Hi everyone,

I'm looking at buying a used G35 and I'm wondering if there's any advice anyone can give me.
A little background info: I always do all my own work on my cars (with the help of my dad, who is also my licensed mechanic lol), I don't like the new G37s (I don't mean to upset anyone, I just prefer a G35), and I want a car as close to stock as possible because I enjoy modifying anything myself and to my standards.

There is three that I'm looking at and I need to make a decision this week. All of them are private sales.

1. 2005 Coupe, 6MT, Grey ext., Black Int.
This is my choice of interior and exterior colour, and I definitely want 6MT. The car has 140,000km and is fully loaded minus nav system.

After checking out this and other resources I found out that 05 - 07 have the revup motor with the notorious oil consumption issue. The owner is not the original owner and he has no idea if the engine has been replaced and also has doesn't think his car burns oil because his mechanic has never said anything. I asked for an inspection by Infiniti (at my own cost) and initially he said no and he isn't selling the car with safety and e-test. A week later (today) he changed his tone. He will allow inspection and will provide e-test. He will not include safety, but he is confident it will pass because it did when he bought it just over a year ago. He's selling it for $16,400 and it comes with 350Z rims with winter tires in addition to the factory wheels. Driver seat is worn out (padding is almost flat) and the interior needs to be detailed.

2. 2004 G35 coupe, 6MT, black ext, black int.

This car is not my first choice in colour. I'm done with black cars. They look so nice when clean, but get so dirty so fast. This car has 114,000 km, sold with safety and e-test. It also has a JWT intake and a borla cat back exhaust. I'm not sure if I like the exhaust or prefer the stock one. Either way, I would prefer to do it myself. I also prefer the 2005's interior, but I know the 2004 doesn't have the oil issues. This car is being sold for $18,200 and the guy will not budge. Sold with winter rims/tires and the clutch was replaced at 109,000 kms. This car is in amazing shape, interior is spotless. The car was a little dirty when I saw it (why I don't want black) but the paint looked good.

3. 2003 G35 coupe, 6MT, grey ext, black int.

Cheapest and oldest of the 3. Sold certified and e-tested and he agreed to an inspection by infiniti. He told me that he's selling it because he's spent so much in repairs in the last year and he wants to get something cheaper. My question with this one to myself is: is it a lemon or has he fixed all the little bugs? Completely stock, and it has 108,000 km. Also comes with mismatched winter rims (one kind for front, one kind for back) and winter tires purchased in jan 2011.

I apologize for the long post but I'm really having a hard time here. I think the 05 is the best deal, the 04 is overpriced and the 03 could be a good deal or a lemon.

Is there any insight anyone can offer me based on the information I provided? Anything I should look for that I didn't notice? Is the oil thing that bad on the 05+ models if I use high quality synthetic (what does everyone recommend?)

I did notice something that sounded like light lifter noise on the 04 and 05, but not the 03. My friend has an 04 sedan and his is the same. Is that common for these motors?

 

All of them are a little high on miles, I would go with the 3rd option.

 

05 seems to be the best choice; if inspection is done. You dont want to be stuck with a crapped transmission and out of warranty. Good luck!

On a side note: you should look around more. Should be able to find a better one with less miles. It'll be worth the wait

 

couple more things to add:

-the 03 and 04 have brembo brakes
-i think the the 03 is gonna need a clutch really soon (clutch pedal felt really strange and gearbox was a bit rough going into gears sometimes)

basically I really wanted 05-06 until I heard about the Oil issue. I spoke to a few mechanics and the guys at Mr. Lube (they do A LOT of oil changes, lol) and everyone said that they will burn some oil because that's the nature of a performance engine. They also said using the right synthetic can minimize any oil consumption to zero.

Can anyone with an 05+ verify? you guys know more than anyone else I can ask...

 

The oil consumption for REVUP is the real deal and no joke. All engines will burn oil to a certain degree and infiniti likes to claim the industry standard that each engine is allowed to burn up to 1qt of oil every 1000 miles. Any more than that and they will replace the engine with the same design (you will still have oil consumption). The REV_UP design burns more oil than any other VQ motor and what happens is owners who are not enthusiasts forget to check oil and let the ending starve. The revised the design with the HR motor and beefed up the internal components is what finally fixed the issue. Get the vin # and call up infiniti and try to find out over the phone what service has been done and what parts have been replaced along with what the advisor thinks you should get doen.

The 6 Speed MT tranny in the 2003 and 2004 will end up crapping out and need to be replaced to the cd009 revision. This was replaced in 350z starting with build date 07/04 and I believe in 05 for Inifiniti. My vehicle was build date 06/05 and has the CD009 tranny. This is the last revision with beefed up synchro and gets you nice and smooth shifts into all gears especially 2nd, 3rd and 5th.



This is what a motor that has been starved will sounds like. 116k miles and the price was too good to be true.

https://g35driver.com/forums/g35-sed...maybe-tdi.html



https://g35driver.com/forums/g35-sed...ide-101-a.html


https://g35driver.com/forums/g35-sed...pics-vids.html

 

wow, thanks for all the great info faiz23.

None of the cars that I've seen sound like that at all. Its really just a LIGHT tick tick tick tick. I'm pretty sure it's ok. Whichever one I decide to go with will be inspected by Infiniti first, so they'll let me know everything thats wrong because theyre going to want me to fix it with them.

