Well, you asked, I gave my answer. I have no issues with repairs.

What makes you think they need more repairs... When I first joined everyone was complaining about problems with the 6.

V8 has a more relaxed feel. Less work to access power. Always had to row gears and keep revs up in the I6. The three V8s I've had make low end grunt and offer a relaxing burble!

Make that 4 BMW V8s.

I can summarize in one word: power. Up here at 5000 feet, you need all the horses you can get. I timed my 4.8 0-60...a quite depressing 7 seconds. I drove an E70 6 cylinder X5 around the lot and was astonished at the lack of oomph. If I'm going to have an SUV (for that one day in the middle of winter where you're stuck without it), I want it to be as fun as possible the rest of the year. I just can't see that happening with 200 odd horsepower dragging around 5000 pounds worth of Germany.

Running costs? My 4.8 has been trouble free (knock on wood). I spent $8k, roughly, on perfecting it in the first week of ownership. All it takes now is an oil change every 3k and around $100 in fuel every week.

I suppose it's time to ask the opposite: why would you pick a 6 cylinder over an 8?

Lower purchase price
Lower repair costs
Easier to work on
Less weight, therefore better handling
Better fuel efficiency in the real world (EPA dyno tests are not a realistic comparison)
Smoother engine with better secondary balance
The sound of an inline six at revs
The chance to own an iconic engine design, the BMW inline six

Not that the V8 is bad. It just isn't a BMW inline six.

I drove my 2004 3.0 for nearly 100k miles over 7 years. I knew that car well enough to know what it would do and what it would not do. Besides the 'always wanted a 4.8is' syndrome, the thing that really got me looking was an interstate encounter with a semi. I will say only that we got into a place where my beloved 3.0 offered me only one choice to avoid a collision- full brakes. I knew then that a V8 would have allowed me at the very least a second choice- to accelerate.

That experience with my family on board was enough to make the late night searching more persistent. We have all heard the story from 2 years back of finding the 2004 4.8 of my dreams with only 11,600 miles on the clock. I bought it even before I sold my 3.0.

In addition to this single instance cited above, I will say that the 4.8 makes me grin every time I ask it to. I find myself with my foot in the gas because I know I can make the move I want, safely, easily, and more quickly than anyone expects such a big thing to do it in. I removed the badges on the side and rear a long time ago. My car is my car for me. I don't care for anyone else to know. They're also removed on my 540 (supercharged) and my E46 330.

The 3.0 always made me proud. Sport, Premium, Cold weather, no nav. The absolute best thing ab it? Small sunroof. Not the top-heavy beast that is in my 4.8is and later E53's. Non-adaptive HID headlights. The thing was basically a 2003 in a 2004 shell with XDrive. In the 3.0, I always felt like a father whose child had participated and won an award for 'best all around player' in sports. The 4.8 is the kid with a loud mouth, tons of ability, and the need to watch it closely so no one gets in trouble.

I just turned 34k miles on the 4.8 this week. Most of the maintenance besides the front air suspension has been time-based/preventative or me just being an OCD nutcase. 9 years and the thing still has the factory brakes. I soooo want StopTechs like are on my E39. I've always loved big brakes.

I would still happily drive a 3.0 around town and even on the highway. The E53 chassis is strong. It looks good. The key to any of the engines is to take great care of it. It's an old German car. It's going to break and it's going to be expensive. There are no deals to be had for the experience it gives you. Pay it forward and get ready to pay it backwards, too. My experience with 3 X5's since 2000 is that you will never be stranded if you are smart enough to listen to what's going on and have saved enough to get it taken care of before it's a problem.

JCL.....+ 1....
I have never NOT had enough power...

And now I think that's enough on this subject.....