Any GS owners previously own an Infiniti Q50?
10-18-23, 11:57 AM
#1
Driver
Thread Starter
Any GS owners previously own an Infiniti Q50?
I have always admired a lot of the Lexus vehicles over the years. I owned an IS350 for a short time years ago and it had issues. I got rid of it. After bouncing around in several vehicles, I decided I wanted back into a RWD car. I bought a '14 Q50 about 4 1/2 years ago. The car was a lease turn in and was practically new at 35k miles. The price was good, it drove great, and I decided to get it even thought it was not my first color choice (gray).
I've always loved red cars. Inifiniti makes a beautiful red on the new Q50's. Those cars are now turbo powered and they have issues with them. I'm not crazy about dealing with that. So I've been looking at the GS350 again in Matador Red. Both cars are similar in performance and other areas. But I'm hoping to find someone that used to own a Q50 that currently owns at GS350 to give me some good feedback on the difference in the two, particularly from a driving standpoint. I like my Q50, I wish it was a different color and the infotainment center wasn't so slow.
I've always loved red cars. Inifiniti makes a beautiful red on the new Q50's. Those cars are now turbo powered and they have issues with them. I'm not crazy about dealing with that. So I've been looking at the GS350 again in Matador Red. Both cars are similar in performance and other areas. But I'm hoping to find someone that used to own a Q50 that currently owns at GS350 to give me some good feedback on the difference in the two, particularly from a driving standpoint. I like my Q50, I wish it was a different color and the infotainment center wasn't so slow.
Last edited by MRM4; 10-18-23 at 12:46 PM.
10-18-23, 12:19 PM
#2
Lexus Champion
If I remember correctly, @signdetres owned a Q50 before he switched to a GS (then on to EVs). Perhaps he can comment.
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signdetres (10-18-23)
10-18-23, 01:16 PM
#3
Racer
Hey yeah we had a 2015 Q50S and 2015 GS 350 F-Sport at the same time. Then after the lease was up on the Q50, I almost got another but ended up getting a 2018 GS 350 F-Sport instead, if that tells you anything. We had the 2015 and 2018 GS F-Sport at the same time. Let me see if I can dig up some past posts:
The Infiniti has been tuned to be more sports than luxury. One area is in Noise,Vibration and Harshness; all three qualities also makes the Infinity FEEL and SEEM sportier. That's what some drivers desire so there nothing wrong with that. Lexus has played to the opposite end of the spectrum, reducing the NVH for a more refined experience; the car is still quick and responsive, but does not communicate the sportiness as the Q50 does. It's really driver's preference.
The two cars target a similar audience but emphasizing different qualities of their vehicles. The Q50 experience, both visually and from the driver's seat, is more aggressive, while the GS is more refined and stately (I might even say boring). But in the long run, the GS will be more reliable and therefore save you stress and money, while still providing performance.
Happy shopping!
The two cars target a similar audience but emphasizing different qualities of their vehicles. The Q50 experience, both visually and from the driver's seat, is more aggressive, while the GS is more refined and stately (I might even say boring). But in the long run, the GS will be more reliable and therefore save you stress and money, while still providing performance.
Happy shopping!
This is spot on. I had a Q50S before getting my 2018 GS F-Sport & simultaneously had a 2015 GS350 F-Sport that we got a few short months after getting the Q50S and would switch off DD duty between the two.
I'm in the minority but I had the Direct Adaptive Steering system and loved it. Did it feel like a video game steering wheel? A little bit, but I enjoyed every second of it (only in its quickest settings, however). I've never driven a car with such a quick steering ratio & response when in it's quickest response with normal weighting (customized through "Personal" mode) or when in Sport mode. It made the car feel incredibly nimble & agile at all times. However, the standard mode for steering felt horrible and completely lacked any feel whatsoever, and in its comfort mode, it was downright scary to use, especially at freeway speeds. I always felt that if I needed to swerve to avoid something, I would not be able to input enough steering angle in time to avoid something. It was tuned horribly. I avoided using it at all costs. The caveat to the incredibly quick ratio that I used 99% of the time was that the steering was never relaxed and was always extremely darty. Moving the steering wheel even a millimeter from center would result in huge steering inputs (not an exaggeration).
