The AWD is a tad heavier in the nose and this is going to affect handling somewhat. Also the turn radius is a little wider.

My understanding is that the major selling point of the AWD is greater control and handling in rainy weather and other low traction situations, not so much the ability to drive in snow. I don't think Infiniti wants to give owners the impression that the G is a snow mobile, which it isn't. You're not going to plow through drifts with it in any event. I'd almost bet that a RWD G with good snow tires will do almost as well in the white stuff as the AWD with the all season tires.

I just got my X and next time we have a rain storm I'm going to take it out in a parking lot somewhere and see if I can spin it out.

 

One of the enthusiast car magazines tested acceleration of the AWD and RWD of the Infiniti G35 (the previous generation though, not the 2007), and the AWD actually did better than the RWD. During acceleration, the AWD uses both the front and rear wheels. This was attributed as the reason the AWD did better. Granted, the difference is something that you wouldn't notice in street driving, just like the AWD being heavier is something that wouldn't be noticed with regular driving.

Once the G35x gets going, and the road is good (i.e. no snow or rain), the G35x acts just like a regular RWD, so you get the benefits of RWD. So, IMO, given the choice between the AWD and RWD, I would take the AWD. Granted, the AWD costs more, and the option packages are a bit different, so you have to account for other option and cost differences.

I used to live in the Washington, D.C. area. The area doesn't get as much snow, at least relative to where I live in upstate, NY. Can't comment about the Baltimore, MD area, but the D.C. area is terrible about plowing the snow in a timely manner. For me, given the choice between RWD and AWD, all else being equal, AWD is definitely what I would choose. In your area, with a good set of all season tires, no need to worry about switching to winter tires. Plus, AWD can also be handy in bad road conditions (e.g. slick roads in rainy conditions).

 

Here's a link to a Road and Track AWD comparison article where at end they compare the G35X VS the G35. This is was taken from an article from 3/06.
http://www.roadandtrack.com/article....r=10#reardrive

 

I don't see or feel any negative to choosing the AWD. The RWD has negatives. Easy choice. And a RWD with winters would still be left behind an AWD with AS. But I still run Winters on The AWD. Makes snowy roads feel dry.

 

The AWD is better on rain snow and speedy cornering. Everywhere else the RWD dominates a bit. You have to see how much time of the year you have good road condition and how much time "bad" road condition.

TG

 

I am actually the opposite. I'd rather had my G35S with winters than an X with the crappy AS tires. Braking ability alone with good winter tires is enough reason alone for me.

 

I'm currently driving an 02 WRX Wagon and I've always used all season tires in the winter with no problems at all. But winter tire are the best choice for winter driving. When I get my X when the tires wear out I'm planning on buying dedicated tires for the summer and winter. I don't think an X with 18" all seasons tires is going to work well in the snow. My WRX Wagon has 17's. Any one here with an X running 18's with all season in the winter?

 

Sacrilege!!!

The 6MT should be offered on the G35X.

Lack of 6MT availability on the X model is the only reason I went with AWD.

The perfect G35 to me would be a 6MT G35X Sport.

It's not about the tires at all, because you can always change those.

If you don't already understand why you want RWD, then you don't really want it at all... and you'd be better off with AWD.

 

At speed, both are RWD, but the AWD is a bit heavier. I found the steering lighter on the RWD, but that may just be me.

I have driven RWD exclusively for 15 years. I went for AWD because I am transporting my 5 mo old daughter often, and I feel a little more confident in the wet. This may be a placebo effect though.

Drive both and see if you notice a difference.

 

A few additional comments based on what I've read:

AWD gets quicker times: AWD will often be quicker in magazine comparison tests, but only because they'll do stuff to the car many people here would never do. With AWD, you can brake torque the engine harder before launching (or drop the clutch at higher rpm with a manual). If you just mash the pedal from a dead stop, AWD doesn't gain as much of an advantage unless the engine has so much torque down low that it can break the tires loose. I don't think the G35 is quite to that point.

Audi and AWD: Audi had to go the AWD route and market it to the hilt, because their cars are FWD-based.

AWD+AS vs. RWD+winters: The former car might have an acceleration advantage, but what you really want to be able to do is corner and stop, where the latter setup has a huge advantage. Without traction, you just get stuck. Without braking, you get into an accident.

Winters in Baltimore: I don't think it snows enough to justify this option. In Michigan, where I live, I use winter tires on a Protege5, like someone else here. Car goes through anything. On all-seasons, it easily got stuck.

RWD being tricky in the snow: I've had the opportunity to drive a few RWD cars on the snow. If you have any clue what you're doing, you'll be fine. Stability control systems take out much of the potential drama. 306hp doesn't mean anything in this context, because in the snow you shouldn't be getting anywhere near the rpm at which that 306 is produced. Redlining a car on snow falls under not knowing what you're doing.

 

agreed on getting snow tires, and if you have 'em mounted on rims it takes less than half an hour to change all 4. all-seasons don't do much on ice, and can't stop as well on packed snow as winters. also the deeper, more aggressive tread will help claw your way through powder.

awd may have some of the advantage of fwd, with the engine's weight being over a pair of the drive wheels, but the balance in these cars is good enough that it doesn't make too much of a difference. worse comes to worse, there's always sand bags.

i've spent 7 of my 8 winters driving in a peg-legged (no lsd) front heavy rwd boat with over 300lbs of torque (gotta love the cold air), and only got stuck when the slush i parked in turned to ice, and even then i got out of that after a short while.

if you're really in the deep stuff, air down the tires to 30 or so (maybe even 27), to get more contact area, (not too much or you will start to loose area).

and don't beleive the hype that "all-seasons are good enough", they're good enough until you try real snow tires, or end up sliding through an intersection.

 

Exactly! That is why I would prefer my Sport with winters as opposed to an X with AS tires. It's amazing how many people think that just because they have AWD, the tires don't matter.

 

One can brake torque in a RWD also.

But at least in the older AWD Gs, they also got a taller numerical rear end ratio to help compensate for the additional weight they had to lug around. Not sure if this is true for the new versions

 

The only thing the RWD will dominate is replacing rear tires. The AWD is better at everything exept 0-60 if you put a pro in the seat. Get too excited and spin a bit and it'll be different. The test's say .2 to .4 difference in 0-60 depending on which test and if the track conditions are good. That I can live with. Everywhere else AWD is better. If you want to lose traction or lose it in the corners, perhaps a RWD is better suited.

 

Good comments mkaresh, I just wanted to clarify that the Audi's Quattro is FWD-based for the base models. however on Sport models they do RWD-based quattro. i.e. S6, RS4, S8.