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Infiniti M35/M45 2006+

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Comments

  • pete_l_ppete_l_p Member Posts: 322
    =======
    Your comparison, was between the Q and the GS, not the Lexus line even though you state otherwise. The two models do not actually compete in the same segment, thus a moot point and a bad comparison in general.
    =======
    Just reread my first post slowly. It helps to read slowly when you have problems understanding the language.

    =======
    Did I miss something here, Petey??? Have you actually looked at what Lexus, BMW, etc have to offer in terms of technology or no one has these features until Infiniti does?
    =======
    Yes, as I said, just reread my first post very slowly. You’ll note that I not only looked at Lexus but owned 5 LS’s before my Q. As I also said, rather than “imitating” Lexus, Infiniti was first with Sat radio (by years), Voice recognition (by years) and rearview monitor (by years). Then after Lexus copied Infiniti on the rear view monitor they had it in every RX commercial for a year, as proof of there technology leadership.

    When I bought my Q, I loved the Q for its handling and the completeness of its features and I OWNED the same generation LS. Yes the Q beat the LS to market on a hoard of features that made a huge difference in my driving experience. I also rented an S500 for a week, and was appalled at its deficiencies. BMW same.

    There was not a single inaccuracy in my first post, your diversions notwithstanding.

    Does the GS have any of the features I pointed to in my G vs M comparison.

    In a word no.
  • acenjacenj Member Posts: 58
    Wow,

    Thanks for that great data. At 6.3, the M35 is certainly no slouch! Will be interesting to see the affect of AWD on it though.

    thx again for the numbers.

    Ace
  • bdhplayerbdhplayer Member Posts: 14
    If your looking to purchase a new Infinity in Phoenix, don't do business with Midway Infinity. Looks like I'm going to have to take them to small claims court to enforce the provisions of a purchase of a 2004 Infinity M$%.

    More specifically, deal was negotiated with them that included a paint sealant, as well as, reapplication of the service every 6 months for three years. They now claim that the service was not purchased even though it is on the supplemental sticker, as well as, the sales contract.

    No wonder auto dealers are considered slime.

    They did claim that auto sales people do rank higher than attorneys. Lol
  • rayainswrayainsw Member Posts: 3,191
    "M35 is certainly no slouch! Will be interesting to see the affect of AWD on it though. "

    From Nissannews:

    Final drive ratio (:1)
    M35 = 3.538 (AWD 3.692)

    My guess is that this final drive ratio increase is largely designed to offset the weight increase of the AWD.

    - Ray
    Expecting no worse than 6.5 sec 0 - 60 . . .
    2022 X3 M40i
  • drtraveldrtravel Member Posts: 395
    Here is the inventory of cars found within 50 miles of Disneyland, 12 total dealers (data from www.infiniti.com) - data was just collected this morning.

    M35 - 49 cars
    M35x - 101 cars
    M35 AWD - 37 cars
    M45 - 70 cars
    M45x - 107 cars

    Infiniti needs to increase the supply of Non-sport models plus I still think they are over optimistic on the number of M45s they are going to sell -IMHO.

    Signed,

    Someone with way too much time on their hands.
  • sopecreeksopecreek Member Posts: 203
    What's the difference between M35x and M35 AWD?
    With G35, G35x = G35 AWD, I believe...
  • sopecreeksopecreek Member Posts: 203
    After reading it again, I realize you used 'x' to designate the sport version.
  • cbgcbg Member Posts: 13
    Thanks for the tip. I heard somewhere else that the M was excluded from the Costco program. We do have a Costco here so I will go check it out.
  • mvs1mvs1 Member Posts: 462
    There was not a single inaccuracy in my first post, your diversions notwithstanding.

    Does the GS have any of the features I pointed to in my G vs M comparison.