Just to keep myself from going on and on, in sum, the GS is a class above the Q50S and is a more quality product from bumper-to-bumper, without a doubt, despite a similar price tag when new. Look closely at the interior of the Q50S and you'll quickly notice a ton of Nissan buttons, switchgear and other parts & God forbid you take a look at the interior of the Maxima. I kid you not, the Maxima has a nicer interior with more features like a panoramic roof & rear-window shade. This drove me nuts. The only Toyota piece you'll find in the GS is the cruise control lever, but I think this is easy to forgive as using it still feels very high quality and from a functionality standpoint, it works so intuitively.
We have a 2015 GS without Mark Levinson and 2018 GS with Mark Levinson and I agree, I don't like the audio quality out of the 2015 at all. Very tinny and hollow sounding. I do enjoy the ML system in the 2018, but only if you make the changes @chinee mentioned and turn off the DSP and surround. I also use Spotify.
One thing I noted between the Q50S and GS350 F-Sport that I think sums it up well is that the GS driving experience has a bit of a learning curve. The Infiniti, anyone can just get in and hoon it around town and it'll feel like a blast, a real monster. With the GS, you've got to learn how to drive it, but once you do, it's sporty nature & handling prowess begin to shine through and I think it's actually a lot more capable than the Q50S (It may weigh less than the Q50S, has much better brake hardware, suspension components & tuning, much better transmission, etc. Everything under the surface is of high-quality performance nature, not so in the Infiniti). I think this is where the "Lexus factor" comes into play... It's still a Lexus, so whatever you do in it, you've got to do it with a bit of class & it'll reward you handsomely. It doesn't like to ever get unsettled & doesn't like to let you look inelegant ever, at least that's how all the electronic control systems feel as though they're tuned. That said, it's not easy to ever get the GS unsettled. It has incredible poise, response, & control under nearly all driving situations, road surfaces/conditions, etc.
When not driving the cars like you've stole them (or are on a test drive with them) and you're just going about your day, commuting in traffic, etc., you'll never find yourself at a stop or crawling in traffic in the Infiniti looking around at the interior going "oh wow, this is smooth" or "oh wow, this is nice, I get it now." Frankly, you'll be bored in the Infiniti when you're not driving it like you stole it because that's really the only thing it's good at. The Lexus is very rewarding to drive hard but is also just as rewarding to drive in traffic or slowly through parking lots, etc. & I think is the most important distinction between the two. You'll find yourself at your destination feeling refreshed and like you didn't even just drive anywhere in the Lexus. Not so in the Infiniti. You'll be happy to get to your destination so you can get out of it.
Edit: I forgot to mention that the Q50S has a number of problems, check out the Infiniti forums for more but a couple that come to mind (because I also experienced them) are:
-rear brake pads get eaten at a rate of 4x as quickly as the front due to their torque vectoring system.
-front brake rotors warp very easily and produce a shaking/shimmying/vibrating feeling when braking from freeway speeds
My Infiniti was a unique case but developed a braking issue where the brake pedal would just sink to the floor, completely at random, sometimes while I was already at speed, sometimes while just at a stop. When this occurred at a stop, before I knew it, the car would begin creeping towards the car in front of me or into the intersection. I'd have to pump the brake pedal repeatedly to build enough vacuum in the system to hold it stopped, otherwise, the pedal would just sink all the way to the floor until it mechanically could not go any further and the car would roll forward. This would sometimes occur while driving, like when you'd go to slow down to make a 90 degree turn. It was a good thing this car handled well as there were times I had to take turns at much higher speeds than expected. This was not a fun experience in anyway, and Infiniti/Nissan made this even worse. Numerous techs, numerous dealerships & numerous engineers from the company were completely unwilling and unmotivated to find the problem and would always just brush it off as "no problem found at this time" or some BS. It was horrible.
While I'm on the topic of dealerships, the service experience is trash. I won't even get into some of my experiences because they're blood-boiling (I'm talking about you, Infiniti of Beverly Hills) but just know they're all trash. I've been to every dealership in the SoCal area. I've had better service experiences at Ford dealerships. The Lexus customer service experience is true luxury service, and you'll likely only ever have to visit for scheduled maintenance as the odds of experiencing issues that need to be addressed are in your favor.
