I am picking up my 07 X5 next week and trading in my 2005 Porsche Cayenne Turbo. First things first, the Cayenne Turbo is a very quick car. It has a great exaust note as well as the option to change ride height and comfort settings (sport, normal and comfort). A few problems- the car is very bouncy in IMO, but takes turns relatively smoothly. The headlights are very bright, and my friend has had some people flash him because they thought his brights were on. The worst about it is the economics are really bad. The seatbelt buckle is tucked away, the air conditioning is a pain, the stalkers are cheap, and the passengers electric seat stopped working, the heated seat buttons are ripped from a VW jetta and auto headlights are not standard. The ride on the highway is hard to beat, but city traffic did not please me too much. The BMW's interior is alot more refined, with more packages available instead of stand alone options like the Porsche. Since I have not taken the car for a real spin I cannot comment on the ride on the X5. The best thing to do is to test drive both of them...test drives are free :-). Hope this helps.

I don't understand, you said your picking up your X5 Friday but also said you have not taken one for a real spin and can't comment on the ride. Your not buying one without testing it are you?

I agree on the Cayenne's ergonomic issues, the X5's ergonomics are far superior and I also agree on the Cayenne's speed and handling capabilities which is Porsche's strength, but for a very big price. Porsche options you to death which I resent. As far as sports cars go I think it's worth putting up with Porsche's BS because they make a category defining product (as you can see from my sig.) but not when it comes to SUV's where they don't.

I hope your getting the Sports package on the X5 otherwise you won't be happy with the handling coming from the Turbo Cayenne.

I test drove the Cayenne S extensively and ordered the X5.

i had a cayenne turbo before i got my e70 x5 ... and i really hated it ..i agree with everything that topgear66 said about the car... its the worst suv i have ever owned or driven.. .. the cayenne rides bouncy , if u step on the throttle the gear changes like ur in an ferarri, the car rattles, highway noise is verry annoy ... and i have never spent 2 weeks straight without bringing it to the dealer ... imo the x5 is simply the best in its class ... and i have tried every other suv ....

Cayenne Turbo is bad a$$ in terms of it's performance, but an obvious price difference to the tune of 30K... To compare to the S, I would (and did) take the X5.

I think the old Cayennes looked better than the '08's anyway...

My brother had to turn his in after one year and two speeding tickets. Also the trunk space is useless compared to other SUV's. He has a second kid now and traded it in for a MDX. That is what my wife drives, nice vehicle but not a lot of fun.

I cancelled an X5 order this week (no tobacco- no order- and BMW could care less) and I will consider the Cayenne this Fall.

From what I'm hearing about the new X's (see the Roadfly board esp.) it is no more reliable and maybe less so than the current Cayenne. My best friend just bought a new S and while I can't bear to look at it it is significantly faster and may be said to handle better then the X. The X (IMO) excels in looks, available technology, interior quality, overall value (see Porsche option prices) and, in my area at least, offers significantly better dealer service. OTOH BMW's lack of ability to deliver what they offer, get the bugs out of their software (and hardware) and seeming arrogance with respect to both of these issues weigh heavily on my mind.

I love the X (and own one now) but come late Summer I will give everything out there a fair shot. I'm pretty frustrated with the new X ordering process and while my current X runs well she has been nicknamed "Christine". You might imagine why- I'll only say that apparently only God can make foglights work and the hatches stay closed in my X5.

I have a Ferrari and I do not need another sports car in form of an SUV. I also have a an SL65 and when I talk about SUV, I don't want a montrous car, I think of BMW's classy, elegant and wonderful drive. I recently gave my 2004 BMW 4.4i to the Teddy Bear foundation and my BMW is ready at the dealer waiting for me to pick it up when I get back. The Porsche was just trying to make a statement without a nice ride.

No my BMW X5 has arrived at the dealer but I am out of state so I cannot pick it up. I test drove a 3.0 which is all they had and ordered a 4.4 in early December I believe. I am getting the sports package and 20" wheels.

Not according to every test I've seen and definitely not "significantly." Not the E70 4.8i.

Just curious, I was pretty close to buying a RR sport. I absolutely love the way the look and the wife was dead set on it as well. Then I went onto a RR forum and realized they have a lot of problems still! So I turned to the E53 X5 which I had always loved. But in terms of looks, the RR sport tops all SUVs. Have you had a lot of problems with RR sport and would you stay far and away from them? I may get one in the future.....