Infiniti G35 Sedan 2006 and earlier

sopecreek

bread test is weak, and may as well be counter-productive, I mean you may do better with pressing down with hand argument only. If you really want to go with the bread, then at least try other cars (non-G35). Then you can strengthen your point a bit by showing that other cars do not fail the test.

jiamin

I tested auto windows on my QX4 and RX300 by hand pressing down, and found they could reverse anywhere. Then I tested with my arm and found my arm didn't feel any pain at the point of reverse, or at least someone may just start to feel a little pain.

I don't think there is any stop switch for the reverse, as the object in the window path can be any size. My best guess is that since power window uses DC motor, whenever/wherever there is a resistance, the motor current will increase to a point that triggers the "reverse" function.

ficuss

sopecreek, again, I didn't want to risk breaking a tempered glass window. I'll let Infiniti decide to do the more rigorous test on their own.

Frank

bigorange30

That was great man. One has to realize that a loaf of bread is not an appendage or a phalange. It has no bone in it so it is not hard enough.

ficuss: Your car may be defective. The design is that the window retracts if it runs into a certain amount of resistance that makes the motor work harder to raise the window. A loaf of bread will not offer enough resistance. Why don't you just take it to the dealer and show the service tech how you can press on the window and not make the window retract. I suggest you not tell him about the bread unless you want to be laughed out of the dealership.

sopecreek

I agree with bigorange30. Don't tell them anything about the bread test, it will do opposite of what you are trying to achieve.

bezahar

In all reality the auto up is probably a whole lot safer then not having it.

If I didn't have it it be holding the button up and any apendages that were out the window would get pinched. I'm sure I'd stop after a few minutes of screaming, there kids they're always screaming.

BTW I always had fun catching my dad's hair in the windows when he fell asleep in the car. Never noticed it till he'd go to get out of the car...

ficuss

I brought the G35 in to Infiniti to check the window operation. The windows would not stop in the up direction if a constant pulling force was applied in the down direction. They would stop and reverse when they encountered a solid object at the top of the window channel. I guess this is the design.

Frank

blueguydotcom

Ahem, the Crossfire is over 95% German with an American badge. Not the I like German, but get your facts right.

Ahem, I do know the facts. Don't condescend me. I'm well aware of the crossfire's origins and underpinnings. Regardless of where mopar claims the car came from, it's still a dodge. Sell it at a mopar dealership and have mopar's salespeople and service people handling the car from the get go and it's really no better than a cruddy PT or Neon sitting in the lot beside it. DC has fallen apart since the merger. Look at the latest JD Power surveys. Mercedes has changed greatly in the past few years. Entirely for the worse.

I do not think it looks as cheap as the G35 from the inside, either.

To each his own. I've been in both and the crossfire to me was very low rent.

bigorange30

No way a Chrylser will compete with the G. Anyone that would consider a G would not ever look at a Chrylser product. The Crossfire looks like a squatty PT Cruiser anyway.

clpurnell

Bigorange don't be so quick to judge there. I own a Chrysler 300M and considered the G35 as a replacement. I actually ended up buying an fx35 instead of the G. I know a couple others on FA that traded or kept their 300's when they bought their FX's. My chrysler is a great car with lousy service. The car itself isn't bad and while it has had a few problems if they would have been fixed in a timely manner it would have made the ownership experience far more pleasant. However it is now the ugly step daughter of the garage

bigorange30

and many times you even add a lot of time in the shop to that poor treatment from the service department when you have Chryslers.

I own a Ford in addition to my QX4 and the troubles as well as treatment from the service department are drastically different between them.

kdshapiro

Hmmm. Well my Ford dealer treated me like gold and was far less trouble than my supposed reliable Nissans. The Nissan dealer treatment was just below average, while I liked the Service Advisor. Everybodys' mileage is different.

bigorange30

are 2 different worlds. You can't lump them together.

clpurnell

Would I buy another Chrysler? No Why?
No loaners for a 30k+ car
Horrible service departments
Short warranty (mine is a 2001 before 7/70 powertrain)
Suspect material quality

