[SteVTEC]

Welcome to the club from another long-time CR reader.

I jumped ship back in 2011 after a pretty lousy Toyota experience and haven't looked back. The reality check for me back then was that if BMW's were really so unreliable with all of those black circles in CR, so many people wouldn't be driving them as I was having my RAV4 towed out of my driveway. Picked up a 2011 E93 335i which I still own, and the next year got a 2012 E70 X5d for my wife, which we kept for 6 years. Both were more reliable than my 07 RAV4 V6 was, which was in the shop constantly for recalls and misc repairs, electrical issues, transmission replacement, etc. on top of driving like crap. Just picked up a '22 X5 x40i with 3k miles.

For long-term ownership, I would say gaskets and oil leaks, cooling system stuff breaking, and extra electronic junk that you don't need not working would be the big BMW things. Smart money is definitely on the x40i for long-term ownership. If I wanted a hybrid or a PHEV I would stick with a Toyota or Lexus also, as that's what their core competency is, and I don't think BMW has ever made a reliable V8. Avoid first (and second) year models, and avoid any and all brand spanking new tech from BMW and German automakers as a whole. They don't have a good track record here, but no one is immune! My RAV4 was a second year model and thought it would be fine. Nope. Most of the problems I had with it were eventually resolved, but not until subsequent model years.

Hoping we can get a solid 10 years out of the G05 I just picked up, but we'll see. It's fantastic to drive and puts smiles on both of our faces here.