these pics of the M have just blown me away. I looked at the high resolution pics for the interior to see how the quality of the materials looked and boy I am blown away. This is by far the best nissan interior ever made. I love the maple wood as well getting tired of the platinum chrome thing. That dvd player in the back looks huge and is widescreen. I love the idea of the little tweeters next to the headrest so you feel closer to the sound. This car I guarantee will be a definite RL and GS killer can't even compare. I am just dying to test drive this car. I currently own a 2004 TL which I love but my interior doesn't even compare to this one. Nissan finally did get it right I mean the whole package interior,exterior etc...
Agree, it was great to see Nissan finally pay some designers to do their jobs on the interior. I'm not sure about the shoulder tweeters though. High frequency sound waves travel faster than lower ones, so tweeters should really be further away from the listening position for proper "time-alignment", not closer. I'm sure Bose knows what they are doing though. Hah!
One thing I find odd are the seat controls. The seat controls of the M with the beige/rosewood interior in those pics are on the top of the seat, like the G35. But in the other pics, there are no controls there, leading me to believe that they are on the side, like most other cars. What gives?
High frequency sound waves travel faster than lower ones
Lexusguy, could you point me to an article that says that? This is new to me. I need to go back to high school and spank me science teachers...8-)
In my understanding,
velocity = frequency * wave length
The same goes for EM waves, (light included)
High frequency sound wave just has shorter wave length. Sound waves travel at the same velocity provided everything else being equal (humidity, density, etc.) ... I could me be wrong, though. It would be fun to learn new things...
The first pic has the newest seats. The second one is from the old M-concept. At least all Fugas on sale in Japan have the seats like the ones in the first photo. i.e. seat control on the outer side (like most others') not on the top.
Because high frequency sounds tend to reach the listening position first, many speakers are designed with the tweeter set well back into (or on) the cabinent to give the midrange and bass drivers a bit of a head start. Bowers&Wilkins has long favored this approach.
Dispersion is a very small discrepancy due to media imperfectness and attenuation on various frequency through the path of traveling. That is well-known for long distance propagation. The examples cited in your first article are in the range of Kms and light years.
However, I personally don't believe within the limited space of 100cu-ft or short distance of 7-8ft human ears can distinguish the dispersion... To me, the B&W speakers may well be just for marketing. Even if B&W is right on this one, a small electronic delay in signal sending to the seat speakers can correct that dispersion easily.
Thanks for the info and links. They are interesting.
It could certainly be argued that time-alignment "stair-stepping" of drivers as B&W does or using sloped baffles as Thiel and others do makes no difference at all. Regardless of wether the design is straight or sloped, domed or horned, one fact that always remains though is that you never see a hifi system with tweeter pods floating in mid air next to the listener's head. Its very unusual, and seems to go against most conventional hifi wisdom. Hi frequency sounds are very directional in nature, which is why placing monopole surrounds close to the listening position in a 5ch home theater generally has poor results. It seems to me that shoulder tweeters would make an unwanted "headphone effect".
Actually, the Bose system in the M (tweeters on the front seats) is designed to emulate sound that is coming from a much larger soundstage. This proprietary technology modulates the signal to each of the speakers electronically to create a more realistic experience. As ceric was saying, a time delay can easily correct the percieved time difference (if it is significant) between sounds of varying frequencies.
I guess I'll just have to take a listen for myself. For the moment though, any Bose system takes a distant 3rd place to the Dynaudio systems in Volvos, or Mark Levinson in Lexus. In the home, Bose is like 800th place.
I would like to hope infiniti/nissan hired at least one intelligent person to design+implement this system - I mean, this is what R&D is for, right? It's an optional system I believe, so if people don't like it, they don't have to buy it..
This week's AUTOWEEK has a great article on the "06 Infiniti M45". Subtitle: "Style. Power. Speed. Look Out, BMW.