I'm in the minority but I had the Direct Adaptive Steering system and loved it. Did it feel like a video game steering wheel? A little bit, but I enjoyed every second of it (only in its quickest settings, however). I've never driven a car with such a quick steering ratio & response when in it's quickest response with normal weighting (customized through "Personal" mode) or when in Sport mode. It made the car feel incredibly nimble & agile at all times. However, the standard mode for steering felt horrible and completely lacked any feel whatsoever, and in its comfort mode, it was downright scary to use, especially at freeway speeds. I always felt that if I needed to swerve to avoid something, I would not be able to input enough steering angle in time to avoid something. It was tuned horribly. I avoided using it at all costs. The caveat to the incredibly quick ratio that I used 99% of the time was that the steering was never relaxed and was always extremely darty. Moving the steering wheel even a millimeter from center would result in huge steering inputs (not an exaggeration).
Just to keep myself from going on and on, in sum, the GS is a class above the Q50S and is a more quality product from bumper-to-bumper, without a doubt, despite a similar price tag when new. Look closely at the interior of the Q50S and you'll quickly notice a ton of Nissan buttons, switchgear and other parts & God forbid you take a look at the interior of the Maxima. I kid you not, the Maxima has a nicer interior with more features like a panoramic roof & rear-window shade. This drove me nuts. The only Toyota piece you'll find in the GS is the cruise control lever, but I think this is easy to forgive as using it still feels very high quality and from a functionality standpoint, it works so intuitively.
We have a 2015 GS without Mark Levinson and 2018 GS with Mark Levinson and I agree, I don't like the audio quality out of the 2015 at all. Very tinny and hollow sounding. I do enjoy the ML system in the 2018, but only if you make the changes @chinee mentioned and turn off the DSP and surround. I also use Spotify.
One thing I noted between the Q50S and GS350 F-Sport that I think sums it up well is that the GS driving experience has a bit of a learning curve. The Infiniti, anyone can just get in and hoon it around town and it'll feel like a blast, a real monster. With the GS, you've got to learn how to drive it, but once you do, it's sporty nature & handling prowess begin to shine through and I think it's actually a lot more capable than the Q50S (It may weigh less than the Q50S, has much better brake hardware, suspension components & tuning, much better transmission, etc. Everything under the surface is of high-quality performance nature, not so in the Infiniti). I think this is where the "Lexus factor" comes into play... It's still a Lexus, so whatever you do in it, you've got to do it with a bit of class & it'll reward you handsomely. It doesn't like to ever get unsettled & doesn't like to let you look inelegant ever, at least that's how all the electronic control systems feel as though they're tuned. That said, it's not easy to ever get the GS unsettled. It has incredible poise, response, & control under nearly all driving situations, road surfaces/conditions, etc.
When not driving the cars like you've stole them (or are on a test drive with them) and you're just going about your day, commuting in traffic, etc., you'll never find yourself at a stop or crawling in traffic in the Infiniti looking around at the interior going "oh wow, this is smooth" or "oh wow, this is nice, I get it now." Frankly, you'll be bored in the Infiniti when you're not driving it like you stole it because that's really the only thing it's good at. The Lexus is very rewarding to drive hard but is also just as rewarding to drive in traffic or slowly through parking lots, etc. & I think is the most important distinction between the two. You'll find yourself at your destination feeling refreshed and like you didn't even just drive anywhere in the Lexus. Not so in the Infiniti. You'll be happy to get to your destination so you can get out of it.
Edit: I forgot to mention that the Q50S has a number of problems, check out the Infiniti forums for more but a couple that come to mind (because I also experienced them) are:
-rear brake pads get eaten at a rate of 4x as quickly as the front due to their torque vectoring system.
-front brake rotors warp very easily and produce a shaking/shimmying/vibrating feeling when braking from freeway speeds
My Infiniti was a unique case but developed a braking issue where the brake pedal would just sink to the floor, completely at random, sometimes while I was already at speed, sometimes while just at a stop. When this occurred at a stop, before I knew it, the car would begin creeping towards the car in front of me or into the intersection. I'd have to pump the brake pedal repeatedly to build enough vacuum in the system to hold it stopped, otherwise, the pedal would just sink all the way to the floor until it mechanically could not go any further and the car would roll forward. This would sometimes occur while driving, like when you'd go to slow down to make a 90 degree turn. It was a good thing this car handled well as there were times I had to take turns at much higher speeds than expected. This was not a fun experience in anyway, and Infiniti/Nissan made this even worse. Numerous techs, numerous dealerships & numerous engineers from the company were completely unwilling and unmotivated to find the problem and would always just brush it off as "no problem found at this time" or some BS. It was horrible.
