Are the final drive ratios the same for the I6 and V8? If so, the V8 may be operating at a lower RPM and have less wear.

I am in Alberta and purchased my 4.4i from your dealership in Whitby, Ontario. They were fantastic. I only found three dealers (all in Ontario) with the pre-owned configuration I wanted (nav, sport, premium, activity). The Whitby dealer was the only one that stepped up to work a proper deal. My advice, shop around all of your dealers. You are lucky, you have enough out there. Narrow your search with a preowned search on BMW Canada's website. Oh! Go V8 or go home. You'll love it.

Got 4.4i, I8...completely agree with Tomaz...I8 operating at a lower RPM and have less wear, but more power in the pocket...so go ahead with I8...my 0.02cents...

Hope you got a V8! Haven't confirmed different gear ratio's though.

To quote B&DCalgary from last week vis-a-vis Consumer Reports:

"the next time I need to buy a new coffee maker, I'll be sure to pick up a Car & Driver and read what they recommend"

Seriously though, don't base your entire car purchase decision on what CR has to say, their evaluations are not necessarily based in reality. This is the same magazine that recently lumped a Honda Ridgeline (a beefed-up car with a pickup body) in the same category with true full-size pickups like the F-150. :confused:

Drive a BMW, drive the competition, talk to the respective dealers and do your own research on the web and car magazines do you can make an informed descision.
And try to find a site of this caliber devoted to the MDX or Lexus... :rofl:

Good to see another Canadian looking for the difference betwen the two, not to mention from the same city!!

I'm leaning more towards the 2003 4.4 V8 just because of what is mentioned on this site. If your worried about gas then stick with the 3.0... But the V8 is the stuff you'll be happy with.

I think the hardest part of this search is finding an x5 with the complete Nav, premium, sports package options. At least a cold climate package would be nice but I can't find anything?

Good luck with your search and Welcome to the Club.

Thanks Kewl X5 for clearing that up... lol.

Good luck with your purchase. However, the 4.4i has a V8 and 3.0i has a Inline-6.

BMW doesn't currently make an inline-8. The 8 cylinder engine is in a V (4 one side and 4 on the other side of the "V"), not inline-8 (8 cylinder in a row). Also, the V is at a 90 degree angle.