Time for divorce or nicely broken in?

[adkNY]

New to the forum, Hi All!

Purchased 2013 E70 3.5i in Florida in 2016 - @50k miles. 2013 warrantees were expiring so the old folks were trading them in.... lots to choose from. Love the car, drives great, fast, solid. Now has 115K miles and reliability seems to be less than desired.

60K miles water pump. ($$$ - had to go to a dealer.... we were on a vacation)
65K oil filter housing gasket - valve cover gasket.
113k drive belt caused by another oil filter housing gasket leak
113.5k oil filter housing gasket + oil cooler gasket
114k coolant plastic flange + tow
115k rear coil springs (left side was broken)
115k oil pan leak (indy shop recommended not fixing for now)

I do all regular maintenance diy, oil, filers, brakes, battery, etc...).

My question this is will issues like this continue or is it nicely broken in? Is it time for a divorce?

I live in Northern NY, cold winters, salt, hills, I like spirited driving. My wife's 2006 Honda Odyssey has 200K and never leaked a drop of fluid. Neither cars are garaged.

Thanks

[Autobacs]

A BMW is not going to be as reliable as a Honda or Toyota. That's just a reality

[adkNY]

Not that the Honda is problem free it's had its share of electrical issues. My daughters 2007 X3 which has more miles than my X5 it's much more reliable, never leaked fluid, has no wheel corrosion. And has seen more North country exposure. Interestingly it was manufactured in Austria. We bought her car 5 years ago for college and I loved it so much it's the reason I bought the X5. I think I'll keep the X5 because I love how it writes but I hope I don't get stranded in it again.

[X5 MAN]

Originally Posted by adkNY

Not that the Honda is problem free it's had its share of electrical issues. My daughters 2007 X3 which has more miles than my X5 it's much more reliable, never leaked fluid, has no wheel corrosion. And has seen more North country exposure. Interestingly it was manufactured in Austria. We bought her car 5 years ago for college and I loved it so much it's the reason I bought the X5. I think I'll keep the X5 because I love how it writes but I hope I don't get stranded in it again.

When you have no confidence in driving long road trips, its time to let the car go.
Just like an unfaithful spouse., you never know when they will dump you.

[Autobacs]

^^^^
What he said.

[JDAURIA]

I would just consider; what would you replace it with? You have to consider that you won't make a ton of money on the sale of the vehicle. Maybe $8-12k? Does that $1-2k annual maintenance cost really outweigh the sale of the vehicle.

[Too__Hu///Mble]

Originally Posted by adkNY

New to the forum, Hi All!

Purchased 2013 E70 3.5i in Florida in 2016 - @50k miles. 2013 warrantees were expiring so the old folks were trading them in.... lots to choose from. Love the car, drives great, fast, solid. Now has 115K miles and reliability seems to be less than desired.

60K miles water pump. ($$$ - had to go to a dealer.... we were on a vacation)
65K oil filter housing gasket - valve cover gasket.
113k drive belt caused by another oil filter housing gasket leak
113.5k oil filter housing gasket + oil cooler gasket
114k coolant plastic flange + tow
115k rear coil springs (left side was broken)
115k oil pan leak (indy shop recommended not fixing for now)

I do all regular maintenance diy, oil, filers, brakes, battery, etc...).

My question this is will issues like this continue or is it nicely broken in? Is it time for a divorce?

I live in Northern NY, cold winters, salt, hills, I like spirited driving. My wife's 2006 Honda Odyssey has 200K and never leaked a drop of fluid. Neither cars are garaged.

Thanks

Get a maintenance log book.

Listen let's be frank. Treat this car like a shell.

You got a nice car.

Inspect your car and look for things you want to change and note them.

Replace all your maintenance items. You want to service them in a rhythmic fashion: example

•Brake pads, break rotors and brake flush.
•oil change, tire rotation.

Those are a few.

The point is, this is YOUR CAR now. Build a relationship with it.

Me personally.
I would change my:

•fuel injectors index 12
•Spark plugs coils
•Inspect your front suspension.
(Bushings)
•rear suspension check your air suspension
(if equipped)
•alternator
•new battery.
•check condition of fuel pump
•perform a compression test on your cylinder heads.
•inquire about recall SI B11 08 15

I know it sounds like a lot. But these items have a long service life.

But before you PROCEED with anything perform the engine tests to make sure your engine is healthy before you invest in all the new parts.




You have a BMW, keep it running as it is
reflection of you as a MAN.

[adkNY]

I agree and we'll definitely be keeping the car. I do keep a maintenance log including the warranty maintenance work that I got from the BMW dealer before I bought the car. Engine oil filters, brakes, tires are all regular maintenance which I do religiously. Oil changes at 7500 mi. My Indy told me I don't have to change the brake fluid unless there are symptoms (spongy, etc...). My engine is an n55 and that recall does not apply. I also replaced the battery which is normal expected maintenance stuff. I replaced the plugs at 110k miles. Every one of them looked perfect. I also have a foxwell scanner with BMW software. that device has come in really handy for both my car and my daughter's X3. I do agree to get the suspension checked. When doing the brakes I noticed that left rear spring was busted and replacing both springs made a big difference in the ride. I've only spent around $3,500 on unplanned maintenance. That's over 4 years and around 65,000 mi. So that's not really all that bad. I just hate getting stuck which happened two times recently so those wounds are still fresh.

[Autobacs]

It's all enjoyable and doable until you get stuck. I know the satisfaction of owning, working on, and knowing your cars, BUT, never, ever (knock on wood) experienced being stranded high and dry on a trip.

My BMW has been bullet proof so far. Whether it will stay bullet proof, let us see but, if I had to make a bet right now, I would wager my Lexus being bullet proof for sure over a BMW at over 100K miles.

Good Luck!

[wcs531]

Chances are you will be due for another water pump/thermostat in the near future. From my understanding they almost all die between 60k and 80k miles.

I believe a leaking valve cover gasket is somewhat common after 100k miles.