Hello all!
First post here.

So let me start off by saying and pointing out that I know jack about modding cars - just, was never really my thing.. (I can appreciate more performance modifications, but cosmetic modifications.. no, not really).

Anyways, I'm looking at a 2006 G35 Coupe and I just went to look at it in person and confirmed what I thought from the pictures: the damn thing is lowered.

Not only that, but I think it has larger rims than stock. It's obvious they're not stock rims, but I'm not sure if the actual rims themselves are larger also, or what (ex: just a visual illusion from the car being lowered). I asked the dealer and he said that he THINKS they're 19" rims (but he had to do one of those lean-your-head-back-and-look-at-the-ceiling for divine intervention, on recalling information about that specific vehicle).

Anyways, I really, really don't care for lowered vehicles. Annoying as hell to drive, and I think it's just.. moronic to have to drive around needing to be cautious of "oh no I might hit a bump!! Hope the entire planet is perfectly flat today!" and really just the overall impracticality of it (ex: needing to pull into ANY sloped pavement, driveway, parking lot, even just going over simple speed bumps, etc. with full-blown elderly caution).


SO..
As I'm completely unfamiliar with this area, I come to ask a few questions.

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Those are the questions that I could think of right now to ask you guys. I would REALLY appreciate help with answering the above questions.

The vehicle has 66k miles on it and is going for $15k. Has an aftermarket exhaust, air intake, and aftermarket rims on it (Vertini rims).
Do you think this is "too much hassle" (so to speak) with respect to the price for this vehicle? (I DON'T mind the time, I'm more concerned with the numbers, in this case the associated cost to "fix" this modification).


I look forward to hearing from you guys! ALL replies are greatly appreciated!
- BioG35

 

Don't buy it. Price is too high, plus the cost to undo the mods. There are plenty of un-modded G35s out there. Be patient.

 

But it's so damn hard!

What would you say would be a good (i.e. reasonable, expectable) price for this year vehicle, at ~65k miles?
What about at 80k miles? (my max mile range I'm looking at)?

Thanks anybody with additional input on this!

- BioG35

 

there are plenty of stock Gs out there.
Just keep looking.
Lowered car means Lowered springs, possibly new shocks. If the car was lowered long enough there will be some wear to the bushings.

BTW there are numbers on the tire that indicate how big is the rim. Looks like the dealer is an idiot if he could not look up the tire size to see what rim size it is.

 

Zdravstvuyte JOKER (what little Russian I know, ha!)

Yeah the tire thing, I thought the same thing - before I posted on here I tried to see if I could happen to read anything off the photos they uploaded (in case they took solid HD photos) but no dice, can't read anything off the wheel (hell, if I hadn't seen it in person I wouldn't even be able to tell the brand of the rims).

Regarding:
What do you think it would cost (approximately) to undo this, then? Again, I'm clueless when it comes to modding (especially cosmetic modifications).


I'm still curious as to what would be a good/fair price (reasonable, expectable) for an '06 or '07 G35 Coupe with 65k miles on it?
And the same, but what about at 80k miles on it?
I'm not familiar with the G35 market, and looking at all the regular databases (cargurus, cars.com, etc) of course I'm looking at, as far as I know, jacked up dealership prices.

Thanks again to anybody and EVERYBODY for any/all assistance provided with this, I really do appreciate it all! I'm so damn excited to get in on a G35! Want to be back in my own wheels again (car blew out on me randomly last week, don't like having to use somebody else's vehicle.. very independent person).


You guys are awesome - lovin' the responsiveness so far from this community!
- BioG35

 

Kelley blue book says the max sale price is 10k. http://www.kbb.com/infiniti/g/2006/g35-coupe-2d/?vehicleid=818&intent=buy-used

Plus those mods will bring down the value aswell. If you are buying from a dealer, which it sounds like you are, I wouldn't buy it for anymore than 10k. He's going to try rationalize his price by saying it has low miles and how it's rare to find or some bs. Just stay strong or move on.

As far as the height, you can buy a used stock suspension from someone who has lowered their car and kept their old parts. Most people do this and every now and then I'll see classifieds for the stock setup (I can't remember prices, but it's affordable in my opinion ). Installation would be really easy to do yourself if you're mechanically inclined or have a friend that is. I couldn't tell you how much a shop would charge but I can't see it being more than $200.

