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The Infiniti and Lexus dealers are in separate buildings but on the same lot. It was much easier at the Lexus dealer to take the car for a solo test drive than the Infiniti...same owner but different managers...my test driving experience was over a year ago at these dealers, so things may have changed.
There is some features that are different, and I am compiling this list before I allow them to "downgrade" my firmware.
This has to be done at the dealership, and will not ever be upgradeable, since this is the only "ENGLISH" version that was not locked.
As far as hidden codes...everyone at the dealership has assured me that the exist, but they cannot get them.
I will post more once this has been accomplished. Until then, I am not even positive that it can be downgraded without losing something.
I did this because I travel a lot with my family. My kids are in the back playing their game, and my wife or I (whoever is the passenger) use a laptop to watch TV. This is a nusance in a car, not as easy as the suburban, because of the space constrains. There is no room for the laptop bag, charger, and laptop, especially when you want to put it away and take a rest.
Now, for complete saftey, I am actually working on a dual purpose plastic visor..this will accomplish several things.
1) Interchangeable for DVD/NAV Use.
2) DVD use will shield viewing of screen to limit/reduce visibility to the driver. I feel that this is necessary to even allow the passenger to watch, otherwise it is illegal in the US
3) The NAV will have a glare shield..think of baseball cap lid, to help with viewing of nav.
4) I don't know if this will work, but I wear poloraized sun glasses, and the screen is not visible with these. I am playing with a polarized layer that should solve the problem with these glasses...I have not completely figured this out, but for those that wear poloarized glasses, this is a must.
Anyway, Sorry to start a potential flame...I am not advocating law breaking, and that is one reason I did not mention the dealer, because I too was shocked, and question the legality of both the warranty issues, as well as liablilty. Once I make my shield, that will be the first time I use it. Until then, DVD is for rear video only.
Lord Baron
I'd be a little leery of a firmware downgrade. There's an awfully good chance that some last minute bugs were discovered and fixed in that firmware upgrade.
I know how very appealing it would be get full functionality without a toggle switch, but imagine how disappointed you'd be if you can't reverse the downgrade and later discover, eg, that some of the nav functions or MP3-CD capabilities are broken.
The switch, on the other hand, if well placed, could really be perfect.
Of course the ideal would be for them to get those hidden codes.
Pete
I think you have the math about right. The tires for the base model and particularly for the sport model (19") are going to be quite expensive. The fuel efficiency on the M is also not great. However, tires are actually probably a larger expense item than the incremental fuel cost.
I know people tend to dismiss these items when buying a $40,000 -- 50,000 car but the costs are real. It is much easier to accept if you know that going into the deal. Don't let anyone tell you that you are going to be able to get alot of wear out of these tires. My experience is that you will get at most 20,000 miles out of the all seasons and 12,000-15,000 out of the sport tires. And the fuel specs are based upon gentle driving. The problem for tire wear and fuel efficiency is that when you buy a car with this kind of capability, you (or at least I) want to enjoy the performance. That does not mean driving +100 mph all the time but it does mean acceleration and enjoying the handling the car delivers. Both will tend to hurt fuel efficiency and tire wear.
I dont remember having an issue with the last time I visited an Infiniti shop. I found the atmosphere to be much like my favorite uber hi-fi shop, basically no pressure, try whatever you like kind of thing. They are certainly willing to talk if you have questions, but they mostly stay out of your way and let you wail on the cars, which is exactly how I like it.
On March 15 they had 156 M35s and 148 M45s
On March 22 they had 163 M35s and 178 M45s
On March 25 they had 197 M35s and 227 M45s
A nearly 25% increase in the past three days caught my eye. Plus they are making too many M45s.
Better deals are in the near future.
Dan
Hope you enjoy you new M. It is a great cat.
Given that my current ride is hanging in quite well & that I buy cars (as opposed to leasing), the plan at the moment is to keep my LS & wait for the off-lease M's to come on the market in 2-3 years.
Aren't most lease deals 36 months or so? Two years would suit my scenario, but I'm guessing I'll have to wait at least three.
It seems to me that a manufacturer wanting to win tests would put very sticky low mileage tires on from the factory and the result would be skewed in their favor. Could this be what Infiniti has done with the M? Has anyone ever seen a test where the cars were all fitted with the same brand and type of tire before testing?
I'm thinking the M45 non sport will suit me fine, not sure I need what the sport has to offer and don't want to sacrifice ride quality for the better handling as I think the non sport will handle just fine.
Now if someone could tell me there was no difference in ride quality or road noise well then maybe I'd lean towards the sport...Only test driving will tell which I may actually do sooner rather than later...
Thanks
1 - Has anybody specifically compared the sound between a car with only the Journey package and one with the Technology Package? Is there really a major differnce in the sound. I just don't see myself buy DVD music for the car. I will probably use my IPod.
2 - Is there an add on for the IPod connection and how much does it cost?
3 - Has anybody purchased the extended Nissan 100k bumper to bumper warranty and how much did you pay?
Appreciate any feed back.
2) I've read that there is an aftermarket fix for this. Check with Grubbs Infiniti in Texas.
Hope it helps. But regarding #1, you should really just take a CD to the dealer and test it for yourself.
I will schedule a test drive for the M35. Got to see what all the excitement is about! Thanks.
hpowders
The dealership I am working with is very eager to figure this out, as they have sold 4 more M45's this week, and all the owners are wanting "both" mods.
