I wandered by Austin Infiniti after lunch today and look at look at the new sedan. The extended warranty on my 2004 Audi S4 6MT only has a few months left on it so I'm close to being in the market for a new car. I've driven the 2010 Audi S4 6MT and really like it, but configured the way I want it's quite a bit more expensive than a fully loaded 2010 G37S 6MT. In a perfect world I think I'd prefer to get the S4, but honestly I have a hard time justifying the difference in price between the two.

Personally I like the changes to the 2010, both inside and out. I've always liked separate fog lights and I think it's a good change on the G. Inside I really like the new Shodo trim better than the Washi trim, and the new nav screen is gorgeous. The new S4 has an upgraded nav system as well with a significantly higher-res screen, and the new Infiniti system looks to be on the same level. I definitely like that they've reconciled the interior lighting to be white and blue across the board instead of still having orange/amber lighting here and there. As I've said in a few other threads on this forum, I do wish the 6MT was available with the wood trim, but I think the new aluminum trim looks quite good and would be totally fine with it.

I have a little time before I have to make a decision, but the 2010 G37S 6MT is definitely a top contender for my next car. It's an amazing bang-for-the-buck proposition and a damned good looking/performing car.

 

It's hard to justify the $10K+ extra for an S4 or a 335i after driving a G37; I went through the same process last year. I was dead set on buying a BMW 335i sedan, then I drove the G37 and thought it was 95% of the bimmer for 12K less.

 

I cross-shopped the new S4 and the 335xi when buying my 09 STI... I felt that in terms of performance, the STI was the best, and in terms of overall driving feel. An S4 configured similarly to the STI (nav, upgraded wheels, etc) would have been nearly 60 grand (Canadian $$), whereas I was able to pick up my STI for close to 41 grand.

We went to drive the 335xi and S4 again when we were getting a new car for my mom. Obviously, we ended up picking the G37x. It was just the best bang for your buck.... like madmax said it was 95% of the 335 for much less $$.

 

congrats!

 

Coming from 2000 BMW 323i I really wanted to stay within the family and get a 335i but after months of agonizing I just could not justify paying 12k+ more when I'd be getting a fully loaded G37xs that was fully loaded and had 328 horsepower with the same 0-60 times, it was pretty much a no-brainer and here I am!

BTW I hate Audi's and would never get one because I will always associate them with preppy Volkswagen drivers!

 

How is the 2010 G nav screen different from the 09 nav screen?

 

I think the 2010 Nav screen is just a higher resolution.... and maybe you can see weather on there now?

 

I have a 07 335i I was thinking on trading for a G37 sedan 6mt. I'm just not sure if I like the size of the sedans, they look kinda big in my opinion but still kinda sexy. I would just love to buy new this time instead of always buying used and getting the infiniti would allow me to do that. I like the new red color too

 

The 2010 nav screen is definitely sharper. no fuzzy corners on letters, the amount of info displayed is easy to read.

 

I've thoroughly enjoyed my S4. It's fast, looks great inside and out (subjective, of course), handles well (albeit with a front weight bias, but you learn to adjust for that), sounds great with the V8(!), is really comfortable, has great Recaro sport seats and very good gadgets (I retrofitted the factory nav, satellite radio, and Bluetooth myself so that's all seamless), etc. The service experience has been fantastic...on par with the level of service I received from Lexus with my previous car (a GS430 L-Tuned). All in all one of the best car ownership experiences I've had.

However, a 2010 S4 configured the way I want it MSRPs for $56K. I think I could probably get it for closer to $52K with some negotiation and the customer loyalty incentive, but that's still $13K more than the MSRP for a loaded 2010 G37S 6MT, and I think my wife has access to VPP which widens the gap even more. I think it's closer to $16K when all is said and done. While I'd miss Quattro, the Audi interior (again, subjective, but I love Audi's interiors), the supercharged V6 (and the fact that the dealer here is a Stasis partner so when they release their flash taking the car to >400HP, it'll match the factory warranty), etc., I have to decide whether those those justify an additional $300 or so per month...

I'm going to chew on it for a while. My heart is with the S4 but I've long admired the G35/G37 as a great sport sedan and know I'd be very happy with one as well.