Keep in mind those are all in Kilometres. In miles, option 1 has 87,000 miles, option 2 has 70,800 miles and option 3 has 67,100 miles.

I called 5 different dealers and only one of them had a service record on the car. It was only one date for something with the passenger side airbag and the belt tensioner. They all said its possible that they did work in the past for the car, but they only keep records for 2 years, so if it was there before 2008/2009 then they record is gone.

I got the autocheck on the 05, everything is good. I guess I'll get the inspection and take it from there, even though this oil thing is making me a little nervous. I'm not worried about dealing with it from now on, I'm worried about the people that ignored it in the past...

If I eliminate the 04 from the equation because I think its overpriced and the guy wont negotiate anything, I'm left with the 03 that could have the bad tranny, or the 05 that could have oil issues..... Someone remind me why I want a G35 so bad? lol cuz they're sooooooo nice!!!

 

I have to disagree with this....^....not all VQ engines burn oil. Other than what ends up in my catch can (half tsp) my oil level stays the same between oil changes. Only once did my dip stick show below full and that was when I had the stealership change it for me....they don't believe in putting all five quarts in. There's thousands of member here that don't have OC issues other wise it would be a constant topic of discussion.
Gary

 

Thats kindof what I figured, but I was waiting for someone else to chime in. If EVERY G35 burnt oil, then forums would be 100% full of complaints and reviews would always be brutal. The service guy at infiniti that I just talked to said take off the oil cap and rub my finger under the lid. If its oil, then it's fine to buy. If it's sludge, then turn and run. He said if oil services have been neglected at all then there will be sludge there for sure. Every little tip I can get will help me sleep better.

I'm gonna try and go see another 05 tonight or tomorrow night. Just waiting for the guy to get back to me. It has 91000kms (56,500 miles) and the guy says its in amazing shape. he's asking $19,000 but is willing to negotiate a little.

lol, 10 people are gonna run out and check their oil caps now. haha

 

^ I assume you are located in Canada? If so what part...

I can help you out with your search as I just purchased my car in Toronto a few weeks back so I know what the market looks like currently.

Let me know

 

@ozzy87 - I'm in Toronto as well, but I've been looking all over for one.

What did you buy? I wish I got mine a few of weeks ago! lol

 

They key to buying a Rev-up is taking the VIN# to the Infiniti dealer and have them check it. If the motor has been replaced they will have a record. I disagree with two statements made above. First, I have never seen actual numbers of Rev-up oil consumption issues. I would love to see hard numbers. Secondly their is no proof that if the engine fails and is replaced the replacement will have consumption also. I have seen a couple of threads where this has been the case but a lot of others have experienced no further problems. You also cannot remove the driver from the equation. No car manufacturer is in the business of building defective engines for the hell of it. It costs them money when they have to replace those defective parts. As I understand it the problems were caused by 3rd party engine rings. The complete failure problem could have been avoided by frequent oil checks. A standard procedure for car enthusiasts. Yes, the engines still would have been replaced.

 

I called all of the dealerships that I thought the car might have been taken to and they all told me that they only have a record of work done at THAT specific location and the records are only kept for 2 years. I called 7 dealerships and I havent found any services earlier than January 2011. Will going into a dealership with the car for inspection yield better results? maybe if I'm paying for an inspection they'll dig a little deeper?

 

Let me clarify my statement about OIL BURNING VQ. The REV-UP version of the VQ tends to burn the most oil compared to any other VQ motor. Only the rev-up motor consumed enough oil to warranty a TSB. In my opinion and most other mechanics a tiny little bit of oil being burned or blow by is normal and expected in high performance engine that have been pushed. The amount of consumption in other VQ models is so very little that it has no adverse affect on the motor. In the Rev-Up model the motor will burn much more oil than the regular motor due to piston ring / higher rev.

As long as the oil has always been maintained then you should have no issues with the vehicle. The cars that come into question are ones that were driven Highway miles with a very long interval like 7500miles per oil change. If the owner did oil changes at 3,000 miles then you should have a quality motor.

I would try calling dealers in Infiniti USA and see what service records you can get. I was able to get 5 years of history all the way back to when the dealer mats / car wash was performed upon delivery.

 

Not sure what your budget is but I bought a 2006 IP on Grey Coupe with Nav in MINT condition. Has about 45k miles and I paid $23k for it. Let me know what your budget is and I will keep an eye out for you.

As far as Oil Consumption goes look at it this way....my car still has drivertrain warranty until next year, my mechanic who checked it did not see any problems. I will be starting my tests next oil change and give myself plenty of time just in case I run into problems and need to bring it in.

Keep this in mind, warranty is 6 years or 70k miles so I bought a car that is in great condition but you never know.....

 

Only concern i would have with the 05 is the high mileage. Lifter noise is only a problem when the owner did not change their oil regularly or did not use good oil. So its a problem with Gs, NO, just bad owners that don't take care of their car.

Lifter job is expensive. Each lifter costs $32-$35 and the engine needs to be dropped to have the clearance checked.

03 will have more torque and so for DD, it will be more fun, imo...

But if the 05 sounds and looks good, go for it, and only use synthetic oil!