3.0 vs 4.8 help/advice needed...

[HUK]

If you are going to tow anything that heavy, why isn't the 420 ft lbs 35d your obvious choice?

[dragoncoach]

Originally Posted by HUK

If you are going to tow anything that heavy, why isn't the 420 ft lbs 35d your obvious choice?

Because we are currently looking for a used 2007. We don't want to buy new because it will sit outside all of the time and it won't be our dd. Our M5 and SL 500 occupy the garage.

[m5james]

Originally Posted by HUK

If you are going to tow anything that heavy, why isn't the 420 ft lbs 35d your obvious choice?

Thousands of dollars of price difference
Ridiculous amounts of depreciation from buying a brand new vehicle and driving it off the lot
Higher insurance premiums of brand new vs used

If this isn't going to be his primary car or daily driver, which it sounds like it isn't, then why take the huge hit. I'd get the 4.8, run it for a few years, then maybe get the X5 35d after they've been around for a bit, worked out all the bugs (remember, this is a BMW) and then get the diesel at a substantially lower price.

[GoVols!]

Hell, if you want a vehicle to park outside, drive once in a while, and tow a boat, why not just get an American pickup? It'll cost less than half of a used X5 and tow better than the two non-diesel models. IMO, I'd buy a cheap truck and a bigger/nicer boat. I'm partial to the Mastercraft X-Star but then I'm mid-20's and like wakesports and the bangin tower speakers.

[m5james]

My garage and driveway would be insulted if it had nothing but BMW's in/on it That's why I park my American beater on the side of the house w/ the trailer and hide it behind the fence so we don't get funny looks. I'm trying to increase our curb appeal and resale value

[dragoncoach]

The X is for my wife. We are over 50 and don't want a pickup. We can afford a new X but for practical purposes, we are going used. My wife wants something with enclosed storage and I want her to drive something nicer than a pickup. The pickup is logical but it would only seat 3 because an extra cab won't fit anywhere.

[GoVols!]

Fair enough. All good reasons to go with the X. I was thinking it was going to be a straight tow vehicle. Good luck with your search.

[dragoncoach]

Thanks. It will probably be used as a long hauler from the Bay Area to San Diego a few times a year as well. If it were a straight tow vehicle, I'd probably buy a beater pu and keep it up at our cabin. Then, I probably wouldn't care what happened to it as long as it could tow when I needed it to.