Hello all,

I took a trip into Houston today and on the way in I asked my wife if we could stop at the nearest Infiniti dealership - Southwest Infiniti - and see if they had any brochures or anything like that yet on the '07 G35... well, after getting a sales person's attention, I found out that I did better than a brochure - I got to see the real thing in person. He informed me that it had just been dropped off (it was 9:00 am) and was undergoing inspections by some of the techs. After about a ten minute wait, I got to check it out. I went back behind the service bays and could hear it being pulled around the back - the first impression was of the exhaust note, which is beatiful at low rpms - it seems like it's a tick up from the coupe's note, but very similar. The car's exterior is very unlike the outgoing sedan's body - much more rounded and curvy and visually wider than the old car - the front of the car is very aggressive and the grille really does look like a work of art. The color of the car is a new color - a med. dark blue - that looks like a cross between lakeshore slate and twilight blue. It was a beautiful color, but not for me. The only thing that bothered me was something I had not seen before - a chrome strip along the trunklid line that looked like a faux spoiler - no reason for being besides for the "bling" factor.

Moving inside, the stone interior looks great and will definitely be the interior I chose to match my black exterior. The black/stone contrasts flow well throughout the interior and the new steering wheel has great feel compared the coupe's. The paddle shifters seemed to be placed perfectly and have a nice feel to them as well. This particular model was the Sport automatic - and fully loaded with every option. The navigation/control unit seems quite complex, but I'm sure as with anything some practice is necessary. The touch-screen works great and the perspective view is very unique. The Studio on Wheels we've heard so much about is just as advertised - even though I didn't really get the chance to crank it up and change the audio characteristics, it sounded clear and crisp - just as good if not better than the M Audio in my M5. The seats are much better than the out going ones as far as adjustability, and the thigh adjustment that I like so much in my M5 is now available on the G35.

Even though I didn't get a chance to test drive the G35 because it was "not ready" to be taken out quite yet because no paperwork was done on it yet, I will definitely be back in the next couple of weeks to see what it can do on the road. By the sounds of the engine, it will not dissapoint. In fact, after seeing/observing it in person now, I have come to the conclusion that I will definitely be selling my M5 in the upcoming months and placing an order for a new G35 sedan... so if anyone is looking for an immaculate '01 M5 with 58k miles, exhaust/intake/short shifter (~420 hp) with CPO warranty until March for around $34k, LET ME KNOW!!!

FYI, The only reason I'm selling the M5 and moving back to the Infiniti family is because my wife cannot drive a manual and we find ourselves needing to use each other's vehicles too often. That, and with the warranty about to run out, I'm afraid of the maintence costs on a vehicle that was over $75k when new (even though I've had zero issues with the car so far - it's been great, but I simply need something more practical).

Brandon Z.

 

That must be the Slate Blue everyone's talking about. I wish I could see it for myself. I still want the Lakeshore because Twilight's not for me.

Where have you been? Photos are available everywhere!

Wow, from an M5 to a G35... Now THAT says something about the G. Thanks for the great personal review, Brandon!

 

Goosebumbs.......

 

Shiftaphobia isn't a chronic condition, y'know ... it can be easily cured, provided that the patient wants to be cured. Be that as it may be, if Nissаn just happened to be drop a new G35 at one store in Texas well before the late-October "official" launch, chances are they're doing the same thing nationwide.

 

Patient has no motivation nor interest in being "cured" - esp. when we're talking about high-horsepower manual cars, not Honda Civics... the M5 is about as indimidating a vehicle there is for your first time driving a stick...

Well, I'm a previous G35 owner (coupe - tons of mods - been gone almost a year now) and I enjoyed the car alot, but at the time, I needed a 4dr car and I went after about the most HP/$$$ you could get - 420hp/$40k - the G in all honestly is no where near the capabilities of the M5, but I'm at a point where the time spent feeling the difference between the two would be minimal... I've wanted an M5 since the first day the E39 came out, and I don't regret the purchase - i just need to unload it before my luck runs out

 

Oops, forgot to mention - salesperson said that the fully loaded model will MSRP between $38-40k - that's all he's been told thus far... take it for what it's worth...

 

+1^^

 

Does "fully loaded" imply simply Prem + Nav + Tech packages, and no rear active steering and no spoiler? I'm trying to figure out how much teh G35s 6mt will cost with only prem + nav. I'm guessing around $36k at max.

 

Great write-up Brandon, thanks for sharing with us. I can't wait to pick my new G up......only about a month to go!!

 

My favorite part in the whole write up!!!!

Nice!

 

Nice. If I wasn't on the other side of town, I would check it out. I'm suprised you have not seen the chrome spoiler yet since it's been a hot topic.

 

If I had the means, I would buy your M5 right now. The e39 M5 is the best BMW ever built in my opinion.

 

I just talked with Sewell Infiniti in Dallas and they said they should be getting one this afternoon. He said he would like to set up a test drive. We'll see if it happens... fingers crossed

 

The M5 is a great car... but I sure don't envy the 13 MPG rating for a daily driver. Those high revving/compression engines suck some gas, just like the M3 did. Ouch.

At 15K miles per year, one would pay almost $100 per month more in gas compared to the new G35 sedan.

 

After reading about the Southwest Houston Infiniti comment above I stopped by West Houston Infiniti which is near my office, and they got one in yesterday as well which they let me look at.

It is a Diamond Graphite Sport with Premium, Navi and Tech. The car looks great in person, although it was parked in a row with other cars so I couldn't really get a good side view of it. The Sport wheels look better than they do in pictures but it looks like the standard 17" wheels on the base/Journey might be pretty small given the size of the wheel wells. The chrome lip on the trunk did not look too bad, but it is not that different in color from the DG. I think it might be too much bling on some of the other colors.

The interior was graphite with aluminum trim. the washi is very subtle and looks fine in person. Seating is very comfortable and roomy in front. I am 6'2" and did not need to have the seat all the way back like I do in most vehicles. The guages look really cool and updated. I didn't get a chance to crank the stereo up but it sounded really good at lower volumes - crisp with clear strong bass. The touch screen has really nice graphics and will keep me busy for hours fiddling with all the toys.

They are evidently planning a rollout event on Oct. 26 from 6-9pm like many other dealerships discussed on the board.

I am going to have trouble waiting until Spring when we plan to buy.