3.0si vs. 4.8
 

We purchased at 3.0si earlier this year - to be frank, the 4.8 was out of our price range (with all the other options we wanted), so we didn't even consider it.

Today our 3.0 was in for service (that's another story), and we were given a spankin' new 4.8 as a loaner. Here's my thoughts in comparing the two (know that I only had a day with the v8)...

For us (my wife), the 3.0 is just fine. It's great for hauling kids around town and running chores. It's also just fine on the freeway for road trips - it does fine over mountain passes and it gets around other cars perfectly. You aren't going to win any street races and I'd wonder a bit if you were towing. The other good thing (depending on whether this is important to you or not): the engine is very quiet.

Now, the v8 - man was it fun to have that for the day. It goes like mad when you mash the throttle. It has that classic v8 rumble to it - love the sound. The power difference is obvious. That said, picking kids up at school and taking them to ball practice through the neighborhood streets is no difference - if your typical routes keep you at 40 mph or less - you are going to be fine with the 3.0. As for the sound - well, I loved the 4.8, but my wife complained that she can "hear the engine" and she prefers the silent 6.

Just thought I'd share my experiences here...

+1 yeah. The 4.8 just sounds great. More BMW-like.

Actually, the old V8 (M62?) had a wicked, American hotrod exhaust note, that you could hear two blocks away, even at low rpms. As much as I don't like muscle cars, I couldn't resist that note in the E53.

The E70 I've driven had the 4.8 N62 V8, which is very smooth and seems to have better top-end punch. But I dunno, it was missing excitement, although it was fairly quick and IMO, the only proper choice for an X5.