 

I saw the 2010 today, I have a test drive during the next week. Did not get into the car but the cat looks awesome. I believe the new front fascia should provide some aerodynamic gains over the previous one. Maybe this is why fuel mileage improved (this is a wild guess though). I have an 08 so will provide my comments vs the 08 once I test drive it. I have not driven the 09 before.

The 2010 S4 is a nice car. I was also in the same situation but fortunately my finances decided for me, I could NOT afford it optioned the way I like (around 55k). I am opting for the 2010 G37S with the tech package. Thats within 1-2k of the base 2010 S4. If only I could bring myself to drive a 45k car with no Nav, no bluetooth, no homelink, no keyless entry & go among many things the base 2010 S4 comes void of. However, I will encourage anyone to buy the 2010 S4 if finances are not an issue. Its truly awesome, I test drove it, the only thing though, the G is not that far behind in the performance dept. I believe the S4 does the 1/4 mile in 13.2 @ 106. The G's best time per MT is 13.5@ 105 I believe, at worst 13.8@102mph.

 

I cross shopped the A4/S4, Mercedes C350/C63, and BMW 335xi/M3 but in the end the G37xS just offered a lot more value (and it's a bigger car) than the other vehicles.

 

I dorve the S4 and the 09 G37s back to back. Both were 7AT's. The S4 is truly amazing. The s-tronic tranny is very quick. I learned to drive on an Audi many years ago.

The funny thing for me, was that driving them back to back, I thought the G37s drove better. They are both fast, they both handle great, but on suburban Atlanta roads where I drive, the g felt better.

Now look at the features. The g has a power steering column (I am much taller than my wife, so this is a key feature). Both have keyless entry and go (but only in the S4 prestige). To get the rear camera in the S4 prestige, you need the driver assist pkg( $900), but you do get blind spot warning (only useful in a large SUV IMHO). The controls for the Nav in the S4 are nice, but with the shifter in D, my hand kept bumping into the gear shifter.

As much as I liked the S4, there was a 20K spread between the two. The S4 had no incentives, and the 2009 g had plenty, so for me the choice was obvious. I have no regrets. When I see a 335 or an S4, all I can think of is, what sucker overpaid for their car!!!!

 

Did you drive the '10 S4 or an older S4? If it had a V8, it was the older one, though given that you said your hand kept bumping into the navigation control when shifting, I'm assuming it was the '10 because that wasn't the placement of the nav **** until this year.

I've driven the '10 S4 6MT and will drive the '10 G37S 6MT this afternoon or tomorrow afternoon (my sales contact emailed me yesterday saying they just got one in). I'll be interested to see how the '10 G37 drives. At this point I'm >90% certain I'll be going that route, though. I'll post back up after I drive and let you guys know my impressions.

 

I drove a new 2010 6MT sedan in Houston on Friday. It was rainy, not the best time to test drive a new car, but the salesman was ready and he did not know how to drive a manual, so I did not hesitate. What can I say, it drives just like the 2009 6MT does -- great.

One thing I have to bitch about is that Infiniti STILL has not fixed the sport seat, so even my short drive was not comfortable .

This is not an isolated problem, it has been reported in the G35 and G37 forums before and is being roundly ignored by Infiniti. The sport seats in my Z06 Corvette are fine, and the Infiniti sport seats can be too when they are fixed.

The sales manager from Southwest Infiniti called me today and asked me what it was going to take to get me into the car. I told him that Infiniti should listen to their customers and fix the sport seat design to accomodate the body frame of their American customers. We are not all 5'-4" tall and 140 lbs. This is not an unreasonable ask -- after all, they have moved the steering wheel from the right side to the left.

The sales manager agreed with me about the sports seats and said they get the same response a lot. I asked him if there was anyone he could point me to in coorporate who was interested to discuss the customer viewpoint. He told me that there was no one I could tak to. I have owned a G35 for over 7 years and driven it 80,000 miles; one would think I have a valid opinion.

So here I am, a viable customer for a 2010 6MT, but Infiniti is not meeting me at the marketplace. If Infiniti expects for me to replace my 2003 G35 with one of the 2010s, they are going to have to fix the seat so I can drive it comfortably before there will be any deal.