Infiniti G35 Software Updates

iaw4

The G35 is a nice car with nice equipment, but lousy software. (Mine is 15 months old.) Will there be substantial software updates? My main gripes are:

Radar Safety: Why can't the darn car at least beep when it is on a clear collision course with an object? (For example, while I am looking down for a moment, if the car ahead of me is suddenly breaking, it would be easy for the car to beep.) The radar to do so is already built-in and used for adaptive cruise control. It could simply be used for such second purposes.

GPS: It is impossible to figure out how to alter a route to take a particular freeway, for example. It is very difficult to figure out how to name stored location-marks. Occasionally, the routing by the GPS is really awful, and contradicted by its own software. I have seen it choose a shortest route that was twice as many miles as another route.

Music System: It is impossible to transfer MP3 files to the built-in music box. The ordering of songs on the flash card seems to be based on file transfer time. It is not alphabetical, and afaik cannot be changed. One can also not find one song while another is still playing.

johninnj

The GPS sucks....my portable is better. The radar cruise will beep at some point...I think mine did it when a trucker pulled into my lane RIGHT in front of me...and I think you're just SOL on the mem card thing lol.
If anyone EVERY figures out how to override the motion-override on the touch screen....I will PAY THEM for it ! !

iaw4

actually, I think the radar should beep even when cruise is not on when it detects a dangerous situation. it does have the capability. I don't mind 5 wrong beeps for every correct beep. The beep would at least get me to pay attention immediately (if the car in front of me has just hit the break)...

does infiniti USA have a manager that one can complain to?

/iaw

njalan

We are seriously thinking about buying an 08 G35x with premium and navigation packages. I prefer buying a Garmin top of the line GPS (about $800) over the navi that comes with the car, but my wife rejects the idea. She said the portable GPS is small (only 4.5 inch screen size) and the features are not as good or reliable as the installed GPS. We test drove a G35x with navi the other day. The GPS with voice recognition appeared to be working just fine during that 20 minute period.

To make it worse, I have 2 portable GPS (not Garmin) that are not working properly and my wife warned me not to get a third one. Now I see the defects of the installed GPS posted here and would appreciate some honest opinion so that I can show my wife the $2000 navi option is not better than the portable one with a price tag of $800 or less. If we buy this car it will be mainly for her use. So, I need some good reasons to justify not taking the navi option. :confuse:

esfoad

Ummmm maybe it's me but shouldn't you be paying attention to your driving rather than trusting a beeping radar unit to warn you of upcoming events? I don't have NAV or the music box so I defer to your complaints but PLEASE watch the road when driving or pull off the road if you have to do something else that takes away from 100% concentration behind the wheel of a 4000 pound missile.

johninnj

The NAVI stinks as your options while in motion are so limited it is embarrassing. I only got it for the musicbox and the tech package (Cheap in 07).....and I love those features. To each his own...I use it very rarely...and when I do, I try to use the voice commands. It's neat and flashy, but anything that requires me to stop to use 75% of it's features is just plain stupid...esp when I was coming home from Upstate NY on the highway, looking for a place to eat. You wind up reloading it every few miles since you can only see the first 5 of 100. Nice, huh? So much for the safety aspect.
I have a magellan 2200 that I would choose ANY day over the in-car, and it was under $200...go figure.

iaw4

yes, of course, but please tell me that it has never happened to you that your attention has wavered for just a moment while driving, e.g., your kid suddenly screamed in the back, or you had to put down the glare screen, or you were looking in the back mirror while you wanted to see if you could go into the passing lane.

/iaw

iaw4

the G35 screen is generally larger, and it is very convenient not to have to fiddle around with cables, setup, positioning, etc.. there is also the fact that a builtin always know where you last stopped---for a travel GPS, it is more often a cold start, because you do not always connect it. the antenna on the built-in is probably better, too. finally, I believe the GPS can use other information from the G35, such as the speed with which you are driving. In cities like Boston, where there are a lot of underground tunnels, this can be quite useful.

on the minus side, the navigation software in the G35 is really very mediocre. most handheld systems are superior. and software upgrades are very expensive for the infiniti, too.

in general, infiniti makes good hardware and mediocre software. pity.

YMMV.

/iaw

sjaieve

Had an IS250, software is not that different from the G. I would like to think the Japanese manufacturers have better tech than the Germans, so its correct to say other than the Acura, Lex and Infiniti are still ahead of the game re: Navi systems. As for inputting while driving, I honestly dont see what the issue is. Its a safety feature which I honestly appreciate given the power under the hood and my spirited driving. Honestly, I much prefer the Navi that comes with the car, it does the job its meant to do, and its a 2k option. If you do the pricing, with the music box & back up camera, its well worth it. I hate wires running around my car, especially in a entry level luxury car. It just looks wrong.

outeastandwest

I would say that the GPS on my G is far better than any handheld i have used and most cars i have test driven.
it is very fast to find addresses, locations, and points of interest. the built in library is great and complete. clear directions, traffic through XM is a lifesaver, and just works well.
My wife hates the fact that she can't enter an address as the passenger, but then again her new CRV Navi is so bad she stopped using it.