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You stated "don't worry about the now waranteed brakes" in post #914. Please tell me where you have found this information. Some people have had their front brakes and rotors replaced for free, but it has not been true for everyone. If you have something in writing from Infiniti or the dealer or a TSB number please share it with everyone. Thanks
BMW provides free maintenance for a few years; however, once the warranty period expires maintenance is very expensive. In addition, BMW's reliability is nowhere near Infiniti's.
I bought the BMW brand new in April of 1999 and it now has 70k miles on it. I have had all four of the window motors / actuators replaced, the air conditioner compressor has been replaced twice, the front suspension has been substantially replaced, the thermostat has been replaced twice and a few leaks have been repaired. Additionally, I've replaced the front headlights twice and changed the tail lights once. Currently, the front windows rattle and the transmission / gear indicator (PRND, etc.) does not work correctly. These problems manifested themselves from about 12k miles to about 65k miles. Fortunately, I bought an extended warranty.
Maintenance is not cheap on a BMW. According to my dealer and several independent mechanics, you have to replace the brake rotors and the pads when replacing the brakes (apparently, they use a combination of soft rotors and hard pads to get stopping power resulting in rotors that will squeek / grind with new pads). The dealer wanted $1,200 to replace the brakes. I got it done at in independent mechanic for $600. When the battery died on the car, I couldn't get an aftermarket battery quickly as they are special order items at Walmart/Sams, Pep Boys, NTB and Interstate batteries. The battery is a special size to fit in the trunk and is vented. I had to spend $280 at the dealer to get a replacement battery. The Service II - at about 64k miles was priced at $800 at the dealer. Since the car has a maintenance minder, you have to find a mechanic that can reset the maintenance lights.
I live in Southwest Houston and dealer service for the BMW dealer in Southwest Houston is OK. They fix the items in a timely basis, but there is an incredible amount of sales pressure every time I have to go in for any service or repair. Last time, they wanted me to get a brake flush for the car and replace the drive belts (I didn't have it done).
I bought the G35 brand new in April of 2003 (early production model) and now has 17k miles on it - the only issue we have had is the microchip blowing out in the center stack rendering the HVAC and CD player inoperable. I have had no problems with the paint and at the last service, they said the brakes should go another 10 - 15k miles. I use a dealer in West Houston for my Infiniti and the service is far superior to BMW - there is minimal sales pressure and the items are serviced / repaired much more quickly. Additionally, I can go to Jiffy Lube or Walmart and get my oil changed, as I don't have that annoying service indicator light that needs to be reset.
As a car to car comparison - the BMW's materials and fit-and-finish provide more of luxury feeling than the G. The car still looks good today and wear is not obvious. Also, the BMW drives better at lower speeds (below 70MPH) and on rougher pavement. The G is a much more commodious car - people in the back seat don't feel cluastrophobic and the trunk is nearly 40% larger than the 3. Also, the G actually drives better at higher speeds than the 3 (at 70MPH+). Gas mileage for the G is a sore point - I get about 24 MPG mixed driving for the 3 series and about 20/21 MPG for the Infiniti. The interior materials don't measure up to the BMW and they will show more wear than the BMW over time. By the way - the control stalks don't light up in either car, but the redundant radio controls on the steering wheel are illuminated in the BMW.
All that being said, both cars are great cars, but I would have to give the Infiniti the nod as an easier car to own, operate and maintain.
I would never buy a used car unless it was dirt cheap or CPO. I compare that against my new BMW that has been serviced twice in the last 16 months, May 03 and August 02. Nothing broke, nothing wore out, nothing squeaks or rattles and hasn't used a drop of oil in 6,000 miles.
The good news: Just talked to a friend at Nissan, who says that Infiniti is announcing this week that they are gonna cover the G35 brakes for 3 years or 36,000 miles.
So now that the brakes are a non-issue, I guess I just have to consider the other factors.
Good luck, everyone!
He said I had 5/32 after 15K. Min = 3-4/32. Pretty agressive wear but I got what I expect from Infiniti. Excellent service.
Thanks for the post. I was intending to compare the ownership experience of having a BMW and an Infiniti. Having owned the BMW for nearly 5 years - I was hoping to illustrate that every car (no matter how great they are) have their share of problems. In fact, the problems that people complain about the G35 seem to be less severe than the problems that I have experienced with the BMW.
As I mentioned in the post - I purchased the BMW new in early 1999 and have had problems pop up as early as 12k miles. I've had less problems with the Infiniti at 17k miles than when I had the BMW at 17k miles. Moreover, there are elements of the ownership experience that are not related to the age or mileage of the vehicle - such as the sales pressure at the BMW dealer during service or the exorbitant prices for parts or the lack of service options due to the BMW maintenance minder system.
