BMW's Slippery Station Wagon

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From that standpoint, Audi's system is easier to use.

Worse, the central control knob on the iDrive just doesn't work very well. I sat in a parking space in Manhattan one evening for 15 minutes laboriously entering a destination address into the nav system by picking out letters and numbers one at a time. Each time I'd get to the end of this process, the system would refuse to accept the destination, and I had to start all over again. It took four or five tries to get the address entered, which was maddening.

Most of the car's other high-tech features are intuitive to use. For instance, the active cruise control, a $2,000 option, comes on automatically as you overtake another vehicle on the highway. If you have the speed set at, say, 70 and the vehicle ahead is going 65, a little icon appears on the instrument panel and the system automatically slows the car and stays at a set distance behind the vehicle ahead. If the car ahead moves over into the other lane, the icon disappears and the BMW speeds up to 70 again on its own.

KEY FEATURES.

The Sport Wagon has several other cool features I really like: The keyless starting and entry system is very handy when, say, you come out of a store with you arms full of purchases. With the key fob on you, all you have to do is walk up to the car and the doors unlock when you try them. The engine turns on and off with the push of a button.

There's also a very handy little needle gauge under the tachometer that tells you at any given moment how many miles per gallon you're getting. It's easy to read at a quick glance, giving you the feedback you need to moderate your driving style to improve gas mileage if you want to.

The Sport Wagon's huge standard sun roof -- which forms a window over the entire passenger compartment -- is also very nice. Head room is tight otherwise, but the sun roof provides extra space and gives the car's interior an open, airy feel. There's also a handy storage compartment where the spare normally would be.

CONSIDER YOUR OPTIONS.

Major options on the Sport Wagon include a $2,900 premium package that bundles leather upholstery, power seats, and power and auto-dimming mirrors, among other things; a six-speed automatic transmission ($1,275); an upgraded sound system ($1,200); adaptive Xenon headlights that self-level and automatically swivel to follow turns ($800); Sirius (SIRI) satellite radio ($595), and heated front seats ($500).

The BMW Sport Wagon is pretty cool for a station wagon. But if I were trading in an SUV, I'd test drive the less-expensive Jaguar Sport Wagon (see BW Online, 8/1/05, "Jag's Barely Domesticated Wagon") before buying one. Better yet, I'd probably buy a BMW 3 series sedan. With all-wheel drive they're even more agile, and with the optional fold-down rear seats they're nearly as practical.

Thane Peterson reviews cars for BusinessWeek.com.