I'm considering getting an 04 G35 Coupe 5A. After reading all of the problems Z owners have faced, alignment, paint, tranny M6, grease on windows, etc, I am reluctant to buy one. My question is, do these problems also plague the G35? Any help would be appreciated!


Thank You!

 

As I have owned my car, I've had no tranny issues. I asked my dealer about it since I see a lot of comments on the boards. They are one fo the 5 biggest Infiniti dealers in the country and they've had 2 6MTs that had problems. Both were synchro related and both got new trannies under warranty. Right now there are no rebuild kits for the transmissions, so they are just replaced when there are problems. As far as alignment goes, I out there is a right side drifting problem with some cars. Infiniti/Nissan has a TSB with a replacement control arm to fix it. My car does not have this problem. I've had no problems with my paint and I have no idea of what you mean by, "grease on windows."

 

The problems that G and Z owners share are pretty minor when taken in context. I am NOT diminishing the anguish anyone who has had these problems feels - but the build quality of both cars - particularly when it comes to the engine and drivetrain - is very, very good. The VQ engine is smooth and will last darn near forever if maintained properly.

The biggest single problem of the G35 6MT are occasional tranny problems. OCCASIONAL. The 5AT does not have this problem - the AT on the car is great - admittedly the manumatic shift is not the quickest. But the auto tranny is smooth and shifts well. Compared to the AT in a Legend I had - it is so much better it's not funny.

The biggest single problem on the 5AT are the brakes - but Infiniti has stepped up and has now covered the premature wear issues of the pads and rotors. The brakes themselves are fantastic - they stop you on a dime (just as good as the Brembos on the 6MT though not as fade-resistant.) They just have been wearing too quickly.

The paint issue is a bit of a pain, but not as bad as some make it out to be - my coupe has almost 30K on it (yeah I can't stop driving) and only has three chips of which two are on the plastic bumper not the real paint! I do not have a clear bra.

The grease streaks on the windows plus the rain dripping into the car with the window open are pains too - but if that is going to stop you from buying a car that is as beautiful AND fun to drive AND reliable as the G coupe, then heaven help you!

Yes, some people will spend more money on tires and brakes than they did on any car before.

But MOST people will also have TEN TIMES more fun driving the coupe and take TEN TIMES more pleasure in owning the G coupe than any other they have had before.

BUY THE CAR! You won't regret it.

- Riff

 

Go for the G35. Its da bomb. Dealers won't hesitate to repair TSB-greasy windows, although 2004 models won't have this problem. And the brake issue is as Riffster described. Both cars are wonderful to drive. Each of them have their share of querks, but in my opinion the G35 is a finer automoble.

 

Have to agree. Re: Brakes my 350z's are pretty well worn at 11k, need at least a basic brake job. Brembos are standard on the 6MT G35 "Sport Coupe Leather", feel pretty good to me.

IF you run into the "pulling right TSB" I'll say this is one thing Nissan fixed easily on my car. Just a bushing and rod assembly on some '03 cars.

The dealer makes a big difference - nothing against Nissan dealerships, but with the volume they do and the larger number of models, etc. their priority has to be to help the majority of their customers. The Nissan dealer where I got my 350Z couldn't even do the alignment, something about not fitting on the lift. After 1 year I still get the grease streaks on the windows, not even trying to address that.

I guess I convinced myself, as I will be saying hello to a new '04 G35 Monday, and goodbye to my 350Z. I have plenty of confidence I'll be very happy with the G. Guess I'll need a new avatar...

 

My G35 sedan is our 9th Nissan/Infiniti product since 1995 - I've had 3 unscheduled dealer visits since I picked up that '95 Altima......a grand total of 3 in almost 9 yrs and over 300000 miles!

There will always be some issues in mass produced products - Nissan build quality is excellent (IMO), you won't go wrong with a G or 350Z

As for service, I've had excellent experiences with both Nissan and Infiniti - just get to know your service advisor, be courteous and it's amazing how smoothly things can go

 

I also have a '95 Altima, 110k miles with no issues, runs stronger today than new due to upgrades in engine electrical and suspension. The car is utterly dependable - over 9 years and it never stranded me even once, not even a dead battery or flat.

Re: service @dealers with the 350Z the high volume dealers got more of the cars sooner, so early buyers had better selection. High volume <> "bad service", but the emphasis is obviously higher on Sales than Service.

I had to go to the dealer where I bought my Alty in October 1994 to get the alignment done on my 350Z. The dealer of origin "could not do the alignment on their current equipment", despite being one of the largest dealers in the area.

No doubt, going back to my local dealer I got a lot better service, they found a way to get it done right, and did the TSB for "pulling right" correctly - the problem went away for 6k+ miles.

Still, I found picking up my Infiniti G35 Coupe was far more straightforward, esp. negotiating financial issues. No BS, just good service.

Glad to hear your Altima reached 300k!!!

OT, I know, but you can find pics of my Alty at:

http://homepage.mac.com/stracy01/PhotoAlbum2.html

 

My Z's brakes also showed exceptionally fast wear given their rotor size and stopping power. The rotors particulary wore quickly and not evenly (i.e. not flat pattern).

Tires (see attached) also showed awful wear at 6k, the outside shown is the former inside prior to the "Side to Side" TSB for feathering wear. Nothing should look that bad at 6k, and that's prior to ever taking out to a Track or anything like that.

The difference is your Infiniti dealer recognized this issue with the brakes and helped you out - Nissan just gave it the "its a sports car".

I'm not ripped about it or anything, but the rate of wear I was seeing in several areas of the car (tranny, brakes, tires, ...) was a factor in deciding to trade in for an '04 G35 Coupe.

Your point about fun vs. tradeoffs is well taken...No regrets here for either car

G35 Home Page at:
http://homepage.mac.com/stracy01/G35...toAlbum31.html

 

BTW, IMHO the Brembo's on my '04 are fantastic. Putting them on more cars in '04 was a great move on their part.

Also, no grease streaks on the windows (there from almost day 1 on the '03 350Z I picked up in Nov 2002). The windows also used to hold water after a car wash for 2-3 days (in the Summer no less, not a good trend for not having rust issues later...)