New '03 M45 Owner - First Impressions

[Jungle_DJ80]

Hello Everyone;New to the club; I'm enjoying the reading here at NICOclub's M45 Forum and found it very instrumental in my decision to purchase an 03 last December.I found a nice one for $25K with 20,700 miles, black, loaded except navigation in a local dealer, came off a 3 year lease and was well taken care of. Compared it against new Camry's, Altimas, Audis and Beamers and think I did much better.In my first month as the 2nd owner, I would have to say that the most enjoyable thing about this car is the fact that it is a total 'sleeper'. Not too many on the road so, it catches high performance Porches, Beamers and MBs off guard.I have not experienced massive acceleration like this since my teenage years when I owned a 70SS with an LS6 and a Turbo-400 automatic.It is my daily driver and I have a one-way 44 mile commute in the NY area, mostly highway. It's a challenge keeping the knuckleheads at bay on NY roads and this M45 certainly asserts its authority when needed. My M45 comfortably accomodates my family, has the performance and price range I was looking for and; the best part is that someone else already paid the depreciation on this $51,000 luxury sports car!

Happy and Safe Driving!

[szh]

Welcome to NICO!

I am glad that you came out of "sleeper" status at NICO!

Yes, the car is absolutely a sleeper for sure .... a four-door sedan that accelerates from 0-60 in the mid 5 second range and can go over 100mph in not a whole lot more. Catches a lot of people by surprise.

I love mine a lot!

Z

[maybeamowner]

Very Cool.

I keep going back and forth as to what I want for my next car, and at 24 I have no need for 4 doors. LOL

[sr79labrat]

haha

Why not...I am 22 and love 4drs...to keep the cops feeling sorry for me. hehe This car is 1 bad mutha! I can not wait until I can do some refining to it!Cheers, KTW

[CakeDaddy]

the best part is that someone else already paid the depreciation on this $51,000 luxury sports car!

Happy and Safe Driving!

LOL!!! true true

[Jungle_DJ80]

After about a month and a half driving this impressive car, I am noticing some of the minor complaints some users posted here.

1.) The Trunk lid closing by itself that doesn't allow sufficient time to catch it open if you leave your keys in the ignition.

2.) Dashboard and door ticks and rattles (depends on relative humidity). Rainy days = absolutely quiet. Dry = strange noises from dash and doors.

3.) Loose driver's seat. Not a major problem since my dealer offered to fix it under warranty. (Previous owner must have been a large humanoid since when I took delivery of the car, the seat and steering wheel were set to fully move out of the way. Also, the dum *** closed the door on seat belt buckle and dented the inside of the driver's door!)

4.) High speed brake shimmy. This is a popular one with this car. Seems like many of you have experienced the same. The only solution that I know from experience that cures this is a good brake job and properly balanced good tires up front. Does anyone know a brand and model of cross-drilled rotors? The M45 could have used larger brakes since the current ones look rather small through the OEM 18-inch rims.

5.) How many FOB keys does the M45 come with? Dealer wanted to nail me $380 +$50 for programming one. I actually needed 2 keys and talked the dealer into caughing one up for free if he wanted me to service my car there.

6.) I had a debate with my local parts store owner about K&N Air Filters and their use in the 2003 M45. They state that K&N air filters are the finest every made and are guaranteed to outperform OEM paper ones. That anyone telling me otherwise is full of sh-- !I actually bought one and upon reading here that it causes problems with the Mass Airflow Sensor made me have second thoughts. So; I'm using a paper one for now.

7.) I found a missing Oil Filter cover on the bottom engine cover pan. Not a major concern other than the fact that the open hole just below the filter became a friggin wing on the highway and flopped around making noise on the bottom of the car. Be cautious of discount oil change places since they take this cover off and neglect to replace it.

8.) It is too bad that Infinity didn't have a bit more insight about what people expected from a high-end audio system. For example, the radio doesn't have a simple equalizer. The speakers are custom Bose jobs and cannot be replaced very easily. The overall sound quality from the stock Bose stereo sucks compared to what you could buy aftermarket. To top it off, there's that cassette player in the middle of the dashboard! Cassettes went out of style about 10 years ago man! So, I found a viable solution which is to connect my MP3 player to a $12 cassette adapter and completely ignore the 6-CD changer in the glove compartment.

On the positive side: Those heated and air conditioned leather seats are a blessing.

Drive Safely!

Jungle_DJ out ...

[Jungle_DJ80]

That is a FINE looking vehicle!Can you tell me if those wheels are 18s, 19s or 20s?What make and model wheels? How about rubber size?I'm rolling on stock Michelings now ...I do not wish to duplicate your looks but don't worry, I doubt we'll run into each other soon as I am in the East Coast.

Thanks;

Jungle_DJ

[CakeDaddy]

That is a FINE looking vehicle!Can you tell me if those wheels are 18s, 19s or 20s?What make and model wheels? How about rubber size?I'm rolling on stock Michelings now ...I do not wish to duplicate your looks but don't worry, I doubt we'll run into each other soon as I am in the East Coast.

Thanks;

Jungle_DJ

zerothread/177695

Foose Speedsters with BFG's KDW2's I believe245/35 20x8.5 front265/30 20x9.5 rear I also lowered the car with Eibach springs, approx 1 inch all around

I can relate to two of your complaints; the trunk and squeaky driver seat.