However I think if Chrysler marketed the brand as a premium brand (meaning drop the pt,neon and sebring better service, free loaners etc). I would definately cross shop because outside of nissan/infiniti , mazda, cadillac and Chrysler everyone else makes totally boring cars to look at and drive. Nissan/infiniti I think offers the best mix of performance/style/reliability/value of the group above. Mazda is probably second and Chrysler has it pegged on style/value but reliability, performance and service leaves a lot to be desired IMHO.

bigorange30

except that I would include Toyota not because they make interesting designs but because they make such good quality with average styling that I think you can't ignore them. Now if money is tight, you would also have to include Honda as they also have great quality but even less styling than Toyota.

kdshapiro

The Honda Accord Coupe is extremely stylish, more stylish than a lot of competitive and higher priced designs.

bigorange30

It is not shared by many though. It is very boring to many people.

sopecreek

looks bland and boring to me. I think kdshapiro is being sarcastic here...

kdshapiro

Correct bigorange. It is my opinion. And I'm not being sarcastic. For the money, it is a great package all in all. It's clearly a car I would consider at it's price point, if not for the lack of two doors.

cjs2002

sorry to pester ya'll but I'm down to my last two cars and would like ya'lls opinion... G35 sedan and a C230 sedan.... like both of them... now it comes down to feature vs features for the price amounts.... ec... anyways anyones thoughts questions cars or concerns? thanx

kdshapiro

I would get the G35. Those low-end Mercedes are "too-low".

himiler

A huge majority of the $$ that MB spends on warranty work can be attributed to the C and M models. Beware.

chrisboth

well it's only 2.3 liters need i say more

cjs2002

power doesn't bother me much... its how the car looks, handles, and fells like on the inside while I'm driving it down the road.... so I don't know... like em both having a touph time deciding... thanx

chinee

Does the size matter to you? Obviously the MB is smaller, but if you don't have passengers regularly or the need for a large trunk, the MB may very well suit you fine.

On the other hand, the message I get when I first saw it was "cheap Benz", the same message I got when I first saw the 318i hatchback. But then again, that might be me being a little too superficial.... Can't you get a C240 sedan for very close to $30K? That IMO would be a better choice than the 230...no?

Also, the MB will probably yield better MPG than the mid to high teens that G owners are experiencing (21-25 on the highway).

Good luck with your decision....

clpurnell

I would stay away from the c-class. major problems with them that make rattles and fast wearing breaks look like christmas gifts. You would do better to consider a base 325 vs the G (did I just say that) than the c230.

msiseng

LOL @ Mopar!

We do agree on at least one point...Mercedes sucks!

rqc

I drove the C230 Sport, the C320 Sport, the G35, 330i, Volvo S60R and a few others as I'm trying to find the right car. I have been monitoring the Mercedes board and the C-Class problems seem to have been mainly in the 2001 model. The C230 Sport (and the 320) were surprisingly good cars. I would like them to use a different pattern for the automatic sportshift, but otherwise they combine luxury and sport very well. Kinda depends what you're looking for. The things that are holding me back on the G35 sedan are: interior needs improvement, too much exterior chrome (door handles - yuck!), thin paint, and the crazy way the manual shift mode of the automatic works.

cjs2002

thankx..... I like both cars... and yes I do enjoy having the extra bit of room of the G35, but I like the styling of the C better .... as far as the 240 goes its the same size as the C230 sedan and has a few interior differences ie glass is tinted green and not blue, wood trim, and a couple other small things... other than that they are the same but with different engines.. which is why I chose the C230 sedan cause it had a bit more pep than the 240. I don't know.. I have till the last week of august to decide... thats when I have to chose which car I want...BTW I'm begining to like the G more and more too... question.. someone told me it has intergrated fog lights... what on earth does that mean... thanx(ps. dad started a business and he wants to buy the car under the company name as a company car since I do a lot of running around for him... and if thats the case then I may choose to buy a slightly used or new E class mercedes... any comments... thanx)

chinee

I thought you were considering the 230 coupe.

