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Comments
The Maxima is a great car, and probable the best value out there dollar for dollar, but I decided that there were things in the G35 that were more important to me than the luxuries that the maxima could have offered for the same price.
Things like, Rear wheel drive, 4-wheel independent suspension double a-arms, 6 air bags, VDC, 5-speed auto, better warranty and service. And then I drove the two back to back, and there was no longer any comparison.
So my advice (if price is the main consideration) is to decided what's more important, luxuries or performance. My G35 was only 26,000, but it's the stripper model, but it performs like the 36000 fully loaded models.
This whole thing with the price climbing higher that MSRP is getting me worried that the "value" part of the G35 will diminish in the same way that it did for Toyota and people won't even notice it over the long haul.
In the beginning, Toyota used to hold the proud banner of incredible value for the dollar. This stigma remained even after the cars have skyrocketed in price due to market forces and what consumers are willing to pay.
I just priced a headlight clear lens replacement for my 1995 4Runner, its about the same price as the same piece for a BMW 3 series...
Going to the junk yard to find cheap parts was something that you never had to do in the beginning with Toyota's, now its almost a requirement...
Value?
Faenor/Dane4
As for paying over MSRP for a car... yeah, right! There are a couple cars that I would pay MSRP+ for, but they aren't the ones that would come up in normal conversation on this board...
BTW, for those of you who are complaining about $500 over INVOICE, you are crazy! That is a great deal for such a new car. WISH I had gotten that rather than ~$500 under MSRP...
Anyone within ~250 miles of Nashville, TN may want to check out Infiniti of Nashville (I did and I live in Memphis, TN) and ask for Michael Crique, Jr. (sp?). Treated me VERY well and was VERY professional!
I STILL do not know why these dealers are doing this MSRP or MSRP+ stuff. Most that I have seen have 30+ G35's on their lot. Not exactly flying off the lot. While the sales may be better than they had conservatively hoped and better than anything else they have sold in quite awhile, I still can't understand why they would think that.
Well, that isn't exactly true. There is a phenomenon in marketing/negotiation called "anchoring". If I have a car and offer to sell it to you for $5000 more than it is worth AND you have an interest, you might be happy if you got it for $1000 over what it is worth. However, if I offer it at only $1000 more than it is worth, there is probably NO WAY you would be willing to pay that or even what it is worth...
mawg - When I test drove the G35, I drove it MUCH harder than probably MOST people here on this board (I used to race autocross about 15 years ago). Went into an empty parking lot (where I had driven other cars hard in) and "took it through [MY] paces". It wasn't until I drove it REALLY hard that I was able to appreciate how well it handled. One of the things I would do was get the car going about 35mph and then crank the wheel over hard right or left to see how well the VDC would work. Then w/o VDC to see how much over/understeer the car had. The G35 performed exceptionally well in this "test". Thought the salesman would s***!
My wife didn't think much of the car. In fact, when we compared notes, she asked, quizzically, if we had driven the same car (we had). After her second drive she was sold...
My recommendation, for ANYONE who is considering any 2-3 cars, is to test drive them, back-to-back, over the same route so that you can be sure to give each a fair comparison. Be sure to note the "speeds" you achieve (and over what distances/handling) as well as the "feel". This way, you will probably resolve any doubts you may have as they will all have received the same treatment.
That's what my wife and I did and in such a test, we were able to see that the G35 was the best (drove Lexus IS300, Acura 3.2TL Type-S, G35, and BMW 330i that day).
Anyway, good luck with your acquisition...
Scott
I bought a 2000 Maxima at Rosenthal. It had about an $800 ADM markup over MSRP. Of course, Maximas don't sell for anything near that, so they came down off it quickly. But I guess if they get 1 in 50 to pay it, it's worth it. I'm sure there are some people around here who would.....
About the coffee thing... I actually feel sorry for the woman that it happened to, and I don't wish to malign her in any way, but isn't coffee that is within the drinkable range still hot enough to hurt like mad if it spills on you?
She was holding the coffee between her legs as she drove. Isn't a person doing this accepting not only the personal risk but the fact that she was exposing herself to potentially painful consequences?
If I was cleaning a loaded gun and I knew it was loaded and it went off and injured me, the fault is mine out of stupidity because I simply ignored the tenets of common sense. I just keep getting this "read" that the woman violated the tenets of common sense...
If the gun I was cleaning was a .44 or a .22 is not as relevant as the fact that it is dangerous.
