Need Advice on Purchase

[Pulshion]

Hi, I'm new to this forum and the world of BMW. I wanted to gather some valuable insight from some experienced folks on this forum. I've been looking at x5s for a while now and would love to trade my car in for one. Can someone help me and tell me whether I would be an idiot or not to get a BMW with 50k+ miles on it. Here is a posting that I saw and thinking of checking it out. What kind of things should I be checking for?

http://9818.ecarlist.com/web/iui/#_vehicle35229154

[Ryan5034]

Well you should do some searching in the forum. Are you handy at all? If you've never turned a wrench on a car you should be prepared for some serious $$ for repair.

If you are willing to do some maintenance your self you can probably handle some common repairs. If you are looking for a inexpensive vehicle to operate you should move on. The 35xdrive model is the generally the most reliable and has the most parts available. the M model is the opposite.

[Pulshion]

Originally Posted by Ryan5034

Well you should do some searching in the forum. Are you handy at all? If you've never turned a wrench on a car you should be prepared for some serious $$ for repair.

If you are willing to do some maintenance your self you can probably handle some common repairs. If you are looking for a inexpensive vehicle to operate you should move on. The 35xdrive model is the generally the most reliable and has the most parts available. the M model is the opposite.

I can wrench, however, would need a very detailed manual/online videos to follow. Have been doing my own maintenance on my motorcycle. I refuse to do belts, valves, etc. and would want to find an independent BMW mechanic for work like that. I've dealt with a lot of stealerships and 120 an hr is outrageous.

I hear that M is actually more reliable than the 50i model. Is that a correct statement? What kind of maintenance are we talking here and costs for x5 35,50,m? Do they vary significantly?

My plan is to buy the car for ~30k and take it to the ground.

[-c-]

Originally Posted by Pulshion

I can wrench, however, would need a very detailed manual/online videos to follow. Have been doing my own maintenance on my motorcycle. I refuse to do belts, valves, etc. and would want to find an independent BMW mechanic for work like that. I've dealt with a lot of stealerships and 120 an hr is outrageous.

I hear that M is actually more reliable than the 50i model. Is that a correct statement? What kind of maintenance are we talking here and costs for x5 35,50,m? Do they vary significantly?

My plan is to buy the car for ~30k and take it to the ground.

Yea our dealer is 160 an hour ! Because of that I do all my own repair. Afterward I bask in the sunlight of all that money I saved doing it myself!

[Pulshion]

Originally Posted by -c-

Yea our dealer is 160 an hour ! Because of that I do all my own repair. Afterward I bask in the sunlight of all that money I saved doing it myself!

DYI or Indie mechanics is def the way to go

[Ridiculous]

I actually just went and test drove this exact car today. It looks better online than in person, has some issues with the multicontour seats, has a bent wheel and numerous scratch touch ups on the body. It also has two open recalls on it. I checked the service history with BMW and everything looked OK. FYI they are not budging on the price

[Ryan5034]

If the thigh extenders don't work on the multi contour seats those are pretty easy to fix.

[Ryan5034]

There are some that say the S63 is more reliable then the N63 but I don't see why. The design is so similar.

The trans is different between the 2.

[Pulshion]

Originally Posted by Ridiculous

I actually just went and test drove this exact car today. It looks better online than in person, has some issues with the multicontour seats, has a bent wheel and numerous scratch touch ups on the body. It also has two open recalls on it. I checked the service history with BMW and everything looked OK. FYI they are not budging on the price

Did you walk away from the car? I'm going to continue searching. Might try the non-M model.

[Ridiculous]

Originally Posted by Pulshion

Did you walk away from the car? I'm going to continue searching. Might try the non-M model.

I think a 35d might be a better move, I had an e70d sport pkg with a JBD and it had balls. I'm still considering the X5M route.

[Naz24]

Originally Posted by Pulshion

Hi, I'm new to this forum and the world of BMW. I wanted to gather some valuable insight from some experienced folks on this forum. I've been looking at x5s for a while now and would love to trade my car in for one. Can someone help me and tell me whether I would be an idiot or not to get a BMW with 50k+ miles on it. Here is a posting that I saw and thinking of checking it out. What kind of things should I be checking for?

http://9818.ecarlist.com/web/iui/#_vehicle35229154

These dealerships all get their cars from Auction. I just found this one in the system, this particular dealer bought it from Manheim PA on 1/13 for $31.5K.

There's usually a reason they are at auction, not all reasons lead to a bad car.. but theres a reason, just be weary

[Pulshion]

Originally Posted by Naz24

These dealerships all get their cars from Auction. I just found this one in the system, this particular dealer bought it from Manheim PA on 1/13 for $31.5K.

There's usually a reason they are at auction, not all reasons lead to a bad car.. but theres a reason, just be weary

Thanks for looking out. I'm going to take a look at 1 of the cars this weekend (potentially two). Anything to particularly watch out for when inspecting? The plan is to have at least 2 different mechanics inspect the car.

[Naz24]

Originally Posted by Pulshion

Thanks for looking out. I'm going to take a look at 1 of the cars this weekend (potentially two). Anything to particularly watch out for when inspecting? The plan is to have at least 2 different mechanics inspect the car.

Yes, do not trust carfax.

Check all the seams on the car for prior paint. If you run your hand down each seam, you should be able to feel if its smooth or rough. Rough typically indicates that its been resprayed (the roughness you feel is typically due to a tape mark)

Keep your eye on noises, leaks, etc. The engine naturally has a bit of a clatter to it due to the injectors. You can also run the service history on a car if you are close with a BMW Dealer, they will do it for you...