If you really want the details, the following is the service and repairs that I have performed on my 1999 BMW 328, the 2003 Infiniti G35, 1997 Nissan Maxima SE, 1991 Infiniti G20 and 1986 Mazda RX-7. As you will see, the BMW has been significantly more repair intensive than any car that I have owned previously.
1999 BMW 328:
Service - every 15k miles per maintenance system
Tires - 36k, 70k
Brakes - 55k
Headlights - 50k, 65k
Taillights, turn signals - 55k
Battery - 45k
Repairs:
Window motors / actuators - 12k, 36k, 50k (the last one actually broke the rear passenger window when the motor failed)
Window creaks - began at 12k miles, still have them
5 Recalls - 12k, 36k, 50k (emission system, brakes, air bags, etc.)
Air Conditioning - 40k, 65k
Thermostat - 36k, 60k
Front Suspension - Began at 45k finally got the dealer to give in at 55k
Transmission Gear Indicator - 65k
Various Leaks - 20k, 35k, 60k
2003 Infiniti G35
Service - every 4k, per schedule (it's free from the dealer for 3 years)
Repairs:
Microchip in Center Stack - 6k
Recalls - 6k, 12k (Emission Controls, Headlights)
1997 Nissan Maxima:
Service:
Oil change - every 5k miles
Major Service - 30k, 60k, 90k
Battery - 40k, 100k
Tires - 50k, 100k
Brakes - 60k
Repairs:
Alternator - 110k (got rid of the car)
1991 Infiniti G20:
Service:
Oil change - every 5k miles
Major Service - 30k, 60k, 90k
Battery - 35k, 75k
Tires - 40k, 70k
Brakes - 40k, 90k
Repairs:
Engine Mounts - 70k (made the car feel smoother)
Thermostat / overheating - 105k (got rid of the car)
1986 Mazda RX-7:
Service:
Oil change - every 3k miles
Major Service - Didn't do them
Battery - 50k, 100k
Tires - 40k, 80k
Brakes - 50k
Headlights - 60k
Repairs:
Rear Seal Failure - 120k (got rid of the car)
"2003 Infiniti G35
Service - every 4k, per schedule (it's free from the dealer for 3 years)"
Service is not free. Unless you worked out something when you purchased your car, service is not free for the G35.
My wife and I bought a '93 G20 in 1999. It was really just an "in-between" car, when she turned in her leased Accord and when we were going to buy her a brand new car. We actually wound up keeping it 2 years because we really liked it. It was short on power, but otherwise good. It had about 60,000 miles when we bought it, and almost 80,000 miles when we sold it. We had NO problems with it whatsoever. No brakes, nothing. We only replaced the tires because the others were worn out. But right when we were getting rid of it, we started to notice a clunking noise when it shifted from 1st to 2nd or 2nd to 3rd. Turns out the motor mounts were dry rotting and letting the motor shift in its' mounts. Not dangerous, more of an annoyance. Seems every car has an "achilles heel"
Hopefully the brakes are the G35s' only heel, and it looks now like Infiniti is stepping up and doing the right thing by putting warranties on them.
For those who do not like me standing up for consumer rights, skip my posts. Easy as that. Use the advice of others and judge for yourself.
Higest trade-in for the '03, sparkling clean, G35 Sedan, under 8K miles, Loaded is $26,500 at this time for those who want to know. This is using Carmax who are wonderful to deal with. Most dealerships will not touch this price as they can get the car at auction for cheaper. Carmax does not have the same access to these auctions; therefore, they will pay more.
Thanks for all the nice emails showing support. There are very genuine and good people posting here.
You are correct in that Infiniti does not have a program to provide free scheduled maintenance for all cars. The dealer that I use in Houston offers this to be competitive with other luxury makes (e.g., BMW, MBZ, Audi, Saab, Volvo, etc.). Actually, some of the Lexus and Acura dealers in the region also offer 2 - 3 years of free service.
msiseng,
Sorry if my post came out a little rude. Who knows the G owners could have you to thank for this new warranty. Enjoy your ride and I hope you have no more problems.
My latest thing: the console has loosened, sags slightly to the side and wobbles. This has already been fixed once :<(.
Thanks. If so, it makes me much more of an Infiniti "believer".
Can anyone shed some light into this matter? Just when I thought I saw light at the end of the tunnel this limitation comes up.
Obcat what is your e-mail address? I would like to get a copy of the notice you have, thanks.
Obcat, your email address is not in your profile. I can post a copy of the letter on my webspace if needed.
Subject: G35 Brake Maintenance Program
Attention – Dealer Principals, Sales, Parts and Service Managers
***** General Program Information *****
Infiniti is committed to providing the highest levels of product quality and customer satisfaction. One of the many superior features of the award winning G35 is its excellent braking performance. This performance is due in part to advances in materials technology inherent in the brake pads on G35 sedans and automatic transmission coupes. However, that superior performance can result in some customers experiencing greater brake wear than they may have experienced with other
vehicles they may have previously owned or leased.
