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Comments
Some things are worth what you have to deal with though ...
In the first year the G35 a/c was replaced, the drivers seat rocked off the track, the shifter was constantly loose, the paint chipped and pealed easily and the radio cd player broke three times. These were common issues and I think Infiniti fixed these for the '06 redesign.
I also drive a lot of loaner '06 G35s. Sometimes I get the '06 for four days to a week at a time. I am neither impressed with the design nor the cheap parts. The G35 will outrun the Acura any day which I see as the only positive.
The "racing" seats cut into your thighs and hurt when driving for over an hour. Moveover, your thighs hit the seat's power controls when driving. I am not a heavy man and have trouble with the Infiniti seat controls hitting my leg. The car feels like a Nissan Maxima and shares the same engine as the Nissan Maxima and the Nissan Altima 3.5. The differentiation appears to be in the styling and the FM design which makes you cough-up a vital organ when hitting a rough patch of road. I would say the Maxima's parts are superior quality to the cheap G36 interior.
Why does Infiniti insist on using the pitiful Bridgestone Turanza tires year after year?
Finding a good Infiniti service dealer is a chore if not impossible. I found a very good one 30 miles from my home.
Infiniti did not want to warranty the brakes or admit there was an issue with the '03 G35 model until people started writing the government in droves. The government pressured Infiniti to replace the brakes that wore-out in 10K miles. Now this is a safety issue a true "luxury" brand would fix immediately. It only took them over a year to admit there was an issue. Brake dust was and still is a huge issue even if Infiniti is now using an upgraded brake pad.
I would not purchase Infiniti again because of the cheap materials ('03 - '06) and from personal experience that Nissan of America does not listen or care about their customers until they are legally pressured.
Did Acura admit to the transmission issues a few years ago or did it take the government to hit them over the head to fix the problems?
We ended up with a 6spd TL. Love it, but it is nowhere near as fast as the G35 auto-stick was. I don't know if you could go wrong with either of these cars. But long term owners like msiseng have a lot of perspective worth listening to.
"Are you saying a G35 AUTO is quicker than the TL 6 speed?
Oh well, I gotta test drive the G35 sedan auto when my friend gets it...
I've test drove G35 Coupe manual at the dealer, but couldn't really push it...felt somehow mistreating a new car if I did.
TL, probably true with G35, you don't really feel the speed, on how fast you are accelerating...you find yourself often way overspeeding unknowlingly.
BTW, I've cracked my front windshield already and had to do a quick fix.
It's probably my bad luck, but it might be that TL's front windshield is kindda weak due to sound deadening layer...
Gonna replace it with aftermarket one if it breaks again.
As a matter of fact they are doing the same time and at times only a tenth of a second difference.
I test drove the six speed maunual on the TL and it felt like a six second car.
I will wait for the 2007 G35 in the fall because the one right now does not appeal to me.Also, I am going to check out it(07 model) out at the NYC Auto show this Saturday.
I've seen two test results.
If I remember it correctly, TL was .1 second slower in 0-60
but faster on quarter mile test.
On the other source, TL did 5.X second in the track (with a good setting for drag I guess), where the writer states TL was faster but didn't liked the front wheel drive-train.
So saying G35 auto sedan is "much faster" seems like an over statement.
Maybe saying "seems a tad bit faster maybe because of the engine makes a louder torquey noise" might be more approprite. :P
BTW, I'm a G35 (coupe) fan and only reason I chose TL over G35 was because of the interior (nice carbone fiber trim) and the price ($29K).
Hope to see the new G35s...
The lower price and better looks also earned my business. The G35 has an effeminate looking front IMO. Not for me.
Don't like the round headlamps and bulbous nose.
Both great rides but the TL costs less.
When I think of a family sedan, my wife's ES330 comes to mind. That's a real family sedan... smooth and boring.
I think you like your G35 auto sedan too much... :P
I drive a Nissan Z myself..but I must say over the last few years, I haven't really seen too my families tooling around in either car. Now some people might not like the TL's FWD when compared against it's competition (G35, IS, BMW) - but that doesn't seem to qualify it as a family sedan.
But I keep reading about the G35 (remember we are talking about the sedan here not the coupe, which I think of as a more pratical 350Z) being more weighted toward Performance, rather then luxury.
While this might be true from a "road feel" (RWD vs FWD) standpoint..there just doesn't seem to be that much difference when you look at the performance numbers for both cars. If the G35 is ahead, it ain't by much..
I hope its not as noisy and unrefined as the current one.
Not too much of drastic change but Looks great...looks like M.
Only thing is they should have invested in a bit of more money designing the center console...(TL's center console still looks better than G35's new design, IMO)
300+ horses...Might go faster than IS350 and many others?