    In a word no.
    ===============

    Inaccuracy, sorry I couldn't resist

    infiniti M -Cargo volume 14.9 cubic feet (11.4 cubic feet with full-size spare) <-----hope M owners take their spare out for that extra 3.5 cubed ft

    Lexus GS Trunk capacity: 12.7 cubic feet (360 L)
  • patpat Member Posts: 10,421
    A couple of you are turning your exchange into a personal confrontation - that's not appropriate here. Agree to disagree and move on.
  • pete_l_ppete_l_p Member Posts: 322
    ========
    Inaccuracy, sorry I couldn't resist

    infiniti M -Cargo volume 14.9 cubic feet (11.4 cubic feet with full-size spare) <-----hope M owners take their spare out for that extra 3.5 cubed ft Lexus GS Trunk capacity: 12.7 cubic feet (360 L) </I>
    ========

    That's the best you have?

    With my 13 advantages on the M vs. the GS all you come up with (to prove my many "inaccuracies") is you don't like how they achieve their trunk space advantage?

    Good job.

    You MUST be a salesman. Where do you sell lexii?

    Pete
  • pete_l_ppete_l_p Member Posts: 322
    ======
    A couple of you are turning your exchange into a personal confrontation - that's not appropriate here. Agree to disagree and move on.
    ======

    I saw this after my last post.

    Fair enough. Agreed

    Pete
  • cparnescparnes Member Posts: 5
    I spoke with Costco yesterday and a salesman from a dealership called me today. They are willing to discount M's I am not sure how much. He said 500-1000 off list over the phone. The dealer is not very close to my home but I can drive a ways for $1000.
  • apintsapints Member Posts: 18
    I got my M35x last Friday. The service manager said with basically city driving the sevice interval is 3750 miles. If you do a lot of highway driving, then it can go to 5000 miles.
  • markcincinnatimarkcincinnati Member Posts: 5,343
    OK so the Infiniti manual says oil change interval is 7,500 miles (I assume oil and filter).

    The dealer body "suggests" under city only driving that the interval be 3,750 miles.

    And, a dealer service manager said (apparently) under mixed conditions but mostly highway, the interval average should be 5,000 miles.

    Question: what does it take to keep the warranty in force?

    Question: does Infiniti suggest regular, semi-syn or pure syn oil and are there interval differences (other than the ones most of us could infer) with the three types of oil?

    Finally, being a long time Audi owner/driver, I can almost quote chapter and verse the service requirements -- but I am clueless about Infiniti.

    I have heard (rumor) that other than oil changes (and I assume some other fluids -- e.g., anti-freeze, brake fluid, power steering fluid, etc) very little is required in terms of maintenance -- OK, is there a source of the maintenance requirements in the first 50,000 miles or would someone who actually has one of these M's be so kind as to post the requirements?

    Thanks.

    For example, I have heard that the spark plugs are 60,000 mile interval items -- is this accurate?

    With Audi the intervals are basically "oil and filter" every 10,000 miles and at some 10,000 mile intervals you do additional things, like spark plugs or other filters or fluids. At 30,000 mile intervals you may be required to perform brake pad inspection or drain and refil of certain lubricants or protectants, etc.

    The Infiniti, probably due to my ignorance, seems to have very short service intervals -- at least this is my impression.

    I would switch to syn oil at 5,000 or 7,500 miles, if I go ahead and move forward with a new "M."
  • rayainswrayainsw Member Posts: 3,191
    Any such questions not addressed adequately here:

    http://www.infiniti.com/m/pdf/Infiniti_Service_Maintenance_Guide.pdf

    . . probably need to be taken to a higher authority.

    Spark Plug replacement shows up only at 105,000 miles / 84 months, for instance.

    (I posted this link here a couple of weeks ago.)

    - Ray
    Less concerned with regular maintenance than 'unscheduled' trips to the dealer . . .
    2022 X3 M40i
  • kfhmailkfhmail Member Posts: 199
    How much does the extended warranty cost?

    I realize that the cost/price is usually negotiable...so how much have people been paying, or what prices have the dealers been offering on this?

