If I'm Not mistaken, the EX35 uses the 5AT , not the 7AT. Please correct me if I'm wrong...

 

Almatti, you are mistaken...my 2011 EX35 has a 7AT ..there are no paddle shifters though. Amazingly it doesn't need it because its never searching for gears!!! I kid you not!!!

 

I don't think it is limited to the 7AT, my 08 5AT coupe used to have this same problem on a semi regular basis. Infiniti corporate had a "flight data recorder" installed to capture throttle position, speed, rpm, etc. My 11 7AT does it as well, just not as often. If I had to guess, it is something in the communication between the tps, edu, and tcu. My 08 was so bad that after 2 near collisions I reported it to the NHTSA. Funny thing is, I've driven thousands of miles in beat up loaner cars and never had it happen once. My 08 developed the problem after a few years and my 11 after a few weeks.

 

I test drove my car with a technician and was able to show him the problem like Almatti did. The technician told me this was normal but he would take a look anyway. After an hour i was told the car has all the latest updates and nothing was wrong according to diagnostic reports. I've called Infiniti Consumer Affairs and supposedly will be receiving a call from the regional affairs manager. I'm not holding my breath.

 

Mine was "normal" as well. That's why they bought my car back after almost 4yrs

I'm thinking it may have something to do with their "acceleration swell". Software shouldn't decide when I need to stomp on it to pull out at a busy intersection. I paid for 330hp, I'd like to use them whenever I see fit. 325hp now that I'm in a vert.... Kind of messed up when you nail the throttle and nothing happens for a second or two. I know that my j30 and g35 coupe never did anything like this.

 

I think the problem is too many sensors mucking around trying to give their input. The big question is if Infiniti could "tune out" the ones that might be causing the issues.

So far we've heard resounding NO and resounding YES, so who really knows. I still think its bad programming somewhere.

 

Everything wrong with this car is about badly written software. As a software engineer who has programmed control systems for various machines and automation systems, to me this is all very very poorly programmed, and I want to "yell at the car" a few times per drive.

Apologies- Some of this is off the transmission topic, but it is ON the programming topic which I also believe is at the root of the 7at problem.

Climate Control: Does not seem to hold temperature well and creates unnecessary drafts and unnecessary high fan speeds. Want to lower the fan slightly? Well that takes it out of Auto mode, so I don't know if it's going to maintain temperature still. Want to make it stop randomly blowing air in your face when you just want some heat and no drafts? Press the mode button.. But that takes it out of Auto mode, and it seems to stop maintaining the temperature. Sure you can close all the dash vents and leave it in Auto, right? Nope - Then it seems to get really really determined to blow air out of those vents and start raising the fan speed and "wheezing" thru the closed vents. Am I using it wrong? There are plenty of places for air to come out - I don't want it blowing around my face or making drafts. Too high expectations from a luxury car? I could program this thing better in my sleep. Dealer says "working as designed". Anyone been in an Audi in the last 10 years?

Cruise Control: Almost useless. I do not have the adaptive smart cruise control. I have the regular one. The kind of cruise control that's been around for decades. It does not hold speed. Speed varies across a range of about 10mph on gentle hills and sometimes just shuts down altogether. I drive those SAME hills in all of my other cars and they hold speed within 1mph so don't tell me about hills. The G37 speed varies within a 12mph range on the same road. Ridiculous and unacceptable. I could reprogram the cruise control in my sleep. Infiniti solution: "If you find that the speed varies, then you are using it in a situation where it is not intended, so you should not use the cruise control". Gee Infiniti, it seems like every other car manufacturer got this right. I know because I've driven so many vehicles on this same road and they all work. I use it to maximize travel speed while avoiding getting tickets by the way, not because I'm lazy. So, while driving my luxury car, I have to keep checking my speedometer to maintain a good pace that's just below the ticket pullover threshold, because Infiniti doesn't know how to write the most basic control system. Dealer says "Many people complain about the cruise control, but it is working as designed". Really?? Anyone driven a Ford or Hyundai lately?

MP3 memory stick playing: Navigation through the collection of music is slow. Worse- I can not browse through other songs while the current song is still playing? Really? Am I using this thing wrong? If so I'll humbly acknowledge that this is my own fault.

