My previous car was a 2002 Altima 3.5 SE and my G35 feels like it doesn't corner as well as the Altima for some reason. It feels more stable because of the rwd but I can't say it is better suspension wise. Is this just because of the weight or what?

 

This is probably just percepted feel from FWD and RWD. Around town (low speed driving), the FWD drive will feel to corner better while the RWD does not quite feel to do the same.
Specifically you gotta push the sedan a bit when cornering and you'll feel the suspension react more. RWD is however very natural feeling especially when used in track-like conditions such as a race track or road that has some track qualities. Track qualities means open and flat areas for cornering etc. Oh this is generally speaking with stock vehicles.

 

It's a FWD vs. RWD thing your noticing...

In FWD, the engine drives the front wheels and the steering connects to the front wheels; the rear wheels are merely along for the ride. This leads to a common phenomenon called understeer.

Understeer is when the front wheels are carving a larger arc than the rear wheels. The effect this causes is sort of a plowing feeling. Most FWD cars understeer excessively. But...in everyday driving, this 'plowing' kind of exudes a sense of hugging the road.

Enter RWD....

With RWD, the car is much more balanced. So essentially you start off with a tad bit of understeer (some understeer is actually safe), but with a little practice, you easily shift past the understeer into something called oversteer. Oversteer is when the rear wheels are carving a larger arc than the front wheels or the intended line of the turn.

Once you get used to RWD, you'll become a RWD snob like most of us :-)

 

Compared to the 03 Maxima I was driving the last 2 1/2 years, the G35X is a MUCH better handling car, hands down. I know the Maxima didn't have independent rear suspension, but I did add bars to the car and 18s. The X with the OEM Goodyear RS-As handles worlds better. It is a smaller car, but not too bad back seat wise. With the Maxima, it felt like a sedan. With the G, it feels like a sports car that happens to have 4 doors. Infiniti/Nissan should have called the G the 4 door sports car. Because it truly is.

 

Note that the G also has a 48-52 percent weight distribution, which is nearly perfect for most types of performance driving.

 

I've also driven Maxima's for 7 years now, and the G that I purchased last week blows the doors off of it in terms of handling. Don't get me wrong, I will NEVER insult a Nissan Maxima. In fact, I think it's a better "value" in many ways than the G35. As far as handling/sport feel is concerned, it's no contest.

I think Nissan is doing the right thing by changing the Maxima's image a bit. They have the 3.5L Altima now that represents the performance bargain of their branding. Then they have the higher end infiniti models that do a sports/luxury crossover. The Maxima is slowly moving into more of a luxury cruiser now, and I think it's great. The Max is a big sedan that can easily keep up with the 300m and Acura TL in my opinion. With the leather package and driver options, you can purchase a 265hp Maxima (very well equipped) for $28K. With the automatic transmission, it's one of the nicest sub-$30K cruising sedans on the market. Best of all, their world class engine will give you 200K trouble free miles.

 

I used to like the Maxima before the redesign. I also think that a used 1998-2002 Maxima is an excellent used buy.

While I know the interior is nicer than the Altima, I still think the Altima looks alot better and performs about the same (except for the cabin noise, Max wins there).

I can't figure out where they are going with the Maxima. One thing that will help the Maxima is the fact that Infiniti got rid of the I35. I was at the dealer the other day and there was someone there complaining to the service writer about Infiniti getting rid of the I35.

 

Same here, went from a leased 2002 Max SE AT to the purchased G35. I loved the Max, 21 mpg even when driven very hard, quick off the line and plently of bottom end. But - it handled like a large sedan, slow turning and serious tourque steer. The G35 handles like a full on sports car. I test drove both the coupe and sedan and couldn't tell any difference in handling or acceleration. I95 on ramps are easily taken 10 mph faster with the G as compared to the Max. Overall the handling and whole driving expirience is awesome.

 

When I ordered my Pathfinder a few years ago, the dealer loaned me an Altima and a Maxima for a few days. The Altima was a little lighter - more "tossable"... the Max was a 6MT and the LSD in the front end was fun... but it still rolled a lot and had torque steer.

Now, both of those cars don't even come close to comparing to my 2005 6MT G35 that I haven't even begun to push hard... so maybe you are used to the feeling of the front end "pulling" through corners, so it felt faster... also, I think the steering wheel takes a little more "effort" to carve the corners, which provides more feedback... so maybe you aren't used to that feeling, either.

 

Also, my Max seemed "floaty" in bad weather. Even with the 18s on it. The G35X handles awesome. It has a very solid road feel. I just can't wait to see how it really does after I break it in. Looking forward to turning off the VDC and tossing it around a bit.