While I'm on the topic of dealerships, the service experience is trash. I won't even get into some of my experiences because they're blood-boiling (I'm talking about you, Infiniti of Beverly Hills) but just know they're all trash. I've been to every dealership in the SoCal area. I've had better service experiences at Ford dealerships. The Lexus customer service experience is true luxury service, and you'll likely only ever have to visit for scheduled maintenance as the odds of experiencing issues that need to be addressed are in your favor.
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JDR76 (10-18-23)
10-18-23, 01:19 PM
#4
Racer
Here's another I found:
Yup, had a 2015 Infiniti Q50S and then a 2018 GS 350 F-Sport. The Q50 was a fun car and all, but the GS is most definitely a class above, both in the car itself and brand/ownership experience, despite how often these two are cross-shopped. The Q50 competes with cars like the 3-Series and C-Class. The GS competes with cars like the 5-Series and E-Class. Some would even say the A7 and CLS but that's debatable.
The GS is a lot more car than the Q50. It has a "germanic" heft and solidity that the Q50 lacks. All of the controls from steering to brakes to the buttons you press are so much more satisfying to use. The interior design, materials and attention to detail in the interior are so much nicer in the GS too. Things like the little cushion between the seat and the center console so nothing can fall down there, the soft-touch lower door panels front and rear instead of hard plastic, the power seat extender, the power rear sunshade, power trunk, etc etc.
You could easily hop in a Q50 and think you were in a Nissan as it shares MANY components with even the cheapest of Nissans. It also bothered me that the Nissan Maxima has a very similarly designed interior to the Q50, except it's nicer and has a lot more features that aren't even available in the Q50. On the other hand, I've had so many friends hop in my GS and ask questions like, "so does this compete with the 7-series?" or "so how much was this, like $100,000?" There's no other world where someone would hop in a Q50 and ask those questions.
The only advantage I'd give the Q50 is that it's faster in the 0-80 range, but the GS pulls shockingly hard at 80mph+, so I wouldn't be surprised if it was a little quicker up there. I never really took the Q50 up past 90 though as it wasn't a very buttoned down or confidence inspiring experience. The GS on the other hand I've taken many times up to its top speed of 143. It just feels so good at higher speeds. I could easily see cruising down the autobahn in the GS, not so much the Q50.
The GS is also a ton of fun to throw around in Sport S+ mode, I'd say it easily out-handles the Q50, but it's also really rewarding to drive when you're stuck in traffic, just trying to get to work and back, running errands, etc. It makes the mundane feel a little less... mundane. It makes you feel like you're in something special. I don't think you'll ever really find that in the Q50. When you're not driving the Q50 around like a total d-bag, it's not very special or exciting to drive and just feels like you could be in any other midsize sedan. In the Q50, I only didn't mind being stuck in traffic in it because its adaptive cruise actually worked really well in stop and go traffic. The GS' adaptive cruise doesn't work as well, but I don't mind driving it in traffic because of how harmoniously the entire car works together from the steering feel, to the brakes, to the suspension, etc. The GS is always a treat to drive and I never found myself growing tired of it after 3 years. I was itching to get out of my Q50S around the 2 year mark. I also had a pretty terrible experience with the brakes in that car and Infiniti corporate and many of the dealerships in SoCal were equally terrible to work with. The brake issues were never resolved and would go out at random. It was awful. I just towed a 6x12 fully loaded cargo trailer from CA to MO with the GS and it even did a fantastic job doing that and was a beast of a tow car. Didn't even complain one bit doing what I'm sure it was never designed to do.
The GS is a lot more car than the Q50. It has a "germanic" heft and solidity that the Q50 lacks. All of the controls from steering to brakes to the buttons you press are so much more satisfying to use. The interior design, materials and attention to detail in the interior are so much nicer in the GS too. Things like the little cushion between the seat and the center console so nothing can fall down there, the soft-touch lower door panels front and rear instead of hard plastic, the power seat extender, the power rear sunshade, power trunk, etc etc.
You could easily hop in a Q50 and think you were in a Nissan as it shares MANY components with even the cheapest of Nissans. It also bothered me that the Nissan Maxima has a very similarly designed interior to the Q50, except it's nicer and has a lot more features that aren't even available in the Q50. On the other hand, I've had so many friends hop in my GS and ask questions like, "so does this compete with the 7-series?" or "so how much was this, like $100,000?" There's no other world where someone would hop in a Q50 and ask those questions.
