Hey all, just getting this started! I'll be documenting all kinds of stuff from regular/restorative maintenance items to upgrades/mods/tuning to general troubleshooting/tech problems. Sadly, I have to start this thread with the latter. You can see the issues I'm currently having at my other thread here: Engine Bay Dress Up Bolts Caused Severe Electrical Failures?

Hopefully, the problem(s) from that thread is/are cleared up soon, then I can get back to fixing things and modding. Since I got this thing with 119k+ miles, most of my initial/upcoming "mods" aim to rescue/restore it from the prior neglecting owner lol.

I purchased this 2010 G37x sedan 7AT back on October 15th, 2021. Unfortunately, I probably didn't do a good enough job of inspecting the vehicle pre-purchase perhaps to help me lower the purchase price. Alas, I'm trying to work things out with the slimy used car dealer as we speak. As I said, took delivery of the car 10/15 and it's been sitting non-drivable at an Infiniti dealer now since Nov 2nd. Basically, I have barely had any time with this car as it's spent most of its life so far with me elsewhere in shops lol.

But anyway, here are some random initial post-purchase photos!

 

car looks clean and in good shape.

 

Ugh, I screwed up with this thread lol. I have been posting lots of stuff on this forum, just spread out all over the place in random sections. They were mostly specific questions I wanted to ask or have a discussion on, so I guess it wasn't a total waste. I will try to put stuff here instead or as well.

You can check my thread on the exhaust fitment/rubbing issues I'm having if you want... suffice to say, my factory y-pipe was rattling here and there and it was annoying me. I saw how cheap aftermarket Y-Pipes were so I pulled the trigger on one. As I saw the Y-Pipe prices, saw a set of cheap test pipes as well (eBay). I figured what the heck, why not. Figured I'd be leaving my factory exhaust outside of these two upgrades, for now. Of course, just like every project with my car, what starts as a few hundred dollar repairs turns into a few thousand real quick it seems. Not only did those eBay test pipes not really fit that great.... they're leaking at the header flange and they throw off the entire exhaust system alignment from the y-pipe on back. It's so bad the passenger side is pushed so hard up against the underbody of the car...

So that little annoying OEM pipe rattle is NOTHING compared to the headaches I've had from the exhaust leak pumped into my brain in the cabin of the vehicle, the wasted money on eBay test pies, the more money spent on re-purchasing a set of "quality" test pipes from Z1 that hopefully will mate up better to the factory headers and provide better clearance/fitment for the remainder of the exhaust system, and the more money spent on the rest of the exhaust system (cat and y-pipe back), and the multiple different exhaust shops the car was taken to and stayed overnight while wasting more money on Uber trips back and forth to the shops only for each to tell me they couldn't do anything for my car because it has no cats now... one shop quoted me $6000 and the other $4300... they wanted to replace the entire exhaust system with OEM parts. Sigh. Give me a break. Break me off a piece of that......

Anyways, I'm all over the place. But SCREW YOU EXHAUST LEAK! I'm not playing games now: I'm even going to use ARP hardware to secure the flanges together. Gonna be TIGHT and STRONG:

 

Thanks for the kind words!
I am sad to report that I don't know how much of a build thread this will ever be now... since about 2 weeks ago I slid on some ice here (negative -2 degrees in Denver) into a sidewalk. I immediately reported the claim to my insurance carrier & requested a tow on the side of the road. They assured me I'd be hearing from a local tow company within 30min or 1hr. Did that ever happen? No. Why? I don't know. Maybe just blame COVID. That seems to be the catch-all for everything. "OH we have chip shortages, so we can't make new cars so you must buy a 20yr old car with 200k miles for $25k!".

You already know where this story is going. I waited 2 hours in the cold and finally had a friend pick me up. Insurance never came through with the tow, so eventually, the Denver police took care of it. It's been sitting in their Denver PD impound lot ever since. I've had repeated conversations with my insurance carrier and they keep telling me they will pay the fees and get it towed from the impound to a repair facility. Just today we MIGHT have made progress in at least getting a tow company to the impound lot. Whether it actually got delivered to the repair/body shop is unknown. I'll find out Monday hopefully.

Insurance predicts my G37x to be a total loss and of course, they would, since it's a 12yr old vehicle with 120k+ miles. Back when I first got it (Oct 2021) I had a whole ordeal with a local Infiniti dealership and some weird electrical ground gremlins. The dealer put a brand new ECU and coil packs in it for free (cuz I complained up a storm lol). Long story but when that debacle was going on, I filed a comprehensive claim to see if insurance could help. They ultimately did not assist at all, but I remember when I first reported the claim they also said my car could be a total loss. Either the system is "total loss happy" or is onto something...

