Thinking of ownership... looking for some guidance..

[JamieS]

I have a budget of around 13k at the moment.. I really do like the E70.. have seen some '07 3.0D's on offer for around 13k ish with FSH and over 100k on the clock....

The tax band and economy I can handle... but what about maintainance on a car of this age and milage?  Can you give me an idea of what to expect?

Cheers.

[X5Sport]

It's a luxury car so has luxury prices!

Servicing will be between £200 and £600 depending upon Dealer (they charge about £170 and hour around me).  Using an Indy will save you here.

The servicing is use dependant apart from brake fluid which is every two years.

Fully synthetic oils are expensive but if you are handy with tools you can do a fair bit of the routine stuff yourself.

Parts are expensive and a major failure will likely be very expensive.  You can get routine parts on line for a lot less than a Dealer will charge.

You either need to buy a very good aftermarket warranty or go for a BMW AUC covered vehicle.  Buying private may save money, but you're on your own if anything breaks.  That said the E70 has (so far) proved more reliable than the E53 version, but they are getting older now so age related faults will begin to appear.

Richard

[JamieS]

Many thanks Richard.

The servicing bills, and the odd thing going wrong doesn't worry me... what does worry me is if something major goes wrong, and I am faced with a £2,000 + bill for a new gearbox or suchlike... - how likely is this?

Is a warranty absolutely neccessary?

[X5Sport]

Not seen any reports of the E70 box suffering, but it is still possible that it can happen as it can with any car...

I extended my warranty in case I got another mega bill.  I did have a gearbox fail on my E53 and having a warranty saved me a lot more than the warranty cost.

Richard

[JamieS]

From what I have been reading I think the most likely scenario is the turbo going...


Here's a question; generally speaking, is the E70 any more costly to run than a saloon sized BMW?

.....I ask this, as this will be the first "4x4 type" of car that I have owned... and compared to what I am used to (2 seater roadster!) it looks huge! 

[X5Sport]

Turbo failures are very rare.  Neglect or not driving the car sensitively is the most likely cause.  Not seen an E70 turbo failure reported on here and the E53 ones are often caused by excessive crankcase pressure caused by the early type breather/oil separator clogging.

Apart rom the tyres being more expensive, they're the same to run as any other BMW with the same engine.

Be wary of using the right tyres though.....non '*' marked rubber has appeared as a topic in transmission failures recently (transfer boxes not gearboxes).

And it is huge but you get used to it very quickly. 

Richard

[Sustanon250]

Get some insurance quotes first too , BMW quoted me £4,600 and I'm 43 !!!!

Ps 4 weeks in and I'm still not used to the size of the thing , come close a few times to kerbing the wheels or clipping wing mirrors !

[535dboy]

BMW went through a really bad stage of turbos going on the 3.0d

Twin turbo ones I've only heard of a few issues.

It will cost noticeable more than an equivalent 5 series

Mine ate tyres and brakes at an alarming rate, both of which are very expensive.

Be sure that you want an SUV, they are crap in te snow on normal tyres too

[535dboy]

Oh and yes make sure you have a warranty!!!!

[JamieS]

Thanks again!


So a warranty is vital then?


And another question.. I have been hearing and reading how easy big BMW sport alloys crack.  I would want some nice dark coloured 19" alloys... are there alternative options to BMW wheels which don't crack and still suit the car (without looking ridiculous) ?

[X5Sport]

I've had 4 BMWs and never had a wheel crack yet!  There was a spate of it several years ago but not recently.  The usual cause nowadays is potholes or very bad roads and driving too fast into them.  UK roads in some areas are p!ss poor and are likely to cause failures, as can poor repairs after an outbreak of kerb rash.

Some of the 'pattern' market are even worse with wheels not being of the right alloys or too thin due to 'scaling' wheels up in size.  There were some real scare stories a few years back with copies from Fleabay.

There have only been a couple on here out of hundreds of members and various models that have cracked.  Thin spoked and fancier wheels are more likely, but that is the same for most manufacturers.

Now failed lacquer seems to be the real problem with set after set being replaced of some of the 20" versions.

If you want to know what's out there have a look at someone like Alloywheelsdirect as they list all the wheel types from BMW and alternatives as offered by BMW.  Then see what you can get on ebay as people sell sets 

You can always get them powder coated too.

Richard