    Thanks.
  • undecided7undecided7 Member Posts: 92
    My personal take on the extended warranty is to wait until the initial Manufacturer's warranty is close to expire. From a present value of money perspective, why give the dealer a thousand or two now when it will not be in effect until 4 years form now when the manufacturer's warranty expires. Doesn't make economic sense since to me.
  • docnukemdocnukem Member Posts: 485
    I almost always decline it. However, there is sometimes a financial hook to get you to buy one when you buy the car, rather than near the end of warranty. That is, they often charge more if you buy it later.
  • undecided7undecided7 Member Posts: 92
    I realize that, but it should be all a present/future value of money issue. It can't cost 3x today's price down the road. It should theoretically be based on today's price (using say the risk free interest rate) compounded for 4 years. Or another way to say it is set the money asie, invest it, and at the end of 4 years if you still own the car, purchase the warranty. To me there's no value of that purchase in the first 4 years since everything is covered in the manufacturer's warranty, but you've dished out some big bucks to still have it 4 years from today.
  • johnhwjohnhw Member Posts: 111
    I love my 2003 Q45 as well. If you wouldn't mind, I'd really like to hear a detailed Q45 vs M45 comparison from you, given your two week driving experience.
    signed
    Pete

    Peter my response is below

    The things I like best about my M45 vs my Q45 are: it is significantly quicker, the handling is sharper, the ride is firmer, the technology that both have is greatly enhanced (voice recognition as well as Nav system), the new technology on my M45 (has rear camera feature which I find very helpful, especially at night as it shows things clearly even when it is dark behind the car), the lane departure system is a nice safety feature, the sound system is greatly enhanced, the size is effective (smaller externally but comparable space inside) and finally I find the looks of the M45 more appealing than the Q45.

    The negatives list is short and subjective. The Q is quieter and a softer ride (even though I have a Sport edition of the Q, and always have the suspension set in sport mode). My wife prefers the softer, quieter ride of the Q, I personally prefer the M's ride.

    I havent tried out my backseat DVD system in the M45 yet and while the M45 has a larger trunk, the opening to put suitcases in it is smaller than my Q and I have a concern about being able to get some very large (Wide) suitcases for longer trips in the trunk. But this isnt a big deal to me since often a limo to the airport is a better option anyway. The trunk in the M handles my golf clubs just fine so that is what really matters to me in a trunk.

    Hope this helps, quiz me if you have specifics or need more indepth on any of these areas.
  • cdnpinheadcdnpinhead Member Posts: 5,499
    Keep in mind that all extended warranties (including the ones they try to sell you at Best Buy) are intended only to make money for the entity selling them. If the product wasn't pretty reliable in the first place, selling these things would be a fool's mission.

    As it is, buying them is. I haven't kept track of how much money I haven't spent on extended warranties so far, but I'm confident I'm well ahead of the curve.

    Part of the deal is buying stuff that generally doesn't break. The refugees from European vehicles will eventually get used to the idea that most of the time, expensive stuff doesn't break on Asian vehicles.
    '08 Acura TSX, '17 Subaru Forester
  • valuebuyervaluebuyer Member Posts: 24
    I did the same analysis on the same vehicles, and reached the same conclusion.

    Bought the M35x last week, after being unimpressed with the GS300 $ premium for a comparably equipped vehicle (But they do deserve a premium for reliability, and Grandpa can will you the car after a generation or so).

    I laughed the Germans (530i, E320) out the door, outright. I think the 'dumb yuppie stock broker/drug dealer who has to do something with his cash before it goes up his nose' mystique wears thin after a few days of drinking German Service Dept. coffee. That said, I'm a recovering BMW addict, which makes we insufferable at BMW crackhead meetings. But hey, if that's the only MB/BMW demographic left these days, go with it.

    The only competitor in the bunch was the RL - until (per earlier posts) the local dealers decided to juice the price 10K over its US list.

    Not to repeat the comparos, but unless the M turns out to be a fated lemon (and I've never bought a new model until this month for that prudent reason), I can't see how ANYONE with US$40-50K to spend would buy any other vehicle. The objective facts are that clear. And no, I'm not a Nissan person in disguise! Just a valuebuyer.
  • wagenatcwagenatc Member Posts: 8
    This is quite a car. Still learning stuff, but I'm amazed at how easy things are to use. Some extraordinary engineering went into this car.

    Engine does provide sound under any acceleration, but I like that. Certainly not obnoxious. Ride is superb, yet refined and precise. I'm coming off an Audi TT, which had super handling, and I'd say that 35x is stickier yet.

