Exclusive 2009 Infiniti G37 Sedan Pics & Impressions

[bruddahmanmatt]

Well, not yet. I'll be uploading these when I get home later on tonight. What a tease I know.

In the meantime, I'll share my thoughts and first impressions with you folks.



The first thing I noticed were a set of '07-'08 Sedan 18s on an '09 G37 Sedan. "What the heck" I thought? The cars haven't received their monroneys yet so I can't say for sure sure, but I'm 99% certain that for '09, non-sport Journeys with the optional wheel and tire package get the "old" 18s. Only the '09 Sports get the new universally despised "hub cap looking" 18s to clear the Coupe brakes. So just to clarify, there are now three wheel options on the '09 Sedan (excluding any optional "accessory wheels" of course).

- Split 5 spoke 17s on Base and Journey w/o the Wheel & Tire package. (same design as last year)
- Split 7 spoke 18s on non-Sport Journeys w/ Wheel & Tire package. (same design as last year)
- Split 5 spoke 18s on Sport 6M/T and Journey w/ Sport package (new design)

With regards to the wheels, yes the Sedans get the Coupe's brakes. I still think they should have given us 4 door guys the Coupe's 19s though. FFS the new Maxima comes with 18s standard and 19s optional. And good looking ones to boot.



The next thing to call to attention are the new seat heater switches. Yah yah I know. Just a knob. Well, I took a closer look at them and there are now 7 detents for 6 different heat settings as opposed to just 2 (high/low).

Off-1-2-3-4-5-6

Quite frankly I'm not surprised as there are 7 detents on Infiniti vehicles equipped with air conditioned/heated seats.

C 3-2-1-Off-1-2-3 H

Probably easier to just manufacture one type of knob. I truly wonder how much of a difference there are between each of the 6 heat settings. In the end it should make things easier when they finally bequeath Gs with air conditioned seats. They can't come soon enough let me tell you. You can get an A/C driver's seat on the '09 Max. Dang.



Now we come to the rear spoiler. As we all know, there are now two types of rear spoilers for the '09 V36 Sedan. The '07-'08 style which hovers over the chrome lip and does NOT cover it. And the lip spoiler which covers the chrome and sticks out past the rear decklid. Of the '09 Sedans we have on our lot, we only have one car with the older ('07-'08) hovering spoiler. No rear deck lip spoiler in sight. My guess on this is my own theory, but it goes like this. The '07-'08 style "hovering" spoiler has never been available as an accessory through parts. However, the '08 Coupe spoiler (boomerang shaped lip spoiler which covers the chrome) has been available through parts for a while now. The parts guy and I found it weird that the Sedan spoiler still isn't available through parts when the car has been out a full year longer than the Coupe. My guess is that the Sedan lip spoiler which covers the chrome, will be a parts accessory, while the hovering '07-'08 style spoiler will be the factory option. Weird, but it would make sense since the '07-'08 style still isn't available through parts, but Infiniti has announced that some kind off of rear spoiler for the Sedan will in fact be available through parts starting in '09.

So to recap: please remember that this is just my best guess

- G37 Sedan '07-'08 style "hovering" spoiler (does not cover chrome) = must be ordered from factory
- G37 Sedan new lip style spoiler (covers chrome) = ordered through parts department at dealership
- G37 Coupe spoiler (covers chrome) = ordered from factory or purchased through parts



Next up, yes the auto locking doors are there. Whoppie. They still need to implement BMW's pull twice to unlock setup. Having to manually unlock the doors when the motor is still running is an annoyance to me. I would disable these on my car (you can disable the auto locking doors feature on all Nissan/Infiniti vehicles).



Another thing I noticed was the lack of a 6 disc changer in the trunk on navi equipped models. On '07-'08 Sedans with Navi there was a 6 disc changer in the upper left corner of the trunk. Not there anymore. Unfortunately the Sedan did NOT adopt the Coupe's spare tire tool kit. On the Sedans there is a cumbersome rectangular tray with your jack, wrench and tow hook that's a pain in the a*s to deal with. On the Coupe, it's a circular tray that fits in the center of the spare and has a strap across its diameter so you can lift it out with one hand. Seems minor but it's way more convenient than dealing with this big a*s piece of foam when you have to change a flat. Believe me I know.



