Hi Bryan,
I'm flying a 04 X5 diesel sport and have had this problem fixed with a tranny software upgrade and a bit of tuning at the BMW dealer. I bet 1st to 2nd roars the engine like a truck when you put the foot down. Since the tune and reprograming the tranny performed a lot better and had quicker gear changes except 1st to 2nd on a cold start under power gets a bit confused (fine when warmed up). But recently it was reset at the dealer and it's back in tractor mode.
Will be resetting at next service.