I have dilema... My car is 03.0 and thus I have the old style ECU which almost no one really supports. I wish to go FI but I want ( or rather prefer ) to tune the oem ecu via osiris ( which can only be done on 03.5+ ). Not only that, but my car has 97K miles and while it's in pretty good shape...it's no where near perfect.

Here is my dilema...My car owes $9,500 and only pays $213 a month. I saw a 2005 G35 Sedan that looked pretty much NEW for $18,999 ( that's the asking price from the dealer ) and I started to tremble...lol. I don't know the mileage yet but I wouldn't doubt it having about 50K at most. I'd be paying about $120 more a month if I get the 05.

So, my question is... if the additional $120 or so a month won't make a difference in your life ( I have very little debt to income ratio so I live on the safe side )...would you buy it? Are 05's worth it or might I regret it ( technically I would have ~$9K-$10K less for mods if I go 05..lol )?

 

I wouldn't. The fact is you owe almost $10k on a car that is 7 yrs in service. That is a lot bro. Stay put and pay that thing off, and spend just a little bit here and there on mods. I don't recommend FI until you pay it off. You never know what kind of repairs may be needed as a result--like a trans, rear-end , engine, cost of tuning, brake/suspension upgrades, gen. maintenance etc.

 

Good thing for me I do 100% of the repairs myself ( including a tranny rebuild if I must ) and parts really aren't that expensive from what I've seen so that really doesn't intimidate me. I'm looking more for bang for the buck. I have no problem paying more, but only if it's worth it. AS for going FI...I'm going FI no matter what I do.

 

then why not just get crazy on the 03?

 

Cause it might not be worth it...I think.

For example, the interior on the 05 is nicer from the pics I've seen ( never seen one in person ). The exterior is also nicer and would need few mods to make it better ( my car has the dreaded 03-04 bumper for example ).

I'm saying these things but I've never even been in an 05 ( I've seen them all from far away..lol ). I might bet inside and drive it and say...hell no...but then again I might be impressed.

I guess the better thing would be for me to stay with my 03 even though it has almost 100K? But then I still have the damn 03 ecu crap.

 

hmmmm. Yeah this is hard! Why don't you just go drive on and see what you are really gaining. I know nothing of the ecu so I have no input on it sorry. But you can get a ton of after maket parts for the 03 and still be saving over payments.

 

Yeah I guess...wanna know what's worse? There is a damn CTS-V for $25K making me sweat also.

 

Go check out an 05, drive it, and if you like it, go talk to the dealer and see what your getting yourself into. if it isnt too bad, do it. If its like $600 a month or some crazy figure, dont.

 

If I can get it for $18K ( which I should AT LEAST get it for that much ) then I would pay $340/m for it.

You kow what would better settle this? I need PICTURES!

2003-2004 vs. 2005-2006

 

+1

If you're talking about interior, pictures won't do the justice; you will have to feel it yourself. I test drove a brand new 05 sedan 6mt when I was buying my 03.5, and many 05+ sedan loaners, IMO the 05+ interior did improve but not like day and night different.

 

Stock 03


Stock 05


03 Interior


05 Interior


03 Modded

(^god that car is ****)

05 Modded




Kinda how it rolls then. If you knew me personally, i am a fan of all G35s. i am a fan of EVERY Infiniti, in fact. i recommend the old *** ones to people all the time. I love them all. Every single infiniti made, i love them all and am a massive fan-boy.

So to ME, either decision is a good one. I like both, they can both look sick modded, i just PREFERRED the 05 and thats why i bought it.

 

Get the Technosquare ecu for na or LS1 swap that ****.

If you want to go fi and need tuning, you CAN use UTEC, Emanage, HKS etc.. but you have to splice the connections vs having an easy plug and play. There's also a guy on the maxima forums offering a UTEC patch harness for the maxima guys. Which the early 03 G35 shares it's ecu connector with. That would be the way to go if the pinouts are truely indentical. From what I see they are identical or VERY close.

 

I love IP sedans!

 

You have to remember that the sticker price is $18k. That doesn't include tax/license and other fees. You might start out with a $350 a month payment but it could easily rise to a $500 check you are writing each month.

 

Not in PR...cars don't don't pay taxes ( well, they do but it's importation tax which is payed by the dealer when imported and added to the sticker price ) and used cars don't pay fees. New cars are different though.

I know you can use piggybacks but from past experiences I would prefer to not use them as there is nothing better than stock ecu reprogrammed for whatever it is I want...except for stand alone which is a huge chunk of change ( which might be worth it ).

I WISH I could find a nismo kit for my car at a reasonable price. They look utterly sick...but since I live in PR shipping would slaughter me and the bumper alone would be about $1500.