I am looking for some advice on purchasing a Used diesel X5 prob 05-07 plate..ideally with a panoramic sunroof

advice needed on things like what to look out for, what questions i should ask, what implications are there buying a "high" mileage vehicle, servicing costs, anything to avoid etc

I would really appreciate any assistance available, thanks in advance

Hi Naomi

Try and look for one with plenty of history. You need paperwork from the year the car was manufactured till now.

High milers do come with risks, so the lower the better obviously.

Look for wear and tear, if the wear and tear is minimal then its had a good previous owner. Try and look through all the dealer polish to see how well the car has been looked after.

I don't have any advice on common problems as I have never been an X5 owner.

Also Welcome to the club :)

Hi welcome to the club.

I think Steve covered most there, but get the suspension and bushes checked especially rear sub farm bushes as I think they only have a 100k life and are expensive to change.

... and ask how many times its been dragged out of a muddy puddle :P :wacko: :D

Welcome to the club :)

I am in the same market for a used X5. I am not bothered if it is a petrol or diesel but would prefer the V8 petrol. I have had a V8 Disco in the past so I am aware of the fuel costs ;-).

How long can you expect the diesel and V8's to last?

I am not afraid to do the maintenance and love fiddling with cars but service manuals are not easy to obtain. Does anyone have any recommendations for either the Bentley manual or the emanuals.com offerings?

Other than the electrical issues what are the other items I should be looking for when buying?

Any help will be greatly appreciated.

Cheers

Substrate

Welcome to the club

Gav is right rear sub frame bushes will need changing at around the 100k mark depending on its previous life they do well to last over 80,000 to be honest.

Also not sure about post 2004 models but pre 2004 can suffer gearbox problems

Thanks for the welcome,

I know how expensive and terminal semi auto boxes can be. I love automatics and big V8's so does anyone have an idea how much a repair or god forbid a replacement gearbox unit would be?

Cheers

Substrate

Hi when the auto box went in my 4.6 V8 E53 it was gonna cost me best part if 2k to rebuild mine six months after I had all rear sub frame bushes replaced at a cost of £500

Hence the reason I no longer have it and now cruse the streets of Kent in the V8 E65 7 series !!!!!!!