DIESEL: Is the 4k worth it? It depends.....

[Fraser]

Originally Posted by MrX

Fraser, I do get your point, but each market is different. I do not know much about the market where you are, but I understand the V8 and the diesel versions of the X5 are much more expensive in Australia compared to the US. Therefore the price of admission is very different. For us on this side of the pond, it is probably a harder choice to make. With regards to the diesel performance versus gas, I am still skeptical about it. It is difficult to imagine that a V8 gasoline will not crush the diesel in real-world drivability. Reading what Barcius posted, he test drove both US spec cars in the factory here in the US and most of the drivers voted for the V8 as the better/superior car in most aspects. I believe BMW took the results and priced the diesel accordingly. I can give you my impression once I drive the diesel. I've been racing for years here is the US so I can give a honest and professional feedback once I drive it.

I think that everything in Australia is more expensive than the US! Current X5 Aussie pricing is:

3-litre six-cylinder petrol: $86,635
3-litre six-cylinder single-turbo diesel: $88,541
3-litre six-cylinder twin-turbo diesel: $105,490
4.8-litre V8 petrol: $121,908

Aussie dollar is currently worth 65 cents US. Six months ago it was close to parity (97 cents).

As for relative performance between the 4.8 and the twin-turbo diesel, in Aussie spec the 4.8 is 0.7 second faster to 100 kilometres per hour (6.5s v 7.2s) and 0.7 second faster over the standing-start kilometre (26.6s v 27.3s). For your reference, 1 kilometre = 0.62 mile.

However, these figures don't tell the whole story. I've driven both the 4.8 and the 35d back to back over an extended period (not just at a customer clinic) and the V8 simply can't match the diesel's huge bottom-end and mid-range power and needs all the revs that it can muster to see off the diesel. By 1200rpm the diesel is already making more torque than the 4.8 ever produces, and the diesel's peak torque is some 20% better than the 4.8 and is produced from 2000rpm whereas the 4.8's peak torque doesn't come on stream until 3400rpm. As a racer, I'm sure that you will appreciate that performance is not just about peak power, but power spread and power delivery. I can't really comment on Barcius' comments because all my experience has been with the Australian models and your models (both petrol and diesel) may be significantly different.