jbyno:

Are BMWs good for long distance drives? specifically, the X5s?

kabukabu:

The best way to determine a brands reliability is to observe how many you see on the road that are 10 to 20 plus years old,in great condition, not mobile death traps, you'll find most Japanese brands and Mercs, but you wont find any BMW's above 200,000 miles, in good condition.In every country all over the world,same story.

mishooo:

Pls if you are not sure of something, don't ALWAYS say it with such boldness cos smart people will look at you as if you are not informed. Go to BMW forums and you will be surprised. I presently drive a 5 series that is almost 300,000 in mileage. I was surprised when i saw a VW Bug that was above 500,000mileage on VWforum. ANY CAR can get to any mileage, it depends on handling.

obijack: @Logoman,

The only defective thing about a BMW is the Fuel Economy Rating (especially for the older models)

I presently drive a 1989 325ix (the IX means 4 wheel drive) although I had to remove the front shaft and converted the front to normal E30. I bought the car in October 2006 for N120,000. (You may think it is junk). I had to put in another N80,000 for body work and overhaulling of the Engine by a competent BMW mechanic at Ladipo.

To date after 2 years I still own the car, I have spent about 310,000 in both maintenance and repairs including the cost of converting the front wheels to Normal E30.

The car is reliable,Parts are relatively cheap. Last week I had to change the two front shocks with brand new ones (shaft only) for N6,500.00 (SACS brand), Tyrod N3000, Ball Joints 3700 and Labour about N4000.

What I am driving at here is that this is a type of replacement that is done probably once in 12 months or once in 18 months or even 2 years. Although I do not drive much around town as my office is closer to my house, on long travel and on the highway, I always have this feeling of being very safe in the car knowing it will never just suddenly stop unlike what my previous Honda prelude had done a couple of times.

Every car is good but reliability, safety, comfort and don't forget prestige is another thing. The sound of the engine alone is awesome. Once you've driven and heard the sound of the engine roaring, you will never want to let it go. Drive another car and try to listen for that engine sound if you can hear it.

The thing on Fuel is this. The bigger the engine, the better the performance and the more fuel needed. The 3 series range is easy to choose from unlike the 5 series that is strickly 6 cylinders. The lowest is the 316 as erico analysed 3 means 3 series, 16 means 1.6 litres. Other are 318, 320, 325, 325ix, 330, etc.

Furthermore, a 1996 Honda Accord (Bull Dog) hand an MPG of 24 miles, while a 1996 318 (e36) has an MPG of 23. The difference is just 1 mile. Where the Bimmer can go and come back, the Accord will have a heart transplant after it.

Nigeria is so good that you will be presented with the prices for the original and substandard parts. The choice is always yours to make and identifying them is not a problem.

If you live in Lagos and need a good Mechanic, just drive down to Ladipo. Any part seller will recommend a good mechanic for you. All you have to do is just call him and he will come and pick up your car.

BM forever.

Forget Niga roads.

If the car is not good pple will not be falling over one another to own it.

It is a machine, not a toy like those Japanese.

Good luck.

Peter.

german007: "Most German cars will exceed 500,000 miles"

Well said sienna. This is something Iv been preaching and laying emphasis on. Have I ever seen a toyota reach 220k miles?.Dont think so.

I have driven litterally every series of bmw, even back to the 1995 BMW 850CSi coupe (which perhaps a lot of people dont know of), but it was of the most powerful bmw's ever made.

I drove a Le mans blue bmw x5 4.6 for two years, Yes you heard right sienna"BMW X5 4.6 ", lol . A huge gas guzzler I must say, but was a pleasurable driving experience. Gave me the best euphoric and exciting feeling ever. Mileage reached 220k miles when I sold it off and it still drove like brand new.

tipsy289:
The truth is that u probably going for a second hand BMW from 1987-1996(am sure) that's why they complainin is problematic.Really look at the new models do they seem to be problematic, BMW is no joke men

culasi:
@ CHIDIBE.

If you plan to drive a BMW you better have some cash in your pocket. True they are very reliable cars but once they start having problems you have to pay alot of money to fix it. Remember, BMW's are Luxury cars. So if you choose to buy one you must be willing to spend some money. Goodluck.

patfemy06:

You are wrong.BMW car parts are the same with other cars and even some parts are cheaper.have been using BMW for 7 years now.it has never failed me once.am in number 3 presently.

waleleader:
i dont know a thing about cars, but BMW makes some wicked cars. i'd buy one no matter the problems, even if its only for one day. Live life to the fullest bro, do what u wanna do.

lordimpaq:
BMW is the ultimate driving machine,

it hardly gets engine problem, people say that BMs always consume fulel but i'm sorry to say not all BMs consume fuel,

the BMW 328 1995 has a MPG of 35, that is higher than an Honda accord 1992, with MPG of 30,

the newer ones are even more fuel efficient, funny enough its only the sporty BMW cars that consume 25 MPG, and an acceleration of 8 seconds from 0 to 100km, !!! that is crazy, believe me, the 1995 BMW 325i coupe does that, its even faster than 2004 3 series,

well its the nigerian road that causes the parts problem in a BMW especially the suspension, damn, !! those things are expensive,

but engine perfomance is the best,

The best cars in the world is only BMW,

BM 4 ever

funkybaby:
nah! bmw cars aint reliable. they are just fancy thats all ! why not go for a toyota brand.bmw cars have engine problems and you have problems with gear box too. if you do not like toyota cars, then settle for honda. money is hard to come buy these days so do not spend your money on a car that will give you loads of headaches, only if you are a money bag, whatever decision you take, i wish you the very best !

funkybaby:
nah! bmw cars aint reliable. they are just fancy thats all ! why not go for a toyota brand.bmw cars have engine problems and you have problems with gear box too. if you do not like toyota cars, then settle for honda. money is hard to come buy these days so do not spend your money on a car that will give you loads of headaches, only if you are a money bag, whatever decision you take, i wish you the very best !