Hi all,

My wife and I have been looking into Infinitis for quite sometime now. We never put too much into a car because we spend most of the summer on the motorcycles. Now that she's started a new job and will be required to commute quite a bit more we think it's about time to anti-up.

We will be going from a Mazda 3 to a 2008 G35 XS AWD sedan.

The specific link to the car for sale is here (Canadian) (financing rate approx5-6%, +15% tax): http://www.oregans.com/used-vehicles...D-SEDAN-26658/

Unfortunately my wife and myself are not knowledgeable car people and are really going into this just because the car physically looks good, and the reviews we've watched/read on the internet justify a lot of the same things I like which happen to be in this G35.

I'd say the average driving per day would be 50ks (~35 miles) per day and would be parked underground. This would take into consideration the 3-4 hour drive to her parents place once or twice a month.

As G35 owners or Infiniti enthusiasts, what questions should I be prepared to ask tomorrow? With the amount of KMs 120k (~80k miles) should any major repairs have happened by now? Should I expect to incur some anytime soon if not? My main concern is the true standing of the car as from what I can tell - the body/interior look to be in great shape.

Personally, I'd prefer to buy brand new as I am one who takes care of my vehicle regarding scheduled maintenance etc; mainly I am hesitant when hearing the 'truth' behind a used vehicle.

With this being in our budget ~20-25k and I would love for everything to pan out..

I'll follow-up after the test-drive tomorrow!

Thanks in advance!

R&D

 

do a autocheck/carfax first to see what problems the car has. test drive the car. check the car for dents, chips on the paint.ask if they have service records on the car. check if the car has the wheel keylock which is in the spare tire compartment along with the other tools. with that many miles on the car tranny fluid should'be been changed by now. 80k miles is still young for this car so you sould be major repair free for a lot of miles to come. from what i can see the car doesnt have navigation, ICC cruise control, compact flash reader, and backup camera.

 

^what he said, also check and compare sides for any work done on the body. any welds that dont match among other items. drive it aorund for sure. if u spend 20-25 u should be able to get one with lower miles but 80k aint nothing this is my second infiniti and i just sold my maxima and these engines are hoarses. as long as u take care of them they will run. if u get one with high miles for one u should pay way less than 20 i think.

 

Well, these cars are very reliable as long as you take care of it. I drive my G pretty hard at times but i do maintain it. You should get the car fax on it to make sure everything checks out OK. you will love this car. A lot of fun driving. I am sure nothing will measure up to your bike though. That is a trill for itself.

 

Good luck w/ your new G, they're great cars (I'm on my 2nd one). The seat leather is a bit thin, check the drivers side bolsters for any deep cracks or wear. The paint is also a weak point on these cars, very chip prone, hopefully the previous owner put on a clear bra or drives much more carefully than I do Also take a look at http://www.infiniti-techinfo.com/TSB...px?tsbType=TSB
just put in the year & model, leave the last 2 sections blank, this will list all the TSBs (Technical Service Bulletins) that may apply to your car, the dealer should be able to find out what TSBs have been applied, and you can see if any symptoms for the TSBs may be going on with your new G.

 

I've done my research regarding Car fax and for Canadian's it looks like I should be referring to Carproof. Has anyone had a better experience between the two? Based on the VIN# alone, Carfax highlighted that there were '5 issues' not entirely sure what exactly they were as I didn't pay. You're right. It is missing those options you've listed. Bummer, I was looking forward to all of those tools! Are these items worth putting this car on hold and waiting for another?... Thanks for the reply!

Viewing the car from the lot, I didn't see any major blemishes to the body. Way less than 20k? This has been one of the cheaper 08's I have seen just browsing the autotrader.ca site throughout Canada (definitely in Nova Scotia).

I would never expect anything on four wheels to measure up to anything on two wheels But yes, I would most certainly take great car of my car. But with everything purchased 'used' you're expecting the previous owner to be as diligent as you are.

Thanks for the TSB info.. never crossed my mind. Over 10 pages of items.. uh oh.


All-in-all, assuming the car is in reasonable condition and maintenance has been up-to-date, could I expect to get another 4 years out of this car? I am trying to budget for annual maintenance with a emergency fund of about 1k in case things go bad. What would be the biggest expense I would forsee going into this purchase in the 4 year time frame (non-accidental)?

Again, thanks everyone!

