IS - 2nd Gen (2006-2013) Discussion about the 2006+ model IS models

2007 IS350 vs 2007 G35

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Old 03-08-07, 11:40 AM
  #91  
RamshakleZ
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Originally Posted by vegaseric
I guess I'm (proudly) in the driving enthusiast minority. I do require a certain amount of comfort in my ride... that's why I don't drive an Elise. But there's a certain amount of pleasure I derive from pulling off a smooth rev-matched downshift as I approach the wide, 360 degree freeway onramp not too far from my house. Or, when I feel the chassis settle with a bit of throttle in the downhill right-hand turn I make every weekday. Neither of these examples are done utilizing the "top performance" of my vehicle, but they do take advantage of qualities that are not as prevalent in lower performing vehicles.

The fact of the matter is that all of the the vehicles in the sport sedan segment have their own distinct personality. The IS leans more towards luxury, the 3-series is more performance-oriented, and the G35 has a blend of both qualities. All of these are excellent vehicles and choosing between them depends on what you value in a ride.
Isn't rev matching one of the big things Infiniti is touting on their new G35? I must admit that I'm not a performance driver enough to really understand / feel the difference. As long as I don't have any unpleasant hiccups when my transmission changes gears, I'm happy. But, I am curious to know from someone who does pay close attention to these things if you think Infiniti implemented their rev matching well or if their marketing on this is just talk.
Old 03-08-07, 12:48 PM
  #92  
MLevinson
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Originally Posted by RamshakleZ
Isn't rev matching one of the big things Infiniti is touting on their new G35? I must admit that I'm not a performance driver enough to really understand / feel the difference. As long as I don't have any unpleasant hiccups when my transmission changes gears, I'm happy. But, I am curious to know from someone who does pay close attention to these things if you think Infiniti implemented their rev matching well or if their marketing on this is just talk.
From my experience w/the new and old G - the rev-matching [throttle-blip + downshift] was only successful about 50% of the time. The rest of the time, rev-matches were mis-executed and SLOW – sometimes very much so that caused the trans to slam into gear [even on up-shifts]. This issue has been well documented on the G forums for those who are actually honest about the issue. The IS330's trans as we all know is absent of this feature, but does however smoothly engage the lower gear most-of the-time and overall is more satisfying over the Infiniti. Upshifts in the IS350 are far superior also; again this is from my experience and others I’m sure have different views.

The SepTronic in the 335i however is a different story - seamless lighting-fast rev-matches [and upshifts]100% of-the-time; and is comparable to VW's DSG IMO.

Last edited by MLevinson; 03-08-07 at 12:51 PM.
Old 03-08-07, 01:40 PM
  #93  
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Originally Posted by RamshakleZ
Isn't rev matching one of the big things Infiniti is touting on their new G35? I must admit that I'm not a performance driver enough to really understand / feel the difference.
I think Eric has a 6mt in his coupe as I did in mine so we might be talking about 2 different types of rev matching. One is on an auto where the cars computer does the rev matching like Audi's DSG. The other (on an MT) is usually associated with heel/toe downshifting (and braking) where:
1. you depress the clutch
2. downshift to a lower gear
3. press the gas pedal (sometimes with the heel of your right foot while the ball of your right foot is on the brake simultaneously) to rev up the engine to approximately the rpm's that the engine will be at the lower gear at that speed
4. let out the clutch.

Sounds a little complicated but when you get some practice, you can do this in around a second or so.

There is very little that matches the satisfaction you get when you do this perfectly especially on the track.
Old 03-08-07, 09:29 PM
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So, I went out and test drove both the IS 350 and G35 back to back today... and today's test drive sealed the deal. Both are nice performers... but the Lexus has a sportyness / pep to it that the Infiniti does not. For me, the Lexus is the hands down winner - and I've already gotten the ball rolling on negotiations on it. Hopefully I can be an official member of this forum very soon!!!
Old 03-08-07, 10:23 PM
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Originally Posted by al503
I think Eric has a 6mt in his coupe as I did in mine so we might be talking about 2 different types of rev matching. One is on an auto where the cars computer does the rev matching like Audi's DSG. The other (on an MT) is usually associated with heel/toe downshifting (and braking) where:
1. you depress the clutch
2. downshift to a lower gear
3. press the gas pedal (sometimes with the heel of your right foot while the ball of your right foot is on the brake simultaneously) to rev up the engine to approximately the rpm's that the engine will be at the lower gear at that speed
4. let out the clutch.

Sounds a little complicated but when you get some practice, you can do this in around a second or so.

There is very little that matches the satisfaction you get when you do this perfectly especially on the track.
Exactly.
Old 03-09-07, 05:38 AM
  #96  
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Originally Posted by RamshakleZ
So, I went out and test drove both the IS 350 and G35 back to back today... and today's test drive sealed the deal. Both are nice performers... but the Lexus has a sportyness / pep to it that the Infiniti does not. For me, the Lexus is the hands down winner - and I've already gotten the ball rolling on negotiations on it. Hopefully I can be an official member of this forum very soon!!!
The IS series has a completely solid feel to it, while driving, that the G35 just doesn’t have. The BMW 3 series also has that same sold feel ,,,,, an intangible that you really can’t describe to anyone, you just feel it.

I probably choose the 350 over the G35 because of that difference while driving. I choose the 350 over the 3 series because of my preference of the local Lexus dealers over the BMW dealers here in my city.

