In terms of winter driving, I was ready to sell my car when the snow first hit ( and I still had summer tires on) but now that i have 17s with snow tires, I love my car, once again.

 

I live in New England (MA) and I run on dedicated winter tires (Blizzak LM-22 17"s). Even with that nasty blizzard last year, I had no problem getting around, so I wouldnt worry about the snow.

 

Thanks all.. thats great to hear I feel a little more comfortable now buying a rwd sports coupe.

 

This might be a little late on the subject but having owned both vehicles (an 05 Evo 8 now and 04 G35 coupe 6MT previous) I would have to say if you don't want "performance" anymore then go with the G35 before it is definately a better looking and more comfortable car (alought I like the evo's seats more). Luxury is the key on the G35. It's very very very nice but it will feel about 1000lbs heavier than the evo in stock form. It won't be nearly as responsive and those .9x lateral g turns will be a thing of the past. RWD is very fun however and the G35 is a great power shifter (keep the foot on the gas pedal) and if you slip the clutch into 2nd with a power shift it'll get sideways - haha. If you're using it for a daily driver I would say yes! get the G35. I don't have any snow experience with either cars.

Another thing is "upgrading". G35 parts cost a lot more and it'll yield barely any power unless you go F.I. which is pricey (as you probably are already aware with the Evo upgrades). If you're into upgrading without spending a fortune you might want to consider a stock turbo/supercharged car. You'l love the G35's larger gas tank also and the quiet and well architected interior. You don't want to get a G35 and then drop 10K on a turbo kit.

If you don't have an "ego" with your car then get the G35 because you can, and will, be eaten alive. I had a G35 coupe vs Evo experience tonight (I'm in SoCali and there's a G35 every 15feet- lol).. 3rd gear pulls and I was 2-3 car lengths by 80 (from 60) so be very aware of what you're giving up in terms of "performance." I only have turbo back w/ cat/boost controller/intake running about 21psi peak. Of course an evo isn't a "cheap" car by any comparision but I think I made my point. I wanted another car as soon as I couldn't get away from a Maxima...that was just too pitiful for a $40,000 "sports" car.

Another thing to consider is the powerbands of the 2 cars. The G35 is a top power performer so it'll feel more fun on the fly and the engine sound is wonderful and with pulleys it revs real free. The stock Evo is a mid-range king making 20 more lbs of torque (~280) than the G35's peak at a mear 2800 rpms and that makes a huge difference especially on road trips going up hill. I was constantly downshifting in my G35 where as in the evo I can leave it in 5th and go straight up a mountain at about 80 and it loves it. Evo's are awesome up to about 120 and anything above that the VQ motor shines. You will also be loosing the wonderful "on boost" feeling and awesome noises a modified evo makes.

Also consider losing AWD. You won't have that confidence you had in the evo. A RWD car will be all over the place in the rain/snow and it will countersteer very differently. The G35 never "begged" me to go faster.

The G35 also has a bigger steering ratio I believe (evo is 13:1 so it's really snappy).

We're basically comparing a race car to a grand touring car.

I'm 23 so I really love the Evo right now (bought the G35 when I was 21) but I will probaby go luxury performer again when I get older.

I would get an EVO IX and take all your parts from your old car and put them on. They will all bolt up. And once again you can experience having to shift from first gear so fast you might as well just start in 2nd (you know what I'm talking about!) The 05 and beyond evos (MR or not) come with the 10.5 turbo hotside for wonderful top end.

After I sold my G35 to my dad I had to pick it up from the dealership and I just about flew the thing off an on-ramp because I thought I was in my evo.. haha.

Sorry about the long post. As you can see. I needed some time to kill.

 

g35 is a status vehicle..... and the evo is a performance enthusiasts' dream. you can fully mod the g35 but it'll never be as fast as the evo.