The only advantage I'd give the Q50 is that it's faster in the 0-80 range, but the GS pulls shockingly hard at 80mph+, so I wouldn't be surprised if it was a little quicker up there. I never really took the Q50 up past 90 though as it wasn't a very buttoned down or confidence inspiring experience. The GS on the other hand I've taken many times up to its top speed of 143. It just feels so good at higher speeds. I could easily see cruising down the autobahn in the GS, not so much the Q50.
The GS is also a ton of fun to throw around in Sport S+ mode, I'd say it easily out-handles the Q50, but it's also really rewarding to drive when you're stuck in traffic, just trying to get to work and back, running errands, etc. It makes the mundane feel a little less... mundane. It makes you feel like you're in something special. I don't think you'll ever really find that in the Q50. When you're not driving the Q50 around like a total d-bag, it's not very special or exciting to drive and just feels like you could be in any other midsize sedan. In the Q50, I only didn't mind being stuck in traffic in it because its adaptive cruise actually worked really well in stop and go traffic. The GS' adaptive cruise doesn't work as well, but I don't mind driving it in traffic because of how harmoniously the entire car works together from the steering feel, to the brakes, to the suspension, etc. The GS is always a treat to drive and I never found myself growing tired of it after 3 years. I was itching to get out of my Q50S around the 2 year mark. I also had a pretty terrible experience with the brakes in that car and Infiniti corporate and many of the dealerships in SoCal were equally terrible to work with. The brake issues were never resolved and would go out at random. It was awful. I just towed a 6x12 fully loaded cargo trailer from CA to MO with the GS and it even did a fantastic job doing that and was a beast of a tow car. Didn't even complain one bit doing what I'm sure it was never designed to do.
10-18-23, 01:26 PM
#5
Driver
Thread Starter
Good feedback. I appreciate it. There are a couple for sale near me I may take for a test drive just to compare the two. I drove a GS (I think it was a '13) a number of years ago and I don't remember how it drove.
10-18-23, 01:28 PM
#6
Lead Lap
@MRM4 Although this thread is a few years old, it has much of the commentary you're looking to see: https://www.clublexus.com/forums/gs-...is-vs-q50.html
10-19-23, 09:18 AM
#7
I have always admired a lot of the Lexus vehicles over the years. I owned an IS350 for a short time years ago and it had issues. I got rid of it. After bouncing around in several vehicles, I decided I wanted back into a RWD car. I bought a '14 Q50 about 4 1/2 years ago. The car was a lease turn in and was practically new at 35k miles. The price was good, it drove great, and I decided to get it even thought it was not my first color choice (gray).
I've always loved red cars. Inifiniti makes a beautiful red on the new Q50's. Those cars are now turbo powered and they have issues with them. I'm not crazy about dealing with that. So I've been looking at the GS350 again in Matador Red. Both cars are similar in performance and other areas. But I'm hoping to find someone that used to own a Q50 that currently owns at GS350 to give me some good feedback on the difference in the two, particularly from a driving standpoint. I like my Q50, I wish it was a different color and the infotainment center wasn't so slow.
I've always loved red cars. Inifiniti makes a beautiful red on the new Q50's. Those cars are now turbo powered and they have issues with them. I'm not crazy about dealing with that. So I've been looking at the GS350 again in Matador Red. Both cars are similar in performance and other areas. But I'm hoping to find someone that used to own a Q50 that currently owns at GS350 to give me some good feedback on the difference in the two, particularly from a driving standpoint. I like my Q50, I wish it was a different color and the infotainment center wasn't so slow.
Interesting thread. Here is my experience with a Q50 and how I compare it to my GS350.
