experiences with 2003 m45?

[Slavik]

just test drove one today .... i think I like it

looks a bit "weird" boxy, but in a classical way ... I haven't made up my mind yet ... the performance and comfort seemed to be top notch.

Looking for the owner's opinions since you guys got to test it long term

[Andrew224]

I see that you're from Mt Prospect, I grew up in Wheeling and now live in Plainfield. So you'll get a review by someone who drives the same roads and experiences the same weather.

The car is (in my opinion) horrible in the snow and on slick roads. Definitely not a good winter car. I wound up buying a QX4 because I didn't like getting stuck frequently in the snow. Forget leaving your house before the snow plows come around. On the other hand, I liked the car so much I could not bare to part with it. It's safely in my garage right now (I can't wait to bring it out in the Spring, it's like a new car again!). I do have a friend around here with one that drives it year round, so it can be done.

Other than that, it's a great car! I've found it to be ultra reliable and very powerful. I get a lot of looks and a lot of compliments on the car. I've had it for almost three years now and I think I like it more now than when I bought it. The car really grows on you. There aren't that many out there (Only about 7,000 of this body style made it to the US) so the body style isn't played out and it has a fresh look even though it's 5 years old.

For what these cars are going for now, between $16k - $24k depending on condition, mileage and options, they are a steal. The car is without a doubt a luxury sedan. I haven't met anyone who hasn't been impressed with the whole package that the car offers. The winter drivablity issues are my one and only complaint.

Something else you may want to consider is that these cars do require regular maintenance in addition to just oil changes. I would say I've spent about $500 / year in maintenance at the dealership. I've since learned how to do a few of the things on my own though, so I spend quite a bit less now. So remember to allow for this necessary additional expense in your budget.

Hope this helps.

Andrew

[caug1]

this car has japanesse mafia look.cadillacs for italian mafia.

[lfj2025]

After changing tires and putting a body in the trunk I'm having no problems with the snow. Kidding about the tires of course. Haha

I have had about 30 cars and this is the first one that I can say the more I drive it the more I love it.

[szh]

Any powerful rear-wheel drive car is going to be a handful to drive in snow. Having had a painful experience with this combination, I always strongly recommend getting good snow tires for those parts of the country - on all four wheels, please! And, then, in snow, you will be just fine and not get stuck except perhaps in the worst of heavy, unplowed snow, conditions!

On wet roads, with well-above freezing temperatures, the tires you use can make a tremendous difference. I hate driving in wet weather ... so it is one of the reasons I drive on the Goodyear Eagle F1 GS-D3. This tire is among the very best in terms of wet weather handling, braking, etc., ... almost like driving on dry roads!

Z

[szh]

just test drove one today .... i think I like it

looks a bit "weird" boxy, but in a classical way ... I haven't made up my mind yet ... the performance and comfort seemed to be top notch.

Looking for the owner's opinions since you guys got to test it long term

The unique, albeit somewhat dated, looks of the 2003/4 M45 is among the things that I love most about the car!

The only real reliability issue you may need to deal with is the oil consumption problem that seems to affect some percentage (reports vary, but it is around 10% perhaps) of the Infiniti VK engines. If you are sure that the car you get does not have this problem, then it is a fine model to get!

I have now owned mine for over four years and still love it.

Z

[Andrew224]

I must admit, I still have the OEM Michelin Pilots on my car. I'm sure it makes a big difference. But where I'm living now, it takes a while for the snow plows to come around, so I'm not sure that even snow tires would help.

I treat my car the same as someone with a car like a Corvette... For the most part the only time my M is outside in bad weather is when I get caught in it.

In all honesty though, the only cars that I really like and would even consider replacing my M with are in the $80K + range (which I most certainly can't afford). I see myself happily keeping my M for many years.

Andrew

[Slavik]

Thanks guys, I am getting pretty excited about this car .... the only downside that I see so far is that there is no aftermarket following ... performance or exterior

[Andrew224]

Performance wise, there isn't much that can be done without impacting drivability. The engine is pretty much at it's max output. Exterior items are very scarce too. Most people who pay $50k (when new of course) for a luxury sedan aren't the type that are really into modifying their cars much. Add to the fact that there are only 7k of these cars and you see there really isn't much of a market for a company to spend a lot of money developing and producing aftermarket parts for '03-'04 Ms. You can look around this forum and check out other posts that showcase exterior mods. Most aftermarket parts are coming directly from overseas as Japan and the rest of Asia had this body style much longer than here in the US (under the Nissan brand, models were the Gloria and the Cedric).

On the flip side, the reason you mod the exterior is to set your car apart. If you have a Civic, how many hundreds of thousands of those are on the road? The M is unique in the fact that there are only about 7k of them out there. I rarely see another one on the road, and when I do, I even catch myself looking. It's funny that every time I've seen another M, I see the other driver looking at me and almost always we acknoweldge each other. Kind of funny, not many other cars have that effect.

Andrew

[CakeDaddy]

looks a bit "weird" boxy, but in a classical way ...

I like to say unique I looked at the E500,BMW540,Jag-S, etc.. but this one did it for me. The Japanese mafia look will never fade, plus the number of people I get asking me, "what kinda car is that" is priceless and that was before I remove the M45 badge.

good luck if you decide to make that move.

[szh]

I must admit, I still have the OEM Michelin Pilots on my car. I'm sure it makes a big difference. But where I'm living now, it takes a while for the snow plows to come around, so I'm not sure that even snow tires would help.

You may be surprised!

In fresh fallen snow, snow tires make a big, big difference. I used to live in New Hampshire and, on the Turbo Z that I had, it was the difference between "no way I am going out in that" with regular tires and "snow? No problem!" with snow tires.

I treat my car the same as someone with a car like a Corvette... For the most part the only time my M is outside in bad weather is when I get caught in it.

Also works! Second car/truck ("winter beaters") helps a lot ...

Z

[szh]

Thanks guys, I am getting pretty excited about this car .... the only downside that I see so far is that there is no aftermarket following ... performance or exterior

Correct. Unfortunately ... well, unfortunate for the performance aspect of it, since I like the exterior look just fine. Instantly recognizable on the road and quite unique!

Z

[F1SportsFan]

I agree with the previous posters on the winter driving, I almost got stuck in a sudden snow storm of ~3 inches

My only other real big complaint on the car is transmission programming. In manual shift mode it down shifts when it wants, and upshifts before you hit redline, so I am not sure what the point is. Luckily, the normal shift mode is pretty darn good, so it's not too big of a deal.

Also, watch out for oil consumption as someone mentioned. I bought mine with 39k miles and no oil consumption. It was good for a year, then the last six months it got progressively worse. Ended up burning 3.5 quarts in 3k miles

Luckily I still had factory power train warranty so I just got a brand new engine from the stealership! So I think an extended warranty would be a good investment.