SptBiz

I'd appreciate hearing opinions from anyone familiar with the Infiniti G35 sedan and the ' 02 BMW 330 CI( auto ). Keeping in mind that the MSRPs for fully loaded ' sports ' versions are ~ $34K for the G35 and ~ $42K for the 330CI how do these 2 vehicles compare against the ' 02 Maxima SE ? Overall quality, bang for the buck, performance, reliability etc. BTW, regarding purchase price I'm assuming that both of these cars are not negotiable much below MSRP ? Do you agree ? Lastly, a couple of interesting things that I discovered about the BMW 330 CI. There are 2 large wells in the engine compartment. One in each back corner. The driver's side well is filled with the steering mechanism and the passenger side well is empty and used for models with right side steering. Multi-purpose manufacturing but IMO the empty well makes the engine compartment look sort of crummy. Also, the battery is in the trunk. Salesman claims that's done for front to rear balance. One last thing regarding the G35. I live in a large Southern California metro area and I haven't seen a single G35 on the roadway. The Infiniti dealerships are loaded with the G35s but I see very few customers on my visits there. Hmmm ? Thanks for any input.

mattattax

G35 and max are faster than the bimmer--my cousin is selling his 330Ci and thinking about the G35 Coupe--he was disappointed that he spent that much money on a car that isn't as fast as he'd like it

rubman

Purchase price as a factor, there is no comparison to the 02 Max. Funny that you are ogling the same cars that I will be looking at as my next car choices. Love the BMW, payment and repair costs scare me away. Love the G35(as coupe), might be a good option, six months after it comes out, you might be able to negotiate a price below MSRP. The Max(hids, 6 disc cd, trip computer, leather, 17' wheels, sunroof, sport suspension). All in in a package that can( as many org members have done) be negotiated as low as $26-27K. Not a bad deal for the $$$. God luck making you choice. It is going to be a fun choice.

Hobert

I have seen several people on the Forums at FreshAlloy.com who got the G35 for a grand and sometimes more under MSRP. The G35 is very sweet. Faster than the Max. Handles much better than the Max, RWD has a big hand in this. With the G you will get much better service than the Nissan service everyone on here is complaining about. Forget the BMW, all it has is a name and larger numbers in its price tag. The Max is the bargain, best bang for the buck. But if you have enough money to consider the 330ci you might as well get the G35. It is a better car than the BMW regardless of cost. Also if you want a coupe consider waiting for the G35 coupe, its SWEET.

KLOOGY

iTrader: (12)

The G35 with all the otions My maxx has was about $37K, I got my Maxx for a little under $30K.. That is a bargain. I do think the styling of the G35 is sharper, and If I could dish out the extra $$ I would get it. The interior is a lot more PLUSH too !

MAX2000JP

I would also take a G35 over a 330i, but your statement of the G35 being better regardless of cost is false. Take a 330i and G35 on a road coarse with equal drivers, then tell me the G35 is better.

Burton069

iTrader: (2)

Two small complaints about the G35

1. From a luxery company like Infiniti, why doesn't it come standard with HIDs like the Max? It cost more than the Max, so the least they could do was put in HIDs. I also noticed this with Benzs and Bimmers. The TL and I35 for 2002 come standard with HIDs, but a car like the S430, you have to pay an extra $1155? WTF

2. The back of the G35 looks kind of off. I think they did a much better job with the coupe. I dunno, maybe lll get used to it. This is just an opinion though

SptBiz

I'm wondering if maybe G35 sedan sales are slumping because a key sector of potential buyers ( i.e. those buyers desiring the sporty look ) are holding off on the sedan in favor of the coupe.

EZ

If the road coarse is straight, G35 will smoke the 330i

MAX2000JP

Drag Strip you mean

AndyXXL

Never start negotiating the price on your vehicle from MSRP, always start at the invoice price. Depending on your location your would get different offers. I used 4 dealerships during the negotiation process and ended up getting a pretty good deal.

Regarding BMW vs. G35 maintenance costs, BMW comes with a full maintenance warranty until 36K, which includes free replacement of brake pads/rotors, oil changes, wipers, tires and so on. Besides that, every bmw comes with a full 4 year warranty. I don't care what happens next, it would be the problem of a next owner.

Burton069

iTrader: (2)

Thats pretty cool, Infiniti doesn't have that

(told me to replace my brake pads at 8k miles for $200)

lsondubz

wow a new loaded 2k2 se in my area is 21k and you can negotiate on that.

anyhow back on subject: I would definitely rule out the bmw as most have said all it has is the name and high price tag, IMO the maxima looks much better than the g35, and is the best bang for the buck. good luck in your decision

ajahearn

iTrader: (3)

I seriously considered a 330i sport package, and M/T before purchasing a 02SE M/T, but I've never tried a G35. In terms of quality, I'd say that they are very similar. I found the fit and finish of the 330i's that I looked at to be comparable to my 02SE.

Bang for the buck is somewhat debatable as "bang" is never adequately defined. Since you also asked about performance and reliability, I'm guessing you are ask from a feature point of view. Both cars have similar option sets. The BMW offers some features not available to the Maxima (e.g. all wheel drive). Comparably equipped the Maxima is cleary the winner (about $10k in favor of the Maxima).

Performance to me means acceleration, handling, and braking. In terms of raw HP, then cleary the Maxima wins. This gives it the advantage especially since the 330i is slightly heavier. In terms of acceleration, being defined here for the ranges of 0-60, 30-70, and 90 and up, again the Maxima wins (assuming that this is mostly straight line/lange changing type acceleration). When cornering is really important (slalom) the handling goes to the BMW as RWD and traction control give it the edge over the Maxima. I know the auto Maxima's include traction control but the manuals don't (I haven'ta clue as to why). What I've read indicates that the TC that the Maxima offers is only a subset of what the BMW offers (a kin to what GM used to call active handling).

Braking went in favor of the BMW although I never saw actual statistics. This is based on my test drives.

Gas mileage is in favor of the BMW (based on my comparison with people I know who own the 330i's).

Reliability remains to be seen by my past experience with an 89 SE leads me to believe that it is just as reliable as a BMW. Possibly more so given that I've been told that older BMW's tend to require significant costly maintenance.

As to the issue of the car battery in the trunk, I certainly believe its balancing. BMW makes it very clear that handling of a car is very important to them. Putting the battery in the trunk could (IMO) no way save money on installation costs.
Maintenance costs (as several people have pointed out) are covered by BMW for 3 years with a 4 year warranty. This is better than what you get from Nissan, but the price difference between the cars more than covers these costs (IMO).

I live in Northern CA and have only seen one G35 on the road. I've seen a couple of Infiniti dealer's with ones on the lot. Personally I found the G35 styling a little tough to handle. It has that squarish setup that Cadillac seems to be so fond of these days. The back end seemed a bit weird as well.

TimW

iTrader: (6)

dude.. go get your $200 back.. ALL cars, ALL parts are warrantied to 12K. its law. Even wear and tear items are warrantied to 12K/1yr.

I agree, this comparison can't be made.

Burton069

iTrader: (2)

You 100% sure? How can I prove this? I have about 11.4 miles, so then I should take it in soon just in case

bigbadboss101

You seriously will take a G35 over the 330? What is the price difference? About $5k? The things is people will look at the Bimmer and go wow, and look at the G35 and scratch their heads.

The problem nowadays is that there are too many new cars coming out.
The 350Z, RX8, CLS. Domestic cars like the CTS, 280 hp Grand Prix are interesting for those who are in the market.

I love my maxima, but every 10000k I want something new :-)