Thanks for the scan.

Ack! 3600 lbs ... it could have been so much more in a leaner package.

 

I am not sure where MT got its weight specs from, but they are incorrect. Infiniti states that the G35 2WD is 3498lbs, G35x is 3703lbs, G35 Sport 5AT is 3541lbs and the G35 Sport 6MT is 3532lbs.

 

Good question. Infiniti could be quoting dry weight and/or exlusion of weight sapping options.

I can't speak for MT, but R&T measures the wet weight for their full reviews.

 

Infiniti states it is curb weight, just as MT does......so dry/wet weight shouldn't play a factor.

 

Thanks for the article! Definitely a sweet car. Reviews will ALWAYS be biased. You make your own decision based on looks and test drive. Plain and simple. You should never buy/not buy a car based on what someone wrote.

 

Oh my Lord, the new G35 looks stunning in darker colors..... wow~

Also, did anyone look at the price difference? Looks like Infiniti is again going to be around 7-8k cheaper than the comparable BMW 330. $8000 will buy you a lot of things these days, names like Vortech, Greddy, Turbonetic, and Stillen comes to mind. Then again, you could just dump the $8k in the bank for the kids, by the time they go to college the saving would have grew to a respectable $20,000.

 

Or you could buy a corolla and bank the $15k you save, or fit it with a twin turbo.

It looks like the '07 G will do exactly what the last gen did, but better; be a car that is solid in every respect, drivetrain, suspension, technology, reliability, and will do it at a price that is significantly less than it's "competition"; they really should compare it to a 325i for a more $=$ test. That said, if they're shooting to de-throne the 3-series it just isn't going to happen, especially with the 335i coming out.

 

+1 Well said!

 

If I did my calculations correctly, that's almost 7 car-lengths!

 

Have you guys ever seen a low 14/high 13 second car drag race a high 14 second car? The difference in performance is extreme...

 

Oh c'mon! FFS...

throws a fit about nothing

... finished reading. Sweet car! Go Infiniti, and so forth. Feels a bit terrible driving an '06 though.

 

The 335i and the IS350 will likely be faster than the G, but that should be no surprise given the fact that the G has almost 30lbs less torque than the 335i and it's not available until ~5000rpm, whereas the IS and 335i have it available much earlier. Not a huge issue, even though a half second in the 1/4 is like 6 lengths fact is we're not out running 1/4 miles every day. It may look bad in mags though, who knows. Infiniti is just going to have to play up the value advantage, which is fine since they've always gone that route.

 

The IS350 will be a driver's race. The 330 when pitted against the IS350 was 0.6 seconds slower in the same conditions. The G35 is 0.8 seconds faster than the 330. Unless you have all three in the same comparo, its impossible to tell but I bet the IS350 = G35 manual.

 

And that my friends is all that matters. When the BMW pulls up to a light, you can soundly trounce him.

 

The first post in this thread includes a magazine comparing the G35 to the 330i. This is my personal comparison. I respect G35 lovers & am only stating my view for what its worth, probably nothing.

Summer of ‘05 I was blessed to participate in the BMW Driver’s Experience in the parking lot of San Francisco’s Candlestick Park. Weather was sunny, warm & clear, though wind speeds were moderately high.

Three ’06 cars were present & driven: A BMW 330i, an Infiniti G35 & an Audi A4 Quattro. (FYI, according to Robert Hellman, president of the BMW Rider’s Association, http://www.bmwra.org/contact.html, the colloquial terms for BMW vehicles are “Bimmer” for the caged variety & “Beemer” for the bikes. Persons who drive only caged-vehicles don’t care what Robert Hellman says. People who ride and drive prefer the distinction & won’t give it up just to please caged-drivers.)

The road course was tight, less than 60 seconds around & only one short straightaway at the start line. The emphasis was obviously toward handling & away from straight-line acceleration. I was assigned to a professional driver who trains F1 pilots. He agreed w/ me that the course was so tight that his own times would be slower w/ an M5 (straight-line acceleration overshadowed by weight impediment for braking/handling). He also said he’d barely be quicker if the 330i had a manual transmission & I have no reason to doubt him.

The pilot & I & thankfully a very small Asian couple all piled first into the 330i. The professional drove first. In spite of my motorcycle competition experience the pace was much quicker than expected, almost violent cornering, w/ braking markers far later than I would have ever tried. My first lap driving was sloppy but I hit no cones & was better than the couple, who hit cones & made me think we were going to crash. My later laps driving were hugely improved as the pilot gave me explicit instructions which I followed as best I could. It was thrilling. The pilot later disclosed he used different feet for power & brakes. I wished I had tried that myself. Modulating power w/ the brake pedal will settle the suspension & keep the car more level in cornering attitudes, thereby shaving time off the clock.

The couple & I also got to drive the other two cars. IMO anyone trying to equate the handling of a G35 &/or A4 to a 330i has never experienced them back to back on a tight closed course. In comparison the G35 under-steers too much. The A4 just plain wallows. The on-center feel of the two other cars is well below the Bimmer, as is overall handling feel & precision. Braking-wise neither is in the same universe & I don’t care what the stopping distances are in published tests. The average driving slob is not a professional tester. The former driving a 330i will outbreak the other two cars all day every day. Overall it was a bad show for the competition & all three of us were unanimous in this decision.

You will just have to take my word for it that the speeds & cornering forces would have you kicked out of any of these cars during a dealer test drive (unless no salesperson was along). You’d be dialing the local cab company for a ride back to the dealer’s parking lot to pick up your own car. Driving these speeds on public roads is never OK, would get you tossed in jail wishing Johnnie Cochrane were alive to defend you, or worse (having me respond to your accident).

Fanatics & professional journalists are more interested in cornering dynamics & overall balance vs. any other combination of tests. Even the most conservative magazine like Consumer's Reports agrees w/ the fanatics about BMW in this regard. If you are expecting to pick up a magazine road test anytime soon showing that the Japanese have beaten the 3-Series you are going to be dissapointed. The main reason people buy the Japanese flavor is price. Style wise IMO the Infiniti G & M sedans are a flop, but that's totally personal & irrelevant to everyone else.