E53 X5 4.8 vs ML63 vs Cayenne S -Extended drives today

[LVR]

Hi all

Well the decision is made, my Lemon 4.8 is going, whether the dealer can do the right deal on a replacement is yet to unfold, and BMW have chosen to ignore the warranty issues. Once my solicitors have sorted out the details I will know whether I'm still driving a bimmer....

So I went and back to backed all three vehicles today, spending some hours in each car and wanted to offer real comparisons, in the areas that can make or break the owner experience.

FIRST IMPRESSIONS



Getting into the Cayenne I immediately noticed the 'sitting on a platform' feel with the nose being visible. I still think it's butt ugly, but with roof racks and decent sized rims it has grown on me. The interior is quite nice with the full leather, and the hidden features are quite nifty


ML63 is one tough looking vehicle in the flesh. Black on black, even though only running on 19's it certainly turns heads on the road. Interior is very, very classy with the stitched leather, although the dash top is a little low rent



X5 4.8 styling has taken a new X5 against it to seem dated but it still has the right proportions. Not as aggresive as the ML63, the X5 is a pleasure to look at from any angle whereas the Porsche is too fat.

WINNER ML63

PERFORMANCE
The Cayenne has the weakest of the engines and feels it. Low gearing gets it off the line well if you boot it, otherwise it starts in second like the others. City driving catches it out when leaving a roundabout, where it bogs down and feels its weight.

The X5 has a tractable and gutsy engine, that takes a serious piece of kit to beat it. Awesome mid range acceleration means overtaking from 100km/h eats up the slower cars, yet it's happy to putt around in traffic.

Wow! The ML63 engine is a hand built weapon of choice. faster than the Cayenne Turbo, it has oodles of start line tractability, and wins the traffic line grand prix. the exhaust note is none too bad either, yet the docility in traffic is quite amazing. Overtaking actually throws your head back...

WINNER ML63

ERGONOMICS/DRIVING COMFORT
The ML63 has a poorly located indicator stalk, in that it's a good 2 inches lower than the other vehicles. The trade off for better storage in the centre console is a column mounted gear lever. I think it's a poor solution and needless. The seats and driving position are outstanding. I sat in the ML and for over 1 and a half hours did not have to move or change position once to get comfortable. Steering wheel layout and general finish quality is very high, but it misses the basics.

Cayenne has a scrawny steering wheel, with manual (avail as option) wheel adjustment. Seats are not comfy or feeling secure although surprisingly during the high speed cornering it wasn't an issue. Air conditioning is the best of the three with detail for driver comfort a real winner. These include the option of which mirrors lower in reverse and a button to enable control of all or individual air temps. Painted plastic low rent as opposed to real alloy trim

The X5 has the poorer nav system interface of the three, but wins in thoughtful and reachable placement for all the controls. Steering wheel is solid feeling, although it sorely misses the tiptronic/paddle shift of the others. The seating is great for long distance driving but where this interior wins is in its clean, unfussy symmetry overall. This is the drivers cockpit, not a soccer mum on steroids.

WINNER X5

HANDLING
The ML has the softest and vaguest turn in and cornering ability. Whether that is due to the smaller wheels I'm not sure but it is more a straight line blaster than a car to take through the twisties. It tracks well, but overall is the poorest handling.

The X5 4.8 turns in to a corner crisply but has such a neutral attitude when pushed hard that you can see BMW do focus on the driving experience. Suspension and throttle can be used to really balance on a corner or get on early and it just huncehes down with a high exit speed.

The cayenne is a testament to Porsche's ability to move large objects. For a vehicle that feels so large to corner like a sports car at high speed around a 35km/h U turn is a huge surprise. each of the suspension settings actually FEEL different and make the car transform depending on your mood.

WINNER Cayenne

STEREO
The X5 stereo is a major disappointment. Hollow and muffeld it sounds like an old AM wireless in comparison to the other vehicles

The ML63 runs a full Harmon Kardon system, but isn't really clear. It misses a deep bass but is about average for this kind of vehicle.

Listening Bliss! An outstanding sound with well located sub give the Bose system an impressive clarity and range in the Cayenne

WINNER Cayenne

Well there you have it. Driving each car for several hours on my own means the sales person is not influencing anything.

Overall? Well my loyalty is to the Bimmer, and although in this company the X5 specification is starting to show the advances of the other cars, it has taken an AMG version of the opposition to beat it. I feel the new model will be a different story, but hey, it's not here in Oz yet!

So if I had to plonk my money down today, it would be the ML63. It offers better value for money (all are similar in price), better standard features, but even so it is NOT the drivers car. That honour still remains with the 4.8 in my opinion.

Cheers

John

[xnsf]

very interesting post

[4MoJoe]

Cayenne = Touareg. You think you spent time in the shop with your X5 wait until you deal with VW/Porsche/Audi service and customer support.

My Touareg got bought back (thankfully) but it was the worst car experience of my life. Liked the car when it ran but when it didn't I wanted to drive it off of a cliff!

Good luck with your choice - there are many nice vehicles to choose from; go for something that's proven, and reliable.

[canamx5]

If you can stand it, wait until you try the E70. Nice post!

[Aimster]

ML63 = SEX

Mercedes has won BMW over this time around. BMW had it the last time.

[canamx5]

Originally Posted by Aimster

ML63 = SEX

Mercedes has won BMW over this time around. BMW had it the last time.

Unfair comparison! '' IS '' not out yet.

[Griza]

You posted a pic of the '08 Cayenne Turbo but said you drove a Cayenne S. Take an '08 CTT against the ML and you might have a different opinion about the Porsche. Too bad BMW is not stepping up with a something better than the 4.8i.........yet..............

[jpm4.8is]

nice write up, ver good post!!!

[2002Silver4.6is]

Where is the 500hp X5???? BMW are you listening???

[aus]

ML = POS. Actually, just about any MB is crap when it comes to quality. My buddie's E-class was finally lemoned, and there are countless ML's that have had problem after problem. Hopefully they fixed some with this new model.