Ciaran

iTrader: (16)

Well hummed and hawd about what to buy as a new family wagon,
Q7 just too big and drove terribly Q5 and tiguan too small
X-trail just plain ugly and boring
Toureg a lot of money for what you actually get

Have decided after driving a mates new X5 it's what I want.

It would be an M sport a the SE looks crap IMHO
Have £25-£30k budget
I have been looking at buying from a dealer as it comes with a proper 2 year warranty.

The local dealer has several in stock in my budget
3 are 30d and one is a 35d.
30d has 235bhp and 35d has 286

Is it worth going for the 35d over the 30d?

Opinions welcome

john banks

Also keep looking at these as a Legacy replacement but can't decide on budget. In to snoop on your excellent thread.

Ciaran

iTrader: (16)

We have just had our first child and have 2 medium dogs.
Currently have a mk5 golf and the dogs take up the whole boot and I'm not happy putting the pram in the back seat with the child so basically we can't take the wee man and the dogs anywhere at the same time.
Also we recently acquired a holiday house in Ireland and due to working offshore I'm off 31 weeks a year and my wife no longer works so will be going to Ireland several times a year with he dogs and baby plus all the other kit we need an X5 is the ideal size.
Also I can tow the impreza on the car trailer

Only issue with the X5. Run flats £500 a corner! Guess who won't be replacing them with run flats!

farmerwrx

had our e70 for 6 months now it's an se with a m-sport body kit and dynamic pack we traded in a 4.4 v8 petrol for it. It's great on fuel on a run but not as good as you would expect around town i't's roughly doing twice as many miles per tank compared with the petrol.We recently had to buy a rear run flat due to a bolt going through the side wall of the tyre (315/35/20) £320 dunlop at ATS who are not cheap and it was insured by them for free. It's the 235 bhp model and it goes really well for a big car, can get our 2 dogs and 5 people in it in comfort no problem. ps will be putting normal tyres on it when the run flats wear out and buying something along the line's of this http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/2310068004...84.m1423.l2649

Matteeboy

Farmer - that looks great!

My inlaws have the older model and it's been super reliable. I much prefer the newer shape (the brand new shape is even better) that an 09 plate would be. Comfy, actually quite good in snow, defies physics with it's handling and they go very well.

The 35d unit is usually a lot thirstier and the 30d isn't exactly thrifty in an X5 (it's heavy) but you get a much smoother power delivery with the two turbos and not much will be able to keep up with it. Expect mid 20s to the gallon with the 35d, around 30 with the 30d.

farmerwrx

thanks Matteeboy

Skoobie Dhu

iTrader: (3)

We ran a 3.0d for 4 1/2 years from when they were launched in 2007. Found it very capable in every area, handles more like a big estate than a 2 1/4 tonne 4x4. When looking for a replacement we tried the 3.5 with the new 7 speed gearbox, very quick but it was the new gearbox that impressed me. The 6 speed box just seemed to hang on to gears too long when driving around town, the new box is much better and smoother.
We ended up going for the new X3 with the 2 litre turbo diesel, main reason was when we were looking diesel was nearly 150p a litre, and filling the X5 with £115 of diesel every 2 weeks made no sense.
Best I managed with the X5 was 36.1 mpg over a 400 mile journey, X3 does 40 mpg easily, and trying hard I did get just over 50 on a 200 mile journey.

Skoobie Dhu

iTrader: (3)

P.s. We tried the Q7, touareg, and x70, the X5 is in a different class on the road. Main reason we choose the X5 was the bootspace, The X70 bootspace is excellent, ideal car for long journey with kids, dogs and luggage.

john banks

How do you find the X3 compares for space, refinement, ride quality and performance? Does it feel lacking compare to the older X5?

richs2891

I'm curious how you find the X3, as well as I've been looking and thinking about one, but I want the 3.0 M sport with the adaptive suspension.
Only thing is it wont fit in the garage, which is a negative for me as I hate leaving cars on the drive as far too easy for people to work out if your in or not

Richard

bustaMOVEs

iTrader: (31)

I had the x5 3.0 sd which is same as a 35d basically twin turbos, only had it a few months as the oil pump went on it and management light was on, was going to cost a fortune so kicked up a fuss with the guy I got it off and changed it for a 3 series estate and some money back.
Apparently common on the 3.0 diesels but not sure if he was blagging me, nice quick car though for a hefty old thing but can't comment any more as I didn't get time to gel with it. Back luck for me I suppose, but hey ho.

Skoobie Dhu

iTrader: (3)

Good questions...

Spacewise the X3 works for us at the moment, the X5 was good when we had 2 dogs + 2 or 3 children to cart around, but the children mostly have their own wheels now. Given the new X3 is more or less the same size as the old X5 it has plenty room - but it does have more boot space than the old X5. The X3 boot is plenty big enough for 2 cocker spaniel sized dogs.

In terms of refinement it doesn't feel as special as the X5 did, but it was almost £20k cheaper.

The X5's handling really inspired spirited driving, the X3 doesn't feel as robust and planted to the road like the 5. You could make serious progress in the X5, even on rural twisty B roads.

The ride is pretty good, both cars had the dynamic pack and the larger wheels, the X5 continental run flats were better than the X3 Pirelli run flats, the X5 even managed fine through some pretty deep snow drifts, I've had to buy a spare set of wheels/snow tyres for the X3 as the pirellis are rubbish in any slippy conditions. The spare wheels/snow tyres have shown me how hopeless the Pirelli run flats are, if I keep the X3 beyond the lease I'll be fitting normal tyres.

