Overview & Reviews
After a complete redesign last year, the BMW X5 has only minor changes to standard and optional equipment for 2008. Most noteworthy is that the sunroof is now standard, while a power tailgate option debuts.
- Nimble handling for this type of vehicle, powerful engines, luxurious and handsome interior, huge list of available features.
User Reviews:
Showing 71 through 74 of 74.00-
Better have deep pockets and patience. - 2008 BMW X5
By Matthew eichmann - December 16 - 11:21 pmMy 2008 X5 3.0 is a love hate relationship. One of my absolute favorite cars...the styling is amazing, the interior is simple but extremely well built. Power is smooth from the inline 6 engine, and the handling is like a sports car. But.....the least reliable car I have ever owned, by a long shot. Bought the car new, and at 90,000 miles Ive had ...Radiator replaced ...coolant expansion tank ...valve cover gasket, twice! ...I drive controller ...water pump ...various gaskets that always amount to $1k each in labor ...Hydraulic sway bar ($2k just for the part alone) ...Valve cover ...Vanos solenoids Even after all that, I still enjoyed the car and did all the repairs. Til it developed a well known flaw of the 3.0 engine. Camshaft bearing failure. Which requires 25 hrs labor and a whole new cylinder head. Minimum $5k at a independent shop. More like $7k at the dealer. Suffice it to say that ended my love affair with the X5, and I traded it in. Great cars, but dont own one without a warranty, and better yet, another car to drive while its in the shop. Youll need it.
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Shoulda remembered not to buy Euro car w 40k+miles - 2008 BMW X5
By poor car - October 5 - 4:50 pmThe reason being is you dont know how it was treated, and boy has this car been costly. Worst car Ive ever owned in terms of reliability. Not worth the "privilege/pride" of "...but its a BMW." Seems theres 2 kinds of reviews here, crummy car & I love it but its expensive to maintain (wait till you get more miles on it)! Bought used at 72,500k miles and in 3 months we were moving/driving from Seattle to AZ. Wed had it checked before the move & I asked the mechanic "is summer heat in the desert a factor with reliability at all?" He chuckled at the question. 1) paid $400 to check car & replace oil cooler seal & filter stand gasket. 2)&3) 15 miles into the moving trip the transmission slipped & did so 5-6 times on trip to AZ. Over $10k repairs for this & replacing the catalytic converter, and the mechanics said 4) it desperately needed a "system update" which had it in the shop an extra 3 days. 5) The USB port went out right away. The A/C is kind of annoying because you never feel the left drivers side vent on you unless its blasting. 4 months later 6) the water pump went out at 81k miles along with 7) thermostat assembly: $1300. 8) The suspension needed work signal by one of many times warning light come on: about $1000. If you worship a car & devote much money to it- this is the car for you!
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Reliable dog car - 2008 BMW X5
By brenda Craig - September 16 - 10:49 am -
Garbage reliability - 2008 BMW X5
By Colin - September 9 - 5:34 amNothing else drives like a BMW! Really its pretty good, great view out, great seats, comfortable and wonderful to drive... When it works.. I also really like towing with the car and its hitching alignment features where the rear view camera helps you align the hitch shank with the trailer hitch. Plenty of room for all of my equipment. The downside, these trucks have garbage reliabilty. Ive replaced the alternator, the CCV system. The sunroof wont close from vent, the engine leaks oil and burns it due to crap valve stem seals. The control arm bushings die every 60K miles depending on the road conditions. The heater valve has failed, the engine bay rain tray craps out. The oil seals around the alternator bracket fail. Lots of poorly made parts that are like $5 but cost $1000s in labor to replace fail. These cars are garbage reliability, only buy one if its low miles, or you plan to wrench it yourself. Man, Ive never had a car have some many things brake, they arent hard to diy, but shouldnt fail in the 1st place. Really oil seals leaking at less than 80K, common BMW.
