Car is starting to show heavy signs of wear on all systems now, would be thousands in parts to restore to "like new." Rear diff humming, motor ticking, tranny original 245k, calipers shot, radiator original in need of replacement...

I have my eye on an '03 m45 locally. Priced high at 9k. The F50's just seem so grandpa to me, and the G's are just too small and sporty. I'm 230lbs 6' 4' and the Q has spoiled me.

Will be sad to see her go. I've had this car since 2005 as my daily driver and put almost 200k on it. 2000 Anniversary Edition with a great condition interior. Dash looks brand new. Nice wood wheel. Wonder if that would fit on the M? Hmmm.....may drive it in and trade or part it out, not a ton of parts that people wouldn't want here, though I did have one of my $1600 headlights replaced with a brand new OEM one about 75k ago.

Anyway it will be sad to see her go. I bought this car cash in hand when I was 25 with 62k on the odometer, it was the first large purchase in cash I'd ever made from hard work and saving money. I then watched it slowly die like a pet! You can replace all the parts you want, but there are always some things that wear at 200k and up and will never be right again...nevermind the body is rusting badly on the bottom, damn New England winters and no garage, and lots of snowy driving and sliding.

*tear*

See if you can find yourself an 05/06 F50/Q45. These two years don't have the "grandpa" look at all. And actually still looks very modern in '14. Additionally, the 05/06 Q45 offers many more luxury appointments than the 03/04 M45.

The M is a great car. But I for one will pass. It is just not a Q45. It is not as fun of a car as the Q45 is/was. Given that model was produced for 2 or 3 years you will have even worse of a time finding parts. I bet some are being discontinued already.

Sadly to say, unless another 1990-1996 Q45 comes my way with the desired color combo, no rust, and low mileage. I am leaving the infiniti world.

I understand exactly where you are coming from. It just seems that none of the Infinitis today have the passion behind them like the original had during it's design. Including all of the documentation and over engineering of the the car itself.

seldomseen wrote:See if you can find yourself an 05/06 F50/Q45. These two years don't have the "grandpa" look at all. And actually still looks very modern in '14. Additionally, the 05/06 Q45 offers many more luxury appointments than the 03/04 M45.

As much as I've always liked the exterior/interior look of the F50, I can't help but admit that the quality of the 3rd generation Qs just does not compare to the 1st generation, or even the 2nd generation. Every single one I've looked at has overly worn seats, worn out steering wheel, faded buttons, cracked dashboard, etc. I remember sitting in one maybe a year and a half ago, coming directly out of my Lexus and thinking "cheap cheap cheap". From the way the steering wheel felt, to the door panels, to the center console cover, to the glove box. It just did not feel high quality or luxurious to me. They were obviously cutting some corners at the time to save money and it shows. Age has not been kind to these vehicles IMO and they're the newest Qs, so they should in theory look the best and have the least wear, but they dont.

The 2k a/e stands tall 14 years later. And still nissan can not make a better car! Hats off paranoid.. Hats off.

paranoidjack wrote:You can replace all the parts you want, but there are always some things that wear at 200k and up and will never be right again...nevermind the body is rusting badly on the bottom, damn New England winters and no garage, and lots of snowy driving and sliding.

Find another nice low-mileage Y33, and move to Arizona.

I just replaced my Q for daily driver use with an 07 G35. I required a sedan with a manual transmission, and did not want another CTS-V. Honestly, I really like the G35. I'm about 6'2 and I have plenty of space in the G. Just took it on a 1000 mile road trip and it was very nice. Seats are a little narrow, but they're very supportive... I averaged about 25-26MPG, which is unreal for me, I've never owned a car that gets that good fuel economy.

The G35 has a very refined drivetrain, it's bullet proof reliable, and it's got the perfect blend of quiet and luxurious and sporty feel. IMO, it's got a better blend than the BMW 3 series or 5 series. I think it's got about as much space as the 5 series, but feels a lot more nimble.

