I tested it out while paying attention this evening and once the car was nice and warm, it didnt do it as suspected...

very interesting indeed-

 

and its only car and driver who always says the bmw is more refined than the G.. those old fogies are more biased than Jim Crowe... its just the sound of the motor.. ive owned many nissans and that how they roar.. i dont see it as a bad thing i guess becuase im used to it and the fact the this V6 and different versions of it has one top ten motor awards for 13 years running.

 

The in-line 6's used in the BMW's are more refined. It's inherent in the design. A large bore V6 is going to sound and feel harsh. The in-line six built by BMW is about as good as it gets when it comes to smooth and refined.

 

honda V6's do sound smoother.

 

I agree... Honda makes some of the finest engines on the planet... They sweat the details.
In-line 6's are more expensive and complex to build.. but because of the firing order and the long crank shaft.. they are inherently smooth running, also more expensive to build and they take up more space..
The V6 is more compact and cheaper to build... not near as smooth in operation especially the larger displacement designs.

 

curious... why do you say I-6's cost more to build? I'm not arguing... wondering because it sounds like you may have insight. is it just materials quantity due to the less space-efficient design, or something more esoteric?

 

The parts are more expensive to build and work with. For example, the crankshaft and cam shafts are twice as long. It takes more to machine these parts and they are more difficult to handle and install. I helped my son replace the cams on his M3. It was far more difficult to do than any V8 I ever worked on. The Crank is huge and requires more main bearings than a V design. This and the firing order are key to the smoothness found in these engines. BMW really engineered their inline 6's for refinement.