once you go black, you never go back?

[gkdyeung]

that's a saying about cars isn't it?

i have a black 2010 ex. love it.
but i'm thinking of changing things up for a second car.

it'll either be a white ex35... but then i wonder... do i really want 2 of them?
(they'd be in 2 different cities so it won't be like i have 2 of them side by side).

or a different make/model altogether...
what is everyone's experience with comparable luxury models?

X3?
Q5? (my friend has this and i must say it does perform).
GLK? (i've test driven this before buying the ex35, and i wasn't impressed with the torque, acceleration...)
XC60? (a bit bigger, plus volvo isn't what it used to be)

really, i can't knock the look of any of them.
those are my initial thoughts.

really comes down to performance, reliability and value...

G

[dreamingat30fps]

I personally couldn't see myself having two of the same car. I love cars so given the opportunity of having two they would have to be different. We have the ex35 as our cruiser and I have a Z4M as my daily driver. I can't really comment on the vehicles you mentioned as the ex would be my first suv. I did look at a few X3s and you just cant compare them with the ex. I love the way BMWs drive, I love the solid steering (which the ex does not have imo) however the X3 just feels cheap in every way when compared to the rest of the BMW line (or the ex35). It's also very hard to find good deals on low mileage X3s and they are usually not optioned out at all.

PS: I just realized you might be talking about the new gen X3. That one is much nicer both inside and out, however I did not check those out since I was in the used market and they are still pretty new.

[gkdyeung]

thanks dreamingat30fps... Z4M eh? nice!... tough to argue with that....
i would need utility in 6 months of winter though... so that option for me is out...
i might have a look at the x3... have never ventured into bmw before so i'm surprise to hear that at one time... they felt "cheap"... or at least the x3 line did/does.
just occurred to me... there's always the consumer reports to compare as well... always nice to hear testimonial experience though.

[NJGuy]

or a different make/model altogether...
what is everyone's experience with comparable luxury models?

X3?
Q5? (my friend has this and i must say it does perform).
GLK? (i've test driven this before buying the ex35, and i wasn't impressed with the torque, acceleration...)
XC60? (a bit bigger, plus volvo isn't what it used to be)

I haven't really read any reviews on the Q5 or GLK. But I know that Edmunds had the XC60 and currently have the X3 in their long term road test blog on their insideline site. With those articles, you'd get a little bit of a better picture of what it's like to actually live with the car in contrast to a magazine/website article that's limited to just a day of test driving.
You also might want to check forums specific to those models.

really comes down to performance, reliability and value...

If you're ranking them in that order:
1. I'd guess that the X3 and Q5 might be the best in the performance department. However, I think for the X3 you would probably have to get the twin turbo inline-6 if you're looking for the higher performance. That would take away from the value quotient somewhat.
2. I'm not sure how each of those vehicles compare in reliability, as I've stayed away from European makes and kept to the Japanese automakers. Like you said, consumer reports might have some data. You could also check the truedelta site for that information. If you don't plan on keeping the car out of the warranty period, then maybe reliability won't be that big of a deal.
3. I know that BMW (and Volvo?) have a free maintenance program on their vehicles, but it seems like you pay for it in one way or another. Other than that, you might have to be a bit particular about what options you want on your vehicle; before you know it, the add-ons can add a hefty amount to the vehicle's price. See what you can get by building some virtual models on the manufacturers' websites.

but i'm thinking of changing things up for a second car.

Do you need the extra ride height? If not, maybe you could get a FWD/AWD luxury wagon? Or if you don't need the space, perhaps a sedan? I'm just thinking outside the box a little and wondering what kind of criteria you have in mind for your next car.