Just doing some thinking and researching, it sorta seems like the G37 platform is easy or quick to reach a "total loss" status. I have seen so many "rebuilt" or "salvage title" G37s/Q50s online around where I live. In fact, I *almost* bought a 2013 G37x for like $10k I think when I was shopping around for Gs. I thought it was such a deal, but I didn't know how hard life is owning a salvage/rebuilt title car that you want to daily drive lol good luck finding insurance etc and god forbid you ever try to sell or trade it in the future. Anyway, I digress. Point is, I've had to start thinking about whether or not I'll be able to even keep my G37 now

On one hand, I hope it's not a total loss. Although I haven't put half as much time or money into it as many on this forum have, it still kills me to think all the upgrades and work I've put into it is all for naught now potentially. Suspension upgrades, brake upgrades, brake lines, all new fluids everywhere, upgraded brand new exhaust, brand new ECU, spark plugs and coil packs, filters, interior floor mats, new Q60 shift ****, nice carbon fiber steering wheel, the $800+ EcuTek tuning package, the $1000+ Michelin Pilot Sport AS tires, Whiteline sway bars/end links, the list goes on and on... You get the picture. So I've been thinking... if it IS a total loss, can I get a settlement and find another G37 and start over if you will? I've been looking, and prices only seem worse now for a comparable G than they did when I first bought it back in Oct 2021. What gives? Oh, wait. Covid. Inflation. Markets. Gotcha. Companies/businesses aren't paying employees enough to account for the cost of living increases that are shooting through the roof. So people can barely make ends meet, let alone make enough money to put some away. Ugh, I digress again, I apologize!

Sooooooo..... I have been casually perusing the used car sites.... I'll try to stop rambling... I have been oscillating all over the place from another G37 to a slightly newer Q50 with either the 3.7 or preferably the 3.0TT (incredibly power potential). Simultaneously cross-shopping BMW 335s, Mercedes with the 4.5 v8 AMG (totally random curiosity), the Ford Fusion Sport (AWD 2.7 twin-turbo no one paid any attention to), etc... list goes on. And then I stumble upon - of all things - the Porsche Cayenne platform. Talk about depreciation. These things were all over $100k brand new and now can be found from $10k-$20k. Kinda like the underrated quiet Porsche lol. I test drove and started signing papers tonight for an 08 Cayenne Turbo.... I'm sorry but it's hard to say no to a 4.8l twin-turbo V8 making 500hp and 516tq in a very unassuming package... and all with a comparable (if not better when considering bang-for-your-buck) price to another G37 or any random 2006 Honda Civic that's also being wildly overpriced in this market lol....

IDK what to do! lol it's 2yrs older but has 20k LESS miles than my G37.... BUT MOM! Look no hands! It has 500hp! lol

 

That's a lot of car. Nice find. I wish you well, BigSpoon.

 

Since sadly my and my G37x had an unfortunate encounter with a sidewalk in below 0-degree temperatures back in Feb, finally my car has been declared a total loss I initially looked into another G37, or a Q50. Even thought about upgrading to a Q50 with the VR30 twin-turbo baby GTR motor. Prices for that along with everything else on the used market was insane and out of control. I ended up with a Porsche Cayenne twin-turbo V8, so I'm pretty happy with 500hp from the factory. It honestly has almost everything I would have wanted to upgrade my G37 to have anyway. I hate having a car payment again, but I got a screaming deal. It was really hard to find a fun vehicle for the measly settlement I got. And to think all the recent work the dealer, other shops, and myself put into it oh well.
.
The total loss process happened fairly rapidly once I got on them to get the ball moving... needless to say, I had no time to remove many of the THOUSANDs of dollars of upgrades or general repairs I put into the car. And I understand it's not a dollar-for-dollar thing when your car is a total loss. Meaning, you don't get hardly anything back for all the hard work you put into it. Lesson learned: if you're going to mod your car significantly, purchase extra endorsements on your auto policy to allow for aftermarket/customized equipment.
.
The few things I could get off the car quickly enough, I will be posting up for sale here along with some other bits and pieces if anyone is interested. I thought I'd leave this thread with some photos of one of the only things I am proud of: my test pipes. Lol I really took my time and gave them some love with ceramic coating before I wrapped them and then silicone painted on top of that. They were amazing and coupled with the tune, I finally felt some of the power potential of the VQ37 sadly, that was just another waste of my time and money as they're gone along with the car. But you can feast upon my efforts, in no particular order but it looks like they kinda arranged themselves perfectly starting with primer coats all the way up to installation with the MLS gaskets and ARP hardware. Those puppies were never going to leak. That was my plan anyway lol.

 

.

 

And here are some goodbye photos of my G37x at the shop before towed away to car-junkyard-heaven:
.

.

.

.
I had really nice tires on there too and didn't get sh*t for them in the total loss settlement

.
No time to take off the diff brace or Whiteline swaybar and endlinks that I'm sure would have been an easy sell to someone!

.
Sigh

 

Here's what I'll be working with next though
.

.