Just took delivery! (2007 X5 4.8i)

I took delivery yesterday (Saturday) morning and have since had the opportunity to put a couple hundred miles on the X5, including some highway miles to and from my mother's house today. Following are some initial impressions.

First, my specs on the 4.8i include:
Space Gray Metallic
Black Leather / Light Poplar
Sport Package
20" Y-spoke Alloys
Cold Weather Package
Premium Sound Package
Premium Package
Rear Climate Package
Active Ventilated Seats
Technology Package
Comfort Access
Head-Up Display
Heated Rear Seats
Running Boards
High Definition Radio
Satellite Radio
iPod Kit

Now, observations after a couple hundred miles:

(1) Love the color combo. Space Gray is just a great color. All of my BMWs prior to this, with the exception of my wife's 325xiT, have been Titanium Silver. This was my walk on the wild side in terms of color (obviously, I don't get out much) and I think it looks great. My wife's car is Sparkling Graphite, a few shades darker than Space Gray, but far more "purple" in hue and thus less attractive in my opinion.

(2) Small gas tank. I've enjoyed getting 450-500 miles on a tank of gas in my 750i. That's not going to happen here.

(3) I skipped Active Steering because it has never impressed me on other models. But I have to say, this is the first BMW that I've owned where the steering feels a bit heavy, for lack of a better description. Maybe that's just related to new vehicle break-in and will improve a bit as I log miles, but this might be one situation where Active Steering would have been an improvement. Time will tell.

(4) Love the 20s. Gorgeous, but noisy. I plan to change to 20" A/S tires before winter and am curious about their noise level.

(5) HUD is a fantastic feature. I loved it in my 650i and am thrilled to have it again in the X5. It's definitely something I'd order whenever available. Worth every dime.

(6) The Rear-View Camera is crystal clear in the daytime and a nice feature. However, at night the picture quality is GREATLY diminished. This was not the case with the RVCs in our previously owned RX330 or my mother's Lexus LS. Room for improvement here.

(7) The iPod interface works flawlessly and is very slick. Kind of expensive at $400, but glad I ordered it.

(8) Best seats in the business (Active Ventilated). Love them in my 750i, love them here. As a side note, this was one of my major gripes with the Range Rover SC that we also considered... not the best seats.

(9) Love the pano roof, especially on a day as beautiful as today.

(10) Great power and throaty V8 sound. Can't wait for a high performance version of this generation X5.

(11) Like the new gear selector. It's odd pushing it forward to get it into reverse, but other than that, it's slick.

(12) The side step (I ordered the "running boards") seems like it's going to be more in the way than helpful. Like the stainless steel kick plates, though.

Well, that's all after a couple hundred miles. I'm definitely pleased with my purchase and am looking forward to many trouble-free miles (knock on wood, please) ahead.

Congrats on the purchase.
I agree about the running boards, they look great but are not very useful. I think the problem is that the distance from the seat to the edge of the running board is too wide so you end up rubbing it with your leg when you get out.
It's also a bit difficult getting in and out, you have to put you head in first otherwise I hit my head on the roof, maybe it's just me.
The steering is heavy at low speeds but my wife who is the primary driver hasn't complained. We had a Range Rover before this and she can't believe how much better the X5 drives than the RR, no comparison.
The Pano roof is nice however if you open it too much the wind buffeting will drive you crazy.
The rear view camera is useless at night, we turned it off alltogether.
I don't think you can get run flat 20" all season tires in the right sizes, you might have to change wheels and tires for the winter which is why I stuck with the 19's, not sure about that though.
We wanted Napa leather so we did not get the ventilated seats but got the Multi Contour seats which are the same seats without the ventilation and I agree they are amazing.
I agree re. the gas tank size especially for a vehicle with bad gas mileage..
It's amazing how well it drives with the sport suspension, almost like a sports sedan until you get to the limit, pretty amazing for a 5000lb. + vehicle.
HD radio is a nice feature too, it's nice listening to local radio with CD like sound quality.
All in all it's a real nice vehicle. If your into how a car drives and need an SUV this is the one for you.

XZLR8 - Can you please post pics of the int. of your SAV....

I really want to see true life pics of the Black/Light Poplar contrast...

Does the Light Poplar stand out?

Thank you.

Congratulations.

Nice write up.

But what do you think of the Premium Sound? Is the iPod kit you mention the factory fit USB connection (option 6FL) or the dealer fit. Whats the sound quality like? Does the iPod charge and do you have full functionality on the display including text?

Would appreciate your feedback and look forward to the pics.