    Got mine for $2,000 off list, and they say they'll do that for any M for other forum members as well. Email me for details.

    Saw in the manual correction insert page that you can drive the 35 on regular. Anyone doing that? They recommend 91 for "improved performance." Maybe 89 as a compromise?

    The manual pumps "premium maintenance" at 3750 intervals, but all you need to do is 7,500 to maintain the warranty. That still seems a bit long to me, so I'll probably do 5,000 (with synthetic). And you can change the oil yourself without voiding the warranty.

    I smell that burning smell others have mentioned. Glad I read about that here before calling the dealer.

    Voice recognition is spot on.

    Got Umbria Grey with wheat. It's not really grey at all--it's sort of an olive brown. The big picture at the website for this and other colors are way off. Some color combinations strike me as weird--a warm wheat leather with a cool silver exterior. And that bourbon leather is a putrid pumpkin, not at all like the rather attractive color on the web site, and it clashes with the rosewood.

    My first Infiniti ever. Used to think of them as a "me too" car, without the prestige of a Lexus. But I've definitely changed my mind....
  • exrlexrl Member Posts: 1
    I've had my M35x a week and still have some burning smell. What is it?
  • pete_l_ppete_l_p Member Posts: 322
    Johnhw

    Thanks for the report. Sounds like you&#146;re totally enjoying it. Given my test drive, I get the feeling that my wife and I will have the same reactions to the ride that you and your wife have.

    I also agree about the enhancements to Voice recognition, NAV, sound, and rearview monitor. IMO they&#146;re tremendous. I did notice that the rear view monitor is brighter on the M than on my Q, and it&#146;s nice to hear how well it works in the dark.

    Have you noticed that the M has improved the intelligent cruise control as well? It seems to have more ESP in figuring out how I&#146;d personally like the car to slow down and speed up.

    Have fun with your car

    Pete
  • markcincinnatimarkcincinnati Member Posts: 5,343
    Probably chromalin (SP?) wait 500 miles or so.
  • richcreamrichcream Member Posts: 205
    On my last test drive of the M35x I noticed the burning smell too.

    The salesman said that it was [garbled] burning off of the manifold [???]

    I have never noticed such a pungent smell on a brand new car. Could this be the M's fatal flaw?

    Any thoughts or insight?
  • tomnhtomnh Member Posts: 12
    Check with your financial institution if your are not going through Infiniti. My credit union offers extended warranties after the manufacturer runs out. The credit union is 60% less than the dealer with exact same coverage.
  • sjcbillsjcbill Member Posts: 82
    Infiniti is one of the few manufacturers to offer both XM and Sirius satellite radio, unfortunately it appears that almost all of the inventory has XM. I've yet to find a single vehicle in Northern CA with Sirius.

    I'd prefer Serius for several reasons:
    I already have a Serius radio at home so I know the channel lineup, Sirius offers a discount for add on radios, Sirius offers a lifetime subscription for $499 (one payment, you're all done), and Sirius seems to have fewer channels with advertising than XM.

    Short of ordering a vehicle, which seems silly just to get Sirius, I do want the technology package and my dealer says that they can't change out the XM for a Sirius radio since it is in the package even though satellite radio is a dealer add on for cars not already equipped. It seems to mee that Infiniti would be smart to unbundle the satellite radio and make it a dealer add on option so you can choose when you buy from inventory.
  • markcincinnatimarkcincinnati Member Posts: 5,343
    Every new car I have ever purchased, and y'all know I have had 27 Audis, all had this smell.

    When a car is shipped its engine and some other parts I imagine are covered with a kind of grease or wax to prevent oxidation. It is cleaned off during prep -- but the cleaning is NOT 100%.

    Since I have never had a car NOT have this smell for perhaps the first few days or few hundred miles, I kind of think of it as a "new car smell."

    Heck, my electronic equipment has a kind of ozone smell until it gets "burned in" too.

    This will pass.

    It is possible, but I would hope rare, that a few drops of oil were spilled and not 100% wiped up (this, however, would just be sloppy).