As for the front / rear cam, I made the request and the tech is going to have an answer for me next week. I am unsure what practical use this has, so this just goes into the "geek/show-off" category of my many wish lists.
Is the ride harder/firmer with 19"?
In general is one size better for getting more miles out the tires?
I am interested in the M35 Sport (sport because I like the metal interior trim) but do not really have a preference on the wheels. But if 18s give a "little softer" ride and the tires last longer, I would prefer the 18".
Can you substitute or replace the 19" wheels on the sport with 18" wheels?
Does the sport model only come with the 19"?
Do you think the dealers would swap the wheels as part of the deal making?
Thanks.
That's pretty impressive tho, isn't it? 140? A brief glance at tirerack.com shows a few other brands (Goodyear, Michelin, Pirelli) for this size, and most are 220 or 280 treadwear, but found no others below 200. There is 1 Michelin with a rating of 400. I live in Florida. I did purchase the road hazard warranty. I wonder if... oh nevermind.
While you need a DVD-A to take advantage of the 5.1 surround sound, the CD player still uses the same 14 speakers. There is a definite sound improvement with the 14 speaker system when playing standard CDs. And for the few DVD-As that you actually decide to buy, the sound is phenomenal. Stereo system is really important to me because sometimes you'll be stuck in traffic...
I need some help.
My conclusion: The '06 M45 is simply the best out there in this high end sports sedan class. At 0-60 in 5.3, it's faster than either the BMW or the Lexus (whose 0-60 in 5.7 numbers I question), has all the features of the other two (and then some) and, with the rear active steering on the sport model, handles better than the other two.
Other factors: BMWs are in the shop too much. Lexus' new GS has a tighter interior around the driver and doesn't seem designed well for someone over 5'11'', no trunk (no golf), and the VDIM competes with the drivers intentions too aggressively. The only thing that was weak about the M45 was the wheel rims, and the dealer was able to help me address that with some great after-market chromes.
Both the BMW and the Lexus are good cars and it will be a tough decision for anyone making a buying decision, but after a lot of research the right choice for me was the M45. I would personally recommend the sport version vs. the "non-sport" M45. I test drove both versions quite a bit and quite aggressively, the plain vanilla M45 is just doesn't seem to hold its tail as well as you might like in a fast tight turn. The sport, on the other hand, handles like a dream.
Just took delivery of my blue one last night.
Ipod offers an FM transmitter often times referred to as an FM modulator, costs about $35 (check Circuit City, Best Buy). Plugs into the Ipod not your car. It allows you to select from multiple FM stations. It basically has the transmission jump onto the FM signal. It's not as "clear" as a direct hard wire, although if it's not available from the factory (i.e BMW, Mini direct plug in interface), hard wiring one in will not offer that much of a difference sound wise to an FM Mod. If you lease this is probably the way to go. Also is not a bad idea if you shuffle cars with your spouse.
$1000 + first payment down.
15,000 miles per year
$799.00 per month
As for the Bluetooth, what phone are you using? You may have a profile with a sound processor on the phone menu, that will fix the bass.
Also, the money factor is only .00220, which is awesome. If you are going to lease...it is a great way to do it direct with Infinity.
I compared my deal and doing the same thing at D&M Leasing the payment was $190 more a month.
I did a lot of reading on Motorola v series, and there is a lot of problems with the bluetooth. SO if you phone id has all "FF's" you will need to reflash or take it to your provider for a new one. This is a known problem, and is the fault of Motorola, not Infiniti.
I am not sure what IFS is, but the trick is to not get the "premium package", but get the tech+journey, and add on the MES. The phone I use had bluetooth, so I did not need that in the car. They did include the "Modifications" that I have mentioned in previous posts.
Wonder if someone who owns this car could comment?
LIY
I test drove both models and opted for the non-sport.
It's too early.
After noticing more harshness and 'jitter' from the road than I remembered from 2 previous drives, I asked the salesperson to display the tire pressures. 42 - 46.
The 2 others I have driven were 32 - 33.
It does make a difference, if you are sensitive to some particular frequencies, etc.
Just f.y.i.
- Ray
Returning next time at night to view the instrument + dash lighting . . .
Which Chicago dealer did you buy from? Would you recommend them? Did you pay sticker? I guess you're not undecided any more.
At 80, RPMs were around 3100. Instantaneous fuel economy on flat highway (as displayed on the spiffy bar graph) varied from 20 to 25, depending on the slight variations in accelerator pressure--mostly closer to 20.
As to fuel economy as questioned earlier, when I first checked total economy, it was 13.5 (!). But then I realized how much time I had spent just idling while learning the thousand pages in the owner's manual and navigation book. I also had some initial problems with XM radio setup where I just sat in the car waiting for the thing to initialize (running the engine the whole time--mostly my fault, not XM or Infiniti). I wonder if this scenario is similar to the earlier poster who claimed the impressive 9.5 mpg.
I love the car. The bourbon interior is not for everyone (but it really works for me). My wife and daughter still think it has an orange cast, but the black trim and exterior combined with the bourbon is a very rich look. I disagree with Healy's statement that the wood and bourbon (I assume this is what he meant when he said "buckskin") don't look good together, but that is a personal taste kind of thing. I don't really notice the light headliner unless I concentrate on it. I think that's because you aren't looking down at the dark materials when you're driving (and vice versa).
I have never heard my seven year-old son say "awesome" as many times in so short a span as when I was showing off the tech goodies (he really liked the voice navigation).