I have known two people with X5s and both of them were plagued with issues. Small sample size but at least one of them was a die-hard BMW guy and he referred to it as "Evil" and was trying to unload it.
I have known two people with X5s and both of them were plagued with issues. Small sample size but at least one of them was a die-hard BMW guy and he referred to it as "Evil" and was trying to unload it.
kevlarcorolla wrote: The 4runner is a decent option but its not very sporty,mines an '03 V8 and I daily it with a load of carpentry tools.They need an airbag kit to work with different loads and to tow nearly anything bigger than utility trailer. Mines been dead nuts reliable,is just ok on fuel,hauls 5k'ish enclosed trailer with a miata shoe horned in with very little drama. I drove full size trucks for over 15 yrs previously,don't miss them one bit.
If on-road manners, the way to go with the 4Runner is the Sport Edition - it has a different suspension from the SR5/standard Limited. THe XREAS setup actually makes for MUCH better street handling and a much less "trucky" feel than the standard setup.
In reply to Zeitgeist:
Would you mind sharing stories/advice about the Exocet? I'm dying to build one of these cars...
Packerfan send me your email and I'll tell you all I know. Basically it is a lot of fun and not overly challenging to build. 3 trackdays and a few things to go to be complete. A blast with no regrets
captdownshift wrote: What's the forgotten unicorn SAAB that shares trailblazer ss underpinnings?
Still looking for one with reasonable miles on it
Or a V10 TDI Touareg?
I knew a guy with a TDI Touareg when they were maybe 5 years old. He had it for a few years and said his extended warranty paid out $27k on it, and when they refused to extend it he traded it in to Carmax on an Ecoboost Explorer. I know that's an extreme case, but it's extreme enough to be scary regardless of the odds against it!
I'm curious about Cayenne's myself but just have no reason to even look at one. We don't do anything that would justify something like that over our 4100lb Lexus GS, including towing small cars on a dolley. If i was doing a steel tandem axle trailer, then yeah, i'd check em out.
No way would I buy a V10 TDI Touareg unless it had a long, bumper to bumper warranty. Same thing with the X5's. They're just not reliable...
I used to cruise the X5 forums regularly thinking I might eventually buy one. The consensus back then was that a multi-thousand dollar aftermarket warranty was mandatory.
Wouldn't you have to own a gas station to also own a Viper truck?.
In reply to kevlarcorolla:
Well he did say mileage wasn't a big concern. I think it would be amusing to track fuel cost vs rear tire replacement cost. We could take bets on which ends up being greater.
Well that didn't work out like I expected. SWMBO and I went to look and test drive some various vehicles today to narrow the choices down. She is usually not into the whole car buying process and just likes to be kept in the loop but not be part of the negotiations,test drives etc.
We checked out 07 and 08 Touregs 06 Cayenne and 11 and 12 X5s. The goal was just to stop looking for cars we didn't like but we ended up buying a 2011 X5 Xdrive50i with 78k miles. She liked it enough to go over budget which is usually my thing. It drives nicely with quite good power and flat handling. It looks like a drug dealers car as it is black with tint all around and 6" on the windshield soon to all come off or most of it with black BMW wheels. They must be the sport wheels as they are 20's or maybe 22"s and super wide with Dunlop Sport Maxx tires. I would prefer something smaller for a better ride,less money to replace and less likely to be damaged. The ride however is not bad on anything but large bumps. It was a FL and then LA car with first owner being a leasee. Needs some TLC on paint and frosty headlight lenses. Never owned a BMW,twin turbo or reverse flow twin turbo V8 or even a SUV so steep learning curve coming.
Any suggestions for BMW forums with lower signal to noise ratio appreciated or any thoughts or suggestions on the vehicle. Thanks all for the help.
So faster and better looking than a Cayenne Turbo anyway? Sounds good to me.
My dad just bought a 2013 Nissan Frontier SV for around 16k. Its reasonably quick, drives nice, and when towing my RS from GA back to FL got 19mpg even though it was over capacity with the bed full of extra parts. He also says the brake vectoring lsd worked really well towing his boat out of the dirt.
Zeitgeist wrote: Any suggestions for BMW forums with lower signal to noise ratio appreciated or any thoughts or suggestions on the vehicle. Thanks all for the help.
I know of a pretty good one where you can march in lockstep with other BMW owners. 
You did get a warranty with the x5 I hope. Drive it to ten miles or ten days of its expiration and then sell it.
When I was helping a friend regularly at his shop we saw tones of these come through the shop with a all kinds of issues.
What dean said...
I hadn't even heard of the xDrive50i. 0-60 in 4.3 seconds is pretty impressive for a 2.5 ton truck!!
The police-car versions of things are sorta fun. The P71 never impressed me with oomph. Life won't be fun pushing a 3500-lb car with 281 cubic inches, much less towing 4000. Finding a 9C1 or Impala isn't out of the question. Heck, I would find a Caprice wagon and put drop springs, Bilsteins, and Impala wheels on it.
They're not new by any means, but they were a quiet, tight vehicle. Quiet road manners, and can be made to handle quite well. My Impala SS very much outhandles my seats.
Tacomas are fun. Ridgelines never impressed me as a truck (unibody + truck = sad Curtis). Obvious Jeep, but they aren't fun on the road. Off road, yes. On road they're kinda floppy and bouncy.
This x5 will be faster while towing than a p71 is while empty.
curtis73 wrote: The police-car versions of things are sorta fun. The P71 never impressed me with oomph. Life won't be fun pushing a 3500-lb car with 281 cubic inches, much less towing 4000. Finding a 9C1 or Impala isn't out of the question. Heck, I would find a Caprice wagon and put drop springs, Bilsteins, and Impala wheels on it. They're not new by any means, but they were a quiet, tight vehicle. Quiet road manners, and can be made to handle quite well. My Impala SS very much outhandles my seats. Tacomas are fun. Ridgelines never impressed me as a truck (unibody + truck = sad Curtis). Obvious Jeep, but they aren't fun on the road. Off road, yes. On road they're kinda floppy and bouncy.
Jeeps are poor tow vehicles. Unless you're talking old school wagoneers.
Just saying. But seriously, I'd look for a late P71 Crown Vic, whatever bad ag receiver hitch is out there, and then improve trans cooling. Maybe a rear gear swap and whatever folks do to freshen the factory LSD in these situations.
Uh... he already bought something.
Vigo wrote: This x5 will be faster while towing than a p71 is while empty.
Wouldn't they be traveling the same speed when the P71 is towing the X5 to the dealer for repairs?
Something tells me a vehicle like this is going to have an aftermarket insurance policy on it. If not, all bets are off. 
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