If you're going to drive in a car while drinking coffee that was hot or cold, shouldn't it be your responsibility to either be very careful (don't hold it between your legs) or not do it at all? I would actually feel completely differently had she had the coffee in a holder of some kind off to the side and a car hit her and the coffee flew up and burned her because it was too hot... I could actually deal with that situation far better, though still have some hesitations as she did bring the liquid into a moving, unpredictable vehicle. Could I sue a juice company to replace my mats because it fell over and stained them? Because their was no warning lable that grape juice stains things? If it did spill and ruin my mats I would say "crap! I was an idiot for having it in here in the first place" and curse myself... Its strange how common sense seems "variable" and tunable on a situation by situation basis. The woman was hurt, and so clearly she had to be the victim, and someone had to be to blame. Large faceless corporation with tons of money! There we go!
I think the argument was that if the coffee hadn;t been so hot, she wouldn't have suffered injury... But what happened to the argument that says; If she hadn't been drinking coffee in a moving vehicle she wouldn't have been hurt...
It just keeps harkening for me that age old saying, people seem to know better what CAN be done more than what SHOULD be done...
People blame companies for ripping us off in so many ways so they must be bad... but a company is made up of individuals who in turn would sue someone because the coffee was too hot... a company is just the collective desires of the people in it... The same common sense and clear thinking that would have saved the woman, would change the face of business... the two are more inextricably linked than people seem to want to realize.
Faenor/Dane4
I'm planning to swap the stock 215/55 rubber from my G35 Sport, and am debating between 225/50s and 235/50s (both at 17"). The 225s come in .2" under stock diameter and the 235s are .3" over.
I'm concerned about clearance.
Has anyone changed over to 235s? How is internal wheel-well clearance? Do the tires protrude from the well?
Any info would be appreciated.
I think a lot of us are potentially looking at these same cars, so your comments might be useful. I'm esp. interested in the 330i vs G35 from a driver standpoint (I know the G35 is roomier).
Black
I was at Rosenthal over the weekend to check out the G. The salesperson was very nice and straight forward. He informed me that they were going to start marking the G UP. When it was time for us to negotiate the adjusted dealer markup was in there.
Alright, this makes me very upset. I understand that if the market allows for such a markup then why not?, right. But this takes away from the fact that the car is hot because for what it offers at the incredible price. I know that for myself, I got interested in the G when I realized that it was similar in value and performance to the TL/CL. Which is the leader in the class when it comes to that combination. The G35, in my mind, is in place to take the title from them. But not if the dealers mark them up. I believe that the way the G was priced was a marketing strategy so if the dealers choose to do this the strategy goes down the drain and sales go down.
I just wanted to address the issue of dealer markup and see what you guys thought of it overall.
keithat - According to my calculations, the 235/50's should be an (almost) exact match (<.10" difference in diameter). However, to fit the 235/50's you will need wider rims as the minimum rim width is 7.5". The sport rims are 7", just like the non-sport 17" rims.
joes230 - A quick comparison. From worst to best. (IMO!)
IS300: VERY small, not too quick, handles well, VERY responsive steering. Good exterior styling, fair interior styling/good quality. Average value. "Equivalent" price: $36K (w/o navigation)
330i (non-sport) - Small, fairly quick, handled fairly well, traction control was too intrusive, braking was fair to good. Good exterior styling, average interior styling/quality. Below average value. "Equivalent" price: $40K (w/o navigation)
3.2TL Type-S - Moderate (nice) size, quick, handled slightly below average, braking was below average. Below average exterior styling, above average interior styling/quality (best of bunch). Wide turn radius, to the point of interfering with parking, etc. Above average value. "Equivalent" price: $32.5K (w/o navigation)
330i (sport) - Small, fairly quick, handled pretty well, traction control was too intrusive, braking was good. Good exterior styling, average interior styling/quality. EXCELLENT seats! Below average value. "Equivalent" price: $42K (w/o navigation)
G35 - Moderate (nice) size (larger than 3.2TL in measured volumes, etc.), VERY quick, handled well above average (best of group), braking was well above average. Above average exterior styling, average interior styling/quality (2nd best of bunch). Above average value. "Equivalent" price: $34K (w/o navigation) (Long-term complaint, at 4000+ miles, are the seat control location and the lack of mirror memory. No big deal if you aren't wide in the hip for the first, relatively minor for the second.)
For our needs, the G35 was the best value and performer... a real no-brainer.
As noted above, you CAN order a G35 from the factory. You had better believe they WILL build a car that is already sold! The "ordering" problems that exist have to do with dealers ordering for lot inventory purposes. That becomes a questionable prospect..
Scott
PS. For those of you who feel your favorite vehicle was unfairly evaluated, keep in mind that these are MY impressions.
They dropped the coffee in her lap? Like handing it in thru the window and then dropping it? If THAT was the case then I have MUCH less of a problem with the suit. As McDonald's would have committed the act and the consequences should have come down on them...
I remember speaking to someone about this case a few days after it happened and I could have sworn that she had already left the drive thru and was motoring along with the coffee held in between her legs as she drove...
I'll have to look at the case description again...
Thanks for the info!
