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http://www.osa.go.jp/anzen/html2002e/as125.html
Keep in mind, this is the Japanese version of the G35, using Japanese crash test standards. 5 out of 6 stars ain't bad. Your actual mileage may vary. Still would like to see some data from NHTSA and IIHS.
So the results look great with the 2.5L engine they tested it with. Still wondering why U.S. tests have not been performed yet?
According to a post in the thread, the fix involves adding padding and removing a bracket (not sure what this means, though.)
I'm calling my dealer first thing tomorrow!
I'm sure you get used to it with time behind the wheel...
Plus, I looked inside of it (brand new by the way) and it was a 6 spd! MAAAAN!!
ME RIKEY!!
One magazine road test found the shifter "balky". Is yours?
I'm coming out of a lease on a 2000 Manual Lincoln LS and I lust after the under 6 second 0-60 of the G35. The LS is 7.4 - too slow!
What I have heard is that the "take rate" on the MTX G35 is like the LS was, and the IS300 and CTS are now - about 2% of G35 production. So there should be a good choice of cars at a fair price.
Typically, the dealers don't like to stock the six-speeds. Did you have to order yours? Did you have to pay list?
I'll have to check their web sites to see if they post their new car inventory on line.
I know that the Lincoln dealers here in San Diego do, and just one dealer has like 52 LSes in stock. At the raised 03 price, the loaded ones list for over 47k, and they are not moving. LM has offered to buy the last 4 months of my lease if I leased a new one. But at about 45k for 6.4 seconds (V8 auto - the MTX is discontinued), I could almost get a stripped FX45 that will probably match the 0-60 and cornering is not that far off. And of course, the G35 MTX will blow the LS's doors off, but it is slightly smaller and probably not as "luxurious". But then, the G35 is lighter and I am not after the luxury as much as performance and the "near-luxury" is something I have to take to get any RWD sedan anymore.
One reason the LS MTX was doomed was LM's failure to promote the car and the dealers refusing to even have one on the lot. The Cadillac dealers are almost as bad with the CTS (the salespeople probably don't know how to drive a stick), but I imagine the Lexus and Infiniti dealers may stock a few MTX. I had no problem ordering my LS MTX. My San Diego dealer found mine sitting in the back of an LA dealers lot for 4 months. It was made in Feb 2000, and I bought it July 1. There may be a vast amount of G35 MTXes sitting around in dealer lots all over the USA.
The biggest question I have is should I get the package with NAV? I would hardly ever use it. Do I have to get NAV to get other stuff?
2. I drove a manual CTS at the Caddy dealership off Highway 8. The salesguy was a total boob. He knew jack squat about the car, he laughed that Caddy even made a manual tranny car and he kept trying to sell me on silly features...4 channel ABS?! When he asked me if I'd buy that 38k wreck I told him in my opinion it wasn't nearly as refined, enjoyable or athletic as the competition made by BMW, audi or Infiniti. He scoffed and told me, "This is a caddilac. It doesn't compete with those cars." Uh, okay.
3. Go to freshalloy.com, the poster's name in the G35 section is DFW_Infiniti. He works for Grubbs Infiniti. Just do a search in the g35 section for VPP. He's a nice guy with tons of info on the G35. If I do buy one i'll probably contact him before even bothering with Discovery or Hoehn Infiniti in San Diego.
thebug...
The problem is that if you want a 4 door, RWD manual sedan, it will only come in a "Near-luxury" or full-luxury package. I guess we lost the "stripped" sedans back in the 60's, before the dreaded FWD Plague started.
Anyway, I will stop by Discover (I live in La Mesa) and see what the game is. I talked to Danny at Grubbs last month about an FX45 but they wanted to dump an in-stock car on me complete with Satellite radio. $49,000, list $53,000. I think I'm still in shock at the mention of the $850 lease payment. I've also E-mailed Arnold at Riverside Infiniti but they don't want to play until I am ready late this month. I'm trying to decide between the MTX Sedan or the FX45 in the lightest exterior color. It's funny that some dealers have a bunch of product and others just shoot it out the door.
BTW, I live between La Mesa and College, in the Rolando area.
Back to the MTX G35. I surmise that we both are in the market for this car. I need to buy at month's end or early June.
Let's keep communication open on our efforts as I am now in the "dealer tease" mode. I think my E-mail is in my profile.
Oh, just looked up your profile.
I'm not fully committed to the G just yet. A friend owns one and he loves that car with all his heart. Just hard for me to reconcile blowing 30k on a sporty sedan when I can get by quite easily with something smaller, cheaper and less luxurious.
E-me as this is off-topic. Thanks, everybody.
Oh wait, they don't, do they (there goes Edmunds!).
You are correct that a Corolla will hold as many people and as much stuff as a G35, and take yo the same places for 1/2 the price, just not as fast.
