Yes I could have. However, that one styling feature put me off so much that I just stopped considering it as an option. I bought the BMW 330i so I had to wait a couple of years before I got rid of that. I didn’t even notice that they got rid of the box until the new 05 G35’s came out. I thought that it would take them several years(like Honda/Acura) to do an update. Oh well, once I saw the new 05’s I saw no reason to keep the 330i. I actually bought that car because I got a great deal and I really couldn’t find a car I liked better. That doesn’t mean that I really like the car. I just couldn’t find anything I liked better at the time. There is definitely something better now and there are now a couple of cars to watch in the near future. Unlike 03 there are now many good options in the sport luxury sedan market.

 

I agree, but price is still an obstacle for some.

I often catch myself thinking of other cars, and then the price I paid for my G comes back into my mind. While I could have bought something else, and now I have even more options (new IS350, new C350, etc), I really only have a couple of other choices at the G's price point.

There are a few topics discussing the upgrades to the 06 G. I'm curious to see what the new features do to the bottom line. Moreso, I'm anxious to see what the supposed 07 redesign offers and what happens to the price tag then.

Either way, there isn't a 3 Series on the planet that would earn another $10K of my money as long as the G was on the table. (M3 aside)

 

If you ever find a brand-spanking-new BMW M3 within 10k of what I paid for my 05G, let me know.

 

Here you go one brand spanking new M3 that should be around 10K higher than your G35. Heck you even get the extra 5 in its name free of charge. If I didn’t have the world’s shortest garage then I would have picked this up instead of the G35. I am still happy with the G though.

http://www.infiniti.com/content/0,,a...123084,00.html

 

My point to all of this was that the 03/04 5AT sedan was underrated. It didn't make 260hp/260tq. It made closer to 270-275hp/270tq. The 05s gained about 100lbs thanks to heavier rims, larger brakes, and probably some additional sound proofing.

Is the 03/04 better? No, but all the data we have suggests that Nissan simply underrated the 03/04 so that coupe owners felt like they were paying for a faster 280hp/270tq 2-door coupe and that 2005s 5AT sedans are not quicker and possibly fractionally slower thanks to the larger 18" Sports Package rims. Seeing that Motor Trend got two 14.6s at 96-97mph out of two 03s Sedans on 17s and a 14.7@95mph in the 04, it looks like the 14.7@95.x they got in the 05 shows no power increase. It's possible the 05 with the standard 17s could probably do the 14.6s@97mph the 03 did. Do you guys not agree with this?

Am I 03/04 blind? Hell no. If I had the money, I'd be driving an 05 or 06. I'd be a fool to pass up on the 05 with the better interior, the Sports Package with sweet 18s and LSD, the body colored lower panels, etc. It is the overall better car. Faster? No. Better? Yes.

 

Maybe???

Your logic makes sense... if it weren't for

a. Drag strip may be different, or if the strip is the same, the traction at the strip may be different between the old and new runs.
b. Weather conditions may be different between the runs.
c. Tester car(s) could be "strong" or "weak". There are variations between engines even in the same production runs.
d. Driver in the tests are different.
e. Just how much more weight does the 05 have? I don't know. IF the 05 does have 20hp more than previous... how much more weight would it take to get the 05 to be fractionally slower (assuming all the above mentioned conditions remain the same).

Conditions play a big role in all this and even though the mags adjust 1/4 mile times for altitude/blah they can't adjust for all the conditions. Fact is a 20hp difference is pretty slight and because of that the other conditions can have an impact TOO.

Personally I loved the G since it came out (don't care about the HP ratings debate here), and was only in the right circumstances to get in on one recently. I drove the 04 and 05 X models back to back at the dealership. The 05 engine pulled smoother if not a bit faster (seat of the pants). But whatever... does it really matter? 20hp is what we are talking about here.

The thread is funny cause it "sounds" like 03/04 owners get all bent out of shape and are over compensating for the lower HP rating (little man syndrome). And the 05' owners get all bent out of shape to justify their purchase (high-brow complex). Complexes all around! Guess I fall into the latter. ha ha ha

Let's just all agree that the G is sweet and we are all happy to buy it over a BMW.

 

I think we can all agree that the 03 “box” on the trunk looked terrible. Heck Infiniti thought it looked bad enough to change it Mid Model Year. And I think that most people like the new front end and rear taillights. That alone was enough to justify the 05 for me. I am just second guessing myself because the new 06’s are supposed to have a revised front and rear. Are the new ones going to look that much better than the 05’s? I guess we will just have to wait and see. And yes I am glad I unloaded my BMW curse off on carmax. They actually bought my 330i at $1000 over blue book and sold it right away. I checked 29 days later and someone had actually returned the car under the 30 day guarantee. Carmax was now listing it for not much more than they paid me for it, which was not that much less than what I bought it for from them 2 years before. I think I lucked out on that one!

 

as Dave said in the first post:

"Remember that MT (Motor Trend) corrects all their times to standard conditions (sea level, 20% humidity, 29.8 baro)."

 

From experience I can tel you that my 04 was faster off the line, but once the car is going the 05 is faster period. On a roll its faster, and highway its faster. But just from a stand still it does feel weaker than my 04 which was one of the few that dynoed very high for being a stock sedan. I believe it was 234 hp and 234 tq but its been a while so I would have to look up my dyno sheet.

 

And as I said

"...they can't adjust for all the conditions"

such as temp, track condition, driver, production differences. You really think their corrections take all this into account? Hope not.

Anyway... not trying to flame anyone, just pointing out the discrepencies in his logic. It's not a bad thing.

 

Temperature is corrected as is all ambient air conditions.

It's an average of 10 runs. 5 runs one way and 5 runs going the other way. They don't test on true drag strips. They use open level pieces of road and use onboard accelerometers to generate thier 1/4 mile times.

The argument of "production differences" is a joke in this day an age because manufacturing tolerances are terribly tight. You'd be hard pressed to find 3-5hp difference between one G and another when tested on the same machine and similiar mileage on the car.

 

am i the only one not so concerned about .1 difference in the quarter mile? lol. any G is a good G. and i think most people here would agree with that. Although someone asked me the other day if my 05 was faster than an 04 i simply stated that i have no freaking idea...but i did tell him how much fun it is to drive. thats the important part people..haha.

 

Maybe (that's a big maybe) most people like the new front end and tail lights. I sure don't. If I buy another G35 it will have to be a Coupe, because that new front end and tail lights killed the Sedan for me. I saw an '05 last week on the road. I came from behind and passed her.....took a good long look fore and aft as we were rolling in slow downtown traffic and I just don't care for the redesign. The Coupe front end belongs on the Coupe - Not the Sedan. The round tail lights put me in mind of the Altima. Maybe Infiniti will fix those (to me) problems on the '06.

 

03, 04, 05, same thing.

 

The front end looks a ton better on the Sedan, the rear takes some getting use too with the tails. But if you think about it, its like a stock Nismo kit. So if you don't like the Nismo kit, you won't like a 05.