I purchased my 2001 X5 just less than three years ago, and 22,000 miles later it has been at the service department ELEVEN times for annoying defects:
1)a passenger outside door handle was jammed, preventing the window in that door from rolling up and causing the door to be stuck shut.

2,3,4) the stereo was replaced three times due to faulty operation.

5,6) the telescope steering wheel was in the shop twice due to a "farting" noise it made when it retracted.

7) the telescope steering stopped working altogether.

8) an airbag light illuminated itself on the dash, indicating the passenger airbag was not working (it was working fine, by the way--the light just came on for no reason).

9) the interior coloring on the inside driver door handle peeled off.

10) a bolt related to storing the spare tire snapped off.

11) I rolled a passenger window down and it wouldn't roll back up.

Also, I live in the desert and the air conditioner is a major disappointment. It takes 20-25 minutes for it to reasonably cool the car on a day that's over 80 degrees. The car never gets cold, it just gets bearable.

I do love the way the X5 drives. It feels like a car and not a truck. I have a 1 year-old child and I'm thrilled to have her in a car that's so safe and handles so well in poor weather conditions. But I'm terrified to keep this car once the warranty is up because of all the above-mentioned problems. I will never buy a first-year car model ever again, and I question whether or not I will keep my X5 past the expiration of its warranty. I don't fully trust it due to the handfuls of annoying problems I've had in such little time. Boo on BMW.

If anyone reading this review has had similar problems with this car, please comment in your review of this review.
Amount Paid (US$): 44,000
Condition: New
Model Year: 2001