2020 Acura RDX tech SH-AWD, 2023 Maverick hybrid Lariat luxury package.
Too bad the supply is so tight. Not that I need one now, but the supply/demand equation isn't looking good for much of a deal with an 8 month wait on orders.
Also too bad the color selection is pretty weak now, but the red is starting to grow on me.
2020 Acura RDX tech SH-AWD, 2023 Maverick hybrid Lariat luxury package.
I know one doesn't need a 30k sports sedan. I'm still struggling with that. I know what I like and I like luxury and speed and handling. I know what my brain likes: frugality.
stanny, I already know the mls history. thanks though.
If you have the BIG BUCKS, there is always the M5 (of course, I would wait for the V-10 in next years model).
I'm self-employed, so 80% of my lease payments are a total write-off.
Of course, if I was looking for a huge tax credit, I would buy an H2 Hummer. Vehicles over 6000 lbs get a huge tax credit originally meant for industrial, commercial and farm equipment.
Nissan is bringing out a Titan-based SUV in the fall to add another vehicle to this list of bohemoths.
I'm not participating. These pigs are slow and the H2 has a .70g cornering ability, as well as painfully slow acceleration.
Not my cup of tea.
Karl, I don't have to be frugal. I'm 55 and my house payment is $503 a month. Uncle Sam wants 10k more this year and I need tax deductions!
I either pay the IRS, buy a bigger house (or refinance) or lease a more expensive car.
The G35 is really not big enough a payment. I should look at an FX45.
But then the real estate bubble may pop soon here in Socal, and a $500 lease payment may be better than a $900 on a FX45.
I like to row my own too much and I don't know if I could drive an automatic. The constant use of brakes, the low pad life, and the woorry about yearly fluid changes makes my life more complicated.
My LS MTX has 41k on the original pads and a lot of life left. Of course, the clutch and tranny may be wearing out. And it's on the third set of tires already, but the LS has been a lot of slow fun. I'm ready for the less than 6 second 0-60 now.
Low brake pad life on automatic cars? I have never heard that complaint before.
Emotionally I think most of us in here want the most performance, luxury, refinement and safety for our buck. We want value (whatever we value - economy, speed, cupholders, navi-systems, etc) for our cash. You, if I'm not mistaken from past exchanges, value your BMW's buttery-smooth engine, supple shape and outstanding grace in the twisties. You desire those things from a car but you certainly do not need them. We could drop you in a 92 Geo Prizm and you'd be upset but the car would serve its purpose.
Others in here value the G35's performance v. cost. Still others on Edmunds value brand-new speed and low prices - thus they end up in a WRX.
I will forever struggle with my emotional side's keen desire to have something fun and my logical side that slaps my hand away from the sports car/sedan's steering wheel. The G35 sedan with MTX pretty much fulfills my every desire in a car: smooth, refined, fast, athletic, roomy, reliable. But logically speaking, I don't need (as in will not be able to sustain life without this object) anything that fast, large, agile or expensive. A 3 year old Maxima can get the job done...I'll just be bored silly and frustrated each time I take a corner. It's funny because even if the G35 sold for 12k, 25k, or 50k I'd still weigh the cost vis a vis need and always come shaking my head. Sometimes I'm too darn responsible...
Driving a manual on the highway glazed the pads, which ate the rotors, rather than consuming the pads, I think. Not that I'm complaining about getting 130k out of rotors
You shouldn't pay a lot for something so small and slow.
Lexus made a mistake in bringing out a manual so late, and then just a five speed.
Compared to my current Lincoln LS MTX, which is bigger than a 5 series and just smaller than a 7 series, I would feel like I was driving an old Corolla.
I had one of those, a 74 SR-5 with factory fender flares, and it was boy-racer fun when I was younger.
But just like the 3 series, it's just too small for family duty and taking clients out.
Compared to the larger G35, it's just a different class.
The IS300 is smaller, lighter, slower (until you add all the aftermarket stuff). Then you might = the performance of the G35 but you'll spend more in the end.
The G just needs a better exhaust. Nismo is working on that now. Both cars could use bigger wheels and tires, but the G MTX is pretty close.
Too bad you can't get the "Track" option on the G. But you can install the LSD from the Z very easily, and there are alternatives to the expensive Brembos out there.
Blistering speed and zero luxury or frills = WRX.
stanny1, the autocross scene at the Q is looking bleak. I'm out of town for May, nothing in June, July's been cancelled, and nothing's scheduled yet beyond that. At this rate, it doesn't matter whether or not the G35 has an LSD.