To ensure the highest levels of customer satisfaction, Infiniti is launching a program to provide brake pad and/or rotor replacement (or turning if appropriate) during normal vehicle maintenance or when the brakes exhibit audible wear warnings. This maintenance is for model year 2003 and 2004 G35 sedans and automatic transmission G35 coupes for 3 years from the original in-service date or 36,000 miles on the odometer, whichever occurs first. G35 Coupes with manual transmissions are Brembo-equipped and are not affected by this program.
The NHTSA is two subway stops from my office, so taking a few trips during my lunch hour is not an issue. They put a lot of pressure on Infiniti, but who knows what finally broke Infiniti Corporate? Could be a lawsuit behind the scenes that we do not know of?
clpurnell, no problem. I would like to think what I did behind the scenes with the NHTSA made some impact. However, I think it was everyone posting, writing letters and calling corporate that did the trick. Many emailed me from Edmunds.com and wrote letters to Infiniti and The NHTSA.
Proof is WHEN we actually see the Infiniti letter. Funny how they word the statement in the post above. Never admitting fault?
For now, the NHTSA mission, values and customer commitment can be accessed via the link below. They are awesome to deal with! Nice to see our government has a quality organization.
http://www.nhtsa.org/nhtsa/whatis/customer/customer.html
The coupe with the MT has Brembos in all cases, I believe, and I have not seen a complaint about those brakes, IIRC.
I'm not sure what type of fault Infiniti should admit. In my opinion, they chose a pad composition that wears out too fast. They made a mistake. It is not inferior, overall, b/c it does stop very well. I have personally experienced that.
msiseng, do you have proof of the "cover up" you alleged a few posts back?
"IF you have have had pads replaced, rotors turned or replaced AND you had this work completed by an Infiniti dealership Infiniti will reimburse you.
Infiniti will not reimburse for work that was not performed by a third party.
Just another reason to ALWAYS take your car to the dealer for maintenance."
Thanks to all of you for providing me with the info. These message boards are great!
Seriously, it only takes me about 15 minutes to do the oil change, and I'm one of those people who enjoys caring for their own cars. I've done all the oil changes in my wife's Acura since it was new.
I was just using an oil change as an example. From my experience in the auto industry, I have found many (not all) dealers charge outrageous labor rates and often don't do any better work than a well trained private mechanic.
I think with all vehicles, each dealer treats customers differently. My experience with Pontiac stunk, Nissan a little better, but still varied greatly from dealer to dealer.
Has anyone heard of this in this car or any other car, and do you know what the problem is (I'm not mechanically inclined)? More importantly, is this dangerous? I don't want to rip up the engine with the RPM's approaching redline. Any help is appreciated.
P.S. No brake problems yet.
Believe me this will change the attitude of your tranny and you'll get much quicker shifts also theres about 15-20 horses under the hood your ECU took back unless you've been flooring it every light...and wow is it fun to get those back..I reset every two weeks but I use the quicker method using a series of gas pedal sequences with the car on but not running we can reset the ECU as well. Sux but most cars have a adaptive ECU now.
Expect that this will lead to an impasse with the dealer.
Has anyone else had a similar problem with a recently delivered 2004 G35?
How does one get immediate attention of the NHSB on such a critical safety problem? General production cars unexpectly accelerating to 90 miles an hour is a significant highway hazard. I would anticipate that there is an erratic short in the fly by wire system, but one would think that they would have designed in fail safe behavior for any failures of the fly by wire system.
Obviously, this behavior in a car could cause a car crash, hopefully this is not a widespread problem.
To save yourself time, ask the dealer to order the seat track the first time. Some dealers skimp and try to do the job by tightening loose areas under the seat.
I brought the TSB into Jim Coleman so they could not deny its existence and suggest you do the same. Your dealer is most likely trustworthy, but better safe than sorry.
Below is the link to find and print a TSB.
http://www-odi.nhtsa.dot.gov/cars/problems/tsb/tsbsearch.cfm
Good luck!
Thanks;
Babs
A couple of things that jumped out at me: 1) there's nothing in the accelerator pedal or its linkage that could cause the pedal to move to the floor on its own. 2) The accelerations were not "uninitiated", since you did press on the pedal in at least two of the instances (not clear on the first instance). 3) There's definitely a mechanical linkage involved, since the pedal is physically "sticking".
It DOES seem that the pedal is refusing to return from a depressed position, (i.e., getting "stuck" in position). The drive-by-wire MIGHT be interpreting this fixed position as a continued request for acceleration.
I don't suppose it's something as simple as a floor mat that's catching on the accelerator pedal? Or just a sticking pedal linkage?
Keep us posted on the outcome.
read post #334 in this discussion;
someone had their G "lunging" in the freeway and their "Tach all over the place".
they ended up changing a sensor.
g'luck....