I have an 05 loaner today and let me just say that I am jealous of the 05 gage cluster and the softer materials .. other than the gage cluster, I like everything else evenly. You can feel the extra ponies in the Sedan over the previous models.. but that could be because this loaner only had 46 miles on it. I didn't drive it too hard (pre break-in) because I am sure after the loaner program is over someone will buy it.

The major difference in driveability is the tranny. Double down shifting takes less effort. In the 03 you can only double down if you are quick with your hands. On the 05's you can do it without popping your wrist out of joint... With such ease. Even triple downshifting was easy on this tranny, something I am only able to do at certain speeds in my 03. I thought that I heard that it was possible to download newer tranny programs on older models. Any insight?
Also, if possible, how much does it cost?

 

I think gurgenpb looked extensively into this. It involves several components, etc. and not simply a re-flash. If I remember correctly, he didn't think it was practical.

 

gord.... exactly
NOt only is it not practical, it is IMPOSSIBLE! The consult II will not let you flash the 05 program onto any other car model, as their is check function of some sort there...

I also transplanted the 04 sedan TCM into my 03 and it through all kinds of CELs. I am not sure if the car goes into some limp mode or will function normally despite the CELs... it was not possible to confirm that due to the circumstances at the time. if so, than it may be worth it to tolerate the CEL for better shifting. Was not my first choice.

Also, the 04.5+ cars 800001+ VINs for the coupes and E~4M600001+/F~4M700001 VINs for the sedans have their TCMs built-into the AT!!! So, even a hardware swap is out of the question.

 

I just had a reflash done to my 03 AT because I had some minor shift shock. I have noticed that the manual mode is much more crisp and quicker to shift. The shop did it for free. I am assuming there is a TSB.

 

do you know what prgram number they put on it? Sedan or coupe? I assume that it is the xxxxx-AL013 (if you have the coupe) and xxxxx-AL004 if you have the sedan. If it is anything else, than they may have something newer than this (good!).

 

Wish I knew! I can check the invoice, but other than that, I am not sure.

 

Hmm...

So are you coupe or sedan?

 

I have a sedan. It doesn't say on the invoice, just that it was upgraded to the newest TCM program.

 

i believe the reason you cannot flash an '05 is not exclusive to the G35 or even infiniti. here's a quote from a subaru forum:

"There has been some legislation implemented in some parts of the world stating that all Model Year 05 vehicles from all manufacturers must be capable of displaying three pieces of data.

They are:

VIN - Vehicle Identification Number. This is effectively the chassis number and is unique to each vehicle. This will not change when a an ECU is reprogrammed.

CIN - Calibration Identification Number. This is an identification number stored in each ECU that shows which calibration file should have been programmed into this particular ECU. This will not change when the ECU is reprogrammed with Ecu TeK tools.

CVN - Calibration Verification Number. This is a number which is the result of a calculation carried out based on the calibration data in the ECU. This number will change when the ECU is programmed with anything other than the factory data.

The legislation also states that these numbers must all be capable of being read by proprietary OBD readers and the numbers may be check during routine emission tests against data which has to be supplied by law from the manufacturers.

The purpose of this legislation is to enable the tester to establish if the ECU has been modified in any way or has been changed from car to car."

ecutek has found a way to reflash subaru's and make it work, but the ecu needs to be flashed back to the original map before taking it to a smog check.