It was 2016 and I had decided not to put money into my BMW 528i to get it to smog. The registration was up Feb 2017. It was fun knowing I could get something really cool, I didn't want to spend a ton, Ended up paying 11k out the door for my G37s. But other cars were in mind.

Lexus IS350 Ideally I wanted a 2011, with the Face lift. I really wanted one as fully equipted as possible (ML Sound and Dual Memory Seats) I found a 2008 with the ML & Dual Memory Seats after I bought my car. I think it was 2017 when I found it.

Mercedes E320 CDI, loved the idea of the Straight 6, didn't realize how awesome it was. I could have had one for 2500 If I had known what I know now, probably would have.

Nissan Altima Hybrid. I found one that looked like it had just left the showroom floor. Guy was asking around 5,500, leather, bose & sunroof.

2007 BMW 530i around 5,900 and clean as hell. It was around 40 miles from me, so never made the effort

2006 BMW 330i dealer wanted 8k, I looked at the engine bay and thought about how much of a pain it would be to do work on it.

So which cars did you look at before buying the G

 

There arent many cars that could be compared to the G37 sedan nowadays

The closest would be the 3 series, but knowing that expiration is engineered into the cars, I would not step anywhere near that landmine.

The first generation Lexus IS was cool; it was leaning very close to sport. The new ones sadly went the direction of being girl cars.

The Acura's seem to be very nice driving cars. I've never owned or driven a TL so I don't know how those are, but it would be my second choice after the G37 sedan.

Then there's also the Alfa Romeo Giulia and MB C class

Cadillac seemed to be going the right direction with the first gen CTS, but the market said no room for it

 

Coming from a 2003 Maxima SE 6MT, there wasn't anything else I was cross shopping, except the G Coupe.

Kind of a boring answer, but I knew what I wanted.

 

I bought my G37XS back in 2017 and I really wanted a car with a V8. I've had mostly Mustang's and I life led me down the path of not having a car payment. So when we had kids and a job that was about 45 miles each way the fun car had to go in favor of a gas saver Hyundai Sonata. After a year or two I got a job closer to home and was sick of the 4 cylinder FWD so I began the hunt. I really wanted a V8 sedan but had a tough time finding one in my price range with the miles I wanted. I was looking at the M45 and M56's which were very tough to come by. I was stuck on RWD or AWD so my options were limited.

I was also looking at the Hyundai Genesis R-Spec with the 5.0 V8. The interior screamed Grandpa car but I test drove one and wow, I was surprised. The one I test drove I didn't buy because in the dealer pics on Cars.com it didn't have an air filter or air box and someone had cut the hood to do their won heat extraction setup. I've always like the G sedans back to their G35 days but I never had one. I've had a few 350 Z's and those were phenomenal cars.

I eventually found the 2011 G37XS I have today and have been very happy with it since day 1. I still want a car with a V8 but life and kids sometimes get in the way from a financial perspective.

 

Tested: 2006 GTO, 2014 Genesis Coupe, 2012 Mustang GT, 2013 Camaro, 2012 G37x

The GTO, while fun and a car I'd always wanted, just wasn't practical. The 2014 Genesis and the Camaro had tight cabins that I wasn't a fan of. Interior of the Genesis was much nicer than the Camaro so it was my front runner for a minute. Drove the Mustang and instantly loved it. It was nimble, felt lighter than expected and had power I was looking for. Was my new front runner until I drove the G37; recommended by the owner/salesman I was dealing with. Thought the G would've been out of my price range but, to my surprise, it was actually comparable to the others I was looking at. Drove the G and it checked all my boxes. Had good power, looks and reliability; with the benefit of having AWD and 4-doors. I was looking at a 100 mile round trip commute and needed a DD so the G was the ticket.

Held the G for four years before I sold it while the inflation of the used car market was in full swing; and made a good chunk of change on it. Ended up scratching the Mustang itch while picking up a used '09 Ridgeline for daily duties.

