BMW X6 3.0 40d auto xDrive Euro 5

The X6 is BMW’s coupe-roofed large SUV and the 40d is the twin-turbocharged six-cylinder diesel. The important word in this address is Euro 5, because London’s Ultra Low Emission Zone requires diesel cars to meet Euro 6.

What to check on this specification

Start with the emissions standard

A diesel car has to meet Euro 6 to drive in the London ULEZ without paying the daily charge; petrol cars only need Euro 4. A Euro 5 diesel therefore attracts the charge every day it enters the zone, and the charging clean air zones in England apply the same diesel standard. For a vehicle used in or near a zone this changes the ownership arithmetic completely, and it is the first thing to establish rather than the last.

The EGR recall

BMW recalled a large number of UK diesel cars because coolant leaking from the exhaust gas recirculation cooler could combine with soot and high temperatures to produce smouldering particles, melt the inlet manifold and, in the worst case, cause a fire. The action was later extended to further vehicles and the DVSA updated the recall notice with the additional chassis numbers. Affected models spanned much of the diesel range.

Recall work is carried out free of charge, so this is a check rather than a deal-breaker: put the registration through the DVSA recall service and see what comes back.

The particulate filter

Every diesel of this era leaves the factory with a diesel particulate filter. Two things follow from that. First, a filter that was fitted when the vehicle was built and is missing at test time is an MOT failure, and removing one will normally put the vehicle outside the emissions standard it was type-approved to — which makes it unlawful to use on the road. Second, a filter only clears itself properly on a run long and hot enough to complete a regeneration; a car used for short cold journeys accumulates soot and, worse, fuel in the sump from interrupted regenerations.

On a viewing this shows up in the paperwork rather than the metal. Look for oil changes at or before the stated interval, and be wary of a car whose recorded mileage is made up of very short annual totals.

The automatic gearbox

Drive it from cold and then again warm. What you are looking for is a clean pull away in first, a clean engagement of reverse, and shifts that are firm rather than jerky, slurred or accompanied by a thump. Torque-converter and dual-clutch boxes both have scheduled oil and filter changes; those services are frequently skipped because nothing obviously breaks when they are, and the bill when something does break is one of the largest in used-car ownership.

Ownership notes

Large coupe-SUVs are hard on tyres and the X6 in particular runs wide rear rubber. Check the tyres are a matched set: on a four-wheel-drive car, mismatched rolling circumferences load the transfer case.

Run the registration through the recall service. Reliability surveys of this generation of large BMW SUV are broadly positive, with faults skewing towards electrics and infotainment rather than drivetrain.

About this page

The address you are on was part of a used-car dealer site that no longer exists. The individual vehicle it once described was sold years ago; there is no stock here, nothing is for offer, and no enquiry goes anywhere. What has been kept is the specification the address itself encodes, written up as a reference for anyone looking at the same combination of model, engine, transmission and emissions standard on the used market today.

Nothing here is advice about a particular vehicle. Every point above is a thing to check on the car in front of you, and the official services linked below answer against a registration number rather than a model name.