Z & G-35..My Co-Pilot Copares
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From: Buckeye, AZ
Z & G-35..My Co-Pilot Copares
Thought you might be interested in the impressions of my co-worker who rode with me on the Z Drive...
Hey folks, my name is Patrick and I work with AudioPat on the Tonight Show, and he was nice enough to take me along with him on his quick spin of the new 350Z. I currently drive the new Infinity G35. I have owned an Acura CL-S and before that a BMW M3. I pushed all of them to their and my limits often (got the speeding tickets and high insurance rates to prove it!). I did not get to drive the Z but checked out a lot from the passenger seat, and since the G35 and 350Z share the same FM platform and other components, I was able to compare the two, sort of.
My initial impression of the car was "Wow!". This is a beautiful car that looks great from any angle. It's an evolutionary design that looks sleek, modern & fast. Pictures do not do this car justice.
Once inside it was really easy to adjust the manual seats to my liking. There was plenty of space to let the seat back for lots of leg room. (lots of laterar space & headroom too). They felt a little firmer than my G35 seats and offered a lot more lateral support. These are probably the best seats I've sat in, maybe I can put them in my G35! The G35 seats are very good and very adjustable, they just don't have that strapped in feeling of the 350Z. The Z seats were made of cloth so I couldn't compare leathers.
As I looked around the cabin everything intimated of high quality. The 350Z has more of a carbon fiber with titanium high tech look while the G35 has perforated leather and titanium look. The doors felt solid just like my G35's and closed with a solid thump. The interior door handels are different, the 350Z's are more sporty (circles vs. straight) looking, but the material seems to be similar if not the same. There was no glove box in this preproduction model (but there was a box above the radio an awkward door), but what I thought was a latch for a glove box turned out to be a cup holder? It was just left of my left knee. Once fully deployed (it has a lot of parts for a cup holder) I could see that it could cause some problems if it had a hot beverage or I had white pants on, and I'm not even 6 feet tall! There are two other cup holders in the aft of the center console, but they are too far back to be of any practicle use. My G35 has two glove boxes (if you don't order the Nav system) one on top of the other (the top being narrower than the one below), and the cup holders are in the center console and are easily accessible via a push button. The G35 also has a small (smaller than the Z) storage box above the AC controls and a shallow storage area under the armrest.
The radio/CD changer wasn't the upgraded Bose system that is in my G35. The base Bose sounded a little anemic. The 350Z upgraded Bose system should definitely sound better than the G35's due to the closer proximity of the speakers to the driver and the smaller cabin space. My G35's system is pretty good, it is just too boomy at times and I wish that I could refocus the tweeters to get a better high end response. I find myself turning off the stereo and listening to the engine anyway. (ditto for the Z) In my G35 the AC controls are on top of the radio controls, in the 350Z they are swapped. The AC controls in the Z are rotary dials instead of a row of push buttons. The rotary dials looked confusing at first but they are fairly easy to figure out. They both seem to get the job done even in this hot desert weather. The Z's parking brake resides on the left of the center console. The G's parking brake is on the floor. (blah)
I didn't get a good look at the instrument cluster, ata aglance both the Z and G use similar components with the same orange glow. I'm not crazy about the color but it works.
The exhaust note of the Z is great, it sounds like it wants to go somewhere in a hurry. I was kind of wishing it was a little louder because it sounds so good. The note on my G is a bit more refined and muted.(it is a luxury car) They both sound great at full song though. The engines seem to have similar power characteristics (more power for the Z of course) they both posess incredible neck snapping acceleration. The power band in both is rich and seem to go on right up to the limit(er).
The handeling of the Z from a passenger perspective is awsome. No matter what Pat threw at it, it took it. It is really hooked up. The ride was firm but not teeth chattering. The level of mechanical grip this car has is super, you would really have to do something stupid and dangerous to get this car out of control, it is that unflappable. The ride of the G is not as firm as the Z. I have just begun exploring the handeling limits of my G, and it is fun! The brakes on both cars are great. Pat had to get on the brakes a couple times (100-20mph!) and each time the Z scrubbed off speed like it was a F1 car.
Even though these cars are different (coupe,sedan, aimed at different markets) they hsare the same platform, engine, gearbox (the Z we drove was a manual) and other components. They bith are testament to the great work that Nissan has put into them. Sometimes it is hard to believe all of the marketing hype and magazine reviews, in this case it is true.