Also, Bose is considered just a consumer brand by the audiophile group. Bose likes to use little drivers (they call them "twiddlers") and engineer them for great cone excursions. This results in higher distortion levels. Dr. Bose is a great believer in "psycho-acoustics".
An old saying: "No highs, no lows, that's Bose".
Bose is really a hit with women. The speakers are so small, they make the WAF list (Wife Acceptance Factor). Of course, the laws of physics have not been repealed by Dr. Amar Bose.
My FX45 is sorely lacking in bass and midrange. I always feel the need for more "sound control".
"No highs, no lows, that's Bose". That sums up my impressions of Bose's top "901 Series.." whatever its up to now. For $1300 a pair, you think they actually would've, I dont know, redesigned them at least once since the '60s. Nope. Still one cheesy 4" mid in front, and 8 cheesy 4" mids in back, with an active outboard EQ to "correct" all of the inherent problems of using 9 cheesy 4" mids in a "full range" speaker.
When I went to the Bose store to actually listen to the 901s, they had them connected to, a Mark Levinson or Linn CD player perhaps? Nope. Not even a Pioneer or Sony CD player from Circuit City. Much, much worse. A $50 Kenwood portable cd player. Connected to $1300 speakers. I think that says it all right there. As with all Bose products, you need to take away two 00s from the price tag to get the actual value.
I am trying to find a car with decent rear legroom that does not cost sixty thousand plus. the only cars out there appear to be the 300c, or the caddy. By rear legroom I mean at least 39 inches. I am six feet tall and my daughters are both 5"10. When I read of 44 in the front and 36 in the rear is spells trouble for my family. Help!
I would suggest taking a look at a used Lexus LS. The DeVille is a grandpa car. As are the Ford police cars. Used A8s are VERY affordable, but also VERY expensive to maintain, which is what explains their $20K price tags. An LS400\430 wouldnt be.
Preach, I am not sure this is the best forum to get an answer to your question, but I agree with lexusguy that the Lexus LS 430 will amaze you with the amount of total front and rear leg room. And the good news is that you should be able to make a deal for substantially less than $60,000 even on a new one. I recently paid under $56K for one that had about $5,000 worth of options, including Navigation system, etc. So the basic model (which is still well-equipped) can be had for somewhere in the low $50s. I now carry three full-size adults in back all the time with no complaints-- a welcome change after listening to the frequent moaning from the rear in my previous MB E320! A new Audi A8L would cost much more. Take your family for a test drive in the LS and post back what they say.
Thanx for all the suggestions regarding rear leg room. the reason I posted on this discussion is because I was thinking that the new M35 awd would be a good choice, but the leg room looks suspect. I will check out a used Lexus. The only other concern is this I do not want a rear wheel drive car. I live in a snowy climate and rear wheel is a disaster in this area. So the Lexus is out. You are right the caddy is my fathers car. I really am afraid of the maintence record on the older A8s so I guess I will wait for the new Avalon next Spring.
The A8's are sweet cars! If you can get one precertified or get an extended warranty of your own, then you don't need to fear repair costs and can focus on the car style and rear seat size that you want. I wouldn't discard consideration of the A8 if only concerned about repair costs, but if concerned about design issues...well... As to A8 reliability, you are right, the newer cars have better records than the older ones...
Open ? - Has any seen the difference between the 18" and the 19" wheels, is the style the same or are they different ? I haven't been able to tell from the available photos to date.........
Hey,anybody out there know if the new M45 will have a true manumatic option like the new 5-series BMWs.This would be spectacular.Even the new Acura RL has a very close approximation.I'm amazed that so few Japanese cars have the option,especially,since Formula 1 racing is so immensely popular in Japan.
If you want front wheel drive and rear seat legroom, then the sibling to the Lexus430 (Toyota Avalon XLS) is worth considering.
The new platform is being released publicly in Jan-Feb at either the Detroit or Chicago auto shows. I have it on good information that it will look very similar to the the new GS430-300 that Lexus is releasing in March. The Avalon will get a 1275HP V6 <no V8 yet>....