Hmm...not sure that's a good thing...unless you were referring to the "M" from Bavaria!
That makes sense. In addition to its sporty characteristics, it's a safe, comfortable, luxurious car. A smart decision is a smart decision, regardless of the sex of the driver.
I am not sure by what you mean by "too brawny". I'm using a reasonably "brawny" 2005 911 as a daily driver 75% of the time, but would still take my TL 6-speed over the G35 6-speed if those were my only two choices for a sedan. No doubt that the G35 has the RWD advantage. But that's about where the advantage ends, IMO. The interior was design by committee with at least 1-2 blind members and the engine, while providing ample performance, did not feel as smooth as the 3.0 liter in my old 1995 Maxima, let alone the free revving Acura TL. The 6-speed gearbox in the TL was noticably better than the G35 sedan or coupe I tested.
I wish the TL was RWD. But if that became a requirement for a replacement sedan, I think I would still end up in a 3 series before a G35. If Infiniti would go that extra step of refinement with the G35 (or performance with the M45), they would have a serious contender for my dollars. But with the upcoming 335i and the current 550i 6-speed, Infiniti remains off my potential shopping list. Too bad, as I still consider my 11 year old Maxima at 155k miles one of my old favorites.
The 997 version of the 911 proves beauty and brawn can peacefully co-exist. Maybe Infiniti should trade in their committee approach by stealing just one of Porsche's engineers.
And a 911, how many of those do you see on the road? That is my point. :confuse:
Around here, sometimes, too many! :sick: Starting to lose their exclusiveness appeal. Same goes for Gallardo.
The G (great car- but not my cup...) is "louder" and has more torque than the TL and when equipped with AWD has around 40 more horses but how is it "too brawny for many entry level sedan shoppers?"
As a previous poster noted already, the G IS a great performer but it is NOT going to run circles around a TL and considering the TL is FWD, that's not bad.
Notwithstanding the "entry level luxury" sedan category, "brawny" IMO is driving a M3, M5, E55.... :confuse:
It's all relative. For the guy coming from a Toyota Corolla, an Accord V6 is "brawny". For the guy with the Ferrari, an E55 is a leisure suit!
Perhaps we both missed each other's point.
"Brawny" defined by the American Heritage dictionary is "strong and muscular".
The G35 wasn't too strong and muscular for me. Those are good attributes in my book. But the G35 lacked the refinement and precision of the other cars I considered. In my own test drives - admittedly with the 2004 models - the "brawn" did not translate into enough of a performance advantage - if any - to overcome its rough edges. This is an entirely personal and subjective opinion. Given the choice, I prefer engines that freely rev to 7,000+ rpm, short throw six speeds that are precise and smooth, brakes (preferably Brembo) that stop with force but are easy to modulate, etc. That's where the 2004 G35 fell short for me. (And, by the way, where the brawny but fat and unrefined 350Z fell way, way short of the Honda S2000 back in 2002).
Maybe we are saying the same thing, just using different semantics.
Now that we've evened the personal shots, let's keep the comments to the cars. And, in fairness to those who are really considering both cars, I'll bow out of the discussion. The TL 6-speed was my choice in 2004, but I haven't driven any G35's since and my next sedan would probably fall in the 550i category. And that's probably a few years away at best. I am having far too much fun carting the kids around in a 911 while they still fit.
In one corner, we have factfinder, a single "macho" sports oriented guy who "needs more performance than a TL", but buys a G35 sedan with an automatic transmssion. What's up with that??
In the other corner, we have habitat1 extolling the virtues of a FWD TL 6-speed when his wife and kids fit in a 911 and they have an SUV to boot. What's up with that??
Just kidding guys, but I think I could take either side of what's better on the performance front, a FWD limited TL 6-speed or an automatic castrated G35 sedan. I am having a difficult time deciding what to get when my lease (Boxster S) is up in a few months. But one things for sure, it won't be FWD or automatic.
My wife and I both love the G winter or summer.
Yea the G is in a class of its own, which is females and girly men. The G35 is a chick car all the way. At least the TL can hang with the guys.
Not that there's anything wrong with that.......
Sweet! :shades:
As for the G being a Z with 4 doors, well...I guess that's what Nissan would like you guys to think. Personally, I think their "4-door sports car" spin is getting a bit old.
I wouldn't go so far as calling the G a girlie car, but I definitely see more women driving the G then I do the TL. Performance aside, just look at the 2 cars. The G is definitely the more feminine-looking of the 2.
Yea - I agree the G35 is effeminate looking. Probably has something to do with with those nice, big ,round, curvaceous HEADLIGHTS !
See ya around the Forums!