Has anyone downsized to and X3 or considered it?

[Crash513]

The lease on my 2011 X5 3.5d is coming up soon, and we're considering downsizing. My wife and I work volunteer with a German Shepherd rescue, so we have our two big dogs and often at least one or two more foster dogs.

We looked at several new X3's at our local dealer over the weekend, and liked what we saw. We think we can get by with the reduced interior space, but I'm convinced yet. I think we'll notice the reduced headroom with the dogs since my current X5 has third row seats and the cargo area folds pretty much flat. But I don't think that would be a showstopper. The big difference to me appears to be that the rear cargo area is quite a bit narrower. I'm wondering if anyone has looked at X3's in this light, or has actually downsized to one, or perhaps owned one previously. Oh, and we're thinking Diesel again, so I'm especially interested in observations from anyone who owns or has owned the X3 XDrive2.8d and how it compares to it's big brother.

Any insights are much appreciated! Thanks all..