Price point should be in the high 30's tricked out. Reliability is excellent, as is resale value. hope this helps.....
Hey,anybody out there know if the new M45 will have a true manumatic option like the new 5-series BMWs.
The short answer is no.
M35/M45 will only come with traditional 5-speed automatic, which is claimed to be well-spaced for fast acceleration. Also, it has a special logic to retain current gear (for longer time) in cornering.
However, since M45 is not available in Japan YET. No one can be sure that the paddle shift will not be added. However, based on the test-drive reports I have read on M45, no one has mentioned it at all.
Nissan doesnt have an SMG, so the short answer is no. Unless they choose to buy one from Audi, BMW, Ferrari, or Aston Martin, which is HIGHLY unlikely, Nissan cars wont have paddle shifters. They might have fake ones like the Grand Prix, but no real SMG. Toyota has used one in the MR2 spyder, and there's rumors it could make its way into the GS, but nothing is confirmed.
I've been watching this forum for a while and have actually seen the M45 at an auto show. While the its looks and performance are undeniably going to be great, if Infiniti prices a V8-M45 in the low $50s, why wouldn't I just buy the proven product of a baseline LS430. The level of luxury is probably equal or better in the Lexus and while it's not as sporty, the reliability is unquestioned...just trying to rationlize this..any thoughts would be welcomed
if Infiniti prices a V8-M45 in the low $50s, why wouldn't I just buy the proven product of a baseline LS430.
I heard M35 starts at low 40s, and M45 starts at high 40s. There would be options as you can see from infiniti.com. This is from report of Feb MotorTrend.
lexusguy, I don't think he was talking about SMG. He was referring to the F1 style paddle shifter behind the steering wheel, if I was not mistaken.... I like SMG, it is the true balance between manual and automatic. You get the best of both worlds. And, the launch control program in SMG is almost unbeatable by human shifting... All you have to do is to "floor it!" Of course, provided that you want to drive it like it is not your own car.
I didnt really understand what he meant by "true manumatic". The only true manumatic is a sequential manual gearbox, as the 5 series offers. Thats why Ferrari calls their's "F1". Paddleshifters without an SMG trans are no more or less automatic than any regular tip-tronic shifter as the M45 has. Tip-tronic shifters just let you send signals to the automatic transmition that you want it to make a shift. Its just a question of wether you move the stick forward or back, or have buttons on the steering wheel as Lexus and Mercedes have. It would certainly be easy enough for Infiniti to add steering wheel buttons if they wanted to.
The LS is in a different class. The MSRP of an LS with premium audio and Navi is $63,000, while the MSRP of an M45 with premium audio and Navi will probably be about $53,000. The M will me more of a driver's car, while the LS is a comfy, lux-cruiser with more creature comforts and room.
Of course, good discounts are available on the LS, while initially the M will be hard to discount. But that is true of almost any new car.
The sport has all to do with the answer to your question. If someone wants pure luxury yes buy the LS430, S500 et al. But if one wants sport in a nice size sedan the M fits that bill nicely with a nice amount of luxury. Also to me at least the technology and features in the new M are also what I want. The LS really doesn't compete with the M the new GS will though. Just two different markets. It's why everybody isn't driving Buicks, Caddy's and Avalons if amount of luxury per $ was that important.
Read a summary of comparison test between Nissan Fuga 350GT vs Honda Legend in Japan at another site. The test was done at a Japanese racing circle by the staff of an auto magazine. Here is a summary of the post. The credit goes to the original post.
- braking: Fuga 350GT recorded the shortest braking distance they ever tested. (meaning it beats Nissan 350Z and a bunch of others.) Legend is many feet behind in distance.
- acceleration:
0-60: 6.7sec (350GT) vs 7.4sec (Legend)
0-100: 14.7sec (350GT) vs 15.4sec (Legend)
The mag praises the SH-AWD of Legend but claiming Fuga is the one that can dethrone BMW.