One more thing, it's possible the car is equipped with a coilover type suspension and ride height may be adjustable. You still wouldn't get a stock ride height but with it set up at its highest, you should have little to no problems driving around. I recommend finding someone you know that knows cars to take a look at it for you.

 

values are different depending on locations.
I'm my area (seattle) cars under 100k on odometer are $10-15k depending on condition.
I'm prepping one for sale 05 66K miles, complete stock with navi for $10k. It had a little rear end accident so has a rebuilt title, but its a solid car. Has it been clean title car would worth 13-15k

As far as going back to stock here are few things to consider.

Springs do not go bad, so you can purchase used OEM springs from anyone who lowered their G or junk yard. (I got 3 sets)
Shocks do go bad, so buy new OEM equivalent. Do not buy from dealer, will pay 10 times more. KYB is a direct replacement and quite good for OEM setup. You can find them on Ebay around $300 for set.
As far as bushings and everything else you'll have to replace those as they go bad. Main area of concern is a compression rod bushing on the front. You have to replace those things pretty much with every oil change (sarcasm), but they wear out quick especially on lowered cars. If car has 40k miles you can bet the bushing is at the end of it's life.

 

Ah yes but see, I never know how the heck to take the Kelly Blue Book value.. not sure how close it really is to values I could EXPECT to pay (like, is it usually only like 5-10% off? i.e. for every $10,000, it's off by $1,000) - and then is the Kelly Blue Book usually HIGHER than the actual price I could buy it for, or is it lower?

I contacted the dealer early yesterday if they could provide me with... ANY information on the suspension, especially since they'd already told me "we can contact the previous owner if you have specific questions" - but I've still yet to even hear back.. don't really get the feeling they even bothered contacting him (they're probably figuring I'm putting up too much resistance to their sales, lol.. they just want people to show up and buy without asking any questions). So, I have no idea if the guy went the Spring route, or the Coilover route. From what I've heard in calling a few shops, it sounds like they're saying if he did the Coilover route, it can get very expensive to undo it (at least, to do it right).. between Springs and the Coilovers, I've gotten quotes from $400 up to $2,400.. freakin' ridiculous. I'm not familiar with any of the other things they're talking about (I can understand the replacing the springs, but I'm simply not familiar with suspensions enough currently to know the significance of needing to replace the "struts" or "bushings" and all that.. if I looked into it I'm sure I could figure it out from the Physics involved, but.. I'd probably never use this info again since I'm not into cosmetically modding vehicles).


Location: I live in the Bay Area, in California. (San Francisco Bay Area; specifically on the Eastside of the Bay, aka the East Bay)

• (in case this helps with anybody's reasonable/fair price estimates)

So far I feel like what G2B35AGN said seems to be the kind of hidden message here:
Be patient.
I feel like that's kind of the mantra. It's just so damn hard when I feel a personal need to be back in my own wheels again. Wish I'd been able to look out for these G35's when I still HAD my car in operating condition.


Anyways, if anybody has knowledge on prices on these 2006-2007 G35 Coupes, please feel free to pass it along.
I'm specifically wondering what would be reasonable, expectable prices on one with 65k miles?
And then just the same, but if it had 80k miles?


More thanks all, really, this community's responsiveness has been incredible! You guys are awesome!
- BioG35

 

buy it and I'll swap you my stock suspension for your lowered suspension

 

My advice, check classifieds here, A minor drop can be an upgrade IMO, I am on Eibach prokits. I paid 10K a few months ago for a 2006 6MT, 94k miles, SE USA. Is the car you are looking at Auto or Manual, what are your goals for the car.

My initial plan was to buy one for 5-7k and replace/ upgrade (including engine) with the remainder of my car budget at the time. The ones I saw in that range were bad, so I opted to get the 06. Now i am happy with my upgrades, only thing is that I burn oil a bit. That iss the only thing I wish I thoroughly check out before purchasing.

 

Yeah, I checked the for sale section on this forum and didn't see any that are for sale right now (I'm looking for a 2006-2007 G35 Coupe). As far as regular classifieds, I think I'm always just a bit hesitant on buying from a private party (ex: craigslist). I was actually just talking with my brother about this yesterday - was telling him that I wouldn't normally buy from a private party simply because there's so many scumbag people out there that sell vehicles (and of course you just simply have no way of knowing if they're a one-off seller of their own personally cared for vehicle or if they don't actually care and flipping cars is just what they do..) and he agreed, but that if it was maybe somebody who belongs to one of these forums (i.e. is part of the G35 community) then I would actually probably consider it since I think, in general, you guys would be MUCH more likely to be honest and to have taken care of your vehicles (always nice having drivers that actually know how to freakin' drive their autos, heh).

