I just got back from a day trip. Average speed 54mph. Back roads and 2 lane blacktop going through many small towns.
Averaged 24.1mpg in my 04 4.4 x5. Pretty awesome for almost 3 tons of vehicle. Has anyone done better than that?

I'm in the market for an x5. I was going with an 3.0 for the fuel mileage...maybe not.

I'm in the market for an x5. I was going with an 3.0 for the fuel mileage...maybe not.

That was my all time best. Day to day I get around 17 to 18mpg. Still not to bad since my day to day is a 2 mile city commute.
Aaron

Hey Joker:

In 2004 the 4.4i and the 3.0 were rated at the same gas mileage because they made that V8 where it only uses 4cyl until more power is needed...or something like that. Anyways, get the bigger engine if gas mileage is the same!

~Tren

I too got back from a road trip in the X5 but a 2005 3.0i, we drove from Orlando, Fl to Nashville, Tn to Chicago, Il then back to Orlando and averaged 22.6mpg on the entire trip never going above 75, for the most part kept it at about 65mph, the premium gas is more expensive but better milage compared to my LandCruiser won me over. The X5 is really a great road car for a trip like that. Our LandCruiser is a beast and I have loved it, but will soon have a for sale sign in the window. The X5 belonged to my parents but they didn't drive it so I took it over from them, per my father who says he has to many cars (8 currently), I am very excited with it!

Currently my mpg is averaging around 19 in the city. I'm pretty happy so far. Coincidentally, my 1994 325is is also averaging 19 with the same commute. I get on the 325 more than my x5 but it's still pretty amazing.
Aaron

I'm in the market for an x5. I was going with an 3.0 for the fuel mileage...maybe not.

we get 19mpg consistantly in our X3, after over 30,000 miles

Hey Joker:

In 2004 the 4.4i and the 3.0 were rated at the same gas mileage because they made that V8 where it only uses 4cyl until more power is needed...or something like that. Anyways, get the bigger engine if gas mileage is the same!

~Tren

No it doesn't. The 2004 and up V8's have valvetronic which is the reason why it gets such good gas mileage.

No it doesn't. The 2004 and up V8's have valvetronic which is the reason why it gets such good gas mileage.

agreed. Gas mileage in pre-valvetronic x5's is supposed to be pretty bad. Part of the reason I got the 04.
Aaron

we get 19mpg consistantly in our X3, after over 30,000 miles


Which X3 do you have? I'm considering one...so I'm just curious...

I just got back from a day trip. Average speed 54mph. Back roads and 2 lane blacktop going through many small towns.
Averaged 24.1mpg in my 04 4.4 x5. Pretty awesome for almost 3 tons of vehicle. Has anyone done better than that?

If I can keep my patient and not let it drift above 60mph, I can consistently get 26mpg on my 04 3.0i x5. All this with the OEM 19" staggered tire/wheel setup!

If I can keep my patient and not let it drift above 60mph, I can consistently get 26mpg on my 04 3.0i x5. All this with the OEM 19" staggered tire/wheel setup!

Same here. I once had my MIB display "RANGE 520"

Which X3 do you have? I'm considering one...so I'm just curious...

3.0

here are the photos from my most recent adventure in my X3

http://forums.bimmerforums.com/forum/showthread.php?t=755078

3.0

here are the photos from my most recent adventure in my X3

http://forums.bimmerforums.com/forum/showthread.php?t=755078


Thanks for sharing. It seems like you are happy with the car. It will be a toss up between a X3 and a X5...I really think $1,700 for a 3rd row seat in the X5 is a wast though...The X3 seems okay to get us started, and 19mpg is not bad at all!

When was the valvetronic introduced? '04 with the facelift?

sorry for the nOOb question. I'm new to the X5's

I just got back from a day trip. Average speed 54mph. Back roads and 2 lane blacktop going through many small towns.
Averaged 24.1mpg in my 04 4.4 x5. Pretty awesome for almost 3 tons of vehicle. Has anyone done better than that?

54mph?? I can't think of the last time I drove that slow. The best I have had in the X3 is 22mpg if I can keep the cruise set on 80. Drove to my wifes house last night. 1.5 hours from my house with the cruise set on 110 and got 18mpg.

