M45 Pre-purchase questions

[dugabis]

Hi Group,

First of all thanks for all the great info.

I am researching purchasing a used 04 M45 at a dealership.

http://www.infinitioflisle.com...true#

I wanted to ask a few questions

1) with the winter upon us can I get away with just riding on the current tires (Michelin Pilot HX MXM4) or should I really buy a set of snow tires?

2) how do I check a car for the oil burning issue that I have heard these m45s are prone to?

3) Can you think of any other m45 specific issues/defects I should look out for?

Thanks-Doug

[M45Caliber]

Buy an extra set of wheels (bone yard?) and mount up snows. 340HP and RWD = too much wheelspin in Chgo.

Oil Burning question. Stand behind the car while someone else starts it up. Do this after the car has sat, cold, preferably overnight go back to the dealer, unannounced, just before they open up, and start the car. Look for smoke upon start-up (not water vapor = normal, but a blue-ish SMOKE)

Finally, this is an Infiniti dealer you are buying this car from so NEGOTIATE adding the Infiniti Elite extended warranty -- NOT a 3rd party waranty - you want the Infiniti Elite. There are two other posts on this board regarding this; search and read and save some money. At this point, any other issues are non-issues. good luck.

[lfj2025]

I had the MXM4, they were real bad in the winter. After replacing them I had no problem with the snow.

[dugabis]

Thanks for the info. I will check the exhaust smoke. I'll do some more research on the Infiniti Elite warranty.

I am thinking I may just put some snow tires on and ride those year round...

[dugabis]

Also, do you think $15,996 for this car is a good deal? I am thinking I can probably negotiate down to 15k and I will finance with the dealer.

I am not sure what they are selling for and this list price is already quite a bit below KBB price.

-Doug