7 hours 'till test-drive!

 

One thing that I would really check for when you test drive it are these things based on my experience with the G:

Wheel bearing noise- wheel bearings go at pretty much around 60k-70k, so make sure there isn't any problems with your bearings. Drive and corner fast and see if you hear noise. Also, you can feel a slight feedback in your steering wheel if your bearings are bad. Also, drive to around 70-80 mph on the highway and see if you have any vibration from dented rims, etc. Also, check your brakes and see if you can feel some brake judder. The OEM rims are easy to warp and cause the car to shake when brakes are applied.

Make sure you don't hear any pops when you turn the steering wheel all the way to the right or left. Some G's have the problem of leaky power steering racks.

Also, try going slowly over speed bumps, and see if you can listen for any clunking/knocking sound. That will tell you if your suspension has any problems or not.

Lastly, feel the panels in your car. Make sure there was no accident done because the paint will feel different between a repainted body part. Also, if you have a keen eye, you can see differences in paint.

Also, see if you can find maintenance records so that the car has been maintained properly. I religiously maintain my car and it's been 6 years with around 70k and still drives like new, albeit all this warranty work I had done on my car.

And to answer your last question: Yes, the car can last 4 more years if the car has been maintained properly with proper oil changes and regular intervals, including transmission and differential/transfer case fluids.

The car looks like just a sport model with the premium package...which is standard in most G's in the 2008 model. To give you an idea, in the USA, a car like this will probably go for 16k-17k at most at a dealer.

It also looks like this car doesn't have any floor mats from the pictures, which should be included. I'll add more stuff to this post if I think of more stuff from the pictures.

Oh yea, don't forget the simple stuff like check battery condition, serpentine belt condition, brake pad wear, oil level etc.

 

The backup camera is a lifesaver due to the high parcel shelf in the back. Its a PITA if you don't have one. I guarantee you're gonna be suprised at the height when you look back. But you gotta get the navigation package as the camera comes with it.

 

Yep, in the 2007 models, the backup camera only came with the technology package, and not with just the navigation package.

 

Don't be overly concerned w/ the 10 pages of TSBs, my 07 G only had a couple that were needed. Most Gs will have a few TSBs that may apply, but since almost every issue that crops up over the years of Gs production gets addressed through TSBs this is just a broad blanket. Like I said, the Infiniti dealer should be able to run your VIN# and see what has been done and then you can go over it yourself to see if there's anything that wasn't addressed.
Oh, and 15% tax, guess that's the price you pay for having all that scenery

 

I agree with everyone, inspect it in person pretty carefully, pull the air filters and see how they look (very easy on these), check for leaks, do a good test drive with lots of braking, and pull history reports/look for any available service records. The general consensus seems to be that they are pretty reliable when taken care of, so if its in pretty good shape, then hopefully thats an indication that it was well maintained.

I bought my 07 used 3 weeks ago and so far the only thing that I can mention is the brake "judder" which seems to be common and is slightly annoying, but no big concern for me at this point. I will probably be upgrading the brakes anyways once the pads wear down and/or the rotors get worse. Outside of this, everything is great and I love it!

Good luck!

 

Wow, amazing. Hopefully I don't scare the dealer when I bring in this huge printed thread from g35driver.com haha. Greatly appreciate the feedback and am feeling a lot more confident going into this knowing what to look out for.

Is something that one would add after the fact? I am sure that is darn costly

So the dashboard monitor - as nice as it looks - is only a radio? Prior to this thread, I assumed it was the navi with rearcam..

Yes, the views are priceless. Especially the drive to her parents house that I've referred to in the original post. How that justifies 15% tax though? I thought my winters paid for that Carfax/Carproof, is this something I can just ask the dealer to provide? I would rather avoid the $50 if I could

I can only hope to have as good of luck as you did! Congratulations.


Again, thanks for all the help.

The more information the better! Look forward to posting pictures from the drivers seat

 

Yep, but it shows other things too...like climate control and your bluetooth phone along with your interior convenience settings but that's about it. All V36 models have a LCD screen in their car, regardless of navi or not.

 

The easiest way for you to tell, at a glance, if car has Nav is the center control panel.

 

oh maybe in canada its different but i found some in chicago 08 09 with low milage with one or 2 owners for around 21-22 i seen some g37 coups go for that with like 60k. keep looking dont be in a rush