Hey everyone,
I have an 03 350z. Lately I've considered trading it in for a g35 coupe. How much, if any, more drivable is a g35 AT in winter weather than a z? What are the advantages of a g35 over a z?

 

I sold my 5AT Enthusiast 350Z and bought a used 6MT G35 coupe. The G feels heavier and the suspension is a lot softer, but the interior is MUCH better and you get back seats, and a real trunk! 2003z's wife drove a 5AT G, he could probably help you out more, but he doesn't get much snow either if that's what you're asking.

 

neither is going to be great in snow as a powerful rear wheel drive car and snow are just not silky smooth together. people do it and people do it well....but I do not think you will see a huge difference. as mentioned you will add a couple hundred pounds so that will help....

 

if you like a great car in snow, you can get a SAAB....

when i ride in my friend's 350Z(stock), i've noticed that his car has a lot choppier ride than my G....also the interior is very...uh...low in quality....compared to the G....

plus, you get a free loaner car for your warranty and other services!!!

 

Thanks for all the info. One of my main problems has been that my 6mt z has been causing my elbow to stiffen from the vibration if i drive it several days in a row. I probably shouldn't have abused my arms in baseball for years but that's one of the reasons i'm considering a g, and AT.

 

Neither car is good in the snow. And I laugh at the dream world you guys live in...the G's interior is every bit as cheap as the Z's. That's why almost every review I read of the G and the Z critique their cheap interiors. They use similar cheap plastics on the center consoles, doors, and dash. My bro has a g35c, dad had a g35 sedan and they agree. The real advantages of the G35 are its back seats (which are really useful) and its soft ride. Those two make the G a better car for 90% of people.

NzZ

 

eh...i sorta agree...

however I think the interior of my G compared to the interior of my roommates Z there is no comparision. Does that make my G interior "nice" or "quality"...hehe...no. But it does make it steps ahead of the z-car IMO

 

That I can totally respect, although it's really a matter of opinion. I greatly preferred the Z's seats, dash (can't stand the silver plastic finish) to the G, but I can definitely see how someone would go the other way. I do think they are both great cars though.

NzZ

 

I went from z to g. There are TONS of people on here that have done it. Just more practical.

 

What is most important is just a good set of snow tires, it is amazing how much they help.

 

i could not disagree more. the Z interior is so much better lookign and quality than the g35. my brother in law has a Z. i see it everyday.

all taht cheap plastic silver dash in the g35 annoys me so bad.

 

I feel ya...that silver plastic was a small turnoff from the G in my case. That said the Z's center stack isn't great either...I really wish those elegantwooddesign dash kits were cheaper.

NzZ

 

i have a g35, so my opinion is not biase, but the g35s interior is so boring compared to the Z. Seemed like nissan wanted nissan cars to have a better interior than infiniti because all the infiniti cars have dull interiors.

 

I've owned both and I like the G's interior much better than the Z.

 

the g35 is so simple. they put a lot more time and design into the Zs interior. there is so much more to look at with the z interior.

 

wow its amazing what time does.

Last year everybody kept repeating that auto rag article that proclaimed the Z had a horrible interior.
Now that all the g fanatics (my G is faster than a Viper) have moved on to ZR (copperhead), the real, unbiased, opinions surface - its only a car right?


I always thought it was funny that in the JDM, both cars are sold as nissans (side by side) - yet ppl in the USA seem to feel like nissan gets all the crappy parts and the infiniti gets the good stuff.

I've always liked mine. Simple, easy to clean and very sporty. It's actually STYLED also - integrates with the design of the car as a whole. The G OTOH is a derivative interior that has nothing to do with the cars design. PPL dont understand that DESIGN COSTS MONEY! they dont realize that you PAY for that design - hence the perception that you get more "goodies" on the G.

Either way, they both are not MB spec interiors - but only one of them is supposed to be a *lux* car. Its not an infiniti thing either b/c my FX has a BOMB interior.

 

Well thats the whole point of the separate "names" here in the USA, one been the affordable/low price and one the expensive high end (at least according to marketing). We (americans) have always gone for it. A Lincoln is not much more than a Ford, they are all FOMOCO parts. And a Caddy is all GM inside...

My friend has an FX35. That sucker IS very nice indeed. I keep an old Expedition as the extra car (the Z is kind of short on space) and have been considering trading it for the FX35 or 45... I do not like the Murano as much.

The only thing in our Zs that I don't like is the stupid door for where the nav would go (I don't have it). Cheese at best. I always expect it to break. And the door panels (where youpull to close it) could be better as well. But in general find it comfortable. I just got back from Orlando (2.5 hrs to Miami when you reach 120Mph ) I am always surprised how comfy the Z feels in the long road, I had expected it not to be so comfortable for long trips.

 

Yeah dont even consider the Murano - it FF.
Also, imo the styling is booty - the FX is drop dead sexy. My neighbor has 3 porsches and he's always trying to swap his Cayenne V8 for our FX35/tech.

Re: the Nav door, I dropped an aftermarket Alpine in the nav area - so mine is ALWAYS open. I can imagine if you used the door a lot - it would remind you how crap it is. FWIW I actually like the 03 door beter than the 04 one.

yay on the 120mph road trip. We did a NYC to San diego last year with the Z - I concur - great touring car.

PM me if you have an FX questions. Great car, its my wife's so I didnt get the 45. However, i was driving yesterday - turned off the VDC and tried to get jiggy...while i couldnt swing the back wide with throttle from a start - the 35 hung with my buddies A64.2 (v8) and I had a passenger. I think he's gonna have to let go of that a6 now...beaten by a 4000lb, 280HP truck....aggghhhh

 

Well, you can imagine. After driving the Ford Expy around (98, 87K miles, kind of soft on the shocks by now) you jump on a new FX35 and you can definetly feel the diff!

My buddy let me drive his for a few days when he was out of town. That no-key key is great, we should have that on the Zs. He always has his NAV on, it bothers me to say the least, annoying is all I found it.

The nice clock on the center console looks very elegant.

It is definetly a sexy car, with a very sexy stand. You see them parked and they look fast. They definetly put the S in SUV...

It might be doable now that I got my 21 year old son off my insurance.

 

Now, an employee of mine has been aching to sign for a G35 since I got my Z. the back seats. Here at "H.A.L." were we work we get an employee deal with Infinity : Invoice + 2% and local taxes of course. Thats how my buddy got his FX.