Near 'end-of-warranty' inspections?

[Sarge]

I have a 2007 X5 4.8i with the sport package, tow package and third row seats (among other things).

It has 46k on it now, and the warranty expires on 12/30/10.

I'm contemplating taking it in to an independent shop to have it looked over, everything from CV boots to engine compression and leakdown before the end of the year (the dealer is 100 miles away, so I don't want to go unless there's good reason).

In the past year, I've had the 'sport swaybar' replaced and the transmission reprogrammed/updated to fix shift issues on hills.

At this point, my concerns are:

1. A light rattle from the front suspension on washboard roads (dealer can't replicate it, no dirt roads near them).

2. The transmission shifts a bit hard when towing for longer distances at highway speeds (ex: shifting from 4 to 5 in manual mode). It doesn't do the hard shift unless it's been towing a while (18' Boston Whaler center console, about 3800lbs with fuel, gear and trailer).

3. The engine sounds like it has an exhaust manifold leak when you start it up on cold mornings. Dealer says 'they all do this'. I say it sounds like an old milk truck, not like a high end SUV.

Any thoughts on the above, as well as any other trouble spots or recalls to look out for would be greatly appreciated. I'm a bit leery of keeping this thing past the warranty period, what with the dealer being 100 miles away, and the horror stories I hear of people being stranded by loony ECUs and such...

Thanks in advance for your input.

- Sarge