    Wait 500 miles and call me in the morning. . . .
  • lexusguylexusguy Member Posts: 6,419
    Both my new RX and LS had this smell as well. Drive it a few times, and it should go away. As others have said, its a normal part of the "new car process", like trying to drive under 60mph and not flooring the car.
  • pete_l_ppete_l_p Member Posts: 322
    =======
    It seems to me that Infiniti would be smart to unbundle the satellite radio and make it a dealer add on option so you can choose when you buy from inventory
    =======

    Nissan has recently signed a long term deal, making XM their exclusive supplier of wireless data services. In one respect, this is good for Nissan since XM has a big lead in this area.

    An example of this is NavTraffic, a wireless traffic feed integrated with Navigation, to show and route around traffic conditions. XM has it today (on the RL) A NavTeq Exec told me Sirius will not have that before 2008. (NavTeq provides this data to XM and sirius both)

    There are many terrific things coming in wireless data to cars and, given the new agreement, Nissan will only benefit from them to the degree that they emphasize XM.

    I expect that next year Infiniti will have Factory installed XM along with Nav Traffic and other data services.

    Pete
  • tomnhtomnh Member Posts: 12
    I have noticed the same smell from my M35X. I have now gone 600 miles and it went away.
  • markcincinnatimarkcincinnati Member Posts: 5,343
    So is Sirius still available for the current crop when one is placing an order?

    I have been corresponding with an "Internet" dealer and we have settled (assuming I move forward) on an M35x with Tech & Journey w/Sirius.

    If I were to order within the next 30 days, would I get Sirius (which I want) or XM?

    My wife's new Bimmer will have Sirius and our friends have one car with XM and one with Sirius and they prefer Sirius and now that the price of both are the same, there is no diff $-wise.

    They claim fewer commercials and "better" choice -- with two cars with Sirius, I think, too, there is a package discount from Sirius.

    Of course, Howard Stern could kill them or catapult them -- I have not spent much of my time EVER listening to Stern, but I applaud his move to satellite. I suppose he can "say anything" once he is on satellite. I'd probably spend almost no time on him, personally, but our friends swear by Sirius.

    Anyway the question still stands -- can I still order Sirius this year (April or May for all practical purposes).

    And, ordering a car is double the fun of buying one off the lot -- IMHO.
  • undecided7undecided7 Member Posts: 92
    I ordered my M35x with the Sirius satellite radio so if you order the vehicle, as opposed to buying it from stock, then you can get whichever satellite radio you want.
  • cheerioboy26cheerioboy26 Member Posts: 412
    You can order either satellite radio service.

    edit: I'm a slow typist :D undecided's post want there when I started my post.
  • pete_l_ppete_l_p Member Posts: 322
    Great Find on the GS/M comparo from Detroit news

    Many terrific M oriented quotes in that piece:

    Styling
    [The GS] seems a bit on the stodgy side, and not nearly as forward-looking as the new M from Infiniti. Winner: M35

    Ride and Handling
    The Lexus did not feel as crisp in responding to driver inputs and, to our surprise, did not display the same degree of ride comfort as the Infiniti. Winner: M35

    Interior
    The gorgeous three-tone cockpit of the M35 seemed far more open and inviting than the interior of the GS 300. The M35 had a decided advantage in rear legroom. Winner: M35

    Engine
    Infiniti M35 is the clear winner here, in terms of output and sheer exuberance. The GS engine often feels like it's working overtime to keep up. In addition, we noticed excessive drivetrain noise at higher speeds with the Lexus. Winner: M35

    Safety & technology
    [No good quotes for either. IMO this particular conclusion is a mistake since he missed a bunch of more valuable M tech, voice controlled NAV, AUX iPod input, MP3 CD&#146;s. MES, 5.1 Surround. BTW I would have more easily accepted a GS win on interior]
    Winner: GS300

    Summary
    The M35 is a major leap forward and a standout in just about every way.

    Overall Winner M35
  • hpowdershpowders Member Posts: 4,330
    Lexus folks knew they were in trouble when the Detroit News showed a photo of the old GS interior instead of that of the car they are reviewing.
  • carnaughtcarnaught Member Posts: 3,497
    Now I have about 500 mi. on my M35 sport. There's been no more smell since about 300 mi.
  • pete_l_ppete_l_p Member Posts: 322
    You can still get sirius, but not if it has a built in XM antenna. You might need to order it that way from the factory if you can't find one.

