Wanting to buy an X5.

[MxChase]

So I'm thinking of buying a new X5. I just sold my Infiniti and I have been to a few dealers to check them out. One here in utah and two in California. I posted earlier asking about the quality and things I need to know about if I buy one but it was not a direct enough post. So I'm going to ask a few of the questions that I have and hope to get some good answers.

I am looking at getting either an XDrive35i or an XDrive35D. Do any of you have experience with the diesel? I think it would be awesome to have the torque because I do SOMETIMES pull a trailer. Also, I think the fuel economy would be awesome with the diesel. I know on domestic vehicles they are more expensive to maintain though. Twin Turbo gas engine seems pretty awesome too... What are your thoughts?

I was set on black interior but I have seen a few Cinnamon Brown leather interior and I think they're pretty rad. Just wonder how they hold up. Again, any info would be great.

Does anyone know if you can special order them with Vermillion Red interior? That would look awesome.

Would you give up the Diesel to have the M package? The M package styling looks amazing but I'm not sure what else is different other than styling.

Last, would you consider ordering one or just buying what you can find? I have thought about ordering one so I can get exactly what I want but if I can get a better price on one that is already on the lot then I may want to do that. How long is standard build time if I do order one?

Any info on this stuff is VERY much appreciated. Feel free to chime in on anything else too if you think I should know about it.

[jacb1301]

We went with the diesel over gas for the reasons you stated-tourqe and fuel economy. After driving the diesel I was sold. Loved the immediate pull and sound of the engine. If we lived somewhere where we had several dealers and could maybe find something on a lot that we liked would have done that...but for us building was our only option. The back and forth of what to order and the waiting was difficult, first time we have ever ordered a vehicle. I think in the future I would rather just find something in person that I liked and work a deal.

As for the cinnamon, have you seen it in person? We found it to be a bit red for our liking. It is nice and I think it would hold up, but we liked the tobacco shade of brown better...if only it was two toned with the black as the cinnamon. I think later down the road we may replace the floor board carpet with black just to add some distinction.

[Legitimate]

Order one. When you're spending that much $$$ for a car, it'd better be exactly what you want.

I say go for the diesel. I went for it because:

- Fuel economy is comparable to most cars. Gets better mileage than my '10 335i, and weighs over 2000 lbs more
- $3500 Eco credit
- Diesel engines tend to last longer if you're planning to keep it
- 35d configurator is how a BMW should be configured, not limited to a few options and split into Base, Platinum, and Sport Activity. That's just stupid and annoying.
- Faster than the 35i, at least in the city

[bassman1121]

We went with the diesel for the same reasons as others have previously posted. Torque, fuel economy, and overall driving experience of the car. After driving both 35i and 35d models MANY times, I couldn't resist the diesel. I was trying to convince myself I could live with the 35i because it was cheaper (identically spec'd the way we wanted it), I just couldn't do it. The diesel won me over every time. The torque just makes the car FEEL faster (yes, i realize it's slower by the numbers, but who really goes around doing 0-60 sprints?). Power delivery, especially for highway or two-lane road passing, is absolutely effortless. Combine that with the fact that the gas engine has the 8-spd trans, which I feel is just a bit too busy and takes to long to select the right gear when you put your foot down, while the diesel soldiers on with the trusty 6-spd, and you find yourself with a car that does everything you want it to do, and does it perfectly.

As far as vehicle options are concerned, I personally think that once you're spending that kind of money, order it exactly the way you want it or else you'll end up unhappy. On the other hand if you don't plan on keeping it more than 2 or 3 years I guess that doesn't matter as much.

I LOVE the cinnamon brown interior, as long as it's matched with the right exterior. Looks great with black, white, or deep sea blue. I would have ordered it but we wanted the ventilated seats which only come in black or beige and so we went with black. Still very happy with it. It's a very classy look coupled with dark bamboo wood trim and the black headliner of the sport package. I would not forego the diesel just to get the M-sport. Really not worth it IMO.