Transmission: Nuff said. I experience the lag problem multiple times per drive, every drive. Sometimes I just curse at it, and sometimes it is when i need it to go and it doesn't and frankly it worries me. They need to license the control code from a company who knows how to design an automatic transmission, or hire some people who do. This one is neither smooth nor intelligent. It always sucks, always. Dealer says "Everyone complains about this transmission but it's working as designed"

Oh, here's a new one, probably not programming, but who knows: Last night I was on my way home, went around a turn at an intersection and got a very brief trigger of the stability control or whatever it is, with the a buzz from the solenoids... Normal stuff there. Then a couple seconds later when I'm accelerating straight (not flooring it, just accelerating normally), I hear something that lasted for about 1 second that sounded like I was dragging a muffler behind the car, then it just went away. Well I had my eyes on the road, so I know it wasn't that... Maybe some sort of pump running somewhere? Was a pretty loud steady metallic-like grinding noise, although I don't think anything was actually grinding. ??? Looked around, nothing apparently wrong with the vehicle, nothing loose. I have no idea what that was, and I really don't care, and I'm not going to waste my time having the dealer tell me "nothing found".

Why does the car beep incessantly when I'm getting out, until I close the door? beep-beep-beep-beep.... beep-beep-beep-beep.... beep-beep-beep-beep.... Annoying. Actually i can tap the door close button and it will finally shut up. I don't have to hold the button, just tap it. Wtf? When I hear that, I start to wonder if the keys fell out of my pocket or if I've left something turned on.

After 8 months I have basically had enough. I don't hate the car, but I don't much like it anymore either. It looks flashy and pulls away fast, and thats about it. After 8 months I suspect my passengers have heard enough of my bitching while we're in the car. I must appear to be the most picky and complaining person. I'm looking for something to replace this B.S., but it will probably take some time as I have access to very few decent vehicles in this area.
.

 

mikeb2004, I feel your Pain...excellent disertation btw. What still bugs me to no end, is that other Posters say they are fine. Don't experience this lagging. How can that be?? Maybe Ignorance IS Bliss...

 

And maybe the lag is in your head. Feel better.
For the record I've never said this issue does not exists. But for me and the way I drive my car everyday, the lag is not an issue. I'm sorry I can't feel your pain, but I understand your frustration. But please don't drag all 7AT into your misery.

Also to be honest my biggest beef with the G is not related to the drive-train at all. It's the cheap interior, snap crackle and pop.

 

Those who do not notice it simply do not drive in a way that it is noticeable or they are not obsessive about it and that is totally OK. Before you get all defensive - Read my comments with an open mind, and understand that I mean no disrespect to anyone. I know how most people drive, I experience it all the time from the "passenger seat". Actually I am not physically there... There's a long story involving data recorders and cameras and driver behavior analysis that I can not share the details of. Perhaps it is good that these folks have plenty of other things on their mind to make their day enjoyable and are not obsessive about the precision of the drivetrain. Cars are my thing, so is engineering, precision design and feedback and perception and all that good stuff. That's what I like. I am not preaching or saying that I am superior, I have more than my share of my flaws in other areas, but this is my "thing". I am confident I can jump in any 7at G37 (up to and including 2011, with the current software) and show you the problem in a few minutes. You may say "but I never drive that way, or I don't care, or I didn't feel it". Well that is TOTALLY OK, to each his own, but it does not change the fact that it is there. This drivetrain is a betrayal to those of us who expected a precision machine, like any other $40,000 car out there. My test drive was conducted in traffic. My mistake for not being more thorough. I accept responsibility for my failure to thoroughly test the car. I was under the impression I was stepping up to something more evolved and refined than my G35. It never occurred to me that there would still be such an obvious problem with it, 3+ years after introduction.

To help explain why it might not be noticed by many: First of all, it is never noticeable if I am following someone else. That is because most americans drive very relaxed or slowly and do not get on the gas right away coming out of the apex of a turn. So unless you are planning on the strange behavior of bearing-down on the guy in front of you and then braking, you are never going to see it. This is not a criticism of those people. They just have other things on their mind besides obsessive/spirited driving, perhaps even more interesting things. Or they drive with someone in front of them most of the time. It doesn't change that there's a design problem with the car, just because many people don't notice it.

99% of my driving is done when I am NOT following someone else. I am driving at MY pace, which is 'spirited'. I ease right back on the gas, right away, as I exit a turn. I drive all of my cars that way. I am very smooth about it. The 7at is not. It delays and then it jerks. Not always, but very frequentlyt. If you are the say 90 percentile driver, you will never see this, because most people continue to coast for some time (like a second) after completing a turn. This is not a criticism of those people, it's just how it is, and they do not see it as a result. Though I have not driven them "all" I am confortable from my experiences with "some" of them to say that every G37 7at has this problem up to 2011 (and perhaps even 2012, I have not driven the 2012 yet). It's just that most people do not notice it.

