I bet I've seen 5 E53 owners in this one thread who have said the E70's not growing on them. It wasn't growing on me either until I actually drove one.

I was considering an Acura MDX or Cayenne for my E53 4.4 replacement but now I don't even think I'll even test drive one. The E70 ride quality and luxury is just that good.

If you haven't driven one, stop by a dealer and take one for a spin. You may change your mind...

I have done - I had one over a weekend, and didn't change my mind.

Different strokes for different folks and all that...I guess

It's my personal opinion more than anything. You can take it or leave it. It's based primarily on the experiences of a close friend who purchased a new '03 Cayenne S at the same time I purchased my '02 4.4i sport CPO. We shopped together for our purchases. Being a Porschephile, he selected his chosen marque, while I, being a died in the wool Bimmerhead, bought an X5.

His CS was certainly no faster than my prefacelift X5, he could not outrun my X5 on an open road from either a standstill or rolling start. Equipped with the PASM option, his Cayenne outhandled my X. Behind the wheel of his Cayenne S, I could push harder through turns than my X5 with alot less body roll and much more adhesion. But for the cost of PASM, could I have upgraded the X5's suspension to be as good as or better than the CS? I think so.

Seating and cargo space was about a wash. I liked my comfort seats over the Cayenne seats, although the quality of leather in the Porsche was superior. I didn't care very much for the circa 2003 Nav system in his Cayenne considering its cost.

The quality in his Cayenne was very questionable, largely because Porsche had completely worked out the issues that plagued the early models. He had problems with his stereo, air suspension, remote mirrors, headlights, and various other miscellaneous and sundry items. His CS spent a significant amount of time in the shop during the entire time he owned it (now replaced with a Carrera 4 and a Sequoia). Worksmanship is the one area that I considered the X5 to be more owner friendly. At least with an X5, you know what is going to break. The problems with an X5 are the same as found in E38's, E39's, etc. Not so with a Cayenne.

My friend paid $72,000 out the door for his Cayenne S in mid '03, including PASM, Nav, leather upgrades, Turbo wheels, and a bunch of other goodies. I paid $38K for my X5 at the beginning of '04.

My point here is that the Cayenne S, at least through '06, does not represent a significant improvement over the X5 4.4i prefacelift or facelift, yet comes in at a price point closer to that of of 4.6is or 4.8is model year to model year. To me, the next jump is the Turbo S or a 4.8is.

Another one bits the dust
 

Test driving an E70 confirmed my decision to stay with the 2004 4.4i sport ... now the X6 may be a different story!

Well we've off loaded both our E53's, and don't regret it for a minute. Whilst we were rapt with one, the other being a lemon didn't change our appreciation of the E53. We had no problem selling the 3.0 privately to the first buyer.

One thing I have to say about test driving the E70, my wife spent a day in one from the dealer and was non plussed about it. I was a bit underwhelmed too. Now she has hers, she reports that it is much nicer to drive than the demo, goes well (she had to plant the foot and was pleasantly surprised to launch across the intersection) and she is loving all the extras that now come with it. I agree that it drives better than the demo and we don't know why ie options difference.

I think it drives far better and smoother than either of our older ones. If I had to choose bewteen an E53 4.8is (non lemon) and an E70 4.8 with all the extras (same price here) then the E70 gets my vote. Only change I would make is larger wheels (20's or 21's). It has a completely different driving dynamic and it feels quite leisurely with the 4.8.

All that being said, the only reason we offloaded the 3.0 was depreciation. It was a really great vehicle...

I think the E70 is a great Sav. I'm just not thrilled with the looks on the outside. The inside can be dressed up a little more but that said, I wouldn't mind the E70 in Black and that rusty color leather. Might look nice with 20 inchers too. We will see if they change the looks a little in the coming years. You never know, might make it a little more beefier.

Currently have an '01 X5 4.4 and love it. However, we bought it used and the extended warranty we purchased with it turned out to be worthless. We are in the search of an '05 or '06 X5 4.4 because we love it so much. We just want to make sure we have some kind of warranty.

We did test drive the E70 and loved the feel but we like the looks of the old body style. Can't convince myself not to think about what the outside looks like when I can't see it from inside.

My 2006 4.4i has 11,000 miles on it at the present time. We will be getting rid of it in Aug 2008 (lease). It will probably have about 21000 miles on it. Thought about keeping it, but it has a naging ticking sound under accelleration (almost like an exhaust leak) that drives me crazy. The dealer said the sound was normal - of course. I am probably going to get an e70, but I am going to make sure I don't hear the damn ticking noise before I take delivery.

I'm with you folks. I drove the E70 at the ride and drive event. Drove it through the slalom and around a portion of the oval at Homestead
Raceway. It does drive well and the interior is nice. But if look you close you can see the cost cutting- i.e. rear power seats - no more (now manual depending on the model - no 3rd row-no recline), headliner appears to be a cheaper material, etc. etc. Oh yeah and the composite front fenders don't impart a sense of added solidity either.

Now I have seen a couple of fully loaded E70's with the updgraded 21's and some other extras, they look mean outfitted that way. To be honest the 20's aren't bad either.

The E53 just just says BMW. It doesn't look like it's little brother (to be honest the X3 has evolved nicely) and being built around E39 platform is noteworthy, they were/are some of the best built BMW's made - IMHO of course:thumbup:

Many? Hmmmm. That's a surprise. I heard the opposite. :confused: