caha14

Welcome back and congratulations on the new ride! FWIW, unless something has changed, Obsidian (code 212) has a clear coat. It still scratches easily, though...

There was a time when Lexus black was single stage, and I continue to hear people at dealerships (including my own) say generically that black paint has no clear, but even my Black Onyx LX has clear coat. Black Onyx is the "original" black (code 202) that didn't use to have clear.

Gordy35

Just bought a 2013 GS350 F-Sport yesterday with 4,300 miles for 40K I think it was a good purchase considering that the 2014 new was 58K with the same equipment except for the power trunk

jmtamu

That does sound like a great deal.

jjscsix

Thanks for the input. I had my car coded shortly after I got it, but they did not do the DVD in motion unfortunately and I don't want to ask our local coder to meet me again (he does it for free for many folks in Houston). I easily downloaded my existing MP3 music from a USB that I have been adding to for a few years.

I don't have time to listen to the music you provided links to - maybe this weekend. Again, thanks for taking the time to share your knowledge.

2thfixr

Correct, car has clearcoat. Did the first detail and all of the microfiber cloths were clean. Super soft and scratches easy but at least it has clearcoat.

2thfixr

Thanks! Yes, Northwestern grad school alum.

dseag2

Congrats on the GS! Just curious... how does it compare to your M37S?

2thfixr

IMHO the M37s was a great car, loved it but I rolled 40k miles so it had to go. Overall, the M37s handles better and it's quicker but I'll break it down in detail here.

Handling: M37s for sure feels sharper in every way. No need for standard and Sport+ mode in the Infiniti, it was a nice balance of both but it felt like it turned in better due to the rear wheel steering. Ride was a bit rough at times but handled great all of the time. GS350 in Sport+ still has more lean and feels heavy overall but I haven't pushed it so don't know if the limits are higher than the Infiniti. Seems magazine reviewers really love the handling so all I can say is track handling is irrelevant to me because if I want to go to the track, I have something else in the garage that's more appropriate or I'd get a M5 with Competition Pack.

Power: For sure more power in the M37s. 30hp is quite a bit and it's all in low end torque. Car feel significantly snappier from standstill and passing but tapered off quickly around 5k RPMs. GS350 just doesn't have the same snap as my old 3GS. Maybe the 8speed tranny isn't all that it's cracked up to be. Never in the right gear I guess.

Noise/Ride comfort: GS350 is quieter overall for sure, it has dual pane front side windows so I'm sure that has a lot to do with that. Road noise became an issue on some roads in the M37S but it was quiet as well. GS is smoother overall, feels like a bigger heavier car. Good or bad.. not sure.

Interface: Still on the fence. Some real issues with the mouse/controller on the GS. Hate the split screen thing where you have to push a little harder to flip from one side to the other. I end up overshooting and losing track of where I am so I spend WAY MORE TIME looking at the screen than I ever did in the Infiniti. Touch screen and I-Drive like up/down, left/right, rotate controller in the Infiniti is definitely better. Really miss the Infiniti interface. There is so much real estate directly above the HVAC controls, I can't understand why they didn't add 3 more buttons... "A/C, DVD, BT" Why must we cycle through the sources?

HVAC: Like the energy saving option to choose driver only or all passengers. Works fine but my guess is I will forget and my passengers will be sitting there wondering why my car is do damn hot. LOL! They desperately need a dedicated A/C hard button on the dash. I hate having the A/C going in the winter. If I don't need to defrost, I want heat not cold air that's been heated. I had Forest Air in the M37s which was great. Adjusts air flow from top of the dash to the dash vents and cycled air speed to simulate a breeze flowing through the trees. Pretty cool IMO.

Audio system: M37 comes with a Bose system but I had the Sport Touring package with additional speakers and the upgraded Bose system. Had surround speakers on the seats next to the headrests for the surround system. It was nice and clean with great midbass and lean highs. Liked it much better than the 3GS Mark Levinson System and the Mark Levinson system I had in my LS460. It seems like they really improved the Mark Levinson system for 2014 and probably 2013. This system sounds way better than the old 3GS and LS Levinson system. Seems like it has a LOT more power so it's cleaner, crisper, and hits harder on the low end. Reading online it seems they doubled the power output and it definitely seems that way. Soundstage in the old Levinson system was terrible. Felt like it was below dash level this floats just above the dash, as it should. Super crisp and great low end... so nice that everything I've thrown at it sounds better than I remember. They did a fantastic job with this system, very little distortion at high volumes.

Seats: M37S seats were great and the GS are about equal BUT the adjustable side bolsters is a plus. Nod to the GS. M37S has air conditioned seat ventilation, GS has non air conditioned ventilation. Nod to the M37S.

Wheels: M37s 20" wheels look way better than the 19s on the GS350. So much more agressive.

Design: GS350 is bland compard to the flowing lines on the M37S. Everyone that has seen my old car and new car have commented that they liked the old one (M37S) much better.

Cost: Comparable. My M37S had a sticker that was a tad over $60k and the GS350 was around $59k. All things being equal I think I will lose less on the GS over the long run. Trade offers on my M37S after 18 months ranged from $25k to $33k. The M37S was renamed the Q70 in 2014 so although it's the exact same car, it could affect resale value.... so I have been told.

Best GS350 feature: 2014 Siri addon. Tried this for the first time today and it's fantastic. All of my cars have voice commands, it's so confusing that I never use the feature. They all use a different sequence of phrases or commands so I never get it right. I definitely know how to use Siri and it works like a charm. Love it.

