4.8i X5 vs. 2008 Cayenne S
 

I'm looking for a new performance SUV/SAV, and love the E70 4.8, but I've read great things about the 2008 Cayenne. Has anyone driven one yet? Are the even at dealers yet? I haven't ever driven a Porsche, not even the 2006 Cayenne. How do they compare to the X5?

There are few owners here (previous too) of the Pepper S. The 2008 dosen't bring to much changes. The price and the fact that I loved my E53 (and it's service) made me not consider the Cayenne as an alternative. I strongly considered the new 2008 Tourag, but they weren't in dealers, and the reps at the Auto Show were snobby and b*tchy when I asked about it. So I chose the E70 and it's been great!

I've also considered the Cayenne S, but have the same concerns as I do with the RR Sport, reliability. Consumer Reports rates them pretty bad, the main reason my current car is an FX45 instead of Cayenne S.

Also, Porsche's warranty does nothing for you regarding maintenance, as far as I know. A friend of mine has an '05 Cayenne S and spends hundreds upon hundreds for maintenance that's included with BMW. I did drive his and it is definitely fun though.

I also heard the '08 Cayenne's are sloppier than the previous ones, but that did come from a BMW salesman, so take that with a grain of salt. I'd look at the car magazines' test drives and see how they perform, and obviously drive a couple.

My guess would be, other than possibly being less reliable and more expensive for maintenance, the rest should come down to taste. Obviously completely different looks, performance should be similar, and packaging/pricing is also similar (Porsche's options seem to be as wide ranging as BMW's, if not more.. huge gap between base price and fully loaded).

I think the new Porsche looks great and has more power, but loaded up equally, it'll probably cost about $20k more than the BMW...

How is the FX? I stongly considered it, along with the Touraeg. I sat in it, but the high belt line, smallish interior, and tiny trunk was what turned me away. But is sure was fast! :thumbup:

Very fast and handles better than any car I've had (including '99 328i, '02 A4 Quattro...). I still love the car, looking for a new one only because I want to get rid of this one with some warranty left on it.

I've actually fit a decent amount of stuff in it (small dining room set, patio set, and a huge "clubhouse/climber" outdoor thing for my niece). You have to get creative, but there's room in there, clearly not as much as in the new X5 or in the Cayenne though.

I have mixed feelings about it in the snow, if that's a concern for you at all. There is some hesitation for the AWD to kick in sometimes, but there's also a Snow button that I think locks in in place. I've had it for 2 years, but not in enough storms to have a good review on it. Things I've read suggest the BMW AWD system is better. Not sure about the Cayenne.

Overall, the FX is a pretty good value if performance is high on your list and you're willing to sacrifice some of the utility and some say the quality of interior materials isn't as good, probably true but it's certainly not 'cheap' feeling either. The '07 X5 3.0 won't compare to the performance, but the 4.8 will meet or maybe slightly exceed, with a higher price tag, but you do get a return on that money. I'd definitely recommend considering the FX45 to anyone looking for a performance SUV. I guess the FX35 would be a good alternative if you're more in the X5 3.0 market, but it's a huge difference in power, in each car to go to the bigger engine, as you'd expect.

:trustme: You will be reaching for your wallet more often than you think with the pepper s. My cayenne was trouble free for three years though, but expensive to maintain.

I too considered the Cayenne S and I own 3 Porsches but in the end the X5 made more sense.
Optioned in a similar way the Cayenne is allot more money, maintenance is expensive, BMW's is free, performance wise they're pretty close but the Porsche is the better off-roader by far. Although BMW's nav. is not the best Porsche's is far worse. The Cayenne Turbo is a hoot but that's over $100,000.
I love Porsches but they option you to death, much worse than BMW. For a high performance sports car Porsche has few peers but in the SUV world I think the BMW X5 for on road use makes more sense.
Maybe I'm tainted by my Range Rovers high maintanance costs but I think dollor for dollor the X5 makes more sense.

Great to hear insights from someone who's had/looked at all 3 (porsche, RR, X5...). Especially when it confirms my likely decision to go with the X5..

I'll have my X5 next month so we'll see how reliable it is but I think compared to the RR it's no contest especially if your performance oriented. My wife wanted another RR (she loves the looks) but I had enough with its reliability issues.