x5 costly to maintain?

my wife might be doing some commuting on the car.

:rotfl::rotfl:

Herzlos

The 5 series estate is better in every way than the X5 (comfort, space, practicality, running costs, performance, handling). A 6 year old X5 is going to cost a fortune to keep running. So go for one of them if it must be a BMW. Or an X3 if you feel you need it to be a BMW SUV. Worse than a 5 series, but better than an X5.

But if you've not seen much of the BMW reliability, why do you want another one?

You'd honestly be better off in a Mondeo/Insignia/Superb estate, or something like an X-Trail.

RichardD1970

stranger12 wrote: »

Had picanto for commuting and man it was cheap

Yes that is the whole point of a small car that costs £8,000 new. :rotfl:

I had a Kia Rio, that was also comparably cheap (£5,000 less than the equivalent Fiesta) and I never had any problems with it in 7 years.

As for 5 Series estate vs X5, if you must, then as already said 5 Series estate every time. (Although the Jag XF Sportbrake gives it a very good run for it's money )

AdrianC

What is the X5?

It's basically the same fundamental mechanicals and electronics and platform as the 5-series, except for the addition of heavy and complex four-wheel-drive componentry, in a heavier, taller, less aerodynamically efficient, worse-packaged bodyshell.

With that in mind, unless you actually believe you explicitly want or need an X5, there's really very little reason why you'd go for one.