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While browsing for a great import all-wheel drive sedan, I came across the newly (slightly) redesigned BMW 535xi, and what struck me was how similar that car was to what I already have - 2007 Infiniti G35x. Of course this comparison isn’t apple-to-apple as 535xi competes against Infiniti M35x, but this is a better test to see how much the new offerings from Infiniti and BMW fare against each other.

First issue to be tackled is the size. When you think about G35, you figure it’s a direct competitor with Audi A4, BMW 3-series, Lexus IS and Mercedes-Benz C-class and you rarely compare against bigger cars that M35 competes against.

535xi vs G35x - Size

Surprisingly, the 535xi isn’t that much bigger than the G35x, with differences of few inches. However all those inches add up as the weight is 242 lb heavier.

Well I hit 5,000km mark on my 2007 Infiniti G35x… which means it’s time for the scheduled maintenance. According to the maintenance log (which isn’t available online), first service includes replacing engine oil and filter as well as inspection of lights, brake fluid, clutch fluid, differential oil, engine air filter, engine coolant level, engine drive belts, power steering fluid, radiator hoses, tires, air pressure, transmission fluid, washer fluid and wiper blades…

That’s certainly a lot of items being checked: I wonder how long the maintenance will last?

After reading the glowing review of 2008 BMW 535i by Edmunds, I was partially convinced that it was a great choice for the next car (replacement for the aging 2004 Infiniti FX35 due for return later this year). However there are few issues, some beyond BMW’s control, that have now convinced the car isn’t worth purchasing.

1. 2009 BMW 5-series

If rumors are true, then the BMW 5-series will get completely redesigned for model year 2009 due in regular year 2008, which basically means the 2008 model will get obsolete within just 1 year. When you make a multi-year commitment on a car’s lease or finance, that’s not an attractive position.

2. Hyundai Sonata

Lately Hyundai has been comparing their vehicles to high-end vehicles touting how much they’re better and cheaper. They compared the 525i vs. Sonata and declared Sonata’s more powerful, more performant, better equiped and a lot cheaper (by about $20,000 USD). Granted this comparison doesn’t put it into perspective since the brand value is different between the 2… still this kind of comparison cheapens the car.

Here’s the video if you still haven’t seen the TV commercial

3. Performance issue

In Toronto, there’s no lack of BMWs on the road and I’ve seen many 545i (with V8 engine): whenever I take them on with my G35x, I usually end up winning whether it’s a game of acceleration or top speed, which doesn’t bode well for the smaller engine in the 2008 BMW 535xi. Especially since all-wheel drive system makes you lose some power.

Which brings me to the next point to be explored further in another post: comparison with 2007 Infiniti G35x

Read the rest of this entry »

Now that almost 4,500 km has been put on the car, and I’ve finally got a chance to drive long distance, I have several observations to make concerning how the car is shaping up to be.

First, the car feels natural on the highways: with great acceleration, it’s incredibly easy to merge into highway and pass slow moving cars. The downside of a powerful engine is it increases the chance of getting a speeding ticket. On my trip from Toronto to Montreal (and back), there were a few close calls but I managed to avoid any infractions! Speeding is a major concern especially when a simple tap on the gas allows you to bypass the legal speed limit on the highway, which is just 100km/h.

On newly paved stretch of Highway 401, the car’s ride was smooth and confident. However once I reached Quebec and entered Highway 20 in somewhat dilapidated condition, the ride was fairly bumpy. Sport tuned suspension seems to be a bit harder than it should be, but I was glad I didn’t get the G35 Sport with even stiffer suspension…

In terms of gas mileage, solely on highway driving, I managed to reach about 11 liters per 100km which is great since city driving gets me over 15 liters per 100km (that is city driving in North York with some minor stop-and-go traffic). And that’s using ordinary fuel! Even though the car says premium fuel is required, I don’t feel the need to get the extra performance out of my 2007 Infiniti G35x, not enough to justify premium fuel prices. Have you seen those prices?

Finally I did encounter some heavy rain while I was in Montreal and so far I haven’t noticed the car slipping at all under wet conditions. It remains to see if the car’s all-wheel drive system is efficient with snow/ice but that’ll have to wait until next Winter.