NOTE: Nissan Fuga 350GT = Infiniti M35-Sport
Honda Legend = Acura RL.
P.S. Sorry that I cannot post the link to other site here by edmunds' rule. I am sure if you do a keyword search at google.com, you can easily find the original post at the other site.
"Signature" analog clock. When I spend this much on a car, I don't want to kill myself trying to read the time while driving. LCD, please.
Obnoxious top mounted seat controls (rather than on the side of the seat, on the door, etc - there is TONS of room for innovation in cars, this is NOT one of the areas that needed something clever. Give it up already.) They had to make a "significant" change for the Infiniti M* seats vs the Nissan FUGA seats (look at pictures, fuga has NORMALLY mounted seat controls). Why do they bother?
I am a current FX45 owner, I largely love it (except the things listed above, and a few build quality issues which I have faith infiniti will overcome); however, it seems infiniti are the kind of company that are going to continue to make these bizarre, pointless choices and refuse to go 'oops' and take a step back. They seem like pointless complaints, but to any Infiniti owners.. you probably feel my pain.
I went to the San Diego Auto Show and I sat in the 2005 Q45 and I found the finish is on par with Lexus if not better. Somehow, I think that is how the new M will be and if that is the case, I think the new M will be the winner. I did not like the cheap finish in the G and FX.
What I was told was the M45 will make to LA Auto Show, so anyone who lives around LA could get a close look on the M45.
The Q45 isnt as good as an LS430. Some parts of it are nice, but just touch any of the controls on that ugly "minivan" center stack and you'll see where the big differences are. The old Infiniti M had the same design, it was the last gasp of pre-Ghosn Infiniti, and good riddance. The new M's interior is WAY better than the Q's. Its the best Nissan interior we've ever seen in the US. For some reason some Nissan products like Australia's Maxima have gorgeous interiors that we dont see.
I just got the C/D and read through the M45 review.
Here are the performance results.
0-60mph.....5.6s
100mph....14.0s
Street start, 5-60mph...5.7s
Top gear acceleration,
30-50mph...2.9s
50-70mph...4.1s
Standing 1/4 mile...14.2sec@101mph
Braking
70-0@impending lockup...165 ft
Road handling, 300-ft-dia skipad....0.86g
Weight...4020 lbs
Estimated price as tested $55,000 with Journey Package(includes Bose stereo, rearview camera, and display screen, and compass)
Estimated base price....$52,500
The only complains of the car are the "ATM dashboard, and limited space for center rear passenger."
I think Infiniti finally comes up a car that has the best value in its class. I mean the performance of a 4020 pound car is on par with S4 and M3, that will change in two years.
165 feet braking is right up there with the best from E and 5 as well. I figured it would embarrass the RL's terrible brakes, and I was right. Why cant Honda make brakes?
What is even more amazing is the following comparison
MB SLR
Price $455,500
30-50mph...1.7s
50-70mph...2.4s
70-0...161 ft
M45
Price $55,000
30-50mph...2.9s
50-70mph...4.1s
70-0...166 ft
Talking about performance. The 0-60mph is 0.5s slower than S4 manual and 5-60mph is 0.5s faster than S4 manual and M45 is pulling 0.1g less than the S4. And, the braking is BMW like.
Comments
Sounds like the extra oomph more than offsets the extra 140lbs.
This thing might turn out quicker than my G-Coupe. I like that.
GSM
http://www.nissannews.com/multimedia/infiniti2006/infiniti_m/800/- 2006_Infiniti_M_33.jpg
While this one does:
http://www.nissannews.com/multimedia/infiniti2006/infiniti_m/800/- 04_2006_m.jpg
???????
Lexusguy, could you point me to an article that says that? This is new to me. I need to go back to high school and spank me science teachers...8-)
In my understanding,
velocity = frequency * wave length
The same goes for EM waves, (light included)
High frequency sound wave just has shorter wave length. Sound waves travel at the same velocity provided everything else being equal (humidity, density, etc.) ... I could me be wrong, though. It would be fun to learn new things...