I'd have another X5 if we weren't doing 15k miles a year with it, the X3 fits the brief just now and I'm quite happy with it.

SRSport

Would fuel consumption really be a decider between the 30d and 35d? If the difference is 5mpg then thats only around £400 a year difference (based on 10,000miles). Personally if I was spending that much on a car in the first place the difference in fuel costs is negligible and I would want the one that gave me the biggest smile, i.e. the 35d.

Saxo Boy

My uncle had a 2008 X-drive 35d M-sport and I drove it a lot. A fantastic car with excellent handling and smooth effortless power. I can't directly compare with the 30d, but I felt the 35d had just the right amount of power to overcome the obvious heft. Overtaking was effortless and the engine smooth. MPG is very driver dependent; if you push it expect low 20s but if you take it smooth and stick to the speed limits you can do much better.

My uncle had a 2007 X3 (having previously had an older X5) and he quickly went back to the X5. The X3 was just a bit tighter on space and didn't have the prestige feel of the X5. As an all round proposition, the 2008/9 X5 diesels were miles ahead of the competition. However, if buying brand new right now I'd very much like a go in the new range sport which seems to finally be catching up.

TheWaterboy

The only SUV worth bothering with is the 80 series Landcruiser! X5s are stopped in their tracks by an inch of snow, may as well get a 5 series touring!

Skoobie Dhu

iTrader: (3)

Or you could listen to someone who ran one for 4 winters in rural north east Scotland and tackled 2 foot snowdrifts and unclassified untreated roads with 19 inch low profiles and never got stuck. Not as good as some of the serious off roaders but not as bad as folk would lead you to believe.

Saxo Boy

The only thing that stops X5's in snow is their summer tyres. Put on winter rubber and you can go pretty much anywhere. Not Defender anywhere, but close enough. We did some final manoeuvring of my 12ft x 35ft 6 ton caravan with my uncles X5 - I did admirably. Granted, when it finally gave up and sat spinning all four wheels a 1980s Defender finished the job....beast.

Ciaran

iTrader: (16)

The car is basically the family wagon. Not used for an commuting only used for days out, commute to holiday house in Donegal a few times a year and of course towing the impreza.

I'm not concerned at the lesser MPG as we don't do massive mileage. I just wondered if the twin turbo 35d was a better idea than the single turbo 30d.

Test driving a 30d and 35d tomorrow so will report back on the findings.

tarquin crispin

hope you havent got the 20" wheels on it when it snows you wont go anywhere it thats why i got rid of mine

TheWaterboy

I am just going on what I have witnessed with my own eyes. I have worked all over Scotland during the winter and never been stuck in my Vivaro Crew cab so does that make it a good off roader? This includes travelling to reservoirs and remote locations down unmade roads and bridleways from the Isle of Sky to the Cairngorms in heavy snow too!

Skoobie Dhu

iTrader: (3)

^

Where did I say the X5 was good in the snow?

You said they get stopped by an inch of snow and compared them to the 5 series touring - in my experience this certainly isn't the case.

What I said was they're not as bad as folk would lead you to believe, and they're way better than any of the rwd BMWs (in a league of their own). With proper tyres they'd be very capable.

john banks

As capable as a Subaru on the correct tyres, so passable in 6" with the odd 12" drift across the road? Sounds like it from your earlier post, but with the Subaru my usual problem is not getting through snow but avoiding routes where other drivers are stuck in it.

Skoobie Dhu

iTrader: (3)

Biggest problem I had with subaru in snow was ground clearance, my STi used to bottom out and you'd lose traction. So I bought a car specifically for winter - got carried away and bought a GTB which was nearly as bad...but the GTB with a full set of snow tyres was fun.

grey_boy

Why not go for an X6 ?

P1Fanatic

As they are U-G-L-Y !!

Ciaran

iTrader: (16)

Well test drove an X5 30d and 35d. 35d did have a bit more power but the 30d has plenty power plus the 35d was £4k more.

For such a big car bar being in a 4x4 position it drove like a car by all intensive purposes and for the parts where a bigger car is an issue it has panoramic reversing cameras and reversing sensors as well as forward facing cameras and parking sensors.

It's to me a no brainer and I will be paying the deposit tomorrow.

2 years BMW warranty but limited to 10k miles per annum and an agreed value after the 3 year term. Also taking out the insurance that means if the car is written off in the next 3 years I get the full price I pay back.

bustaMOVEs

iTrader: (31)

Regarding off road etc, yes the x5 is not the best off roader like LR territory, but with relevant tyres they will be capable just like anything else.

But the different in the x5 is, well for me it was, is the best handling jeep on the road at speeds etc, no other jeep drives as solid and grip well on a spirited run, most people don't buy an x5 to go off road.

hodgy0_2

I currently run a Landcruiser amazon, and it has been an awsome car (truck), it just gives you that confidence that you could drive it across the Gobi desert

Utterly reliable - has Done 205k, starts first time - on the button, has diff locks centre and rear and adjustable ride height - simply awsome when I have had cause to take it off road

And last year took 7 people across Europe to a ski resort just south of Salszburg - effortlessly

And it holds it value like wet sh1te to a blanket

But - it undoubtedly has been left behind in the road manners dept by cars lik the X5

The X5 is the only car I would replace it with - when I now longer require 8 seats

bustaMOVEs

iTrader: (31)

^^^ they do a 7 seater in the x5 albeit the boot is compromised when up.

hodgy0_2

as a factory option?

and with proper cross the shoulder belts