    Everyone has their own taste. I greatly prefer XM over sirius, but to each his own.

    A couple of notes just for the record however.

    - Sirius now has more stations with commercials and more commercials in general than XM and has publicly stated they are looking to expand commercials significantly in the future. (Reports to the contrary are based on the old days when XM had commercials on music stations.)

    - Sirius has vastly more repetition in their music than XM. XM playlists and music library are literally about 10 times deeper. I love XM music.

    - Sirius DJ's talk much more than XM's. Some like it, some hate it.

    - Sirius devotes much more on-air time to promoting their other stations. They do this on their commercial free stations, and I personally hate it.

    Pete
  • sjcbillsjcbill Member Posts: 82
    Thanks. I didn't know about the Infiniti deal with XM but I did know about the traffic feature in the Acura with XM. I wasn't too excited about that because most of the traffic reports I hear in the S.F. bay area are hopelessly "out of date" by the time they get posted so I'm not too confident that the XM version would be any better. I have heard that the traffic reports are only available in a few major metro locations.

    I am also curious as to whether Infiniti would offer an upgrade if and when such services become available. If not, the point about expanded services becomes moot, at least for this year's production.

    I suspect that XM's "big lead" was more a function of their initial pricing being lower and many customers not realizing that the cost was subsidized by advertising on many of their music channels. Now that they have dropped the ads and increased the prices it will be interesting to see if the gap closes. Most people that I have heard from who have compared the two prefer the content on Serius.
  • markcincinnatimarkcincinnati Member Posts: 5,343
    Got my new Motor Trend magazine a couple of days ago, two articles of interest to this forum: exclusive Lexus only article about the new GS; and a comparo of the GS and M V8's -- once again, the winnah and champeen, the M from Infiniti.

    Interesting quote in the magazine: "somewhere inside the new Lexus GS, we're sure, is a good car. . .we just can't seem to find it!" [sic].

    Had this been ONLY in Motor Trend, I might have taken this with a tiny grain of salt -- but this remark is similar to last month's C&D wherein their author suggested the Lexus was perfect in every way, but lacked passion.

    Infiniti apparently has really hit one long and hard -- perhaps out of da park!

    Then again, Lexus claims VERY rapid updates are planned for their cars -- if Infiniti turns out new models at a more leisurely pace, well Lexus may pass Infiniti.

    Funny thing the RL is dominant in these magazines, recently, by virtue of the "roaring silence."

    Can't wait for a test between a Mercedes and a Lexus and an M and a BMW or perhaps the M35x and the A6 3.2.

    Now THAT would be entertaining, I'd wager.
  • sjcbillsjcbill Member Posts: 82
    Interesting. One of the things I noticed earlier about XM was that the DJs were more intrusive than Sirius. Maybe that's changed and I should take a fresh look at XM.
  • jrock65jrock65 Member Posts: 1,371
    Thanks mark. What were low and high point of each vehicle? How were they equipped? What were some of the test data (0-60, 1/4 mile, etc.)?
  • tayl0rdtayl0rd Member Posts: 1,926
    As a person with XM and Sirius in the garage, I have to disagree with you, pete. The only place that commercials appear on Sirius is on the News/Talk stations (and probably the NFL channels), and what better place to have commercials than stations where listeners want to hear someone talking anyway. None of the music stations have commercials. They do promote other Sirius stations, but it's only in a casual mention of probably no more than 3 seconds. Also, some of the DJs have a weekly/nightly show on other stations, so they mention it.

    Some of the Sirius stations do have a little more than necessary DJ chatter, but for the vast majority of the music stations, I can honestly say that I've never heard a DJ speak more than introducing the next song. I completely disagree with the level of repetition on Sirius vs. XM. Sirius has more original content (musical guests, interviews, call ins, etc.), and it's not pre-recorded from network radio stations as quite a few of XM's stations are. Sirius also has some music industry celebrities DJ-ing they're channels.

