Hello all, I picked up an '06 manual G35 Sedan yesterday...coming from an '02 M3, as a means of being a more practical daily driver as I drop my 2 year old off at daycare every day. Climbing into the back seat 4 times per day has lost its thrill for this 6'2" frame. In any case, I like the new car. The interior is nicely appointed and well designed. As I worked diligently today to detail the new ride (and the M3 as I prepare it for sale), I really began to like this machine. Most surprising to the negative is the quality of the carpets...these are in great condition, but poor quality, acrylic looking and thin. The Beemers are thick and hearty. Also, I thought something was wrong when I hit the gas as it just didn't seem to have any go. My brother, and 03 6 speed G35 owner assures me it's running tip top and I have to get past the fact that it's not an S54 powerplant. That engine in the M3 is vicious to say the last, snap your neck at just about any speed. Sorry, don't mean to be a downer...just being honest. I really do like this machine, and great combo, bl/bl. I'll try to update my thoughts as I use it more. I already love having 4 doors again. BTW, my headlights have kind of yellowed...are there more than 1 kind of light offered for the 06 sedan? or are they all the same? (Stock, I mean) https://g35driver.com/forums/images/smilies/th_wave.gif

 

Well I'd hope that the m3 ($80k car) blows the doors off the ($35k sport lux) G sedan lol

Not sure how handy you are and how much work you do on the car yourself but you're going to love the ease of work. The past 2 weeks I've worked on, an E36 M3, an E46 M3 and an E46 330. All of which are a huge pain in the *** to work on.

Welcome to the forum, search wet sanding headlights or headlight clearing. There is a 3m kit that you can buy and you will get rid of the ugly yellow.

 

you may also want to let the car learn your driving style and it will get snappy with ya alright they wont be as snappy as a M3 but they are peppy for sure once they learn the heavy foot

Welcome

 

I was considering getting an E46 M3 when I bought the G35, drove a couple of them and really liked them. But like you pointed out, the practicality of the M3 was what kept me from getting one. I don't have kids, but I do pick up customers from time to time and since they never offered an M3 in a 4 door, I had to look elsewhere.

You'll find that a lot of the Z aftermarket carries over to the sedan, which is a good thing. I've driven a sedan with a fair amount of mods to it and it was pretty similar to an M3 in performance, just in a slightly larger package.

All in all, the G35 is a good M3-lite.

For the headlights, here's what I suggest.

1.) Mask off paint around the lights with blue painter's tape. Use a random orbital buffer with a wool backer and a microfiber hat and apply Klasse AIO to the headlights at speed 3. Make a 3 passes up and down across each headlight.

2.) Rinse lens with distilled water and remove all residue.

3.) With the same buffer, make 3 additional passes with the AIO at speed 4.5.

4.) Wipe off residue.

5.) With the car indoors, hand apply Klasse sealant glaze. This will provide some UV protection to the lenses and will prevent them from yellowing. Wait 2 hours with the car indoors, then wipe the lenses down.

6.) 24 hrs after you wipe down the lenses, apply a second coat of SG. Wait another 2 hours, then wipe off residue.

It's a good idea to apply another coat of SG every 6 months. I do mine every 6 months and with the car in the garage when I'm home, the lenses haven't yellowed again.

Some people will say to wetsand the lights, but that will remove more of the UV barrier that's already on the lights. You want to keep as much of that as possible.

HTH, and congrats on your new purchase!

 

Thanks. You guys have already been welcoming and helpful. I feel loved. To be sure, I don't think the M3/G35 a reasonable comparison. They are vehicles engineered for 2 very different purposes and I appreciate that.
I appreciate the thoughts given on the headlight yellowing. The issue I have is that 1 light was recently damaged and replaced and the other is 2006 and yellow. Id like to go cheap and buff it out, but I'm not confident, even following the excellent directions below, that it will match the new light. I'm confused as to which to buy...what are the differences?

 

Welcome

And if you get tired of the G35 being sluggish, just remember, that "neck snapping" at any speed, is just a twin-turbo away

 

For the headlights, my g/f has a small accident that busted one of her headlights on her Matrix XRS. One light was brand new and the other was original, VERY easy to see the difference in yellowing.

I taped off the old headlight, buffed it for about 5 minutes, slapped on some SG, and aside from some gravel pits that I wasn't able to remove, you couldn't tell the difference.

 

Um...

 

he obviously meant the E46 version which is a shame they never made a 4 door one

 

True, I also find that one to be the most beatiful (even though it's not the most "pure" M3) one they ever made.

Espcially in Laguna Sec Blue.

 

The M3 was only an 80,000 car in Canada. It was much closer (though I don't think the same) in cost to the G35 stateside. Not sure why they do this.


Anyway, welcome to the site. Build quality is not phenomenal on Infiniti's, but the 05-06's are definitely a step up from the 03-04 build quality and materials. When the G35 was compared in a test with a standard 3 series but Motortrend (I think), the G pretty much spanked it.

 

The base price MSRP of a no-options 2006 M3 was $48,900.
A G35 Coupe? $33,800

For $15,000 more, it better blow the doors off it.

 

With every option, $84,000 plus tax. (freight in)

Every option on the G was like.... $45,000 tops plus tax (freight in)

The M3 in Canada is joke, BMW owners here get raped every which way. You have to be nuts to drive one.

 

My boy works at a bmw dealership and somebody recently bought a brand new matte black m3 for nearly 100k after taxes and all

 

I got to drive a 2009 M3 coupe for two weeks. 300 miles of joy! Had a buddy who had to leave his new car for his grandfather's last days/funeral... wanted the 1200 mile break-in checkup complete so he could go full throttle to redline when he got picked up from the airport.

Best favor I've done for anyone ever.