Originally Posted by dencoop

XZLR8 - Can you please post pics of the int. of your SAV....
I really want to see true life pics of the Black/Light Poplar contrast...
Does the Light Poplar stand out?
Thank you.

I need to take some pics. Maybe I'll make that a project for the weekend.

But to answer your question, yes, the Light Poplar really stands out. With an interior so dark (and the black headliner that comes with the Sport Package), I thought I needed a lighter colored element inside. I was very fond of the Bamboo wood, but thought it would just be way too dark with the black leather. I'm very happy with the Light Poplar. It has a lot of grain to it and is very striking.

Originally Posted by Legion169

But what do you think of the Premium Sound? Is the iPod kit you mention the factory fit USB connection (option 6FL) or the dealer fit. Whats the sound quality like? Does the iPod charge and do you have full functionality on the display including text?

To be honest, I was a little skeptical about the iPod kit. Yes, it's the one from the factory. It plugs in via a cable (ordered by the dealer, as it is separate from the 6FL option ordered from the factory) to both the aux input and a separate USB connect. It then plugs into the bottom of the iPod, syncing AND charging the iPod. The sound quality is great and the integration is very impressive. You can search by artist, genre, playlist, etc. and have the option to play tracks on "random." When a track is playing, the artist name and song name are displayed, but not the album name.

Overall, I'm very impressed and happy to have access to my iPod. My 750i has the aux input only, which is really fairly useless, in my opinion.

Originally Posted by diver624@aol.co

The Pano roof is nice however if you open it too much the wind buffeting will drive you crazy.

Just one comment on this...

I've found that when you open the roof, if you only open it to the first stop, there is little wind buffeting. If you continue to open it the entire way and are cruising at highway speeds, you're exactly right... there is FAR too much wind buffeting. This is the same way that the pano roof in my wife's 325xiT is, so I was not surprised.

My interior is very dark (black leather w/ black headliner) and I tinted my front windows as well, so it's nice to get some light in the cabin via the pano roof.

I also have the 6FL option. How do you go about putting it on "shuffle"? I don't like how when you turn the car off and back on, it no longer shows the playlist, just the current song on the iDrive screen.

Originally Posted by XZLR8

I need to take some pics. Maybe I'll make that a project for the weekend.

But to answer your question, yes, the Light Poplar really stands out. With an interior so dark (and the black headliner that comes with the Sport Package), I thought I needed a lighter colored element inside. I was very fond of the Bamboo wood, but thought it would just be way too dark with the black leather. I'm very happy with the Light Poplar. It has a lot of grain to it and is very striking.

I will be looking Fw. to the pics as I just ordered the same color combo never seen it in true life pics just on the BMWNA built it site....

I really apretiate it....

Thank you.

Originally Posted by dixhead

I also have the 6FL option. How do you go about putting it on "shuffle"? I don't like how when you turn the car off and back on, it no longer shows the playlist, just the current song on the iDrive screen.

Yes, I have noticed that when you restart the car you get the "Now Playing" screen instead of the track list too. However, if you click on the actual track that is playing, you should get a menu that includes "random." Click on that and the songs will play randomly. You will need to reselect "random" each time you stop and start the car, though. (This is also where you select "detail" to have the artist name displayed when the track is playing.)

Hate to be a bother...BUT....

Did you get a chance to take any of the int. pics?

Thank you.

Originally Posted by XZLR8

Just one comment on this...

I've found that when you open the roof, if you only open it to the first stop, there is little wind buffeting. If you continue to open it the entire way and are cruising at highway speeds, you're exactly right... there is FAR too much wind buffeting. This is the same way that the pano roof in my wife's 325xiT is, so I was not surprised.

My interior is very dark (black leather w/ black headliner) and I tinted my front windows as well, so it's nice to get some light in the cabin via the pano roof.

The Pano roof does add allot of light to the interior. I found the wind buffeting can be greatly reduced by cracking open a rear window.

Originally Posted by dencoop

Hate to be a bother...BUT....
Did you get a chance to take any of the int. pics?
Thank you.

You're not a bother. I've just been a bit out of pocket with some unexpected surgical recovery. I will do it, I promise. Can I email them to you? I'm not sure I have ever posted pics on this forum.

Originally Posted by XZLR8

You're not a bother. I've just been a bit out of pocket with some unexpected surgical recovery. I will do it, I promise. Can I email them to you? I'm not sure I have ever posted pics on this forum.

Oh, well please get well...and I feel bad for even asking for more pics now.....

In regard to posting pics...you just need to click the "Manage Attachments" button within the page where you type in your thread reply.....

If the pics are too big it wont post them so they will need to be sized correctly.....

- and my e-mail address is dencoopny@hotmail.com

Thanks again and hope you feel better....