The E53 BMW may not go down as the prettiest in the company’s history, but it was responsible in part for the company’s genesis into the modern market. Launched in 1999, the X5 was the company’s first ‘truck’, though it was dubbed by the company a Sport Activity Vehicle and based heavily on the E39 chassis. That wasn’t a bad thing, as the chassis dynamics of the E39 are universally lauded. It also meant that you could get some pretty slick motors in the X5, and that was certainly true towards the end of the run. The 4.6iS was launched in 2001, and had beefy wheels, a body kit, and 342 horsepower from the M62 under the hood. Not done, the N62 version replaced it in 2004, and saw the first generation X5 out in the 4.8iS guise we see here with 355 horsepower on tap. They’re fairly hard to miss in terms of sheer presence, and I have to confess – I really have a soft spot for these. Let’s take a look at this Imola Red example:
CLICK FOR DETAILS: 2004 BMW X5 4.8iS on eBay
Year: 2004
Model: X5 4.8iS
VIN: 5UXFA93504LE82025
Engine: 4.8 liter V8
Transmission: 6-speed automatic
Mileage: 157,000 mi
Location: Brooklyn, New York
Price: $14,900 Buy It Now
“GORGEOUS 2004 BMW X5 4.8is PREMIUM SPORT WITH 156790 ORIGINAL MILES. AMAZING BEST EVER IMOLA RED OVER BLACK PREMIUM LEATHER INTERIOR, FULLY LOADED BMW X5, INCLUDING NAVIGATION, COMFORT SEATS PKG, PANARAMIC ROOF, PARK DISTANCE CONTROL, XENON LIGHTS. DRIVES BRAND NEW, HAS NO ANY ISSUES. PANO ROOF WORKS PERFECT, A/C ICE COLD, AIR SUSPENSION WORKS FINE. PERFECT BMW TRUCK IN IMMACULATE COLLECTIBLE CONDITION, HARD TO FIND THOSE DAYS REAL X5 E53 4.8, DO NOT LOSE IT. CLEAN CARFAX REPORT, PERFECT HIGH SCORE AUTOCHECK. WE FINANCE. ANY CREDIT. WE DO TRADES. WARRANTY. WE SHIP ALL OVER 48 STATES AND ANY WORLDWIDE PORT. (646)256-4246 ALEXâ€
I’m really not sure exactly what it is, but something about these is just right to me. This one certainly looks very clean for 157,000 miles, and pretty much everything was standard on the 4.8 – air suspension, 20″ wheels, xenon headlights, Park Distance Control, a panoramic sunroof…you get the point. The N62 is not without fault; they are hard to work on and have secondary air pump, intake, coolant, and seal issues that are pretty well known – so you’ve got to want one. At first glance, 15k for a 157,000 mile 15-year-old X5 probably sounds like a lot; however, clean examples of these cars are trading at $45,000. It’s probably not a long-term keeper, but I think it’d be fun to roll around in for a bit, at least!
-Carter
I loved my lemans blue 2004. They are great fun as far as SUV’s go. I put some semi slicks on it for in the summer and a stoptech big break kit. Really a fun car. The handling was amazing for something so big. I could take clover leaf interchanges at just shy of 100mph and I could have gone faster if I was strong enough to turn the wheel more. The steering would load up like crazy with the better tires. It was also really good in the snow. I found some mud and ice rated pirellis and it handled deep snow very nicely.
These old German SUVs are not worth much, and are a rare sight on the road. They depreciate heavily because they are so expensive to fix. Many 3rd, 4th, etc. owners who buy them cheap can’t afford to fix them so the downward spiral continues until they are essentially mechanically totaled when the inevitable expensive repair is needed. Things like window regulators, climate control, sunroofs can be ridiculously expensive to fix. Same thing with BMW/Audi/Mercedes full sized sedans. They’re cheap for a reason.