XSeries-forum

Hi

per previous posts, have been looking at a number of cars, today i may be making decision and here are top contenders that i'd appreciate a view on.

I'm going to travel to see Car 2 today so can pick up responses on phone.


Car 1 - 12 Plate - 40d M Sport (viewed yesterday)
- £17999 - From independent dealer - 1 year warranty given
- Full BMW Service history (with one from BMW Italy - assume owner spent time there)
- 36k miles
- 2 owners (though both lived at same address) - I would be 3rd
- White / Oyster interior, HUD and 5 seats. Pan Roof
- 1 Key
- Concerns as per previous posts (Bonnet alignment and Idle Vibration / Noise)

Car 2 - 62 Plate - 30d M Sport (going to view today)

- £16 - £16250 private seller
- Full BMW Service history except last where we he said he preferred to take it to his local trusted garage
- 54k miles
- 3 owners - I would be 4th
- Silver / Black leather interior and 7 seats. Pan Roof
- 2 Keys
- Apparently had changed by BMW indy recently the 'EGR controller' and 'glow plug control unit'
- He has said he uses to tow about 6 times a year (1 ton boat apparently car can handle about 3) Is towing a concern?
- He describes car has excellent and only having needed to restore alloys.


So what do people think? Downsides for car 2 for me are higher mileage and higher number of owners, i think I'm ok with local garage service.

Would welcome thoughts!

The colour would put me off the first one and the towing done by the second one wouldn't bother me. Have you seen the boat?

If you got the second one you could get an after market warranty. I'm using the BMW one at about £100/month for my 2010 40D.

[edit] to say I'm not sure about the incomplete main dealer service history on the second one if it came to buying a BMW warranty.

Make sure there are no signs of corrosion particularly at the rear of the one that's been towing the boat, as it may have been immersed in sea water,if it's been used for beach or slipway launching and recovery.
Also check the inside of the boot area, as cars that tow boat often get loaded up with all the wet gear after a days boating.
However the car should be ok if boat has only been launched etc in fresh water.

Thanks guys.

Unfortunately I travelled 90 mins or so and only viewed the car for 10 mins before calling quits...it was described as really good.....I spotted two not so good paint jobs so bailed.

Car 1 still is appealing but the issues I mentioned are big

Neither sound right so continue the search elsewhere and one key is not acceptable these days as they are very expensive.

Glow plug relay is a very common issue on these so that's not a problem ,there is a difference in tow weight if it has a factory towbar it's 3.5 ton , non factory it's only 2.7 ton and it will say on the logbook what you can tow.
Arches and sill covers are always stonechipped if it's an m sport as they curve into the path of the front wheels so look a mess very quickly along with lower half of rear doors .

They both seem alot of money to me, I would want an immaculate well specced bmw auc car with decent warranty for that.

Thanks all

Appreciate the feedback. Both are out the equation now...so search continues.

Hi all

Going to reuse this thread though subject not so accurate as you will see in below. If i don't get many reads / responses may repost as wonder if that gets more attention so long as not breaking rules:)

The options are (subject to viewing) but this is based on investigation and price negotiations remotely - (asking prices a lot higher).

Car 1 - 11 Plate - 40d M Sport
- £15800 - 16000 - likely price range...
- fyi - car registered 30th March 2011
- 1 private owner / seller.
- Full BMW Service history
- 48k miles
- White / Black 7 seat comfort.
- Pan Roof
- Sun Blinds
- Lane warning assist (any good??)
- 19" 223 m wheels (don't mind this as hear it makes for better ride and cost effective tyres...)
Minor comments: lives in London so always stored in garage (presumably underground parking). Always services at BMW Park Lane. has said alloys have some kerning and small mark on mirror.

Car 2 - 62 Plate - 30d M Sport
- £15850 private seller
- Full BMW Service history except last done by specialist (but they do VAG, Merc and BMW)
- 54k miles
- Current 3rd owner selling the car privately.
- Black / Black 7 comfort seats
- Pan Roof
- 20" 333 wheels
Minor comments: Has had a detailer redo / touch up alloys to diamond cut finish and some presumably smart repair to bumper scuffs to get mint.

Lets assume bother are otherwise mechanically sound.

Welcome thoughts on the above options as well as price


Other questions:
1. over and above these 2, given current climate and age of these now, do you think its worth going for a 13 plate car with almost identical description to car 1 - this however would be few £k more and not something i think ill do - but would welcome views.

2. what are differences in a 2011- 11 plate car and 2012 ?
only thing I've noted is the paddle shift, but i hear headlight maybe different too?