    The other half has XM in her car and I have Sirius in mine. We both prefer Sirius. A comment I hear from her a lot is, "How come I don't have all the good stations like you do?" or "You always have all the good stuff on your radio and all I get is the same ol' stuff as regular radio. Why am I even paying for XM?"

    One station XM has that I wish Sirius had similar is Cinemagic. I sometimes enjoy listening to actual movie scores and not the "soundtrack."

    But it's all a matter of personal preference. But I think XM is selected so often because most people have never experienced satellite radio before and, since they advertise to death, XM's all they're vaguely familiar with. You should read all the praise XM gets on the RL board! If they ever had an opportunity to evaluate Sirius, they'd probably change their tunes. No pun intended. =)
  • lexusguylexusguy Member Posts: 6,419
    Have you seen the big C&D "$55K" sedan test? Guess who the winner is.
  • cheerioboy26cheerioboy26 Member Posts: 412
    XM derives over twice the advertising (as a % of revenue) as Sirius, although Sirius has stated they are looking for more ad revenue on the talk stations

    " While music channels air without commercials, some advertising accompanies talk shows and news programs on the satellite channels. Advertising contributed 4.8 percent of XM Satellite's revenue of $83.1 million in the quarter ended Dec. 31. At Sirius, ads accounted for 2 percent of revenue of $25.2 million in the same period.

    ``Our primary revenue stream is from subscriptions, but we have a dual-revenue model,'' says XM Satellite CEO Hugh Panero, 49, who spent a decade at Time Warner Inc.'s cable-television division beginning in 1982. ``That's the same distinction between cable and regular TV.'' "

    http://quote.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=nifea&&sid=aROY9gOh42KM

    alternate http://tinyurl.com/492pf
  • markcincinnatimarkcincinnati Member Posts: 5,343
    I do not have the issue at hand. They both were RWD V8's -- the Lexus was considerably more expensive than the Infiniti.

    The Lexus, had a $4,000 stereo in it, so that in part explains this price gap.

    The Lexus was less quick and "smaller" in every significant dimension (what ever that means).

    The test, despite what I am telling you by recollection was reasonably close, but not simply "by a hair."

    Lexus is clearly a popular brand -- and based on what I think I know, is more successful in selling cars here in North America. I believe in many of the reliability numbers the Infiniti often comes out as #2 to Lexus' #1.

    Clearly, however, the press overwhelmingly lauds "driver's" praise on the Infiniti.

    I guess it almost seems a contradiction. The authors of these articles (who ought to know more than I) claim that these Premium Japanese cars have "BMW" (and/or in the case of Lexus, Mecedes) in their crosshairs. Yet, in the comparos (well at least 51% of them) the BMW 5 and the Audi A6 have been repeatedly "trounced" by Acura, Infiniti and Lexus. The contradiction? Well, even in the same publication that a month or two previously had claimed the Japanese to be victorious, the subsequent articles still bow down and appear to say the Japanese cars are BMW (or whatever) wannabees. Huh? In month 1 the Infiniti, the RL or the GS "betters" its German rivals, then in month 3 the individual test report comes out and says the "benchmark" against which these cars are being measured is the (fill in the blank) BMW 5 or the Mercedes E or whatever.

    All I know for certain is that the current 2006 iteration of cars from Lexus and Infiniti and the 2005 RL are either nipping at the heals of the big 3 German companies or have already bettered them (so says two or three car mags and many newspaper reviews). The clear winner, today, is Infiniti. Who knows, next year or 2007 or 8 the Lexus may be the new champ. Or maybe Acura will clean their clocks.

    And, we shouldn't count the Germans out -- from where I sit, they have only had the wind knocked out of them (and maybe a bruise or two).

    Clearly the car and driver (little c and d) writers have identified:

    Acura set its sites on Audi (first)

    Infiniti set its sites on BMW (first)

    Lexus set its sites on Mercedes (first).

    They (the writers) are quick to add, however, that coming into focus for all of these big Japanese guns is, once again, BMW. All hail Bimmer!

    My wife is giving me the "eye" as she sees she is losing me to the Infiniti "as the sands of time, pass through the hourglass. . ."
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