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Banned
Join Date: Jan 2007
Posts: 8,509
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Not sure why this came back up but allow me a brief owners report. After six months or so the car threw a check engine light. It kept throwing them and the the dealer (BMW of Rockville) kept returning the car saying they had fixed it. Drivability was getting consistently worse when it happened. On the fifth return that same dealer said that I had contaminated the fuel tank and they wanted $16K to fix it. The tech even said they had a few more cars with the same issue- from all over the DC metro area. I hit the roof.
I had the fuel checked (by the state gov) at the station I buy from- no issue. On the advice of friend who was formerly a tech at BMW of Rockville, I took the car to another dealer (BMW of Silver Spring). After the second try (and two months later) they found the problem- a failed fuel heater element that was throwing the wrong code. In all it took them about $12K to find and fix the problem but they (and BMW) never charged me a cent and provided me with a brand new 3 series the whole time the car was out of service. They stated, in writing, that there was no evidence of fuel contamination. BMW was silent (to me) throughout this whole episode but they did work with the folks at Silver Spring to fix the problem and paid them to do it. BMW of Rockville lied through their teeth when confronted with the evidence. The car has run fine ever since. Bottom line is don't ever buy or take a car to BMW of Rockville. All of their best techs, BTW, have gone to other BMW dealers. Much praise to the folks at Silver Spring who diligently solved the problem and who were so supportive. Guess where I'm going when I buy a new one...... Last edited by cairns; 03-08-2016 at 02:06 PM.. |
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03-08-2016, 01:59 PM
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Just purchased a 2015 leftover X5d for $60,000. Lots of 2015 trucks to be had. First 1500 miles averaging 27mpg.....
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03-09-2016, 01:08 AM
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resident samsquamch
Join Date: Oct 2005
Location: Cooterville, Cackalacky
Posts: 6,815
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This thread...I never should have clicked it! I never considered the X5 for myself before, but now you've got my attention. FWIW, back in 2009 when I was working in Porsche sales, I sold a pre-owned first generation X5 that had a manual transmission!!! It was beyond cool!!! HHHMMM!
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-jeff back in the saddle: '95 993 - just another black C2 *SOLD*: '87 930 GP White - heroin would have been a cheaper addiction... "Ladies and Gentlemen, from Boston Massachusetts, we are Morphine, at your service..." - Mark Sandman (RIP  )
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03-09-2016, 03:41 AM
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Too big to fail
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A friend of mine just got an X5 M - impressive machine, but may the gods have mercy on your soul if something breaks.
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"You go to the track with the Porsche you have, not the Porsche you wish you had." '03 E46 M3 '57 356A Various VWs |
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03-09-2016, 05:54 AM
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resident samsquamch
Join Date: Oct 2005
Location: Cooterville, Cackalacky
Posts: 6,815
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Quote:
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-jeff back in the saddle: '95 993 - just another black C2 *SOLD*: '87 930 GP White - heroin would have been a cheaper addiction... "Ladies and Gentlemen, from Boston Massachusetts, we are Morphine, at your service..." - Mark Sandman (RIP )
Last edited by sand_man; 03-09-2016 at 09:59 AM.. |
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03-09-2016, 06:02 AM
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They warranty until 100K for an additional fee.... we picked up the extended service to 100K on my wife's X3.... I felt the service was a better value......
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03-09-2016, 09:04 AM
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Registered
Join Date: Dec 2005
Location: Longview, Wa
Posts: 417
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Had an older X5, 2003. I will never have another BMW. Every 3 to 6 months I was fixing something on it. Granted it had a few miles on it, 90K plus. I loved the way it handled, strong engine 4.6l V8. Bad mpg. Had it for less than 2 years until I got sick of fixing it.
Some pixels on the digital dash display burned out. Windshield wipers would quit mid stroke. Seat heater was either on full ass burn, or off. Driver inside door handle cable broke. Had to roll down window to open from outside. Before new inside door handle parts arrived, outside door handle broke. Had to go in and out the passenger side. Had to pull out the drivers seat and rip off the door panel because part of it was behind the dash with door closed. Rear suspension air bag popped. Bad front cv joint. All upper and lower, front and rear link arm ball joints shot. Front end would go into a death wobble when brakes applied. Coolant overflow bottle split and leaked. Side of radiator blew off, massive coolant leak. This is the first time I was ever stranded by a car in over 30 different vehicles. Coolant valley pan leak. water pump. Alternator. rebuilt cost $500. Rear end ate up a pair of $600 tires in 5000k miles, twice. Chrome flaking off wheels. Parking sensors didn't work. Other than that is was a nice car, and I mean CAR, these are not trucks, they are SUV's. Some idiot decided to call it a truck so all the me too's joined in.  And yes I'm bitter on these, maybe I got a bad one. Maybe the early ones had issues, still I will never have another BMW. Hope you have better luck with yours.
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1972 Dodge Challenger 2011 Raptor 2013 Road King 110th Anniversary 2014 Corvette Z51 stingray Single after 27 years married. |
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03-09-2016, 09:56 AM
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Registered
Join Date: Jun 2002
Location: Richmond, VA
Posts: 1,418
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You didn't get a bad one. Most of the E53's are like that. My 2005 4.4i is in the shop every few months for something broken. Thank God I got a warranty when I bought it. Have to pay a $250 deductible each visit, but the warranty company has paid out over $13k in repairs to date, and that's the negotiated price. Awesome vehicle when everything is working, but also the most annoyingly fragile/unreliable vehicle I've ever owned, and I've also owned a Land Rover Discovery... ��
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David Dryden '86 911 Coupe '05 BMW X5 4.4i |
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03-09-2016, 04:27 PM
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