Buying advice for a newbie who only knows about Discovery 3. Help!

[d.lundigan]

Good evening,
                    I'm currently looking at 2007/2008 3ltr diesel X5. My D3 is going up for sale tomorrow after a good clean and plate change. As you can imagine, owning an LR can cause the wallet to thin as has mine but having loved and owned it for nearly 5 years it's time for a change. I've always loved the X5 but know nothing about them apart from the Autobox as it has the same as the Discovery 3. Obviously I want to buy with my head so I wonder if you all could advise me on what look out for when purchasing. I will be looking at a 100000 miler so I know the Autobox oil will need flushing but that's about it.
Thanks in advance
Dave.

[Reusch]

There's a buying guide on here I had a E53 just make sure you do all the checks i.e. Mot,history etc and make sure everything works as it should try every button and switch good luck with the search pal.

[d.lundigan]

Cheers mate, I will have a look for the buying guide  :thumbup: :thumbup:

[Horizon]

[quote="d.lundigan"]
Cheers mate, I will have a look for the buying guide  :thumbup: :thumbup:
[/quote]

http://xdrivers.co.uk/forum/index.php/t ... 489.0.html
Edit, just re read your post, your after an E70, this buyers guide is for E53

[d.lundigan]

[quote="Horizon"]
[quote="d.lundigan"]
Cheers mate, I will have a look for the buying guide  :thumbup: :thumbup:
[/quote]

http://xdrivers.co.uk/forum/index.php/t ... 489.0.html
Edit, just re read your post, your after an E70, this buyers guide is for E53 [emoji51]
[/quote]
[emoji23]


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[Horizon]

I can see why your moving from a Disco 3, just read their buyers guide.
https://www.landyzone.co.uk/land-rover/ ... ms.174126/

[d.lundigan]

[quote="Horizon"]
I can see why your moving from a Disco 3, just read their buyers guide.
https://www.landyzone.co.uk/land-rover/ ... ms.174126/
[/quote]

To be honest, I love the D3/4 but I'm bored and need a change. I miss driving my VW golf but there's no way I'd go back to another everyday car so  I figured the x5 would do both. The power and drive of my golf that I miss with the up high driving position of my D3. You never know, I might have to spend less on repairs as well [emoji23][emoji23][emoji23]


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[graemeX5]

Hi

Sorry for the length of the post but it's definitely worth reading the buyers guide in the E70 section and some of the stickies there.

I know the following may sound bad but they are good cars and a good one is great to own but a bad one does cost a bit to sort out so it's worth checking.

If buying from a garage and BMW then their Approve used car warranty is good, if from a garage I would suggest you get an extended warranty for a year just in case, and if private check it thoroughly and if spending a lot worth considering having an inspection. And also put some money aside for possible repairs.

Also if looking at the earlier diesel cars some are the high road tax £500+ so do a check on the reg before you buy as they are harder to sell when you come to it later on.

Some prefer the MSport for looks and you can get 18 or 19" or 20" wheels  the SE are generally better specked but have unpainted arches.

The Tyres are worth checking and ideally should be A set and it good if they are star rated (approved by BMW) as some X3 and earlier X5 have probs, later cars less so but as with all 4wd cars they wheels work in sync so similar types and tyre depths are important, usually fitted with Bridgestone or michelin and are probably runflats which are harder.

As with all X5 check everything esp the electrics more than once, elec mirrors adjustment, and folding in and out,
Sunroof if fitted, windows,  aircon, also press the check control on the dash pod to see if any errors.
One member actually asked to link up laptop with an app to check if any fault codes present.

So cars are having probs with DPF filters so if used in and around town that may be clogging up and if it's already tried to clear via regen lots of time before then some members have had to replace them on earlier cars.

Plus check the footwells front and rear of damp/water ingress, as can be caused by blocked drain holes and scuttle vents or broken door membranes. If necessary pour a watering can full of water over the windscreen or roof and see but as we have had rain it should be easy to spot.

Plus the usual checks and these cars are hard on tyres due to the weight so check the inner edges on the front and rears esp.

