Now that I have your attention; here's my dilemma. My local Infiniti dealer has the EX35 I want except for one small detail: no roof rails. Now I know that 95% of people probably never use them except for Christmas trees, but I prefer the look, and I ski 30+ times a year. I have been on cars.com and searched the inventories of over 50 dealers, but can not find the combination I want with roof rails. Should I buy the car locally with the current incentives and put on roof rails later, or should I wait for the 2009's to come out and pay considerably more for an EX35 with factory installed roof rails? My local mechanic says that drilling holes in a new car roof is a bad idea because it could cause leakage, corrosion, and may void the warranty. Also, does anyone have a recommendation for a place in California that would do a good job installing roof rails?

I suggest you compromise on the color or on one of the other options and get one with roof rails already installed. If you decide to go the route of installing roof rails yourself, I suspect you'll be looking at a lot of difficulties in the near future.

For instance, I really wanted Dark Currant with Chestnut, but I'm going to have to settle for Wheat interiors, because no one can seem to locate this vehicle with the options I want. I can just imagine what my jeans will do to my drivers seat over time. Oh well, I had to compromise somewhere. I probably should have just dropped the AWD.

Good luck!

CaribMon71 wrote:I suggest you compromise on the color or on one of the other options and get one with roof rails already installed. If you decide to go the route of installing roof rails yourself, I suspect you'll be looking at a lot of difficulties in the near future.

For instance, I really wanted Dark Currant with Chestnut, but I'm going to have to settle for Wheat interiors, because no one can seem to locate this vehicle with the options I want. I can just imagine what my jeans will do to my drivers seat over time. Oh well, I had to compromise somewhere. I probably should have just dropped the AWD.

Good luck!

Hi,

Coming from PR you want te AWD. Trust me, my Cuz came up here and it was the first time in her life driving in snow. She was as white as the snow itself.

And I also had to make choices. But waiting to order a 2009 that had every last detail and color combo would be a lot more money.

BTW, Bienviendos!!!!! Is this your first time living in the states?

don't drill holes. Just get a different car. The problems you face with aftermarket modifications like that will ruin the value of the car in the long run.

CaribMon71 wrote:I can just imagine what my Jeans will do to my drivers seat over time.

In the Show-Room, there was a Light Grey Interior... and it had lots of Scuff Marks on the Door Sill and the Salesman said the lighter colored interiors will show discoloration.

I'm glad my Wife went on the side of sensibility and we got the Black Interior.

Skibum-

I agree with CaribMon- if you love the car- you will have to compromise on the color vs. trying to drill holes. I myself was looking for the chestnut interior and had to settle with the wheat. I'm already stocking up on my cleaner wipes!

Newbie to the forums- I actually just picked up my EX this weekend and with the exception of one (hopefully) small item- I'm loving it!

Welcome to you both, Lexy and skibum!

Gracias! Thanks for the welcome! Actually, I've lived most of my life in the states. However, I've never driven on snow or in icy conditions, but I haven't researched the weather in the DC area, so I don't really know if it snows or not.

I wanted the AWD because I had it on my X5 and on my Touareg. I felt pretty confident with it. It worked great in the rain here in Puerto Rico, where it rains just about every day in one part of the island or another.

I believe both those vehicles could distribute power to individual tires as needed. I don't think this EX35 does that; It only distributes between front and rear. Bummer.

The trick is to not be more confident than your tire's capabilities! I tend to push that limit often.

Back in July 31, there was a Currant AWD completely loaded EX35 in Santa Clara with roof rails. This is one of the extremely few "Elite" package models. I know because I had it swapped for a Scarlet Silver, (my compromise color).

You cannot get roof rails installed after the fact. They are installed at the factory.

Keep in mind that the cross bars are only 19" apart. No good for a cargo carrier, but fine for a ski rack.

I ended up getting a Thule Atlantis and Thule cross bars.

I'm also loving the Scarlet Silver. Very glad I gave in.

Cheers!