My 2004 3.0i and my 2002 4.4i Compare/Contrast/Commentary (Long)

[Driver8]

Now that I've had my (new to me) X5 for a couple weeks, I've had a little time to reflect/compare/contrast (and, of course, provide colorful commentary) on the differences between my current '04 3.0i and my prior 4.4i. Here they are:

Likes:

1) Gas mileage on open road (~27mpg @ 70mph, ~21mpg @ 80mph. The 3.0 gets around 18-20 on average. My '06 Accord EX-V6 only got 22 on average. I suppose it might have gotten better mileage if I hadn't driven it like it was a rental car.)
2) Angel Eyes. A "1" on the Need It Scale; an "11" on the Want It Scale...yes, these go to 11.
3) BiXenons (Like? This is LOVE...these headlights are the best! I describe them to others as "the tunnel of light.")
4) Standard radio sound is almost as good as DSP system. That's not saying much, I know, but at least it is easily and reasonably upgradable to a much better system, say, MB Quart?
5) Black sport interior. This is about as good as it gets, IMO...one of the world's best interiors in the best color scheme. Cupholders are better in back. Still work great for 1.5 drinks up front. No lobster tray? Damn beancounters strike again...
6) Soft-close hatch and new cargo cover design better than I expected. Of course, the old cargo cover met and exceeded every single requirement for German design: overwrought, heavy, finicky, overly complicated, high-tech for high-tech's sake, requires its own owner's manual, etc, etc.
7) Sterling Grey. Same color as my 530i, but I swear it looks better on the X5 for some reason. For me it's a tossup between the Steel Grey and the Sterling...I really dig 'em both.

Dislikes:

1) Prefer the look of the V8 titanium-colored grilles over black (next mod)
2) I dig the Sirius radio, but I enjoyed XM (Blitzsafe) in my 530i more (and it had much better reception, and dare I say it, better Alternative programming.)
3) The CPT9000 system. This must be the Sony Beta equivalent of OEM carphone systems. Yuck. Coming soon: "Goodbye POS CPT9000. Hello, Bluetooth!"
4) Betcha thought I was going to say something about lack of power here, didn't you? Well, Mr. SmartyPants, ain't gonna happen. Frankly, I am still taken aback by how well this engine/transmission combo works in a 4,500 pound wagon. I am now and have always been a big fan of the BMW inline six and find it very up-to-task 95% of the time. The other 5%, well, that's why I keep a 300hp 5.4L F150 SuperCrew on the farm.

This is what I miss from the 4.4i:

1) The Sturm und Drang of God's own production V8. Acceleration/Sound Quality/Torque/Power, thy name is BMW V8.
2) The overhead video system (Very nice accessory with kids.)
3) Brushed aluminum running boards...classy, conservative, clean. (Can soak up half a bottle of Back to Black on detail day, too.)

This is what I don't miss from the 4.4i:

1) Stopping to reboot the car when the radio and Nav quit talking to one other once or twice every other week or two. I was fortunate, I think, as others were damned with much more tempermental ghosts in the machine.
2) Wiping optimistic peoples' fingerprints off the "non-touch-screen" Nav screen. Why optimistic? I would think one would have to be optimistic to expect a touch screen SatNav system in a BMW. Who needs touch-screen when you could have iDrive?
3) Ms BMW ("The Nav Girl"), who managed to be right about 90% of the time. I'm just glad she chose Nav school over Pilot school.
4) SatNav in general. I now have the hot new BMW BookNav system (v.2004.5), cleverly tucked behind the driver's seat. It's actually the very nice E90 Road Atlas I got at last year's Komen Drive...and it doesn't have relationship issues with my radio, either.
5) Grey interior. It's nice, just not as nice, IMO, as Black. Nor as hard to keep clean, for that matter. Nothing worthwhile comes easy, right?
6) That old-skool BMW VHS player ("The Brick") that fed video to the overhead flip-down TFT screen. That thing took WAY too much space in the back...why I never changed it to a DVD system before I sold it I'll never know. Wonder why BMW never offered a nice Sony Betamax system to go with one of its bleeding-edge carphone systems? Perhaps with a nice dbx audio convertor, a LaserDisc and TRX tire system? BRILLIANT!
7) Muddy, unbalanced, user-ambivalent, oddly-featured and overpriced DSP system. IMO, of course, but c'mon now, how many of us REALLY used the "Room" and "Echo" settings more than once, or twice perhaps if you were showing it off? Or the quaintly-named presets? Take away the subjective value of DSP and it boils down to, "I paid HOW MUCH for that little sub?"
8) Sliding cargo floor. Nice concept but I never really used it much. Between it and "The Brick," I must have had, oh, every bit of 3 to 4 cubic feet of storage space left out back.
9) The big 'ol cowcatcher "grille guard" bar. As they say here in West-By God-Va, "worthless as tits on a boar hog." Can't push with it. Can't be pulled by it. Don't lean up against it. Don't park in a head-wind. Mine paint-chipped something fierce. Maybe it needed its own wind deflector (or bug shield, in the vernacular).
10) Trying to wash the front end with a grille guard and a wind deflector in place. Honestly, getting a good clean wash on the front took as long as cleaning the wheels and tires. To their defense, the air deflector and grille guard were added by the first owner and they weren't THAT bad, I guess. I think they cluttered up an otherwise very clean design.

Okay...that's about it, I think. God have mercy on me if I ever have to be concise and brief. Or conserve bandwidth.

Mike

[PersonaNonGrata]

Great comments Mike. I too hate the old cargo cover. Mine has been ripped out and stuck in a corner of the garage for almost the whole time I've owned the X5.

I'm glad that you don't miss the 4.4. Like you said, 95% of the time the 3.0 does the job just fine.

[Verbalkint]

Very good compare n'contrast commentary, Mike.

Good luck with your new ride.

[Lambeau]

I have an 06 3.0 manual and it's got plenty of power. The man trans makes it way more fun!!!

[Driver8]

Hey Lambeau - You lucky dog, you! I couldn't find any six-speed models anywhere near me. (I think they're all located within 50 miles of the greater Iron River area in Wisconsin. (j/k ) I bet it's a hoot.

Mike

[benathon]

I really don't understand why someone would want a manual in the X5...

[asawadude]

I, for one, enjoy rowing a gear box, no matter what the size of the vehicle and I'm sure there are many others who feel the same way. If there was a manual option with the V8 X5, I'd own one. I can understand Lambeau's enjoyment completely!

[Driver8]

Forgot to mention:

Love the power-folding mirrors. After losing one off the 4.4i to a hit-and-runner, I can see the value of them. Nice feature.

Mike

[benathon]

Originally Posted by asawadude

I, for one, enjoy rowing a gear box, no matter what the size of the vehicle and I'm sure there are many others who feel the same way. If there was a manual option with the V8 X5, I'd own one. I can understand Lambeau's enjoyment completely!

It's just the size of the X is too big in my OPINON for a manual.

[mtmnet]

Good write up!