Regarding Auto vs Manual - I battled myself a lot with this at first, but I ended up deciding on, Automatic.
I was originally actually looking at Manuals, but then thought about how much more I'm driving these days in traffic, and the kind of annoyance of d*ckin' with it all in traffic (even if it is subconsciously), and thought an Automatic would just be more "care-free" to drive (so to speak). This was actually helped a lot by the fact that these baby's come with Tiptronic Transmissions anyways, so if I ever did want to control the gears, I could just slap it over to Sport Shifting (engage the Tiptronic tranny) and have fun with the beast there. I will likely be driving it in Sport Shift most of the time anyways, so I basically thought, "well I get the control of the Manual with that, without the constant d*ckin' around in traffic."

That's an interesting point though regarding setting aside "x-amount" of $$$ and buying what you can with it, then using the rest on performance upgrades. So, @ 94k miles on that 6MT G35 you got it for 10k a few months ago. Interesting. Would be nice if 6MT's were available around here right now.

Goals for the car: Have it as my main, daily driver vehicle for a few years (be nice if for longer, even). I have student loans to repay (am a Molecular and Cellular Biologist; thus, the "Bio" in my username here), so I'm trying to remain financially disciplined as I focus on repaying those. I really want to enjoy having a fun car, which is why I think I really gravitated towards these G35's.. I think honestly it will feel like kind of a reward to myself for all the hard work I put in that's required with my academic career/career field, @ University.


Any and all additional info/input is still greatly appreciated - it will always be, I really am very attentive to all of this information.. love it!
You guys just keep proving how awesome this G35 community is!
I'm still all ears, if anybody wants to add anything! Always will be!

- BioG35

 

https://g35driver.com/forums/member.php?u=344091

This guy had a post for a silver automatic in your area for 7k not too long ago. I would see if it's still available.

 

just be patient and wait it out man... I looked for 5 months before finding my car, but I know your pain. I'm from the Bay Area as well and it can be hard to find one of our cars with a reasonable price and not totally trashed. I know you said that you are not into private sales, but I wouldn't be too scared about them, and if you ever got serious about a CL car just have a full inspection done, it can save you some serious $$ down the line.

 

Just Pmed you. saw one for sale for a screamin deal.! ****** it up asap.

 

Problem: That's a 2003. I'm looking for a 2006 or 2007 G35 Coupe (from what I understand, they fixed a bunch of things and also, the appearance of the car is slightly different?).
Also, that thing has 130,000 miles on it - way too many miles considering I'm looking at buying this thing "new" (so to speak) and wanting to have it for a while. That many miles, I'd just simply expect it to start having problems (if not now, soon..). Of course, I don't want to buy a vehicle and then have to start dumping more $$$ into it not long after. I really do sincerely appreciate you looking out though, bkjoseph25, really awesome of you!

Thanks for the PM DeafBringer and for looking out! Same issue as above though this time - not the year/model of the coupes I'm looking at (see: above). I'm looking for a 2006 or 2007 G35 Coupe (again, for reason: see above).
It's also a Silver color - I'm really looking for either a White or Gray (just, personal preference - if I'm going to be dropping $$$ on a car of course I figure I might as well get the colors I like on it most, too).

The color, oddly, seems to be the hardest thing to find right now. And that brings me to the next reply:

"just be patient"

Those words again. And again, I feel them ring so true. I feel like I need to keep reminding myself of those words during my quest for a G35.
I can't believe you had to wait 5 months man to find one here in the SF Bay Area - holy crap that's both worrying, but then also good to hear because it's I guess in a way reassuring to know that this scarcity in G35's isn't unusual or unexpected. What do you think there may have been in particular that made your search take so long? Were you fixated/determined on certain qualities or characteristics, .. things, in the vehicle?


Quick Summary (repeat) of what I'm looking for: 2006 or 2007 G35 Coupe .. Color = White OR Gray .. Miles = under ~80,000 mi .. Location: Bay Area (San Francisco Bay Area, California).

Still curious to hear more/know what prices would be FAIR/reasonable prices for one of these at 65k miles, and the same if it's at 80k miles.


Thanks again to everyone who's replied thus far - I read all of everybody's posts with such intent! Love all of the feedback and input from you guys in the G35 community - so great!


Look forward to hearing from you guys!
- BioG35