 

2016, I was driving my reliable (paid for) 2003 Saturn Ion 5spd. I hadn't looked too hard, but knew what I wanted:
AWD, luxury brand (not general brand ex. nissan, honda, etc). heated seats, a little bit of sport mixed in, and reliable. For about 6 months, I scoured different forums of Lexus, Acura, and Audi. I stumbled upon this forum and did plenty of research reading as far back as I could for reliability, issues, things to fix/ease of maintenance. I did the research and it paid off because I found out about the galley gasket and knew I wanted a 2013, but not a 2014 when they switched the name/other things including the steering (electric coming from power steering in 2013).

After doing this investigation, I knew I had found what car I wanted. I wanted it in silver or grey, I didn't want wood grain trim inside, I wanted dark leather, and I wanted to buy it from someone on the forum instead of from a used car dealership. My car found me a short time later in early 2017 when a forum member from Akron, OH posted his for sale. I messaged him and set up a time to meet. I flew out from MN in March/17 to OH and he picked me up from the airport. We took a test drive/waited for my bank to do the transfer and he bought me Chik-fil-a lunch.

I dropped him off at home and started my 12 hour trip back to MN. On the way back, I drove through a "Lake effect" snow storm that dumped about 8 inches of snow near southern Michigan. That really allowed me to see how the car handled inclement weather and I was more than pleased. It was the best 12 hour "test drive" I had ever had.

Would I do anything different? Probably not, but if something happens in the future, I will probably upgrade to the M56x or similar.

 

Audi S5. I wouldn’t say almost bought, but I thought about it for like 30 seconds. I wanted a manual trans Japanese luxury sport coupe. Given those criteria, there isn’t many options. I knew I wanted an IPL b/ the normal G coupe looks like a soccer mom car to me. The IPL bumpers really make it look like it should. I wanted black with red interior. Went on auto trader and there was only 2 for sale in the country and one was 30 minutes away. Bought it sight unseen. Gray with black interior. Oh well. Dropped it and put wheels on it as soon as I got it.

 

Back around 2011, I was about to buy a CPO TL Type-S (2007 or 2008), but found it not enough of an upgrade from my car at the time (Altima SER 6mt) to justify the pretty high prices. Ones in good shape still catch my eye (most are trashed by now).

Then around 2012 I started looking at CPO B7 RS4, but found it was too risky (too much performance for me and maintenance too expensive). Still my favorite sport sedan of all time (with e39 M5 a close second).

Then around 2013 I started looking at CPO B8 S4, but liked the look of the B8.5 S4 way more and didn’t feel comfortable with splurging for a new Audi.

Then I test drove a used 2010 G37, really liked it, then discovered a website called Truecar (not sure if it’s still around) which helped negotiate a really great deal on a brand new 2013 G sedan, like 16% off msrp.

Also thought about the IS350 (but didn’t want to go AT) and BMW 335 (but didn’t feel like I was ready for the upkeep…and still don’t).

 

After my RX8 died (no not the engine) I had a list of wants and likes, that mostly revolved around power-to-weight and stick shift availability.

I liked the looks of several Audis, but no stick.
BMW 335ix was contemplated, except all the ones I found I'd have to buy and then immediately dump $6k into new turbos. Otherwise checked all the boxes.
Lexus IS looks nice but no stick.

When I was having trouble finding a 6MT G37, I seriously contemplated a WRX STI with a wing-ectomy.
I also thought about a new Miata, only a little more than what I paid for the G, but I needed rear seats.

 

almost bought a Honda CRV, loaded, low miles...prolly would have bought it too , if it didn't get sold by another salesman price was right for $11K..it was nice

 

I just went from a 2013 G37 sedan to a 2018 Tahoe (Premier) then just sold the Tahoe and got back into a 2012 G37S Sedan. Happy to be back!

 

^glad you came back home. Different spec for the new G?

 

Ahh this brings back memories of a younger me, lol. I'd say the final car I cross shopped my 07 G35 sedan with was a BMW 330i sedan. I'm so glad I went the Infiniti route, 7 years of ownership with no issues and more power to boot

 

Yea this one is way more loaded than my 2013. It has sport, tech and nav packages. Love it.