We ordered in late December, vehicle was built last week of February, delivered (to BMW Welt in Munich) first week of April. Taking delivery stateside would obviously not be as long. This was shorter than the time I was quoted. I wasn't expecting it until May or possibly even June, so it may not be as bad as a dealer might tell you.

Still breaking in the car... not quite 1000 miles yet, but so far we're very happy. I got it up to 26.4 mpg on the drive back from Munich on the autobahn in mixed speeds (mostly 60-85). Just above EPA estimate of 26 hwy. I suspect on US hwys @ 60-65 mph, 30mpg would be achieved easily. We currently are getting 19.1 as we drive mostly city, but I expect it to improve as the engine breaks in.

Hope this helps!

[MxChase]

Thanks for the help. It sounds like the Diesel is a very good way to go. Glad to hear from bassman1121 that he is getting that good of gas mileage. I usually drive a lexus IS350 and on our trip to Southern California this last weekend we got 28 mpg freeway which was great since our Infiniti QX56 would normally get around 15.
I forgot to mention that I will definately be getting our X5 in white. I have always had white vehicles and for some reason it is just what I have always liked. If we get the cinnamon brown interior we will get the brushed aluminum trim. If we go with black then I will get one of the wood trims.

Does anyone know about how much it costs to have the factory tow hitch setup?

[135iUSN]

I just drive the 35d today; love it. I was planning maybe the 50i, but have changed my mind.

Pondering AW w/cinn brown
or
DSB w/cinn brown

It's a tank!

Odd - the MY '13s are on the lot, but the configuration tool still says 2012

[jddssc121]

I have the diesel (2012) and I LOVE it. I am so glad I went w/ it over the gas model. Eco-credit made the deal even sweeter.

I paid ~6.5% off MSRP + $3,500 eco-credit plus zero add on fees except $725 for lease acquisition (no MACO fee, no doc fee, no prep fee, etc).

Sticker was $64,095 and I paid $56,111 + $725 out the door.

[135iUSN]

Nice deal!!

[jacb1301]

I could be wrong but you can't get the aluminum trim with the diesel...I think that is only available for the basic gas model. Again, could be wrong.

[MxChase]

Originally Posted by jacb1301

I could be wrong but you can't get the aluminum trim with the diesel...I think that is only available for the basic gas model. Again, could be wrong.

I think you may be right. I tried to build a Diesel model on the website with that option and it wouldn't work. I just thought it would look really good with the Cinnamon Brown interior.
I am starting to lean toward the Black interior though. I think it will hold up better with my kids.

How do you guys feel about the resale values? Do they hold their value or no? I can't seem to find any 2011's for under 50k so I'm thinking they do hold their value pretty well.

[bassman1121]

Yeah, I don't believe you can get aluminum trim on diesels. But, sometimes they will special order things that just aren't on the configurator.

Inevitable child destruction was another reason we went with the black leather.

Resale values are insane. Consistently in the top 5 among SUVs. Almost no point in buying used cuz they're almost as much as new. Ours will probably still be worth in 2 years what we owe on it now. Nice to not worry about being upside down on it.

[MxChase]

Originally Posted by bassman1121

Yeah, I don't believe you can get aluminum trim on diesels. But, sometimes they will special order things that just aren't on the configurator.

Inevitable child destruction was another reason we went with the black leather.

Resale values are insane. Consistently in the top 5 among SUVs. Almost no point in buying used cuz they're almost as much as new. Ours will probably still be worth in 2 years what we owe on it now. Nice to not worry about being upside down on it.

Very good to hear. And I think you're right about the black interior.

[apw2607]

Originally Posted by bassman1121

Yeah, I don't believe you can get aluminum trim on diesels. But, sometimes they will special order things that just aren't on the configurator.

Inevitable child destruction was another reason we went with the black leather.

Resale values are insane. Consistently in the top 5 among SUVs. Almost no point in buying used cuz they're almost as much as new. Ours will probably still be worth in 2 years what we owe on it now. Nice to not worry about being upside down on it.

You can ... I have it on my 2009 x5d !