Integrated fogs...hmmm, how to best describe? See these pix, third from the bottom I think...
http://g35driver.com/rides/detailride.php?cat=&relIdx=18&- vehId=393

The top light is the low beam, the bottom uses a dual filament bulb for fogs/ high beams. I was a little disappointed not having a separate set of fog lights, but there's so much about this car to like that the disappointment's easily forgotten.

cjs2002

thanks... and no... I don't like coupes...(mainly cause it kills my insurance) but yeah its the 4Doors i was lookin at... thanks for the tip about the fog lights

msiseng

I happen to like the lights. There is less chance for water to build up and short the bulb as with lower-placed fog lights. Had many other vehicles where this was commonplace.

doctoro2

The coupe looked great when it first came out. But after a while it was apparent the rear styling is poor - the proportion isn't right. I find the lines of the sedan, especially the rear deck and back (once they changed the trunk design on the 2003 1/2 model)to be more appealing. I wouldn't want to own a coupe based on the current design.

sopecreek

Agree! I thought it was just I. The look of G35 sedan grew on me. Just like you, I now prefer the sedan to the coupe in terms of appearance. And the coupe without the rear spoiler looks strange. So get the spoiler if you want a coupe. The sedan looks good either way.

dane4

Greetings All!

I did a search on this forum and didn't find the subject matter so I just wanted to mention this. If it hasn't been discussed already, Infiniti is one of the Sponsors of the Tour de France, and if you want to see about 25 G35 commercials per hour then watch the Tour on OLN (Outdoor Life Network)

I've been following the Tour for the last few years and just got into road cycling recently. Its a fantastic sport and the OLN coverage is very good.

It is a thing, mildly ironic to me, that the event is so central to the French and Europe in general, and yet is dominated by an American from of all places, Texas (I think the French would be happier if he had been from New York, or San Francisco, or even Vermont...) and yet, 97% of people in this country say "Tour de What?"

Lance is well on his way now toward his 5th straight tour win. That's like a pro football team winning the superbowl 5 times in a row!

Have fun all!

Feanor/Dane4

chrisboth

I think he get plenty of respect there. He is not a big talking redneck like some others.

dane4

I believe that in the last few tours the French have really turned around and much of the "animosity" toward Lance has disapated and/or is held by a very small collection of "uptight" types that just always seem to get more press and coverage than the vast majority.

After yesterdays win atop Ardiden I think things like his pat on the back as he passed the French Rider "Chavanel"? to take the stage lead have gone a long long way toward his acceptance by the French as not just an "American", but as a world class athlete who has earned the right for respect.

I never really bought into the mindset that the French were being asses after Lance's first two tour wins, can you imagine what the reception in this country would be if the Japanese National Baseball team came into this country and somehow swept the World Series 5 times in a row? I think the French reaction was quite understandable (Though not so in many other things other than the Tour! *laughing*)

Now if only Infiniti became the MAIN sponsor instead of Subaru... I think Lance zipping around in an Infiniti for commercials would be a great thing!

Have fun all!

Faenor/Dane4

stebu

Well, I agree I'd rather be seeing more of the G35's and less of the Outback's during the multitude of commercials during the tour. But, if it really took the French this long to "respect" Lance, considering his accomplishments, I'd say the problem lies with the beholders. Personally, I think they're still hung up on the fact that Lemond won it 3 times. Hey... whatever.

toastiebuns

husband & I looking at used (july/02) G35. Prem pack, Nav, Aero, Sport, xenon lights, chrome wheels.. ? Owner claims fully loaded 20,000 miles. Saw car looks very clean. Asking $29,700 firm. Love G35, do you think this is good deal or should we just bite bullet and buy new? If new we would only get Prem, Aero, Sport. Best price we've found $34, and change. Help would be greatly appreciated. Husband meeting owner at Infiniti dealer thurs for inspection Thnks

chrisboth

and independent inspection on a rack is needed. And i'd day buy it. 20k and it will smell new and it's about broken in. Tell him 29 even and wait for him to flinch..

blueguydotcom

Keep contacting dealers. They should be willing to part with a 2003 G35 for near invoice by now. 2 months ago they were selling 03's for about 500-1000 over invoice. Figure a 4dr with premium, aero, sport should be about 32k.

