As far as gas mileage goes...the 4.6 is rated less than the 4.8is on paper. Thats about it. It may get 2/10ths of a mile per gallon better in the real world. Read my review in a previous post about a road test between several X5s including my current 4.6is and a new 4.8is. There really is not that much of a difference. I do like the front end on the face lifted version better...but not 15k to 20k better.

That's kinda where I am too. I like the facelifted version, but I'm pretty sure that I don't think it's worth that much. But, an '04 or '05 would have more of the silly bugs worked out of it from a mfg standpoint.

I have an 02 4.6is. Thats the 3rd model year of the X5. The only difference between the 4.6 and sport package 4.4 is the motor. I feel pretty confident that most of the bugs are worked out by then. My 4.6 was also produced in late September of 02. It was only about a week away from becoming an 03 model. I love it and dont regret buying it at all.

The dealers are absolutely asking too much for the 4.8's, but you can get a great used one for less than $60K. While that is 15-20 more than a 4.6, you do get the X drive, a much better sounding engine (my favorite aspect of the 4.8), 6 speed transmission, and don't forget the higher resale value you will get closing the gap of 15-20 to 5-10 (of course that is just a guess).