The first pic has the newest seats. The second one is from the old M-concept. At least all Fugas on sale in Japan have the seats like the ones in the first photo. i.e. seat control on the outer side (like most others') not on the top.
Because high frequency sounds tend to reach the listening position first, many speakers are designed with the tweeter set well back into (or on) the cabinent to give the midrange and bass drivers a bit of a head start. Bowers&Wilkins has long favored this approach.
http://www.bwspeakers.com/images/SpeakerModel/images/Nautilus_800- - /detail_large_one.jpg
Dispersion is a very small discrepancy due to media imperfectness and attenuation on various frequency through the path of traveling. That is well-known for long distance propagation. The examples cited in your first article are in the range of Kms and light years.
However, I personally don't believe within the limited space of 100cu-ft or short distance of 7-8ft human ears can distinguish the dispersion... To me, the B&W speakers may well be just for marketing. Even if B&W is right on this one, a small electronic delay in signal sending to the seat speakers can correct that dispersion easily.
Thanks for the info and links. They are interesting.
Also, Bose is considered just a consumer brand by the audiophile group. Bose likes to use little drivers (they call them "twiddlers") and engineer them for great cone excursions. This results in higher distortion levels. Dr. Bose is a great believer in "psycho-acoustics".
An old saying: "No highs, no lows, that's Bose".
Bose is really a hit with women. The speakers are so small, they make the WAF list (Wife Acceptance Factor). Of course, the laws of physics have not been repealed by Dr. Amar Bose.
My FX45 is sorely lacking in bass and midrange. I always feel the need for more "sound control".
When I went to the Bose store to actually listen to the 901s, they had them connected to, a Mark Levinson or Linn CD player perhaps? Nope. Not even a Pioneer or Sony CD player from Circuit City. Much, much worse. A $50 Kenwood portable cd player. Connected to $1300 speakers. I think that says it all right there. As with all Bose products, you need to take away two 00s from the price tag to get the actual value.
I am trying to find a car with decent rear legroom that does not cost sixty thousand plus. the only cars out there appear to be the 300c, or the caddy. By rear legroom I mean at least 39 inches. I am six feet tall and my daughters are both 5"10. When I read of 44 in the front and 36 in the rear is spells trouble for my family. Help!
So is the Avalon (= a Japanese Buick).
The new platform is being released publicly in Jan-Feb at either the Detroit or Chicago auto shows. I have it on good information that it will look very similar to the the new GS430-300 that Lexus is releasing in March. The Avalon will get a 1275HP V6 <no V8 yet>....
Price point should be in the high 30's tricked out. Reliability is excellent, as is resale value. hope this helps.....
Has any seen the difference between the 18" and the 19" wheels..
19" wheel
http://www.nissannews.com/multimedia/infiniti2006/infiniti_m/800/- - - 2006_Infiniti_M_28.jpg
18" wheel
http://www.nissannews.com/multimedia/infiniti2006/infiniti_m/800/- 2006_Infiniti_M_22.jpg
In Japan, some wheels and options available at this link
http://www.nissan.co.jp/OPTIONAL-PARTS/FUGA/car.html
Remember to see all 7 categories to the right of "FUGA" title.
Don't you wish all of them will be available in US?
The short answer is no.
M35/M45 will only come with traditional 5-speed automatic, which is claimed to be well-spaced for fast acceleration. Also, it has a special logic to retain current gear (for longer time) in cornering.
However, since M45 is not available in Japan YET. No one can be sure that the paddle shift will not be added. However, based on the test-drive reports I have read on M45, no one has mentioned it at all.
I heard M35 starts at low 40s, and M45 starts at high 40s. There would be options as you can see from infiniti.com. This is from report of Feb MotorTrend.
lexusguy, I don't think he was talking about SMG. He was referring to the F1 style paddle shifter behind the steering wheel, if I was not mistaken.... I like SMG, it is the true balance between manual and automatic. You get the best of both worlds. And, the launch control program in SMG is almost unbeatable by human shifting... All you have to do is to "floor it!" Of course, provided that you want to drive it like it is not your own car.
