Newb Looking for 3.0d Advice

northernlight · Post by **northernlight** » Wed Oct 17, 2012 5:24 pm

Hi guys,

First post on here and i've already spent a long while researching the useful posts on here regarding the various charms/quirks of the E53.

I'm looking to get a late (2006) 3.0d with lowish miles - 50-60k.

My main query is whether from owners experience there are any regular items that start to fail at this age/mileage? I know about some of the usual diesel engine niggles and suspension potential pitfalls, but are they in the main reasonably reliable at this age? How many miles before auto gearboxes start playing up on average? I see an awful lot of X5's for sale with well over 100k mileage, so i presume that most must be OK?

The trouble is that if you read too many posts on problems with these beasts then you'd end up never buying one! I've always hankered after one and i'm trying not to talk myself out of it

Never had an auto or a diesel before, so its a bit of a leap into the unknown!

Thanks

ianmaney · Post by **ianmaney** » Wed Oct 17, 2012 5:42 pm

Right then, I've had my 06 3.0D since it was 6 months old, it has 97k miles on it and it still amazes me how good on fuel it is, how quick it is and how reliable it is, all I've done is tyres, service, brakes and a new battery, can't speak highly enough about it to be honest, however I'm looking to change next year for a Range Rover simply because I fancy one and that's all, these cars are bullet proof as far as I'm concerned but I suppose every car is different, maybe I just got a good one?

Hope this helps ?

Ian

northernlight · Post by **northernlight** » Wed Oct 17, 2012 6:32 pm

Thanks Ian, that's the sort of positive story I like....and will quote to the missus when she questions my judgement!!

ianmaney · Post by **ianmaney** » Wed Oct 17, 2012 9:05 pm

Well my wife drives a 1 series but still prefers to drive mine as she reckons it's quicker than hers !!

Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk HD

X5Sport · Post by **X5Sport** » Wed Oct 17, 2012 9:14 pm

I was unlucky to suffer a gearbox failure at 42k miles, but apart from that expensive fault, all the others were service type items. I'm sure whoever has that car now has found it's fine. We had it from new to around 56k I think. My wife ran it for a year after my X6 arrived, but now runs the Mini - and loved it.

Denis O · Post by **Denis O** » Thu Oct 18, 2012 7:58 am

I have an 06 Le Mans 3.0D with 62k miles and an 04 Sport 3.0D with 120k miles and both drive very similarly. The 06 feels more powerful and is probably tighter.

The 04 had the gearbox oil changed just prior to me buying it at 109k miles. The oil that came out was crystal and the indy that did the job reckoned it was totally unecessary but it's done.

The 06 had an Insp 2 just after I bought it in April and was given a clean bill of health. It then lost all it's brake fluid to a hole in one of the pipes (quite common) so all original pipes were changed for copper so will now last longer than the car. After that experience I would probably look for 1 that had the brake pipes done.

You'll have no swirl flaps to worry about and no DPF. You'll get 30+ mpg on average and a trip to Jason will see a few more horses out of the stable.

My 04 has been used to travel across Europe, twice a year and be used at our holiday home. It's never missed a beat. The 06 is used for SWMBO's transport and me when I have more than 50 miles to drive (my regular car is a Defender) and again, never missed a beat.

These are excellent cars and if you get a well looked after example you won't go far wrong. Loads of room and surprisingly quick for a 2+ tonne motor with a 3.0 oil burner under the bonnet.

I may consider selling the 06 in November when the 04 returns from Greece. I've now bought a Greek car so one of the X's is going to have to go. PM me if interested.

northernlight · Post by **northernlight** » Thu Oct 18, 2012 9:32 am

Thanks guys, all really useful stuff. Denis, will pm you.

shadrack · Post by **shadrack** » Thu Oct 18, 2012 10:57 am

I have a 55 reg one which was nearly 90k miles when I got it 18months ago, now done 25k or so in it with nothing other than brake pads and an oil change, I did however also have rotten brake lines which had to be done at last mot, my old x5 was older 01 but lower milage and was very troublesome (cost nearly 3k in parts!). So I would say its more age than milage that wears things out, so a well maintained high miler (100k or so) could be better, and you will normally pay a good premium for a low miler so the money saved can be used for parts if needed!

northernlight · Post by **northernlight** » Thu Oct 18, 2012 11:25 am

Couple of further questions;

I can't find a definitive answer as to if an 06 year model would have a DPF or not?

Also, what value to people put on sat Nav and xenons? Would you sacrifice a few extra miles on the clock to get such things? Sat Nav used to be a pre-requisite for me, but tech with iPhones etc seems to move on so fast that I don't know whether factory fit sat Nav is really worth it any more. Does it have a big effect on resale value?

Thanks guys!

ChrisLux · Post by **ChrisLux** » Thu Oct 18, 2012 11:26 am

Hi , I've got an '05 3.0d which I bought about 3 years ago .
First thing I did was have it re-mapped by Jason at BW .
I've done 60,000 kms in it since then and it averages 28/29 mpg on the daily slog and on
a run I've seen as high as 39.2 mpg , although normal is 36/37 ish .

I've only had one 'major' problem , that was with the starter motor shorting out , which is
a common prob as it's Magnetti Marelli not Bosch . Other than that runs like a dream .

Good choice , and good luck

Cheers , Chris

P.S. I'm fairly sure it has a DPF .
Xenons are a must , they're brilliant . SatNav for me isn't a necessity , but mine has it . It
can get things wrong sometimes !! I'd rather have a sun/moon roof which mine hasn't got

shadrack · Post by **shadrack** » Thu Oct 18, 2012 12:06 pm

Don't let them two options lead you to the wrong car, zenons are from £40 aftermarket and there are satnav\tv\dvd\bluetooth etc head unit which look and function better than the bmw one from around £400 think, so if you find the right car without these, haggle £500 off the price, you specs etc sound like you shoud buy mine lol

northernlight · Post by **northernlight** » Thu Oct 18, 2012 12:25 pm

Well, i used to own two E46 330i coupe's and apart from eating suspension bushes they were flawless.

Really like my current motor, an Audi (hope that's not a banned word on here!) and were it not for needing more space then i'd keep it as it seems bullet proof and has all the toys.

But i think my mind is made up on an X5 now and given the helpful comments above, it doesn't sound like there are too many pitfalls to the big machine.

If anyone fancies a p/x type swap then happy to have a chat. Hope that's not infringing any forum rules, certainly not my intention to be punting my own motor around, i'm really just interested in the X5 advice!

http://audisrs.com/08_A4_2_0TFSI_S_Line_Quattro_SE_about40069.html

shadrack · Post by **shadrack** » Thu Oct 18, 2012 12:38 pm

Nice audi, I'd of been tempted if it was diesel!

northernlight · Post by **northernlight** » Thu Oct 18, 2012 1:47 pm

The TFSI ones are actually surprisingly frugal. I usually get circa 36mpg on a mixed run! The diesels seem to suffer a lot with injector issues.

XSeries-forum

XSeries-forum