30k for a G35 with everything seems extremely high - especially with 20k miles in a little over a year. That's high mileage. And the car cost maybe 35-36k brand new. This joker wants you to believe he only used up 15% of the car in what could be 15 months of ownership? No way. You lose 10% the moment you drive off the lot. He'd be lucky to get 27k on a trade in right now.

effinponderous

You would be better off buying new. I financed my fully loaded sedan ($39K) for 72 months at only 5.9% I know you can pick up 48 months at 2.9% and 60 months at 3.9%. Compare that with a used car loan and you should have about the same monthly payment as buying used. In addition, you get the benefit of the loaner cars from the dealer, as well as who knows how this guy took care of the car at it's most important time (break in).

cubster2

I am considering buying the G35; however, because the car is rear wheel drive, I have HUGE concerns about how it will handle in the snow. Of course, I have received all of the pitches from the salesman about how that is a misperception about current rear wheel models... I was told "the new designs and the traction control help to eliminate any problems in the snow." Since I work in advertising, I am highly skeptical about these remarks. So, I would like to hear from actual drivers about their experience with driving the G35 in the snow. I have seen that there is a lot of interest in the AWD, and am wondering if this is because the G35 does not handle well in the snow.

Would appreciate any and all comments. THANKS!

blueguydotcom

you get the benefit of the loaner cars from the dealer, as well as who knows how this guy took care of the car at it's most important time (break in).

He'd still get loaner cars from the dealer. You buy an infiniti that's under warranty and you get the same perks as someone who bought it brand new.

kdshapiro

"Since I work in advertising, I am highly skeptical about these remarks."

Wow, I've never worked in advertising and would be highly skeptical. I think you hit the nail on the head, with your comment about AWD. I drive a RWD BMW and without snow tires, I didn't even take it out of the garage during some of last winters snow storms. If you are concerned, get snows, AWD or AWD and snows.

toastiebuns

Thanks for your thoughts. Is it worth buying new, paying the taxes, taking the deprecation hit even if we can get a rate to match or even a bit better than used? We plan on putting money down. With new the taxes would chew up aprox. 2K. With used the down payment goes directly to the sale amount. Even if dealer could put us in car with same payments on loan ? we would not get as many options in the car as in the used. Sorry if this sounds like rambling we've never bought new and never payed this much for used. Never had car payments. So a lot of this is really new to us. We've always bought used north american 2 - 3 years old. Need I say more. We hope the G35 will last us longer than 7yrs with less maintenance.Thanks for all your help!

blueguydotcom

Is it worth buying new, paying the taxes, taking the deprecation hit even if we can get a rate to match or even a bit better than used?

You still pay taxes on a used car. At least you do in california. When you register you get taxed.

 We hope the G35 will last us longer than 7yrs with less maintenance.Thanks for all your help!

Well the one major positive of buying new on a car you plan to keep for 7+ years - you get the full warranty for 4 years/60k miles. Find out when this cat bought his car. It's got 20k miles and it may be 15-16 months into the warranty too. Thus you're left with 2.8 years and 40k miles of warranty.

Also, if you're keeping a car for 7 years, depreciation will not be a factor. A 2003 with 140k miles (say the used one in 7 years) v. a 2003 with 120k miles in 7 years will be slightly less worthless.

What extras are you getting with the used one? A navi? It's a $2000 toy that's more neato unless you travel or are in real estate.

Are there states that don't make you pay sales tax on used cars? wow.

tdub45

Has anyone noticed that the air vents for the driver seem to be blocked by the sterring wheel - especially on the right side? I test drove one and found that I could not get that blast of cold air in the face that you sometimes need down here in the South!

erickpl

I was looking at the information for the G35c, but am looking for more specifics on the sedan. Is a wood trim available instead of the metal trim? Also is the 6spd available for the sedan yet?

We are looking to get rid of our SUV and get a G to replace it and my wife, while she DID like the coupe, didn't care for the aluminum or graphite trim packages.

-Paul

blueguydotcom

Also is the 6spd available for the sedan yet?


Yep. It's a smooth 6 speed too.