The LS is in a different class. The MSRP of an LS with premium audio and Navi is $63,000, while the MSRP of an M45 with premium audio and Navi will probably be about $53,000. The M will me more of a driver's car, while the LS is a comfy, lux-cruiser with more creature comforts and room.
Of course, good discounts are available on the LS, while initially the M will be hard to discount. But that is true of almost any new car.
The sport has all to do with the answer to your question. If someone wants pure luxury yes buy the LS430, S500 et al. But if one wants sport in a nice size sedan the M fits that bill nicely with a nice amount of luxury. Also to me at least the technology and features in the new M are also what I want. The LS really doesn't compete with the M the new GS will though. Just two different markets. It's why everybody isn't driving Buicks, Caddy's and Avalons if amount of luxury per $ was that important.
- braking: Fuga 350GT recorded the shortest braking distance they ever tested. (meaning it beats Nissan 350Z and a bunch of others.) Legend is many feet behind in distance.
- acceleration:
0-60: 6.7sec (350GT) vs 7.4sec (Legend)
0-100: 14.7sec (350GT) vs 15.4sec (Legend)
The mag praises the SH-AWD of Legend but claiming Fuga is the one that can dethrone BMW.
NOTE: Nissan Fuga 350GT = Infiniti M35-Sport
Honda Legend = Acura RL.
P.S. Sorry that I cannot post the link to other site here by edmunds' rule. I am sure if you do a keyword search at google.com, you can easily find the original post at the other site.
Obnoxious top mounted seat controls (rather than on the side of the seat, on the door, etc - there is TONS of room for innovation in cars, this is NOT one of the areas that needed something clever. Give it up already.) They had to make a "significant" change for the Infiniti M* seats vs the Nissan FUGA seats (look at pictures, fuga has NORMALLY mounted seat controls). Why do they bother?
I am a current FX45 owner, I largely love it (except the things listed above, and a few build quality issues which I have faith infiniti will overcome); however, it seems infiniti are the kind of company that are going to continue to make these bizarre, pointless choices and refuse to go 'oops' and take a step back. They seem like pointless complaints, but to any Infiniti owners.. you probably feel my pain.
What I was told was the M45 will make to LA Auto Show, so anyone who lives around LA could get a close look on the M45.
Here are the performance results.
0-60mph.....5.6s
100mph....14.0s
Street start, 5-60mph...5.7s
Top gear acceleration,
30-50mph...2.9s
50-70mph...4.1s
Standing 1/4 mile...14.2sec@101mph
Braking
70-0@impending lockup...165 ft
Road handling, 300-ft-dia skipad....0.86g
Weight...4020 lbs
Estimated price as tested $55,000 with Journey Package(includes Bose stereo, rearview camera, and display screen, and compass)
Estimated base price....$52,500
The only complains of the car are the "ATM dashboard, and limited space for center rear passenger."
I think Infiniti finally comes up a car that has the best value in its class. I mean the performance of a 4020 pound car is on par with S4 and M3, that will change in two years.
Plus all the options.
I think my wait is finally over.
Must have had nice, grabby tires, and the torque certainly helps a lot.
Note that C&D tested the Bimmer (manual) being .1 seconds faster 0-60, but .3 seconds slower 5-60 on the street.
http://caranddriver.com/article.asp?section_id=3&article_id=8- 011&page_number=2
MB SLR
Price $455,500
30-50mph...1.7s
50-70mph...2.4s
70-0...161 ft
M45
Price $55,000
30-50mph...2.9s
50-70mph...4.1s
70-0...166 ft
Talking about performance. The 0-60mph is 0.5s slower than S4 manual and 5-60mph is 0.5s faster than S4 manual and M45 is pulling 0.1g less than the S4. And, the braking is BMW like.