Questions about a 2008 BMW X3 3.0si

[purplepills]

I am considering buying a 2008 BMW X3 3.0si. It is a clean title with 90k miles. Just wondering is there any gotchas about this car and the year? Anything I should look for or ask when purchasing (certain known maintenance issues)? And how is the overall reliability of this car?

Any input is greatly appreciated.

[jclausen]

Get a pre purchase inspection first off, oil leaks on engine valve cover, oilfilter stand, oil pan, electric water pump

[WELSCH325i]

Since it's at 90k miles, it might be better than mine, but I bought the same exact car a little over a year ago and it's costing me a little bit of money. It's mainly just wear and tear things, nothing catastrophic.

Mine's at 147,000 miles and so far I replaced a couple vacuum hoses, engine ground, 4 sheared engine mount bolts, snapped rear spring, right rear axle, and the wheel speed sensor. The only thing that was really a PIA to do was fixing the engine mount bracket and removing the sheared bolts. You have to remove the intake and lift the engine up with a jack then removed and replace said bolts. Apparently this is a common issue among these cars. You might be better off since you're in California, but ask the seller just in case.

I love my X3 and don't plan on selling it. The only thing I don't like on these things are the auto transmissions. They're jerky, have hard downshifts and upshifts in low gears. Mine doing some other weird things as well and its a common theme among these. Search the forums about these transmissions and make your own judgment on them. Even though this bugs me beyond belief, I live with it.


Good luck with the car.

[MikeEdmonton]

+1 for pre purchase inspection. At that mileage it should not have any major problems. Check whistling noise after cold start, sometimes pcv can fail and in this case you need to replace complete valve cover.