NEED HELP - thinking about going Lexus IS -> Infiniti G35!!

[bod'1287]

So just to give you guys a little background, I'm a member on the IS forums and have been a Lexus fan since day 1. On my 3rd is300, and just got one for a steal a couple weeks ago. Although I appreciate the fact that I got this one for a sweet deal and by far the nicest of the three I've had to date, sometime I feel like I want something out of the Lexus scene since being a college student I obviously can't afford an IS-F or I'd be all over that! :icon38:

Anyways, I have always been a fan of the G35 for what it is, a 280+ hp handling machine but have never been a HUGE fan of them aesthetically. Especially the entire wise; I mean don't get me wrong, they're pretty but I feel a little outdated sometime interior wise with the Infiniti's and the issue with the G35 for me budget was (although I'm not a super knowledgeable Infiniti person), that from 2005 is when they did serious changes, especially to the interior, ie. tacho, dash, etc. And being I was only interested in 05 and up, they were kind of pricey and I was like why pay the same amount for a Lexus and Infiniti! NOT HATING guys just talking brand name. But anyways, I did come across this Infiniti that seems like a great deal, too good to be true, but I might be in the market for some G's if I find a good deal. I need some help from you all though!

These are my concerns/questions:

1. mileage - how high is "high" for Infiniti's? With Lexus, they'll run to 200k+ miles on the ISs because they are Toyota's. This G has 71,000 miles on it, how does that sound, maintenance wise and all that?
2. maintenance wise, how much of a pain are Infiniti's? I'm not looking for a car that's going to be like a bmw or audi to maintain but more like an Acura but really a LEXUS to maintain if you know what I mean.
3. insurance - how does this compare to other sedans like the tsx and stuff, just because the IS300 insurance is known to be insane (I'm 22 years old with definitely not the best driving record)
4. Year-to-year changes - like i said, from my own research I learned that 2005 was the big change in years but like what things should I definitely look for (ie. this G35 seems like the MOST basic package, no body kit, lame wheels, no navi, no spoiler, and when did Brembo's become included?) With this question, is 05 a good year to look at. And I've heard some came with LSD, how do I tell?

*Finally please give me your take on this g35. You guys all know the selling prices roughly of these cars now and I can get this one for probably around 11, he's asking 11,900 for it now and blue book is like 13,900/15/16 so it seems almost too good to be true. Before you ask, I ran a carfax and it's completely clean *No accidents and *No salvage title.

Note: First couple pics of my is300 now that I'd be selling, and the rest of the g35, not the best of conditions it looks like from pics, but still a great price right?


















thanks for any and all help guys! Please be as helpful and informative as possible, I MIGHT be around these parts soon! :

[joe603]

Welcome to NICO! I would read up on the G35...lots of people wonder the same things you do. (search the forums ) But, it is a Nissan and will also go forever. Maintenance cost is relatively inexpensive. I have seen some 6MTs need a new transmission, but nothing with the AUTOs. The 2005 was a great year for the Infiniti G35 imo. They replaced the head deck with a newer, less problematic one and the 6MTs got the REVUP engine. However, the interior redesign for the coupes was in 2008. You may want to consider looking at one of those. The Engine is not only bigger, but they started to rate them more accurately (this actually started with the "VQ35HR" engine in the 2007 sedan.)

Check my sig for a FAQ page with more info. It has a link to some model year differences.

[C-grunt]

Cost of maintenance should be fairly low. Similar to Acura and Lexus since the G uses much of the same parts as the Nissan cars, from what I have researched.

I came from a 2006 WRX and my insurance went down slightly on my 2010 G37. Im 27 with 1 accident (work vehicle) on my record.

Your IS300 is a nice looking car. I have always like them. But the exhaust note of a G is pure sex.

[SVTCOBRA]

Welcome to Nico!
Sounds like a good deal!
I know that I would not sell my 04 G coupe with 71K for $11.9K
Your Lexus looks good!

[kmckis1029]

i purchased my first Infiniti in 2008 when i was 23 years old. I got a 2005 G35x with prem pkg with only 18k miles on it. I paid 22k after takes back in then.

I put ~50k hard miles(including numerous track events) on the car in 2 years, only problem I ever got was a bead battery, and a warranty fuel damper fix. I changed the brakes once, transmission flush, diff flush, radiator flush was the only major maintence other than regular oil/air filter changes.

With that great experince I traded my G35x in at 70k miles for a 2010 g37x. I just wanted the new one, My 2005 G35x was in perfect mechanical condition at 70k miles, i mean you couldnt tell the engine was running when it was at idle. So if you find a 2005+ G that has been taken care of you should have no worries.

[telcoman]

Welcome to NICO

My previous vehicle was a 92 Lexus ES300 5 speed manual. Had to replace a stuck caliper at just over 50k miles and another one at under a 100k miles.

Love the Infiniti much better than the Lexus.
I've got 137k miles and it runs like new.
The only repeated problem has been a flashing air bag warning light.
The dealer just replaced the entire wiring harness and I got my car back yesterday.
Love my 6 speed manual

Telcoman

[zozoka1212]

Why not just stay with Lexus? G is fairly good and reliable. If you after the hp why not just get the Genesis coupe? Sure it is not aas luxury and refind but again you pay less for it.

[audtatious]

These are my concerns/questions:

1. mileage - how high is "high" for Infiniti's? With Lexus, they'll run to 200k+ miles on the ISs because they are Toyota's. This G has 71,000 miles on it, how does that sound, maintenance wise and all that?
2. maintenance wise, how much of a pain are Infiniti's? I'm not looking for a car that's going to be like a bmw or audi to maintain but more like an Acura but really a LEXUS to maintain if you know what I mean.

The VQ35 was a Ward's 10-best engine for over 14 consecutive years. It's in the G, Z, M, EX, FX, Maxima, Murano, etc etc etc. I have seen Maxima owners get 300k on them with regular oil changes. I had 158k on my 2002 Maxima before getting my coupe and it was maintenance free, didn't leak, idled like new, same performance as new. From a maintenance perspective I had no issues with my Maxima nor my G37 (other than a muffler noise fixed under warranty) at all. I got my wife's '07 G35 used and it did have an issue with the intake cams that Infiniti took care of under warranty. Otherwise, no issues. Oil, gas, and air filters are all that's been needed.