Kind of sad...

Presently, my wife and I are shopping for a new car for her. She presently drives an 04 WRX 5spd wagon. She is getting a little tired of the somewhat harsh ride in the WRX. So we have embarked on a mission to find a fast, sporty, comfortable,(and because we get snow...AWD ) near luxury car. We have driven a 07 G35X, Mazdaspeed6, Lincoln MKZ, and for comparison purposes a Lexus IS350, and an Acura TL type S. Oh yeah, and of course a Legacy GT 5spd. It was really a lot of fun watching the salesman's face as my wife was whipping these cars to see what they would do. It came down to the Infiniti, and the subie. The G35X is an awesome car, it is really fast and handles great...plus it has an excellent cabin. The Subaru is also an awseome car ( not so much in auto form, IMHO ) faster than her WRX, handles great, looks better, pretty good cabin given it's competition. So we have a dilemma. I rendered my judgement....the GT was around $5,000 cheaper, plus gets points for being a Subaru. Done. Unfortunately, it's going to be her car and she liked the better luxury feel of the G...plus she liked that she could drive the Infiniti in full auto mode when she wanted (the g's auto is actually quite fun in manual mode, instant full throttle shifts...plus a throttle blip to match revs on downshifts) So it looks like she is going to go against my choice and order the Infiniti. I'll keep working on her, though. So it's like I said, kind of sad. Props to this forum for all the "lurker" help.

 

D.

but obviously the AWD system in the legacy is far better than the one in the G35.

Is it? Why?

 

I'll give you that Subaru has been doing this AWD since the dawn of time and has learned a lot, but what makes the Subaru AWD system better than the Nissan/Infinity system? (Is there a Nissan branded AWD car out there yet?)

 

To the OP: Nice choice on the Infinity - it's a nice car, for sure.

 

-

Jim

is there a suspension set-up that will make the ride less harsh on the WRX?? Aren't you gonna take a big $$$ hit when you sell the 04??

Is it? Why?

 

I'll give you that Subaru has been doing this AWD since the dawn of time and has learned a lot, but what makes the Subaru AWD system better than the Nissan/Infinity system? (Is there a Nissan branded AWD car out there yet?)

 

To the OP: Nice choice on the Infinity - it's a nice car, for sure.

 

-

Jim

 

It's permanent AWD, i.e. power is on the all wheels all the time. Most AWD systems are "on demand", usually FWD, power is sent to the rear only when slippage is detected. I am not actually sure how AWD in Infiniti works.

 

Plus Subbie AWD is symetrical, equal torque distribution everywhere.

 

"Experts" say only Subaru and Audi make the real stuff....

a throttle blip to match revs on downshifts

 

heard that's standard on 07 Legacy GT...

Infinitis AWD is RWD based and it sends power to the front as needed.

I also looked at the G35x when I was looking at new cars and the G was about $9k more than the LGT. Around here they don't really want to deal on the G35x (regular G35 is another story) and I got my LGT for under $26k.

Infinitis AWD is RWD based and it sends power to the front as needed.

 

Of course.

Are you getting basically a base G35X w/ no packages at invoice? That's the only way I could see a $5k difference. I looked at a G35X w/ premium package and it would have been about $36k, 10k more than the GT. So, for me it was a no brainer, the G35X wasn't worth 10k more.

Are you getting basically a base G35X w/ no packages at invoice?

My numbers are just ballpark...as we are not to the actual "brass tacks" of pricing yet. We don't need uber-luxury and the base x has pretty much everything we would want...especiallly heated seats, so yes it would be a base G35X right around $33,000. They are not dealing much on the infinitis cuz they are new and popular and acclaimed. And I'm sure the Subie dealership would deal quite a bit so I would expect the gap to probably end up wider. The Infiniti actually has a kick but AWD system total rear bias (which I like) It has a "snow" mode you can select for 50/50 up to 10-15 miles per hour too. The car I drove was a 2006 spec b they have already discounted to 29,898. I asked the dude, why do you still have this car? He said: I wish I knew. I would like to try the 6 spd with sport sharp settings as well...but couldn't find one nearby. Just for the record I tried to convince her to get an STI, but she wouldn't go for it!!!

 

 

D.

divorce?

Acura TL Type-S now offer AWD???

If you can afford it, buy the wife what she wants.

If you can afford it, buy the wife what she wants.

 

 

you sir are a wise man with sound advice...

If you can afford it, buy the wife what she wants.

 

Absolutely! Besides it not like it'll be torture driving the G...it is a pretty sweet car too. But, even if you can afford it...it would be nice to have similar/better performance for less $$$!!

 

D.

Yeah, the 07 G35 is a very nice car indeed. It runs a very close second to the LGT in terms of driving fun in the class, with a lot more gadgets and interior niceties. Strangely, though, the seats in the LGT were more comfortable to me.

I wouldn't feel to bad. My wife bought a Lexus IS 250 AWD. Tried to tell here about a GT, Limited, whatever. A Subaru is not a Lexus. A Subaru is not an Infinity. I LOVE my Subaru, don't get me wrong. Every time I drive or ride in her Lexus...crap it's a frickin NICE car.

 

You/she will love the Infinity...if that's what she chooses, in spite of our Subaru bias's...

let me first say, I LOVE my wagon...

 

that said, if she is into the luxo, go for the G.. you want a work horse, get the subbie. you want something fancy, the subie will dissapoint you..

 

but to get the luxo, you'll be paying 8k more for G!!

 

i wait for the 08 leggies.. i like 08's interior.

Infinitis AWD is RWD based and it sends power to the front as needed.

 

Any idea how it accomplishes that? If you've got a link or something, that would be great. I've seen a couple sites that say it's RWD biased (biased, not based), but none that explain exactly how it works (beyond hand-wavy use of the word "electromagnetic").

To hell with that tell your wife the Subaru is the safe choice and if she loves your kids then you are getting the Subie. If you have no kids you might so buy the Subie.

PS my friend who owns a piece of crap Lexus IS300 is selling his for a Legacy GT. So buy one and don't be a dork.

I would have seriously considered the G35x if it had a MT. I'm a big Infiniti fan and will probably get into another one one day. However, the bang for your buck award goes to the LGT.

In the Infiniti awd system, called ATTESA E-TS, an electromagnetic center differential distributes torque from front to rear. When accelerating from rest, the torque split is 25/75 front/rear; in cruising mode, it is 100 percent rear-wheel drive. Should a wheel lose traction, the split instantly shifts to 50/50. A button on the console can provide full-time 50/50 torque split for heavy going in snow. (All-wheel drive is not available with a manual transmission.) Our Infiniti's awd system was transparent in daily service-it simply made the car work better on bad roads without imposing itself on the driving experience.

Thanks, that's really interesting... Would still love to see an exploded view or something to see how they actually pull that off. The "100 percent rear wheel drive" thing is either totally awesome and brilliant, or just hype... hard to say which.

The "100 percent rear wheel drive" thing is either totally awesome and brilliant, or just hype... hard to say which.

I think it is crap. I would rather have 50/50 awd because it will handle better in the snow. Infiniti has a "snow" button that splits torque 50/50, but it is only up to 15mph or so.