Hey folks, my name is Patrick and I work with AudioPat on the Tonight Show, and he was nice enough to take me along with him on his quick spin of the new 350Z. I currently drive the new Infinity G35. I have owned an Acura CL-S and before that a BMW M3. I pushed all of them to their and my limits often (got the speeding tickets and high insurance rates to prove it!). I did not get to drive the Z but checked out a lot from the passenger seat, and since the G35 and 350Z share the same FM platform and other components, I was able to compare the two, sort of.
My initial impression of the car was "Wow!". This is a beautiful car that looks great from any angle. It's an evolutionary design that looks sleek, modern & fast. Pictures do not do this car justice.
Once inside it was really easy to adjust the manual seats to my liking. There was plenty of space to let the seat back for lots of leg room. (lots of laterar space & headroom too). They felt a little firmer than my G35 seats and offered a lot more lateral support. These are probably the best seats I've sat in, maybe I can put them in my G35! The G35 seats are very good and very adjustable, they just don't have that strapped in feeling of the 350Z. The Z seats were made of cloth so I couldn't compare leathers.
As I looked around the cabin everything intimated of high quality. The 350Z has more of a carbon fiber with titanium high tech look while the G35 has perforated leather and titanium look. The doors felt solid just like my G35's and closed with a solid thump. The interior door handels are different, the 350Z's are more sporty (circles vs. straight) looking, but the material seems to be similar if not the same. There was no glove box in this preproduction model (but there was a box above the radio an awkward door), but what I thought was a latch for a glove box turned out to be a cup holder? It was just left of my left knee. Once fully deployed (it has a lot of parts for a cup holder) I could see that it could cause some problems if it had a hot beverage or I had white pants on, and I'm not even 6 feet tall! There are two other cup holders in the aft of the center console, but they are too far back to be of any practicle use. My G35 has two glove boxes (if you don't order the Nav system) one on top of the other (the top being narrower than the one below), and the cup holders are in the center console and are easily accessible via a push button. The G35 also has a small (smaller than the Z) storage box above the AC controls and a shallow storage area under the armrest.
The radio/CD changer wasn't the upgraded Bose system that is in my G35. The base Bose sounded a little anemic. The 350Z upgraded Bose system should definitely sound better than the G35's due to the closer proximity of the speakers to the driver and the smaller cabin space. My G35's system is pretty good, it is just too boomy at times and I wish that I could refocus the tweeters to get a better high end response. I find myself turning off the stereo and listening to the engine anyway. (ditto for the Z) In my G35 the AC controls are on top of the radio controls, in the 350Z they are swapped. The AC controls in the Z are rotary dials instead of a row of push buttons. The rotary dials looked confusing at first but they are fairly easy to figure out. They both seem to get the job done even in this hot desert weather. The Z's parking brake resides on the left of the center console. The G's parking brake is on the floor. (blah)
I didn't get a good look at the instrument cluster, ata aglance both the Z and G use similar components with the same orange glow. I'm not crazy about the color but it works.
The exhaust note of the Z is great, it sounds like it wants to go somewhere in a hurry. I was kind of wishing it was a little louder because it sounds so good. The note on my G is a bit more refined and muted.(it is a luxury car) They both sound great at full song though. The engines seem to have similar power characteristics (more power for the Z of course) they both posess incredible neck snapping acceleration. The power band in both is rich and seem to go on right up to the limit(er).
The handeling of the Z from a passenger perspective is awsome. No matter what Pat threw at it, it took it. It is really hooked up. The ride was firm but not teeth chattering. The level of mechanical grip this car has is super, you would really have to do something stupid and dangerous to get this car out of control, it is that unflappable. The ride of the G is not as firm as the Z. I have just begun exploring the handeling limits of my G, and it is fun! The brakes on both cars are great. Pat had to get on the brakes a couple times (100-20mph!) and each time the Z scrubbed off speed like it was a F1 car.
Even though these cars are different (coupe,sedan, aimed at different markets) they hsare the same platform, engine, gearbox (the Z we drove was a manual) and other components. They bith are testament to the great work that Nissan has put into them. Sometimes it is hard to believe all of the marketing hype and magazine reviews, in this case it is true.
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From: Sayville,Long Island,New York
Great review
That kind of review , to me, means more than those of professional drivers and critics. Those two gents are evryday people who look at the cars like the rest of us.
I hope Nissan seeks out the opinions of us "everyday ordinary folks" just like they did of people who likely will never own either a G35C or a 350Z.
I hope Nissan seeks out the opinion of the "everyday ordinary" people who are buying the cars!
I hope Nissan seeks out the opinions of us "everyday ordinary folks" just like they did of people who likely will never own either a G35C or a 350Z.
I hope Nissan seeks out the opinion of the "everyday ordinary" people who are buying the cars!
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cpark
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Sep 10, 2011 09:35 AM