Check the car gets up to temperature, it should sit in the middle of the guage and if running cold and warm outside then poss thermostat needs replacing.

Lastly there are plenty of X5 out there and worth deciding what options you need and those you would like as retro fitting on th E70 is harder and more expensive on these than the earlier E53. I think one member was quoted over £2k for fitting heated rear seats, which only cost a few hundred pounds at the time the car was specced up initially.

Take your time as there are plenty of cars about and it's worth getting the one with the bits you want.
Graeme

[d.lundigan]

[quote="graemeX5"]
Hi

Sorry for the length of the post but it's definitely worth reading the buyers guide in the E70 section and some of the stickies there.

I know the following may sound bad but they are good cars and a good one is great to own but a bad one does cost a bit to sort out so it's worth checking.

If buying from a garage and BMW then their Approve used car warranty is good, if from a garage I would suggest you get an extended warranty for a year just in case, and if private check it thoroughly and if spending a lot worth considering having an inspection. And also put some money aside for possible repairs.

Also if looking at the earlier diesel cars some are the high road tax £500+ so do a check on the reg before you buy as they are harder to sell when you come to it later on.

Some prefer the MSport for looks and you can get 18 or 19" or 20" wheels  the SE are generally better specked but have unpainted arches.

The Tyres are worth checking and ideally should be A set and it good if they are star rated (approved by BMW) as some X3 and earlier X5 have probs, later cars less so but as with all 4wd cars they wheels work in sync so similar types and tyre depths are important, usually fitted with Bridgestone or michelin and are probably runflats which are harder.

As with all X5 check everything esp the electrics more than once, elec mirrors adjustment, and folding in and out,
Sunroof if fitted, windows,  aircon, also press the check control on the dash pod to see if any errors.
One member actually asked to link up laptop with an app to check if any fault codes present.

So cars are having probs with DPF filters so if used in and around town that may be clogging up and if it's already tried to clear via regen lots of time before then some members have had to replace them on earlier cars.

Plus check the footwells front and rear of damp/water ingress, as can be caused by blocked drain holes and scuttle vents or broken door membranes. If necessary pour a watering can full of water over the windscreen or roof and see but as we have had rain it should be easy to spot.

Plus the usual checks and these cars are hard on tyres due to the weight so check the inner edges on the front and rears esp.

Check the car gets up to temperature, it should sit in the middle of the guage and if running cold and warm outside then poss thermostat needs replacing.

Lastly there are plenty of X5 out there and worth deciding what options you need and those you would like as retro fitting on th E70 is harder and more expensive on these than the earlier E53. I think one member was quoted over £2k for fitting heated rear seats, which only cost a few hundred pounds at the time the car was specced up initially.

Take your time as there are plenty of cars about and it's worth getting the one with the bits you want.
Graeme
[/quote]
Thanks for that, most appreciated.
The main thing I need is 7 seats so it limits my search some what as it was an option therefore reducing the amount to choose from and with a budget of £9k it's trying to watch for mileage as I'd prefer to stay around the 100k mile mark.


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[graemeX5]

Hi

With that sort of budget you will probably have to look at private.

With these cars it's about maintenance, even if the mileage is higher than that, if there are lots of receipts, service stamps, etc that shows it's been maintained I would go for that one over one that has no evidence and lower mileage.

Take your time as they do come up.
Graeme

[d.lundigan]

[quote="graemeX5"]
Hi

With that sort of budget you will probably have to look at private.

With these cars it's about maintenance, even if the mileage is higher than that, if there are lots of receipts, service stamps, etc that shows it's been maintained I would go for that one over one that has no evidence and lower mileage.

Take your time as they do come up.
Graeme
Got my eye on this one, slightly over my budget but I'm sure I can stretch if needed.
[/quote]




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[graemeX5]

Hi

It looks okay from the pic but a check of the reg reveals its 231g/km and that will be the higher road tax £520 a year that the earlier cars 2007 and some 2008 havedue to theemissions.

This can make them less attractive to buy and run esp when you come to sell the car later.

But you have to make the choice.
Graeme