Disappointing features:

- No power trunk closer. 3GS had it WTH!
- Nav volume at level 7 is not loud enough and why the **** do I have to go into the menu to change the volume? Why not use the volume control while the voice is speaking like ALL OTHER CARS?!?!?!
- Why the LED temp display? So 1990 of them. Throwback to the stupid LED clock in the 3GS that didn't match anything in the car?
- I like the bi-xenon upgrade over the xenon low beam/halogen high beam setup in the 3GS but why did they get rid of the adaptive headlights? Love that feature.
- Why did they get rid of the hard drive in the audio system???!?!?!?! WHY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
- BRAKE DUST! I've logged 1k miles so far and even though the wheels are dark graphite, the dust shows. Never had brake dust in the M37s and the brakes grabbed hard. My 3GS initially had terrible brake dust but there was a TSIB that allowed a one time switch to low dusting pads. They should have installed the low dusting pads on this car from the beginning.

Pics:

2012 M37S Premium package, Sport Touring Package, Sport Package, Aero Kit
2014 GS350 F sport w/Mark Levinson

jkeifer3

Sorry to jump in here but there are utilities out there that allow you to format drives larger than 32GB with FAT32. I regularly use a 64GB thumb drive and a 128GB SSD effectively in my GS.

caha14

Thank you for the detailed and thorough review. This is extremely informative.

I have toyed with the idea of going to Infiniti more than once and have always wondered about their vehicles, as they are very appealing in terms of looks, power (typically above Lexus) and unique features (e.g., the forest air option, speakers on the seats, etc.). In the end, my Lexus ownership and service experience has kept me "loyal", but this certainly piques my interest.

On a separate note, beyond any impact on resale value of the M37, as you pointed out, I cannot make any sense of Infiniti's renaming/renumbering of their vehicles. I can't imagine I'm the first one to say this...

bigblack06

iTrader: (20)

Clarification:
-They have a power trunk option did you miss this as its an option on the 14' GS
-The Temp led is what other cars are using including BMW and Mercedes.
-I agree they should have kept a digital clock in there with the analog clock.
-They didn't get rid of the adaptive headlights they just aren't offered to F-sport drivers only luxury and basic GS's
-The GS also offers the rear steer but only RWD model.
-Still has a hard drive just not for music, reason is more people are using connected devices or iPhone's or the Pandora app, it made sense.

The GS looks great any plans for it or you keeping it stock. I have always liked the Infiniti M even liked the M35 and was ready to purchase one, also loved the fact that Bose was stock in the car.

FishBike

It makes me think Infiniti's attitude is: "They're all cars, who cares how they're different? How many feet of car would you like?"

dseag2

Thanks for the comparison. I actually owned an '06 M4 Sport, '07 M35 and '08 M35 Sport and loved them all. I traded the last Infiniti for Audis for a few years. When the new M37 came out I was excited and thought it was unique in its class but maybe too swoopy in design to say "luxury". Honestly I don't know why more people aren't buying them. I guess it's a brand recognition thing. Sewell Infiniti treats me as great as Sewell Lexus, so for me I could own either brand and be happy.

We have a '13 G Cab (just traded in a '10 G Cab) and love it. I can't wait for the next-gen M. Hope they hit the mark this time!

2thfixr

Infiniti service was outstanding. I went to 2 dealerships for service and they were exceedingly friendly and accommodating. Offered me loaners for a 1hr oil change and crazy polite/friendly. No complaints.

Yup, their new model designations make no sense to me. Q50, Q70 ok I get it but why is the mini SUV thing a Q60? :lol:

2thfixr

Agreed, service is equal. Without exception, everyone liked the M37s better. Not getting a favorable reaction to the GS at all... so far most have told me they don't like it and my wife actually told me today that she has never liked Lexus Gs. Didn't like the 3GS I had and doesn't care for this one. I don't regret my decision but the M definitely had a more organic and passionate design. The GS is nicely refreshed but besides the front end, it looks like everything else out there.

Puzzled as well why there aren't more Ms out there. I think Lexus has done a stellar marketing job and Infiniti has done too little. Big push with the new Q50 but understandable since it will replace the G37, their bread and butter car. Pricing the M at $60k+ fully loaded probably hurts as well. You have to really want one to pay that much when you can get a GS, loaded 3 series, C class or A4, not so loaded 5 series, E class or A6. I had the car for 18 months and I only saw 15-20 Ms on the road with less than 1/2 being S models and none had the aero kit. I've seen more Maseratis on the road!! :lol:

May as well share the story of how I came to buy the M37S. I drive 250 miles round trip to an office out of town 2 days/week. Wanted a Passat SEL TDI and I was ready to pull the trigger but had to do the good ol' drive by with the wife and she said it looked like a Hyundai Sonata... didn't like it at all. So I said cool, I like it but if it will be an eyesore in the driveway let's head over to Infiniti across the street. Planned on a base M which is priced closer to a fully loaded Passat SEL TDI. Walked into the showroom and my jaw dropped when I saw the fully loaded S with premium, sport package, sport touring package, 20" graphite wheels, and the oh so impressive aero kit!!! The kids went "WHOA!!!", the heavens opened, a glowing light shined on the car and I could hear the angels singing. Pushed my tongue back into my mouth and gave myself a reality check... promptly reminded myself, "It's a work car, you don't need that." Picked out a nice base M with premium package and stupid looking 18s. Wife went home and I was all set to sign papers when I got a call. She said, "Don't get the car, just come home." Figured she hated the M as well or changed her mind about the Passat so I apologized to the salesman and went home.

Walked in the door and she said... "I know you want the one in the showroom with the big wheels and aero kit so let's get that one instead of the base M." Needless to say, I have a great wife. :lol: