Well...decision made. I couldn't bring myself to buy (lease) the car from them. I could have probably gone either way but, in the end, I didn't want to do such a significant financial transaction with people that I didn't feel comfortable with. To give credit where credit is due, the CA was very gracious and I commend him for wanting to do the right thing...even if his management pissed me off.

As I said earlier, I had been on the fence all along between the X5 and the Cayenne and today I ordered a 2012 Cayenne V6. Not quite as good mileage, but lower cost fuel.....and a VERY hot ride in addition!

Thanks to everyone here for all of their advice and counsel. I will think about you all whenever I drive by a 35d.

PS- if anyone is in the market for a nicely equipped 35d, I am sure that BMW of Mountain View would be happy to sell you one right away. :)

I don't think you'll look back. Great choice!

Wow.

That seems strange to me... 'comfort' and 'trust' are not criteria I would use for a lease transaction.

I assume they are trying to screw me and proceed accordingly.

Turns out management will do fine with the car- it is you CA that probably will get screwed as someone else will wind up selling it, not him.

Not sure I like the smaller motor on the Pcar...enjoy

Well everyone--- the adventure continues...

I have had some 'orderer's remorse' on my Cayenne order. As much as I really like it, a few things have been nagging at me:
1. Mileage
2. Higher price
3. Fewer bells and whistles

Discovered that my BMW dealer still had 'my' X5 so I went back with my wife. We still love the X5, REALLY like the color combo AND realized that since the are honoring the original miscalculated price, we are getting as good of a deal as we could possibly get.

Bottom line: we are taking delivery of our Deep Sea Blue 35d tomorrow!

I guess I needed a few weeks to get over my initial ire.

Looking forward to tomorrow.....and getting a few freebies that the CA, the Sales Manager and the GM are all ponying up for the trouble that they have caused me! :)

Reading dealer posts about how rare the X5 is, and why MSRP is a good deal, you'd wonder how this lasted a month on the lot....

Congrats, you'll like the diesel

I thought the same thing....so the SUV must be destined for me!
 

Not only was it there, but I think that they have 2 other new and 1 CPO.

Also- I bought it for substantially less than MSRP (and even under invoice if you consider the Eco credit).

I assumed you had a good price based on your prior posts...

My comments were aimed at BMW dealers (CAs) on a few forums talking about how hard it is too keep X5s on the lot and how high the demand is..... hmmmm.

Good call...The Cayenne is nice but the V6 is only so-so. You'll be happier with the BMW. A lot more for your money.

It is definitely a safer, albeit pretty awesome nonetheless, choice. Lots more toys in the X5 than what I was willing to pay for in the Pcar. Ultimately, the issue which pushed it over the edge was that I didn't want to be the guy at work with "all the Porsches". I really couldn't get passed that.

Also- if I tire of the X5, my wife said she'll take it. She didn't even want to drive the Cayenne!

What a misadventure! FWIW, I am in Palo Alto and bought my 35d from Sara Lundy at BMW of San Francisco three months ago. It was an absolute pleasure to deal with her. Pricing was straightforward (and super competitive), no hidden surprises, just quick, to the point and pleasant. I special ordered the car, delivery happend 7 weeks later, and upon delivery she took almost 2 hours to show me every detail on the car (which, admittedly, after driving bimmers for over 14 years now may have been overkill ; -)

Anyway, even though BMW of Mountain View is closer, I found the trip up to the City worth it.

BTW - for service I'd highly recommend Kenny Lew at Peter Pan in San Mateo. Their new service location in Burlingame is awesome (albeit a little far), but he's a stellar service advisor, never fails to get me a courtesy car, communicates well via email and is always on the ball.

Anyway, enjoy the new ride! It's really phenomenal. Congratulations!!