Just an observation I've made over some weeks.

I love the exhaust note of my car. In the beginning I would hear it and think "what the hell is that?" and then realize it was the G. Sounds stupid I know, but I came out of an 98 Maxima so there was quite a bit of difference to be noted.

For a while now, I've been "trolling" other VQs. Altimas, 1 other G (an 04 - they still aren't widely seen in Corpus), a couple of trucks, an FX (just like the G - not too many around), wahtever happened to present itself.

I usually try to position myself behind the 'subject' and 1 lane over, and drive with the windows down so I can get a good earful. They don't have the same growl as I perceive the 05 having. I expected no growl on the trucks, but on the Altimas, the 04 G and the FX I expected a little more of a 'voice' from the rear.

Has anyone else noticed this, or has anyone who has owned both cars got an opinion? My buddy just put a Comptech exhaust on his TL and he is somewhat happy with the new sound. He just came back from Iraq and hadn't seen the G yet. After we looked, listened and test drove his car, I pulled out the G.

He said "damn." I said "what?" He said "I wanted my exhaust to sound more like that." I grinned.

I thought of going with an exhaust or a mid-pipe, but understand that the HP gain will be minimal and the main difference will be the tone of the exhaust note. I like mine the way it is - if it were much louder I would consider it intrusive. I didn't really pay much attention to the 350 because I would expect a car like that to have a growl. I was just a bit surprised that Nissan didn't take the same approach with the Alti or previous year G.

 

I love the sound of my 05. Turning the key and hearing the growl makes everyday a little better. Sometimes I turn off the radio just to hear my car as it accelerates. I've debated the mid-pipe also, but would like to hear it first.

 

That's funny. I actually think the G35 Sedan's exhaust is a little too mellow. It does not sound as good as the coupe's exhaust. I guess Infiniti figured that those that would buy the sedan would be a little older, and be turned off by a more agressive sounding exhaust, whereas coupe owners might like it.

Maybe I'm a little bit jaded, as I traded in my 2004 350Z for the G35 sedan. I like the G, but I miss my Z. I had to make room for a kid and also wanted AWD.

 

I agree. Love the sound when it's accelerating.

 

I can see your point. As I said above - the 350Z is expected to have a growl out the rear.

I put the 05 Sedan note behind the 350Z and the G coupe, but ahead of previous year G stock sedans and the Altimas etc.

I was a bit surprised the the V6 Altima - even the 05 - just sounds like a 'normal car.' Whatever that means.

 

After hearing both an 05 sedan and and an 04 coupe, I think the coupe actually has more of higher pitch. It's definitly louder but I wouldn't call it deeper. At least from outside the car.

 

I just love the sound of mine! Gwillie, sit in the back sometime and listen, it's even better. Yes I know it's a sin not to drive it every chance you get, but sometimes you got to explore all the possibilities. I am looking at aftermarket exhausts, but only for more power. The sound reminds me of an old Jag.

 

The 05 with a middy could rock. The FX 35 sounds as loud to me tho as my car with the middy or the 05's I've heard. There's a FX in my hood and I can sopt it coming a mile away. Whenever a Z or FX goes by, I hear it and it's no doubt what engine is under the hood. And I love how they got thefx45 to sound so much the same as the 35 - very similar tone.

 

I really like the off-throttle growl of the new '05s. I like to roll the windows down as I come to a slow stop to hear her growl.

 

One of the first things I noticed when I test drove the 05 was the difference in the *tone* of the exhaust vs. our 04. I really liked it. I liked it so much, I just wanted more of it. Last week I was able to track down a 350z middy, and got it installed Monday ( I posted about this earlier in the week ).

After having it on for a few days, it seems to have gotten a little louder. And that's a good thing. At first, I would drive with the windows down and the sunroof open just to hear it, especially the spin-down growl. But I have noticed that all of the extraneous outside noise ( other cars, wind, tree's, bounce-back from vertical surfaces, etc ) really interferes with the new note. It actually sounds better if all the windows are up.

I really liked the sound of the 05, but I just wanted more of it. So the middy. And I don't regret it at all. The next thing I want is a new muffler; preferably the hks.

Then, I would like to concentrate on the intake side: maybe the popcharger and possibly the ztube, though several people have claimed zero change in the note with the 05 6MT.

 

I noticed very little, if any, change in the sound of the intake once the "Z" tube was in.

 

I have an '04 sedan 6MT and I thought it was too quiet. The Borla ended up too loud for it, so I swapped out my stock midpipe for a stock midpipe out of an '05 sedan (the resonator is significantly smaller). It was perfect! Now the car has a decent tone to it. It sounds good without being too intrusive. I haven't heard an '05 with the coupe midpipe yet. I was curious myself.

 

Still have the Borla?

 

GW,
I dig the 05 exhaust too. Great for a factory setup. I also like the sound of the coupes/Zs.
What I like about the 05 exhaust is that there is no drone, yet a decent amount of sound still eminates from the tails.
Having done countless exhaust mods to previous cars, it's always very difficult to find that compromise.
My buddy has an M3 with Dinan exhaust, and he drove my car for the first time last night. The first thing he said, "sweet exhaust"-

 

Totally agree with everybody on the 05 exhaust. I actually did not test drive the 05 G35, so I was pleasantly surprised with the exhaust note when I went to pick-up my car. It sounded a lot like my previous 97 BMW M3, which I loved.