Troubling news out of Nissan this morning: according to the automaker, the intelligent key for 2007 Altima as well as 2007 G35 sedans may be rendered completely useless if you put it next to a cell phone during a call. Apparently it will erase the software inside the fob, and this is irreversible. Which means once this happens, you’ll need to get a new fob.

They’re supposed to be trying to fix this and will release a newly updated fob sometime in the fall. I do hope it’ll be available for free as I have no intention of paying to get my 2 fobs fixed!

Now that my car (2007 Infiniti G35x) has been driven for more than 2,000kms, I have couple of observations to make, mostly having to do with the electronic components of the vehicle.

No mute, no pause
I find this very puzzling but I was unable to find a “mute” button in the audio system. I opted for the Premium Package and the sound is very rich and satisfying. In-dash 6 CD-changer that accepts MP3/WMA CDs means I can have almost all of my music inside the car at all times without requiring the hard-drive (which only comes with the Navigation Package). However the system would be much improved with a simple mute or pause. Right now what I do is just shut off the audio but that is hardly elegant.

No pause during calls
Another perplexing issue (perhaps because there is no pause button) is when I receive a phone call and built-in Bluetooth handsfree system picks it up, the music I was listening to doesn’t pause. This only concerns CDs but it’s a great issue since I don’t listen to radio nor use the aux jack. Previous Infiniti vehicles such as the 2006 G35 Coupe did pause during a call so hopefully that feature will be reinstated with a firmware upgrade - if that’s possible.

Can’t turn off the engine only
This is a fairly minor issue but there is no way to only shut off the engine and keep electronics in the car alive when you turn off the car. When you start the car, you can choose either everything on or just accessories and yet the reverse isn’t possible. I suspect this is due to the push-button start and I guess this would be the same with other similar cars…

Even though it’s been less than a month since I got my 2007 Infiniti G35x, I had to make 3 trips to the dealership to fix 1 single problem: tire pressure warning. As it is with other modern cars, my G35x came equipped with tire pressure sensors but so far they’ve been nothing but trouble.

It turns out the rear sensors were faulty: at first they thought it was badly installed but when they realized the sensors were telling the rear tires were flat (which they weren’t), they decided to replace them. Unfortunately for them they didn’t have any spare sensors in stock… so fortunately for me, they decided to replace both wheels and tires!

Thankfully all this was resolved but I wish I didn’t have to visit the dealership 3 times to fix this issue. Wouldn’t this kind of problem be detected by quality control? Oh well, I’m hoping I’ll never have to deal with this issue again.

Even though I’ve already purchased 2007 Infiniti G35x, many people still continue to ask me why I didn’t go for the BMW 3-series… so I’m hoping to end all debates (unlikely) with G35x vs 328xi feature. Specifications comparison:

Size (G35x vs 328xi)

Performance (G35x vs 328xi)

Economy (G35x vs 328xi)

*328xi configuration: base + metallic paint ($800), Sport Package ($2,300), Premium Package ($4,300), 6-speed automatic transmission ($1,600), 6-disc CD changer ($795)
**G35x configuration: base + Premium Package ($3,300)

Driving experience

BMW’s salesperson was quick to point out BMW drives better than G35… that may be the case with the sport model (BMW 335i vs Infiniti G35 Sport) but for the all-wheel drive, the experience was very similar. Infiniti’s engine revs higher but I found it to be more responsive than BMW’s inline 6. Ride quality was similar as well but G35x felt smoother. Unfortunately I didn’t have a chance to test the all-wheel drive systems on both cars so I can’t really comment on which is the best system: generally, Infiniti’s ATTESA system is reputed as being better.

Design

There is no competition in terms of interior design: G35x’s cabin looks more luxurious whereas 328xi felt very spartan (but not in a good way). I especially liked G35x’s standard LCD screen: even though it doesn’t do much without the navi system, it is infinitely superior to the BMW without the iDrive. Another minus to 328xi is the lack of cupholders in the center console without opening the bin… or having to use that flimsy plastic things that come out of the dash on the passenger side. In addition, turn signals and cruise control were very stiff to operate and didn’t seem intuitive at all.