I still have the Q and drive it from time to time, but it's got a laundry list of things that needs replaced, and the rust is starting to get bad (worse than I thought).

Honestly I love the exterior of the Y34 M45, but the interior sucks. It's like the 03-05 G35, which IMO is kind of cheap, and the seats are still kind of narrow. Many people complain about the location of the seat controls too (on the inside on top of the seat).

If you can afford it, the new generation M37 and M56 are a great buy. You can find 2011 M56 for under 30k with less than 60k miles. 25MPG highway with 420HP is fantastic. That would have been the car I would have got if you could get it in an MT. The M37 is a great car too, but I'd probably go with the M56. The drivetrain is proven in the QX. I'd seriously consider that.

IMO, there's not a car on the market today that compares to the 1st gen Q. The 2nd gen Q is still very well made, but still not as good as the 1st gen. Point is, most anything post 2005 is gonna seem like junk compared to the old Q45.

I wouldn't call anything post 2000 bullet proof, but that''s just the "old school" in me... My wife's FX35's valve covers now have the dreaded oil leak into the plugs. I'll be doing the below mod/ upgrade to Maxima covers.

If you look at or get a G35 with the VQ35DE, be forewarned on the valve covers failing and leaking oil into the spark plugs... and the OEM replacements are not improved versions - however the thread below explains how to use '04/'05 Maxima valve covers modded...
http://g35driver.com/forums/faq-diy/434 ... tubes.html

Wes my apologies for the external link.

and +1 for G-fitties! I'd say fix her up or search high and low for another and for some real fun go rear mount turbo!
Car payments = suck

If I had to choose, even not being totally in love with the body design, I'd have to go with a 2011 or 12 M56, 420 horse... I've never really cared for that model M's design.

Brew Q wrote:I wouldn't call anything post 2000 bullet proof, but that''s just the "old school" in me... My wife's FX35's valve covers now have the dreaded oil leak into the plugs. I'll be doing the below mod/ upgrade to Maxima covers.

If you look at or get a G35 with the VQ35DE, be forewarned on the valve covers failing and leaking oil into the spark plugs... and the OEM replacements are not improved versions - however the thread below explains how to use '04/'05 Maxima valve covers modded...
http://g35driver.com/forums/faq-diy/434 ... tubes.html

Wes my apologies for the external link.

and +1 for G-fitties! I'd say fix her up or search high and low for another and for some real fun go rear mount turbo!
Car payments = suck

If valve cover gaskets are the worst of it, I think that's pretty dang good. Valve cover gaskets WILL need to be replaced on basically every vehicle at some point, so I consider that type of thing "normal" maintenance. BTW this happens on the Qs quite commonly.

Edit: it does suck that the seals are built into the valve covers, and I'm not sure that issue applies to the VQ35HR?

Edit: it does suck that the seals are built into the valve covers, and I'm not sure that issue applies to the VQ35HR?

You are correct sir, VQ35HR is fixed (as far as I know). Sorry didn't mean to sound like I was pissing on the G35, they are great cars. I almost bought one a few years back, but then I bought an FX35. Bought the wife's FX35 back in 2010 or 2011...liked her's so much I got one. When I started working from home I sold mine and bought a toy ('99 E38) - sold my FX for near what I paid for it! and only maintenance was replacing a $5 part - the oil filter gasket.

Now the wife's FX is around 100k miles and is sucking oil. I haven't dove in, but I'm positive its the valve cover leak - and probably into #6 based on others experiences.

Wes, the '04/'05 FX35 and the G35 are same motor, valve covers and intake right? Once I'm 100% sure I'm going to swap over the '04/'05 maxima valve covers, much cheaper than FX/G OEM and better design!

sorry for slight thread de-rail

Aw man PJ....say it aint so...

+1 on Ski's idea... move South... but here's a better idea than moving to Arizona... move to San Antone with me and Ski!!! It'll be totally tits to have three Y33 owners in the same city....
Think it over....