NEW 4.8i

[alscar]

Hi to all from the UK.
Tested the old model 4.8i - will it be so different in the new model ( realise 5 down on Hp and 25 down on torque ) ?
We currently have 3.0 petrol X5 - our second -and was going to order another but the V8 sounded and drove so much better.
We also looked at a Cayenne V8 _ sounded and drove the business but looks ?
I guess my wife being the main driver ( i have a 997 ) summed it up - our American friends have had the E70 for a while -ask them !
So 4.8 owners _ will it sound as good as the old model ?
Any other comments welcome - thinking Monaco with Beige and all packs.
Many thanks

[xnsf]

:xoutpost:

remember the 4.8i is the successor to the 4.4i, not the 4.8is

blue is a nice color...pick it

[alscar]

Yes I realise it is the 4.4 it replaces but is it still worth the premium over the 3.0 ?

[Coffeeman]

Originally Posted by alscar

Yes I realise it is the 4.4 it replaces but is it still worth the premium over the 3.0 ?

I drove both the 3.0 & the 4.8, back to back, on extended drives. The 4.8 has a nice growl, but I was really underwhelmed with its performance. I guess I was expecting it to be similar to the E53 4.8is...I did not find this to be the case. The 3.0si seemed to have plenty of torque, and compared very favorably to the 4.8. I guess if you do a lot of highway driving, that the 4.8 is worth the extra $$, but I do mostly city driving, so the 3.0si is the better choice for me. The 4.8 that I drove also exhibited the hesitation from a dead stop that has been discussed by others here. The hesitation was very annoying.

[chris24]

Originally Posted by Coffeeman

I drove both the 3.0 & the 4.8, back to back, on extended drives. The 4.8 has a nice growl, but I was really underwhelmed with its performance. I guess I was expecting it to be similar to the E53 4.8is...I did not find this to be the case. The 3.0si seemed to have plenty of torque, and compared very favorably to the 4.8. I guess if you do a lot of highway driving, that the 4.8 is worth the extra $$, but I do mostly city driving, so the 3.0si is the better choice for me. The 4.8 that I drove also exhibited the hesitation from a dead stop that has been discussed by others here. The hesitation was very annoying.

There's also the different driving modes you have to consider (if you didn't already). The first 4.8 I drove was in regular mode and when the salesman flipped it over to sport mode (probably because he saw the look on my face when I punched it and wasn't thrilled...), it made a definite difference, much better feel off the line and in general when you hit the gas. If you didn't drive it in sport mode, I'd drive another one and do so.

There's also the "Sport" button behind the shifter, supposed to allow more air in as I was told by another salesman, but not until after I was done with the test drive and noticed the button. Not sure if that goes on automatically or if you have to turn that on as well, but that should increase performance as well, as I understand it.