As for the drivetrain, well as we all know the 3.7L is now under the hood of the Sedan. I didn't drive the car yet but I did fire one up and to my ears, the exhaust note is slightly lower and a bit more burbly. The difference was very minimal but I could hear it. I at first was wondering if this was just placebo effect because I knew the car got a new motor, but I realized the reason I heard a difference was likely due to the fact that I start up my '07 every single day. I assume because I'm so used to hearing my car that I was able to hear a bit of a difference between the two, however as I said, the difference is pretty minimal. My co-worker in service said he heard a slight difference as well. Unless you drive an '07-'08 or are around them often, I don't think you'll be able to tell though. I'll get back to you folks later with regards to performance.



Overall the biggest change is obviously the 3.7L engine and the 7A/T for folks who decide to go with a slushbox. Nothing in the way of exterior design sans a new set of questionable looking wheels and not much in the way of added content. For those who bought an '08, don't feel too bad. I'm sure the performance and fuel economy of the '09 will be slightly better than that of the '08, but I'm not sure it warrants a serious case of buyer's remorse. Perhaps just a slight one. It is nowhere near the hurt buyers of an '06 E90 330i Sedan felt when the TT '07 335i hit the lots.



Pics will be up tonight.

[bruddahmanmatt]

Split 5 spoke 17s on Base and Journey w/o the Wheel & Tire package. (same design as last year)




Split 7 spoke 18s on non-Sport Journeys w/ Wheel & Tire package. (same design as last year)








Split 5 spoke 18s on Sport 6M/T and Journey w/ Sport package (new design)






A closer look at the new 18" wheel design complete with Coupe brakes




'07-'08 Style "floating" rear spoiler






Revised seat heater switches




No more trunk mounted CD changer on Navi equipped models




New (to the Sedan) 3.7L motor








A couple extra shots

[Corvettekid]

Subscribed for pics...Thanks for the info, im contemplating this car heavy!

[AAMC]

In for pics...Can't wait for my sedan to make it to Missouri.

[chilibowl]

Suscribed for pics....Although sometimes I dont agree with you, I liked this lil write up...Inform us some more on the new motor and 7-speed slushy with flappy.

[codeflux]

very good review, you answered a few of my questions right off. /subscribed for pics.

[LudwigB]

No offense but what's the point of a "review" if all you said was "how it looks". I mean what's the point of saying things that we all know.

As for the "exclusive pics", I mean haven't we already seen them? What's the point of being "exclusive" if everybody's already seen them?

I would be more interest to see how it drives.

[da mayor]

nice review over there. 18/26 EPA readings are pretty good for RWD G37's and 18/25 for the G37x Sedans.

I think it's really confusing b/c of the 2 Aerodynamic Packages from the factory we can order but it does not detail what is included. My thought b/c of the price it might just be the front chin spoiler and rear spoiler w/ undertray diffusers like the 1st gen coupes had as an option.

I'm on the East Coast so I gotta wait a few more weeks. Maybe I"ll fly over to Hawaii and visit over there Matt

[rayainsw]

Originally Posted by da mayor

nice review over there. 18/26 EPA readings are pretty good for RWD G37's and 18/25 for the G37x Sedans.
...

Is that EPA est. official for the seven speed 2009 Sedan RWD?
2008 was 17\24 RWD....
- Ray
Ready for my test drive - and impressions from those
who will drive before me..... ( also East Coast - ish )

[da mayor]

those are for RWD auto, the 6MT's remain unchanged. It's a step forward b/c the new 2009 TL SH AWD will have the same gas mileage too which Honda's aren't as fuel efficient anymore

[mIKE]

My honda is rated at 18/25

Go figure... and its only a 4 banger!

Wtf!

[Mr_Ryte]

Keep in mind that the EPA estimates are just that-estimates. I was hoping for a better rating but it's the real world driving that will tell the whole story.

[DeanOU]

Originally Posted by Mr_Ryte

Keep in mind that the EPA estimates are just that-estimates. I was hoping for a better rating but it's the real world driving that will tell the whole story.

I'm not sure how anyone could be disappointed with the EPA estimates. The G37 is a performance sedan. If you wanted better mileage, get Honda Accord V6 with 57 less hp and a whopping 1 extra mpg in the city.

Dean

[bruddahmanmatt]

Pics are up. If you folks have any requests, let me know and I'll try to take care of them when I'm at work today. If I have some time I may take one for a spin. I would have yesterday but I was busy rev matching downshifts in the E46 M3 on our lot. S54 inline 6 FTMFW.

[mIKE]

+1 for pix