Infiniti g35

Infiniti G35

The halls are empty now. The offices quiet. The window blinds drawn. After 40-odd years of daily hustle and bustle, Nissan’s headquarters in Gardena, California, sits idle, a “For Sale” sign staked in the front yard, the company name yanked from the building’s facade. All mail has been forwarded to Nashville, Tennessee.
Yes, the company’s corporate move to the home of country music is complete, but the 2007 Infiniti G35 sedan is a product of Nissan’s Southern California workforce. In fact, it’s the last Infiniti product to be executed in its entirety by those sun-loving surf bums, and it’s a good one.

Five trim levels are offered: G35, G35 Journey, G35x AWD, G35 Sport and G35 Sport with a six-speed manual transmission. Infiniti says the G35 Sport automatic, like our rear-drive test car, will make it the second most popular of the five models. The all-wheel-drive G35x gets a larger piece of the pie because it’s popular in the Northeast, while only 10 percent will buy the manual gearbox. All five models are powered by the same all-aluminum 3.5-liter V6. It’s the fourth generation of the 24-valve, double-overhead-cam VQ35 engine, which honestly, we didn’t think Nissan could improve on. Wrong again. This engine now revs higher, makes more power and uses less fuel.

Approximately 80 percent of the engine’s parts are new, including the block, which has been made stronger. Nissan’s white lab coats also added electromagnetic variable valve timing to the exhaust valves, a higher compression ratio and true dual exhaust. But the coolest new gizmo under the G’s aluminum hood is the engine’s symmetric twin ram air intake system, which uses two throttle bodies and routes the incoming air around rather than through or over the radiator. Nissan says the system helps reduce airflow resistance by 18 percent and increases horsepower by 3 at 60 mph.

Now the engine lights up the spec box with 306 horsepower at 6800 rpm, 268 pound-feet of torque at 5200 rpm, a 7500-rpm redline and an EPA rating of 19 city and 26 highway when backed by the five-speed automatic. That makes the G35 more powerful than nearly all of its six-cylinder rivals, including the BMW 330i, Audi A4 3.2 and Mercedes-Benz C350. The Lexus IS 350 also packs 306 hp, but it makes more torque, 277 lb-ft, at a lower 4800 rpm; and according to the EPA, it gets better mileage (21 city/28 highway).

As you would expect from the above paragraph, the G35 blows all 12 doors off its German rivals, while the Lexus matches the Infiniti’s performance. Our tester tore up the track with a scorching 0-60-mph run of 5.6 seconds and a quarter-mile performance of 13.9 seconds at 102 mph. The last 330i we tested, which had a six-speed manual, was nearly a second slower in each test.
In the age of the six-, seven- and now eight-speed automatics, the Infiniti’s transmission, with only five forward gears, may seem behind the times. But the five-speed’s proper gearing, attentive action and ability to match revs perfectly when manually downshifted makes the transmission a standout and the perfect choice for this very capable sport sedan. It delivers all of the hard-driving advantages of BMW’s complex sequential manual gearbox (SMG) without any of that transmission’s drivability issues.

Those manual gearchanges can be made with the well-placed shifter or steering-column-mounted paddle shifters, which are cast from lightweight magnesium and covered with a delicate swatch of leather. The paddles are extra large and conveniently placed, but they don’t turn with the wheel as they do in the BMW M5.

The magnesium paddle shifters are standard on the G35 Sport, along with drilled aluminum pedals, sport seats with thigh extensions and driver’s power bolster adjustments, a sport steering wheel with specially colored stitching, 18-inch wheels and tires, a unique front fascia, a viscous limited-slip differential, and unique tuning for the car’s electronic stability system. Options exclusive to the Sport models are a four-wheel active steer system, which our test car had, and a clumsy rear spoiler, which it thankfully did not.

Used 2006 Infiniti G35 Sedan G35 4dr Sdn Auto

 High performance in a coupe or sports sedan.

The Infiniti G35 sedan is one of the quickest, best handling cars in its class. It's a compelling choice for drivers who want the performance and handling of a true sports sedan for thousands less than the European benchmark cars. The G35 is also comfortable and practical, with a roomy back seat, a big trunk, and the trappings of a luxury car. The G35x adds the stability of all-wheel drive, making it an alternative to the Audi A4 quattro. The Infiniti G35 coupe is a true sports car. It's more luxurious, roomier and more practical than the Nissan 350Z, with a rear seat and more usable storage space.New Car Test Drive editor Mitch McCullough is based in California.