Just a quick comment, always wary of “London” cars especially fairly low mileage ones as they often spend a huge amount of time in stop start traffic, so can possibly be a lot more wear and tear than expected.

The other one three owners and cosmetically done up, last service by an independent, again unless I knew more about its history would probably give it a miss.

Sorry about the slightly negative views but had a low mileage Range Rover from London, that needed an engine rebuild the year after I bought it and seen a number of done up cars that look good on the surface, but not so good underneath, personally a one or two owner car with a reasonable mileage (say 10-15k miles pa) and full service history would be my choice.

Good luck with your quest to find a nice one

Can I make a few comments/observations, although I have no experience of X5s specifically?

Service history. Stamps in the service book prove nothing. You want to see invoices. If you're buying privately full BMW history counts for nothing except bragging rights, and the same applies - invoices.

Mileage. 54k is nothing on a 7 year old car - especially a diesel. What you want to know is how those miles have been accumulated. If the car has regularly been driven less than 5 (or so) miles from cold the engine could be just as worn as one that has done twice the total mileage on longer journeys. If a DPF is fitted, it won't take kindly to predominately urban use.

Fitted options. Decide on the ones you specifically want, and look at car(s) with them. If you end-up buying a car without stuff you want you'll regret it and soon be wanting to start looking again. Having said that, don't be put off a car with your preferred options fitted because it has the "wrong" wheels. There are always plenty of sets of wheels for sale, and they're easy enough to change. You can keep the ones the car comes with and fit winter tyres to them. Any options over-and-above your chosen ones are a bonus, unless you really think you can't live with it/them.

Travelling to view. If you see an advert and the car looks, on the face of it, to be something you could be prepared to buy, don't be put off by the distance. The car for you could be just around the corner or it could be 200 or more miles away. Images on a computer screen will never tell the whole story, and many sellers will tell even less of the story. If you go to look at a car and it's less than perfect, don't be disappointed. You're looking at a used vehicle, as soon as it was driven away from the dealership on day one it will have started to show signs of use. Any seller with a car that genuinely has been looked after is going to want top dollar for it. Once you've started looking for a specific model (X5, in your case) you will soon get a feel for market prices based on age and mileage. If a car is cheaper than ones of similar age/mileage, there's a reason for it. And just because a car was ordered with £10000 of options by the original buyer doesn't make it worth proportionately more on the second-hand market. You might be prepared to pay slightly over-the-odds for an option (or options) you specifically want, but you're in a buyer's market, not a seller's.

Above all, don't be impatient. The right car for you is out there somewhere, it just might not be for sale yet.

Actually, I have a question.....

Both the cars you mentioned above have sunroofs. Is the sunroof one of your preferred options?

The reason I ask is that I had to have a sunroof in my X3. They were very few and far between, and the sellers all seemed to think they added a minimum of £4k to the asking price. It took over a year of searching, but I ended-up buying a car with the spec. I wanted without the sunroof and I had an aftermarket Webasto fitted for half the price premium of a factory-fitted 'roof.

Allegedly the aftermarket 'roof is less trouble-prone than the factory-fit one. If that's true, it's a bonus.

Duplicate post.

Hi guys

I'll just respond in one reply...

Yes I was also wary of lower mileage cars (some of them London) - I still am - but i have seen a fair few with around average mileage and the wear and tear on the condition of them tends to be not what i want.

I thought getting a low mileage car gives me a good condition car for good value.

As for options to be honest no - my min requirements are:

- M Sport or SE with Dynamic pack (naturally the base spec for both of these car's is fine for me)
- under 55k miles preferable
- Full service history (BMW preferable - reason is i've heard stories where something major breaks down, it helps towards good will)
- under 2 owners at a push 3 (like car 2 above)
- immaculate / mint interior and exterior.
- Can deal with kerbed wheels - no issue as i know they go, but body and interior as to be spot on.
- goes without saying mechanically has to be sound - i've walked away from a mint one because of a vibration i could feel - see earlier in this thread and another.
- 30d or 40d i am ok with too.
- I looked at a few trader cars, but have recently been drawn back to private market - not sure why.

Keep the feedback coming.

Also keen to hear feedback on pricing.

Hi
My 2010 x5 has got full bmwsh and every invoice since it was new, the 2 owners before me took it to bmw for whatever it needed,tyres,wheel refurbing,wipers etc and even valeting! but since I've had it (10 months) its had a few things go wrong with it, mostly minor but it did need a new gearbox .
I wouldn't get to worried about finding one with a full bmwsh as long as it has had regular servicing with invoices to back it up, I think it's a bit of pot luck buying cars these days some are good and some aren't,you cant always tell.

Gearbox pretty major no?

And uncommon I would have thought.

How much that cost you