I sold my 2016 Q50 Red Sport AWD a few months ago for a 2018 GS350 F-Sport AWD. The biggest reason for selling was reliability and overall quality issues/concerns. One of the Q50’s biggest problems is pre-mature turbo failure, but that wasn’t my problem. My issue was that the injectors failed on mine at 47k miles. I was traveling down the highway one day and wham. It was covered under the extended warranty (thank goodness). If I didn’t have that, it would’ve cost me $3,000. After this issue, I really began to question long-term reliability. I then started to wonder what was next to break? My turbos at the time were fine, but who knows how long they would last. Some quality issues I experienced was front door window regulator rattle (closing the door when window was down) and the driver’s side mirror glass would vibrate/wobble when going down the road. I had addressed these issues to the Infiniti dealer since I have the extended warranty, but it was denied since nothing was actually broken. Certain years may be better than others in quality/build. My Red Sport was totally stock and in great condition. In fact, it was owned by my parents and they took excellent care of it. I always loved the look of the Q50 and had always wanted to own one. Before the Red Sport, I owned a Q40, which is the old G37. The Q40 was brought out for 2015 in response to negative feedback of the Q50 in 2014. In my experience, the Q40 (G37) was a more solid car than the Q50. In fact, the GS reminds me of the Q40 in its’ solidarity and smoothness vs. the Q50. The only reason I sold the Q40 was to buy my parent Red Sport. If I had fought the urge, I’d still be in the Q40 today. The Q50 Red Sport is FAST (400hp) and I miss that sometimes vs. the GS350, which I consider QUICK by comparison. The GS350/GS350 F-Sport is more on par with the standard 300hp version of the Q50 and Q50S; whereas the Q50S Red Sport would be better paired against the GS F. However, from a driving standpoint, I feel my GS F-Sport (when in Sport+ mode and using the paddles) has better and faster shift response than the Red Sport—when in its Sport+ mode/using paddles. The Red Sport has dynamic dampening too that tightens up in Sport+, and I feel it’s on-par with the GS when in Sport+. Steering is also much better in the GS. The Red Sport’s steering is totally numb. Even when in Sport+ mode, all it does is make it tighter. Road feel was still non-existent. It had speed-sensitive electric steering, but it was not the DAS system. Overall, the Red Sport’s biggest features is engine and brakes. The braking system is the same Akebono system used on the 370Z, but it worked well on the Q50. As for quality and build, I feel the GS is much better of the two—in MY experience. The GS is so much more solid feeling and has better fit and finish. Nothing can come close to the smoothness of Lexus vehicles. My parents currently own a 2016 RX350 and a 2013 RX350 with 172,000 miles. My dad also had two LS430’s. All tight, solid cars with that Lexus feel. The 2013 RX still drives silky-smooth to this day given age and mileage. I have always liked Nissan/Infiniti vehicles, and have owned a couple Maxima’s before the Q40 and Q50 came along. However, I feel quality, reliability and longevity has declined over recent years. No car is perfect and they all have their issues. That being said, these have been my experiences thus far.
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10-19-23, 11:18 AM
#8
Driver
Thread Starter
Thanks for that feedback.
Mine has the 3.7L V6. I don't have to worry about a turbo. It's one of the reasons I'm hesitant to get a newer Q50. To this point, the only thing I've had to do to mine is brakes, rotors, tires, and a new battery a couple of months ago. It has 75k miles on it. I basically drive it to work and a few out-of-town trips (close trips) and that's about it. My youngest daughter is 14 and I have to take her places at times. Sometimes she sits up front and sometimes in the back depending on whether her sister is also riding. She doesn't like the car, refers to it as a "little car". I tell her it's not that little.
Mine has the 3.7L V6. I don't have to worry about a turbo. It's one of the reasons I'm hesitant to get a newer Q50. To this point, the only thing I've had to do to mine is brakes, rotors, tires, and a new battery a couple of months ago. It has 75k miles on it. I basically drive it to work and a few out-of-town trips (close trips) and that's about it. My youngest daughter is 14 and I have to take her places at times. Sometimes she sits up front and sometimes in the back depending on whether her sister is also riding. She doesn't like the car, refers to it as a "little car". I tell her it's not that little.
10-19-23, 11:36 AM
#9
Thanks for that feedback.
Mine has the 3.7L V6. I don't have to worry about a turbo. It's one of the reasons I'm hesitant to get a newer Q50. To this point, the only thing I've had to do to mine is brakes, rotors, tires, and a new battery a couple of months ago. It has 75k miles on it. I basically drive it to work and a few out-of-town trips (close trips) and that's about it. My youngest daughter is 14 and I have to take her places at times. Sometimes she sits up front and sometimes in the back depending on whether her sister is also riding. She doesn't like the car, refers to it as a "little car". I tell her it's not that little.
