darkside

Yesterday was my first driving experience in the 545, and as I posted I was very impressed. Partly due to Wolverine's post, I decided to test drive the M45 today. My first impression was that there is a lot of gagets, but my overall impression of both the interior and exterior was not one of really high quality. Nonetheless, it is an attractive car and has all the bells and whistles including a back up camera, a nice Navigation system, active cruise control, and so on. The test drive was only OK. I'm not sure if there is that much car to car difference between the car I drove and the one Wolverine drove, but this was no BMW. The steering feel was sloppy, and I just did not feel that much in control. Now I've been driving an e 46 M3 the last two years, so my standards are pretty high. But this did not diminish my impression of the 545; in fact I thought the 545 handled incredibly. I also did not get that feeling of power that I did in the 545. All in all the BMW was a much tighter, together vehicle, and the brakes had a much more linear feel.

Now I'm not an expert. And in no way am I saying I know more about cars and handling than Wolverine; in fact I probably know less. But I know how I felt maneuvering these sedans through traffic at speeds of 60-90 mph and there was flat out no comparison. I wouldln't dream of giving up my M3 for the Infinity, but I just might do so for the 545i or 550i.

Man

That overall "tight" feeling of the 545 will probably also last longer than the M45. Japanese cars are not 100% quality that their fanboys would like you to think. My wife has a new sienna that has been nothing but one thing after another and I had a G430 Lexus that had all kinds of problems.

Guest

That's because your Sienna was built in the US with jap parts! Brain surgeon!

subterFUSE

Nissan is not a good car company..... so neither is Infinity. They just have most people fooled into thinking they are of the quality of Lexus. Trust me, they are nowhere close.

gabman

Sorry but I have to interject and disagree with your comments. Having been the owner of a first generation Infinti Q45 and soon to end 3 year lease on a G35 sedan, I have nothing but good things to say about their vehicles and more importantly their dealer network in Canada. Their service was impeccable, always got a loaner, even when I showed up unannounced for minor problems. I think that both Nissan and their Infiniti division has done the public a great service by introducing new and innovative products over the last few years at price points that have been very interesting to the car buying public.

I am by no way saying that they are perfect but I do think that they go way futher than many manufacturers in providing great customer service. I think that many of the independant companies that guage customer satisfaction will back up these comments.

Speaking from experience, I had some major problems with the brakes on my G35, problems that left me out of pocket to the tune of $ 800.00 . Once Infiniti realized that this problem was global, they initiated a 3 year 40,000 mile warranty on the brakes for this vehicle and refunded myself and everyone else all the money that we spent in brake repairs. I am not aware of to many manufacturers that stepped up to the plate in this fashion.

The fact that I have opted for a 545i instead of a M35/45 in my opinion does not take anything away from the fact that I consider that Infiniti has a winner with both the M35 and 45.

swajames

Sorry, that's just wrong. I had two Infiniti's prior to purchasing my 545 and whilst I do agree with another poster that they put more money into the powertrain than say the interiors etc they are consistently producing quality products that are designed and handle better than any other japanese manufacturer. Nissan is now one of the most successful and profitable companies as a consequence. How many companies that are "not a good car company" will turn out products like the G35 - car of the year in a number of motor magazines - or the FX35/45, in their class and price range they are pretty tough to beat.

EBMCS03

Infiniti and Nissan is a good car comany... Not as good as BMW as a whole but they are getting close.

wolverine

I drove the M45 Sport version with the upgraded suspension and the 19" wheels. Did you drive that, or the standard 18" wheel setup?

Guest

Infiniti has had its ups and downs over the years in the US. The first year it entered the US market, it shared a JD Powers award with Lexus and then it went downhill very quickly -- that is why you had a good experience with your "first generation Infiniti Q45."

It's current car models are clawing their way back into the forefront of the luxury market, but Infiniti is still way behind Lexus, BMW and MB -- think about that, Infiniti cannot sell as many cars as MB, with its terrible quality/reliability, in the US market. This should tell you how far Infiniti has to go before it gets anywhere near BMW.

Carlos Ghosn has done good things since taking over Nissan, so it's on its way up (rather than down), but it still has a ways to go before they earn any of my $$. Even with every major auto rag selecting the G35 as "car of the year" or winning some comparison against the BMW 3-series, the 3-series is still the market leader in its segment (with no "free advertising" from the auto rags, like the G35).

With all due respect to swajames, everyone should test drive the car they intend to buy, rather than relying on some auto rag award (which can and have been previously "procured" with sufficient advertising by the manufacturer).

TitaniumGray5

Your BMW will spend a lot more time in the shop than an Infiniti will and the dealer service can't be any worse at Infiniti. Having said that...I still prefer the BMW.