Faenor
Faenor/Dane4
boomer23 & ivan99 - really like your half full rather than half empty view. I too think the seat and audio controls are very well placed. Never touch the audio controls on the dash except to change out the CD mix. Seat controls seem very natural, just in the right spot.
I also have a question for all of you. Has anyone found the CD player to be extreeeeemly touchy about the quality of the discs it will play. I have had some issues with discs (not cd-roms or burned/ripped mp3's) that play fine in any other machine that I own (auto or home) with no problems. It almost sounds like an old record player playing a scratched up 45. very strange.
I'm just about at 6 wks with 800m and looking for the first oil change at 1k. So I am going to talk to Infiniti service about the CD player when I get the oil changed. has anyone had any issues like this with the CD player ?
Happy Driving
Paul
Just be firm and willing to wait. Nationwide Infiniti today was reluctant to order for me but when I told them it was you only way I would buy they said they would. I did not order yet since i am waiting for the six speed.
With your CD's have you checked to see if they are dirty? Some players are more sensitive to fingerprints/scratches than others. One thing that *I've* found to work well is to "clean" the play side of the disk with Rain-X. Wait for it to dry and clean with a soft cloth (preferably one used for glasses). This has "fixed" some of my problem disks.
dane4 - I don't think they dropped it, but the "handoff" got fumbled. At least that is the way I remember it. Regardless, having coffee that is darn near at the boiling point of water is rediculous... regardless of how hot you like your coffee. From what I can remember reading about the case, the McDonalds manager said they had turned the temp up because customers said they wanted their coffee hot. UGH! However, I could be wrong. Wouldn't be the first time. Strange how I say that more as I get older...
Scott
This time I got 21.07 mpg (70/30)
Strange thing is that I took it easy this time. My other tanks of gas were just a little lower (20.61, 20.83, 19.25) and I drove like a maniac.
It seems that the mileage isn't too bad if you like to drive like a maniac (back on the gas).
What do you think?
People have been ordering G35's with leather, sunroof and winter pkg, trouble is that they are only being made with leather, sunroof, BOSE and winter pkg. Hmmm. So you will be told that it is not possible to get it the way you want it, if you want it you will have to pay more and take the BOSE. I have been telling prople up front that you can't get it without gtting the Bose but I have heard some horror stories about waiting three to four months only to be told, sorry I can't get it the way you want it.
Base Sport Pkg cars are another issue and the Aero Pkg.
Be careful in how you spec out your car.
I was told that since the G35 turned out to be the best slling car in the Infiniti line up over 60% of all sales, they are in very limited supply and there is no extra allocation to order extra cars. You must order all of your cars the way you want and there are no extra cars to pick from.
Right now you are looking at August-September delivery and the orderable combinations is getting smaller. Hey they are trying to simplify things.
If it is a Premium Pkg then you have to get Xenon headlamps and wood, unless you get a sport pkg car (wod is not available) you get the titanium finish.
If you want the Aero Package (zero lift kit) that includes rear spoiler and diffusers under the car just fwd of the rear wheels. Cuts down on turbulance under car, sucking it down to the road. It works. NOTE this is NOT the AERO KIT.
Don't waste your money on the AERO KIT which is front and rear air dams with side sills. A lot plastic that does nothing and if you get too low it will bottom out and crack on you. You can order it from any Infiniti dealer's parts department.
6 speed in the coupe ONLY. Will be in very limited supply.
G35 Coupe Orders are MSRP and MSRP Plus. You take what you can get. Not Until September!!!
Awsome car. Better handling than the G35 sedan and more power. WOW!!!
The skyline is one of the best cars in Japan and if we ever get the all wheel drive version, which they say will be out in early 2003, it will be a world beater. We'll see???
You CAN order a leather G35 without a sunroof for instance. The only way I would ever buy it. But other possibilites will change by deleting the sunroof.
You're helping them out by saving them the floating finance charges, right
Good luck.
Does anyone who has the base model have an opinion as to the quality of the seats after using them for a while? They feel good when you sit in them, but I wonder about the long haul...
Forget about the weight difference. Think 340 hp. Uhhhmmmmm. Think of making BMW wince over not making an M3 sedan. Think of making BMW 540 owners look like they don't see you next to them at stop lights. Imagine leaving the Farfrommoving W8 Passats in the dust.
If Volkswagen can do a 4wd W8 for 38k, I think Infiniti should too.
Infiniti- Quit screwing around and get the V8s out before the enviromental wackos all make us drive Energizer Bunny cars!
(No Offense to Car Loving Enviromental Wackos. All three of you.)
Scott
Yes, you can put both a grab handle and a clothes hook in the same place. Most cars have either a clothes hook attached to the grab handle or a clothes hook that pops out next to the handle.
If you put the sear right to the bottom and tilt it back there is more room. This still leaves room in the back.
some other cars (like the 300M I used to have) have hooks that pop out of the handle's base.