Take your time in negotiating ,,,,,, some dealers will NEVER give you their best deal on the first visit ,,,,,,,play off the fact that you liked the G35, let them know they have competition. Few members share the deal they get when buying but members seem to have got $2000us-$3500us off the MSRP price ….. depends on what part of the country you live in.
Old 03-09-07, 05:49 AM
  #97  
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Originally Posted by caudlek
Take your time in negotiating ,,,,,, some dealers will NEVER give you their best deal on the first visit ,,,,,,,play off the fact that you liked the G35, let them know they have competition. Few members share the deal they get when buying but members seem to have got $2000us-$3500us off the MSRP price ….. depends on what part of the country you live in.
There is quite a bit of competition down here so I'm confident I can negotiate a good deal. I'm looking for packages LT, NV, and LR.

MSRP = $43,737
Invoice = $38,038
Holdback = $714

So... my starting point for negotiation is going to be $37,324. Add no more than 6% for dealer profit and I'm at $39,563. I'm not willing to pay more than that. Especially considering that with the same options, the G35 is only $37k.. and that is MSRP! Am I dreaming??
Old 03-09-07, 07:54 AM
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Originally Posted by RamshakleZ
There is quite a bit of competition down here so I'm confident I can negotiate a good deal. I'm looking for packages LT, NV, and LR.

MSRP = $43,737
Invoice = $38,038
Holdback = $714

So... my starting point for negotiation is going to be $37,324. Add no more than 6% for dealer profit and I'm at $39,563. I'm not willing to pay more than that. Especially considering that with the same options, the G35 is only $37k.. and that is MSRP! Am I dreaming??
I think that's fair. I paid roughly $1.5K over invoice as well. Where in TX are you located?
Old 03-09-07, 08:06 AM
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Originally Posted by TP_IS350
I think that's fair. I paid roughly $1.5K over invoice as well. Where in TX are you located?
Houston. Yourself? I have no problem going out of town to get a good deal if I need to... do you recommend a certain dealership?
Old 03-09-07, 08:30 AM
  #100  
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Originally Posted by RamshakleZ
So... my starting point for negotiation is going to be $37,324. Add no more than 6% for dealer profit and I'm at $39,563. I'm not willing to pay more than that. Especially considering that with the same options, the G35 is only $37k.. and that is MSRP! Am I dreaming??
I think that's doable. I got just over $4K off MSRP back in May '06 when most people were not getting that much. They had my IS and one other 350 and were only getting in about 8 350's that month total.
Old 03-09-07, 08:33 AM
  #101  
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Originally Posted by vegaseric
Exactly.
Yeah. My only problem with that was that I would be so pleased when I did it right that I would forget about the line for the next corner...
Old 03-09-07, 08:46 AM
  #102  
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Originally Posted by RamshakleZ
Houston. Yourself? I have no problem going out of town to get a good deal if I need to... do you recommend a certain dealership?
I'm in the North Dallas area. Bought the car from Park Place Lexus in Plano. They were very easy to work with as they truly did deliver the "Lexus Experience" that is so highly touted. PM me if you would like more info.

Good luck!
Old 03-09-07, 05:03 PM
  #103  
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Originally Posted by TP_IS350
I think that's fair. I paid roughly $1.5K over invoice as well. Where in TX are you located?
Maybe for my next Lexus I'll just wire one of you guys $43,000us, let you buy me one and you can pocket the difference,,,,,the prices up here are crazy high ,,,,, the only good thing about that is that 350's are scarce because of it,,,,,, good for resale down the road.

KC
Old 03-11-07, 04:47 PM
  #104  
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Default A few points and a few comments.

One point I have not yet seen raised in seven pages of this thread is that Lexus does not make a limited slip differential available on the IS350 (and it is standard on the Sport G35). No LSD is one of the biggest complaints on the 335 forums. While BMW says it does not (yet) have an electronic limited slip differential which will match up with available 335 transmissions, BMW has said it is working on it (and one should be standard on the M3). I don't know if the lack of comments about no Lexus LSD better defines the drivers of the IS350, but for some/many, this is major point for a rwd vehicle with this much power.

Second, Lexus's basic warranty coverage is 50K miles, while Infiniti's is 60K miles. If you drive more than 12K/year and plan on keeping your car for 4 years, this may be important to you.
Old 03-11-07, 05:23 PM
  #105  
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Originally Posted by dmkozak
One point I have not yet seen raised in seven pages of this thread is that Lexus does not make a limited slip differential available on the IS350 (and it is standard on the Sport G35). No LSD is one of the biggest complaints on the 335 forums. While BMW says it does not (yet) have an electronic limited slip differential which will match up with available 335 transmissions, BMW has said it is working on it (and one should be standard on the M3). I don't know if the lack of comments about no Lexus LSD better defines the drivers of the IS350, but for some/many, this is major point for a rwd vehicle with this much power.

Second, Lexus's basic warranty coverage is 50K miles, while Infiniti's is 60K miles. If you drive more than 12K/year and plan on keeping your car for 4 years, this may be important to you.
Although the LSD in the Infiniti may be a "better" way to transmit power to the rear wheels, it does not however seem to give Infiniti any advantage over the IS350 and the 335i, as recent magazine reviews have shown in direct comparisons. For that matter, the new G35 Sport just lost out to the BMW 328i in the latest Car and Driver magazine that just came out. Very pathetic showing from Infiniti I must say, even from Car and Driver who has been known to be pro Nissan/Infiniti. Can you imagine if this was against the 335i…? C&D made some interesting comments about the G as well – it’s a good read for those that are interested. I would have liked to have seen the IS350 tossed into the mix also, but the IS350 already beat up on the new G in R&T.

BTW, there is a good reason why Infiniti offers a longer warranty.


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