54mph?? I can't think of the last time I drove that slow. The best I have had in the X3 is 22mpg if I can keep the cruise set on 80. Drove to my wifes house last night. 1.5 hours from my house with the cruise set on 110 and got 18mpg.

The drive was the point, not the getting there. I had my dog and my girlfriend with me and we went for a day drive. The small towns every 5-10 miles are what cut your average speed down as well.

You set your cruise on 110! Holy crap! that would cut the time of the trip down. Autobahn?

Aaron

Thanks for sharing. It seems like you are happy with the car. It will be a toss up between a X3 and a X5...I really think $1,700 for a 3rd row seat in the X5 is a wast though...The X3 seems okay to get us started, and 19mpg is not bad at all!

We are very happy with the car. It is absolutely stellar for what we need it for. In fact, when the lease is up, we will be replacing it with another X3. When we bought it, the X5 didn't have a third row. We didn't even look at the X5 because you don't gain much storage space at all over the X3, and the with the price difference, and lack of lease incentives at the time, it didn't seem worth looking at. We also liked the car like manners of the X3.

The X5 is smoother on road, and has better off roadability, if those are factors for you. The X3 is a little jarring, but none of us mind much. It's a company car and is driven by all of us, everyone loves it. All my friends do too. We drove it all day when we went to that place, and at the end of the day my boyfriend said, "I am throughly satisfied and impressed with this car every time i drive it." I've driven it for 6 hours straight and got out feeling fine. I recommend you get the leather, though. The leatherette is unforgiving on long drives. And again, if you need an off roader, the X3 is fine on dirt roads and light courses, but doesn't have the clearance to do much more.

We didn't even look at the X5 because you don't gain much storage space at all over the X3

I read that the X3 actually has a bigger trunk than the X5. Bizzare.


Oh and the MPG thing - who else loves it when you end a trip having apparently done minus miles? Range starts at about 200, ends up at 250 after a 150 mile journey. It's fun watching it get bigger.

I read that the X3 actually has a bigger trunk than the X5. Bizzare.

It's fun watching it get bigger.

Many women would agree. Sorry, it's late and i'm tired.:evil2

54mph?? I can't think of the last time I drove that slow. The best I have had in the X3 is 22mpg if I can keep the cruise set on 80. Drove to my wifes house last night. 1.5 hours from my house with the cruise set on 110 and got 18mpg.
u are talking about m/h or k/h? if miles u are one crazy driver, in here (US) this is the jail time... in Germany: pedal to the metal...

I'm talking Mph, but then again I live in Germany. I only drive at those speeds because I can and it is legal. When I get back to the states things will slow down.

I've squeezed 26mpg from my 3.0 X5. Avg speed was about 70mph. Mileage goes down hill if I go faster, or if my wife drives. I once made it from Maryland (DC area) to Niagara falls, Canada on a single tank of gas (I actually filled up just before entering Canada, but with what I had remaining in the tank, I could have made it).

I just got back from Bodensee. Drove 257 miles with the air on, cruise set a 100mph 90% of the time and still got 21.4 mpg. :redspot

When I moved from NJ to TX, I got approx. 24MPG on the highway doing about 80MPH most of the way. Car is a 2004 3.0 X5 :D

When I moved from NJ to TX, I got approx. 24MPG on the highway doing about 80MPH most of the way. Car is a 2004 3.0 X5 :D

That is amazing. Almost makes me wish I got the 3.0!

Ironically, my 325is 1994 and my 2004 x5 4.4 are both currently getting the same gas mileage.

my x3 is a gas guzler, it probably gets 15-16mpg, but also i ahve a lead foot, so cant really help, but i can say it burns more gas than my ford explorer 4.6 v8. but its not as bad as my 95 530i, which i currently get 11.3mpg

Hwy Commute 68 MPH 22.8 MPG! Very Happy ! Sold my Diesel!!

my x3 is a gas guzler, it probably gets 15-16mpg, but also i ahve a lead foot, so cant really help, but i can say it burns more gas than my ford explorer 4.6 v8. but its not as bad as my 95 530i, which i currently get 11.3mpg
You have a hard driving style. One would have to try hard to reduce the 3.0 engine to 11.3 mpg. Try to not floor the gas pedal everytime you touch it. :lol