Mine has the 3.7L V6. I don't have to worry about a turbo. It's one of the reasons I'm hesitant to get a newer Q50. To this point, the only thing I've had to do to mine is brakes, rotors, tires, and a new battery a couple of months ago. It has 75k miles on it. I basically drive it to work and a few out-of-town trips (close trips) and that's about it. My youngest daughter is 14 and I have to take her places at times. Sometimes she sits up front and sometimes in the back depending on whether her sister is also riding. She doesn't like the car, refers to it as a "little car". I tell her it's not that little.
10-20-23, 06:39 AM
#11
The GS's don't have the trackpad, they use the joystick controller. I don't mind it really. The touchscreen on the Infiniti was nice too. Only problem with the touchscreen is keeping it clean... finger smudges. I've heard the trackpad can be difficult to respond to your finger and movements.
11-09-23, 06:18 AM
#12
Driver
Thread Starter
I test drove a GS last night. I wanted to compare it to my Q50. The GS seemed like it had a little more interior space. I like the layout of the gauges and having separate controls for the heat and air instead of on the display. The car drove great, had a smooth ride, and handled as well at my Q50. I really liked it. The thing that keeps going through my mind is basically paying twice what my Q50 is worth to have something that's a little better than what I have, but not a lot better. I have some thinking to do.
11-11-23, 09:42 PM
#14
Pit Crew
I test drove a GS last night. I wanted to compare it to my Q50. The GS seemed like it had a little more interior space. I like the layout of the gauges and having separate controls for the heat and air instead of on the display. The car drove great, had a smooth ride, and handled as well at my Q50. I really liked it. The thing that keeps going through my mind is basically paying twice what my Q50 is worth to have something that's a little better than what I have, but not a lot better. I have some thinking to do.
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NJLEXES (11-15-23)
12-05-23, 12:11 PM
#15
Intermediate
I just traded in my Q50s hybrid RWD for a GS450h hybrid 2021. I loved the Q50s, had it for 9 years from new without any issues. Infiniti pulled out of Europe, Asian and Australia so there is no more factory support.
The Q50s is larger than the Lexus IS but smaller than the GS in size and width. Its much lower riding / sporty than the GS. The exterior width is noticeable when going in underground car parks looking for parking etc.
The Q50 ride firm and the GS is so pillow soft. The GS450h has more interior space. The boot space on the Q50s hybrid is tiny (same size as a Lexus SC400) as there is a lithium battery pack takes up alot of space. The GS is another level in quietness and luxury compared to the Q50.
Both tech package is old compared to Audi, Merc, BMW. There is no Apple carplay / Android auto. GS has the joy stick which I'm not a fan because you need to take your eyes off the road longer than a touch screen.
The runflats tyres on the Q50 are crap. A change to non-runflat tyres makes a BIG difference.
The Q50s hybrid is a 4.7sec 0-100km/h so no slouch probably as fast as the Lexus ISF / GSF. As fast as a Tesla long range dual motor without going to a full EV.
The Q50 was a performance hybrid not tune for economy, however I was still getting 7litres / 100km city and about 5.5litres/100km highway.
The brakes are very sensitive on the Q50 as most of the braking is done via regenerative braking. These are the same 4 piston and 2 piston brake calipers as found on the Nissan 370z and new Z.
The Q50s is larger than the Lexus IS but smaller than the GS in size and width. Its much lower riding / sporty than the GS. The exterior width is noticeable when going in underground car parks looking for parking etc.
The Q50 ride firm and the GS is so pillow soft. The GS450h has more interior space. The boot space on the Q50s hybrid is tiny (same size as a Lexus SC400) as there is a lithium battery pack takes up alot of space. The GS is another level in quietness and luxury compared to the Q50.
Both tech package is old compared to Audi, Merc, BMW. There is no Apple carplay / Android auto. GS has the joy stick which I'm not a fan because you need to take your eyes off the road longer than a touch screen.
The runflats tyres on the Q50 are crap. A change to non-runflat tyres makes a BIG difference.
The Q50s hybrid is a 4.7sec 0-100km/h so no slouch probably as fast as the Lexus ISF / GSF. As fast as a Tesla long range dual motor without going to a full EV.
The Q50 was a performance hybrid not tune for economy, however I was still getting 7litres / 100km city and about 5.5litres/100km highway.
The brakes are very sensitive on the Q50 as most of the braking is done via regenerative braking. These are the same 4 piston and 2 piston brake calipers as found on the Nissan 370z and new Z.
Last edited by gripau1; 12-05-23 at 05:24 PM.