Some of the car mags have said,from time-to-time when comparing sports sedans, that the G engine is coarse and unrefined and is "..not a BMW" and can get annoying on extended trips. I think this is a load of you-know-what!- I love the sound of the engine and exaust and I personally am glad I drive a vehicle that has a much better reliability record than the Bimmer.
What do you guys think?

 

I think that a majority of the car magazines you're mentioning have been naming the BMW 3-Series the "best sports sedan" for so many years, and with it being German and famous for efficiency, you encounter some bias. It's really what you prefer. I've ridden in a BMW, and it sounds more like I would expect from BMW - low engine tone, little to no exhaust note, etc. The G35 has more noise because of the way it's designed. It's what you prefer. I like to hear the power of my engine.

And just my 2 cents - if they think it's unrefined or coarse, they obviously haven't driven WOT

 

When cruising you can't hear the engine. I enjoy the sporty engine roar.

 

When I think of my G35 compared to a Lexus IS350 or BMW 3-series or even a previous IS300, I think unrefined in that there's a significant amount of engine vibration. This is a common complaint about the VQ35, and if anything is probably it's one major flaw. The IS350's V6 is just buttery smooth, you barely know the engine's there until you need the power, and then it just feels great. The 3-series and IS300's inline 6 engine is perfectly balanced and thus doesn't have quite the raw vibration of the VQ36. That's the primary thing I ding the G for, and really, it's not that big of a deal. It's just after driving the inline6 IS, a 3-series and test driving an IS350, it's really noticeable.

Beyond that, Lexus and BMW have the fit and finish (squeeks, creaks, rattles) and such down pat much better, and even the cheap IS300 interior doesn't make use of some of the crappy plastic that's in our G (the bottom half of the doors being the primary example) and the fabric used in the pillars and ceiling is much less refined that what is generally used on a Lexus or BMW.

Still, when I think how much less my G costs than a similarly equipped IS350 or 335i, and how much more fun the engine is than my old IS300 (I do miss the tossability of the IS300), the G is still more than worth it.

 

^ +1.

 

Always: Refinement = Snobbery = $$$

 

+1, couldn't have said it better myself.

BMW builds the smoothest, most well balanced inline 6 in the world, you have to give them credit for it.

Their chassis is fantastic too.

Infiniti is a great car, just a notch below BMW, but more reliable and cheaper.

It is all relative, you may think the G35 is smooth and refined, but if you drove one AFTER the Lexus or BMW, you'd really notice the difference.

 

The reason I went with the G because it is more of the sport and then luxury not the other way around. I love my g from a-z. would not change it out for a bimmer with a crapy interior and letherette inside for 6-7k more.

TG

 

what everyone else says- drive a Lexus or BMW and you will see what they mean- there is a lot of vibration in the G and at upper RPM it sounds rough-

but great bang for the buck-

 

i like the noise :P

 

in fact they're ultra-quiet when they're sitting in the shop for long periods of time. The owners are also shockingly quiet when they see the repair bills.