It's a good thing that this is not noticeable to many or most. You'd never be able to re-sell this car if everyone drove 10/10ths to expose the problem all the time.

 

Are you on the throttle at all through the turn/curve? I usually do most/all of the braking before the corner, and start applying throttle just before the apex. Not much, but just enough to stabilize the chassis (maintenance throttle). Progressively more throttle after the apex.

Another thing that comes to mind which is common on many motorcycles is that when the throttle is closed, the fuel injectors are not firing (not under all conditions, but certain conditions). When you crack the throttle open, they begin to fire and you get a slight '******' from the transition. I'm not sure how applicable this is in the 4 wheel world, but it may have something to do with the way the AT is programmed and may be a contributing reason for this issue.

If you're driving spirited, it makes little sense to keep the AT in the auto mode which is optimized for fuel economy, not aggressive driving. I would think you'd want to stay in any particular gear until YOU'RE ready to shift, not the car. With that in mind, of course going to a manual would solve most/all the problems. Of course, if you drive in heavy traffic often, a manual may not be best, unless you enjoy the fancy footplay for the commute home

 

I'd agree, but I believe it shouldn't be necessary to manually shift it when the handful of other cars I drive do not have this problem and can be driven in Auto very satisfactorily. They can "read" my right foot just fine and the shifts happen at an appropriate time, and there's no mysterious unpredictable delays. The 7AT is very unpredictable and "dumb", never doing what my brain would like it to. I am not expecting it to read my mind, but I think you know what I mean - it should behave in a predictable way. The 7AT is random and unpredictable, making it difficult to drive aggressively, not to mention very rough/unrefined when compared to other offerings out there. So it's not sporty AND not luxurious. I'd even settle for a "slushbox", at least it would be smooth. Drive anything German with a normal auto (not a dual-clutch one) and the shifts are incredibly smooth AND responsive AND predictable. Just saying...

 

I think I should give a specific example of the most annoying thing that happens with my 7AT, and it happens frequently. The term "lag" is being used loosely here, but there are different ways to interpret that.

I think some people think that we are just being impatient waiting for the transmission to select a gear. That is NOT what I am talking about at all. There is an issue with that too, but it's not what bothers me the most.

My MAIN problem:

First, here's the sequence of events for my spirited-driving tight corners: Braking..... come off the brakes and turn, then ease back on the gas after the apex. About 50% of the time, you really can not ease back on the gas, the engine does not respond. It is as if the gas pedal is disconnected temporarily. Keep your foot exactly where it is, and a half second or so later, JERK, the car starts going like it just suddenly figured out your foot is on the gas. I can duplicate it many times, on every drive.

It makes it seem like I am amateurishly jabbing the gas coming out of a turn. I am trying to be smooth. The car makes it impossible. No other car I drive or have ever driven had this problem.

I'm going to try to video this, soon. It does it so often, that it wont be hard to capture.


I am NOT personally complaining much about the other issue, but it is there, and it can be scary: The time it takes for the car to respond when you stomp on it while cruising in a straight line. Most of the time, it takes off, no problem, very powerful. BUT once in a while, it will not respond at all, taking a couple seconds to downshift and "go". Believe it or not, that ridiculous behavior is not my main complaint.

 

@mikeB

IDK:

- Auto climate control: I agree with you sort of. How does the car know what you want to do when you press the mode or the fan control button? Conversly when you press the auto button how does the car know if you want the mode and/or the fan speed to go on auto? I don't have a problem with drafts or the car not staying at temperature either in heat or a/c. What I do find annoying is I can't put it in auto mode without the a/c coming on. My BMW could be programmed so that when the auto button is pressed the car goes into auto without the a/c going on.

- Cruise control: Don't have the same issue as you on the hills.

- Transmission: There clearly is a thing stomping on the accelerator when the car is in 7th. I think it tries to keep the car in 7th for the gas mileage and hence it comes across as lag. I've learned to shift into DS simultaneouly when needing instant power. My BMW used to have a simliar issue and found I needed to shift into sports mode sometime.

Finally if you don't think the G is luxurious then no car in this segment is either. I tend to say the G is upscale. If you want real luxury step into a $100K car. (Not being sarcastic)

 

@g37guy01:

Have you experienced what I describe in the paragraph immediately below "My MAIN Problem". You responded to the issue that I actually am not complaining about. Its the other problem that ruins the day-to-day drive.

Not looking for luxury per se. I'm looking for something that shifts as smoothly and responsively and predictably as say, a Hyundai or a Mazda.