I laughed out when I heard this. True, the WRX is a single minded instrument custom-made for the driving enthusiast. The upcoming WRX STi, with its 300hp/300Torque engine with gobs of low-end torque, the 6-speed manual transmission and the Driver Controlled Center Differential (DCCD) that splits power 36/64 front/rear (in default conditions with a 0/100 front/rear variability like when accelerating and when conditions demand that) and a mechanical Torque-sensing differential in the front and a Torque-sensing Differential in the rear, along with some goodies like the HIDs standard, huge Brembo brakes with 4-channel super-sport ABS (only some Mercedes models have super-sport ABS) and seats that will literally velcro a driver in place, is an even better single-minded driving tool, since it comes at a relatively bargain basement price of $31,500 (Dealer markup however is rumored to be around 5-8K - which is pathetic - along with waiting lists). But with 4.6secs 0-60 and 13.1secs @110mph?? Quarter mile (Car and Driver), it may be a little too much for some people, especially with the boy-racer (but functional) wing-spoiler and the huge-azz functional hood-scoop (that funnels air into the air-to-air intercooler).
But I lauged at the comment that "the interior hints rather ostensibly at the sub-$20k car", since that presupposes that the G35, hints at much more than the interior of a $20K car, which, IMO is stretching. $20K cars have come a long way from an interior design perspective. Having RWD, 6-speed manual trans, the Nissan VQ series engine and a spacious interior (when compared to others like the 3-series, IS300 etc) and a relatively cheap price are big plusses, however.
I really wish Nissan would bring over the Skyline GT-r, as an Infiniti, which is more of a direct competitor to the ferocious STi. At least bring over the AWD of the GT-r onto the G35 line.
Later...AH
It's obvious that this is the place where they saved the money, but I don't think it's a bad interior. and, there seems to be a glass house effect with the G35, in that a lot of people don't prefer the aluminum look panels, etc.
I like both interiors, and think that both are appropriate for the type of vehicle they are in. Add leather, softer touch plastics, and Nav to the WRX, and it would be a different class of vehicle, as Saab is going to put to the test.
Finally get into a G35 sedan with MTX. His big attempt to show me how the G35 sedan is better than a BMW 3 series - better cupholders. i kid you not. Who buys a car for cupholders?! I don't allow drinks in my cars, let alone the use of cupholders.
We drive off the lot and he tells me to hop on the freeway. I inform him that I want to get a feel for the manual and the car's handling. He nods and tells me to stay on the freeway for a few exits. finally, he tells me to exit. i do and again mention I'm not interested in freeway riding (it's not driving on the darned freeway) but rather how the car handles. His response, turn left really sharply. What? I turn left and he tells me to turn left again and get back on the freeway!
Okay maybe he's taking me to an area he knows offers great switchbacks. I don't know Escondido well, so I follow his lead. At this point I'm a bit annoyed by the drone of the salesguy, the wind noise and the notchy 6 speed.
So do we go to some fun roads? Nope, he has me get off the freeway and return to the dealership. He then asks me if I'd like to buy today!
I tell him i'm not real satisfied and maybe I can talk to another salesperson. He's appalled, demanding I tell him why. Um, because I haven't had a chance to drive the car in a manner where I can test the manual and the handling. Shifting up to 6th gear twice is not a test of a car!
He storms off to get the manager (rather than getting a new salesperson). The manager asks what seems to be the problem. i explain that I'd like to test the car out in terms of handling. He tells me, "You just drove it, you know how it handles."
What? I explain slowly, sensing the man's a twit, I merely drove it on the freeway, which is not any indication of a car's athletic prowess. He counters with a question about my auto reading habits and how R&T, MT and others rave about the handling. I tell him again, I'd like to feel the car for myself. His customer service friendly response?
"Where would you like to drive it?"
I don't know the area! Don't you have a test run set up for buyers who want to really exploit the car's abilities. It is afterall a sports sedan.
"All of our other buyers make the decision based on that drive. If you don't like it, I'm sorry but that's out test route."
I politely tell him I find that impossible to believe and then add in that BMW took me on a 10 mile trip through various hills, freeways and such so i could feel the automobile on all surfaces and in all situations. He scoffs. I tell him good day and leave.
What the heck happened to customer service? BMW (who has rising sales still) throws out all the stops for me. Infiniti, still struggling to get a name, tells me a freeway jaunt should show off the G35's athleticism! Unbelievable.
BTW, I test drove an 04 Maxima SE manual today too. That salesguy listened to me and I hit some incredible hills, mountains and twists. Very composed, powerful, quiet, ugly car.
Still waiting for a chance to try a 330i with manual (can't find one in San Diego).
My salesman at Discover Infiniti in Kearny Mesa was more accomodating about the off-freeway driving. Plus, the Infiniti in Carlsbad recently changed hands from Discover to Hoehn, if you're looking for another option. I imagine they're not fully prepared for the new types of vehicles Infiniti is providing them.. after all, the I35 and Q45 are straight-up luxury cars. You'd think they could at least be nicer about it, though. You might want to consider making an appointment instead of just showing up, as well, and let them know what you want to do ahead of time.
As for the bimmer I got a call that a 330i with stick will arrive May 22nd. So I'm looking forward to that test drive.