Much appreciated.

I love the E53, I love everything about it...but im almost counting down the days until I buy the family a q7 next year just so that I dont have to pray to 19 different gods and perform 3 ancient rituals before attempting to operate one of the door handles.

I mean 7 seats and a twin turbo diesel v8 will be nice....but I already know it sure as shit wont drive and feel like the E53 does.

A slightly different door stuck thread
 

I feel you with the driving feel. Wife now has the E70. But it's the 50i; my 01 3.0 has a much better feel of precision driving and much less shake and rattle interior even though the e70 is 11 years newer. The 50i is wicked fast though even I was surprised when the wheels broke traction at about 110 during a spirited highway pass. (Chews through rear tires pretty quickly though: easily twice as fast as the fronts).

The 50i is an absolute blast to drive and worthy trade off I feel you will find the same with Q7.

All cars have their own problems just different. Sadly the design flaw of the e53 DHC bites people regularly but it can be fixed for under $1 in most cases. The DLA is a much more difficult repair but can take a $4-500 dealer fix right down to $12 DIY.