Need helping picking a new car (35K budget) 4 door sedan

[warmodder]

Originally posted by: xyyz
not to mention a "pre-owned" already takes the major depreciation hit.

not knocking your used idea by any means. honestly, your idea is the smarter approach. what i am questioning though, are your picks.

a pre-owned TL, TSX, G35, and IS are all good bets.

I just have a thing for audi. :laugh:

@ the op: Sorry you had a bad experience, plenty of good suggestions in this thread though. Gl with whatever you pick.

 

[xyyz]

Originally posted by: GoatMonkey
The clear choice is the Acura TL. You will be able to take down any weak minded fools in BMW 330s who dare challenge you!

while i love the TL, I don't know if a stock TL can outperform a BMW. road performance, not reliability.

 

[exdeath]

You'll be hard pressed to find any modern cars in the categories you are looking in that don't require premium (91+ octane) fuel that aren't using a large displacement V8.

Most of the cars mentioned here like IS350, G35, TL, etc. are using small displacement engines with moderately high compression ratios and aggressive tuning to make their power.

You can run 87 but on a hot day up a hill with 3 passengers and a trunk full of groceries, when you step on it the car will fall flat on it's face and you'll get pinging.

 

[FallenHero]

07 Charger R/T. Doesnt have a back-up cam, but its got pretty much everything else.

 

[Arkaign]

Originally posted by: xyyz

Originally posted by: GoatMonkey
The clear choice is the Acura TL. You will be able to take down any weak minded fools in BMW 330s who dare challenge you!

while i love the TL, I don't know if a stock TL can outperform a BMW. road performance, not reliability.

That's a parody post

The TL easily matches the 325i performance, is moderately equal to the 330, and is totally blown away by the 335i or M3.

 

[ElFenix]

brand new 08 CTS was advertised here in houston for just under $30K. no options, but whatever.

 

[fbrdphreak]

Originally posted by: xyyz

Originally posted by: fbrdphreak

Originally posted by: xyyz
first of all, another for the G35(G36). it's ranked as consumer reports best-in-class. i dunno, i tend to trust consumer reports more so than others based on the importance of reliability in their factoring.

You tend to trust idiot consumers who vote in their opinions of something?

1.3 million idiot consumers who responded to the 2007 Annual Auto Survey?

we're all consumers. while there are some idiots in the bunch, we're not all idiots.

i trust them. apparently i'm not the only one.

Many car shoppers' first stop is 'Consumer Reports'

"Consumer Reports has become so influential among car shoppers that some automakers now send preproduction cars to the magazine's test engineers for suggested changes before the vehicles hit showrooms."

That should say enough in itself.

What do you propose is better?

I propose independent research. Sure, use CR with a grain of salt. But the fact of the matter is, your average joe's opinion on a car's reliability is worth about as much on my opinion on nuclear fission.

 

[LordMorpheus]

Originally posted by: Hyperlite
obligatory G35 suggestion.....
new G8 maybe?

Go for the G8, it's awesome. The Aussies make the best cars these days.

 

[overst33r]

Wait a bit longer and get a used 335i

 

[Fenixgoon]

chrysler 300 SRT8?

 

[xyyz]

Originally posted by: fbrdphreak

Originally posted by: xyyz

Originally posted by: fbrdphreak

Originally posted by: xyyz
first of all, another for the G35(G36). it's ranked as consumer reports best-in-class. i dunno, i tend to trust consumer reports more so than others based on the importance of reliability in their factoring.

You tend to trust idiot consumers who vote in their opinions of something?

1.3 million idiot consumers who responded to the 2007 Annual Auto Survey?

we're all consumers. while there are some idiots in the bunch, we're not all idiots.

i trust them. apparently i'm not the only one.

Many car shoppers' first stop is 'Consumer Reports'

"Consumer Reports has become so influential among car shoppers that some automakers now send preproduction cars to the magazine's test engineers for suggested changes before the vehicles hit showrooms."

That should say enough in itself.

What do you propose is better?

I propose independent research. Sure, use CR with a grain of salt. But the fact of the matter is, your average joe's opinion on a car's reliability is worth about as much on my opinion on nuclear fission.

I don't know what's so flawed in the approach CR uses. They poll readers asking them, not their opinion but their maintenance history. I'm sure a few people might skew their survey, and I'm sure they compensate for those results. I trust the overwhelming majority of those completing the survey are honest in reporting their the cars' maintenance histories.

I dunno about you, but when buying a car, many people ask owners of that car for their overall impressions about the car, including the reliability history.

Who do you propose is more independent than CR? They don't take advertisements from those they review, and as far as I know, those who challenge them on their methodology in court end up losing (the case appealed to the supreme court is pending, so I can't comment on that case.)

When you say independent research, what is it you mean? Other than read trade pubs, and reviews, what more can you do? Lemme know, so I can improve my own methodology.

 

[xyyz]

Originally posted by: mariok2006
Wait a bit longer and get a used 335i

yeah and then pay outta' the nose for maintenance.

 

[SithSolo1]

Originally posted by: KnightBreed
How about the new Cadillac CTS? Edmunds recently did a comparison with cars in this segment:

http://www.edmunds.com/insidel...l.home.photopanel..1.*

You failed to mention that the G35 won the comparison.

 

[Mr.IncrediblyBored]

Originally posted by: SithSolo1

Originally posted by: KnightBreed
How about the new Cadillac CTS? Edmunds recently did a comparison with cars in this segment:

http://www.edmunds.com/insidel...l.home.photopanel..1.*

You failed to mention that the G35 won the comparison.

What's your point? I never said who came in last either. I provided a link to help Mill research the cars in this segment.

Besides, nobody's going to buy a car because it won a comparison test. With cars this similar in performance and features, its going to come down to personal preference and bias.

 

[Aikouka]

Originally posted by: fbrdphreak
If the engine recommends premium, use it. Yes modern computers will pull back timing to compensate for lower octane gas, but you get lower fuel economy anyway. Spend the extra couple bucks per fill-up or buy a car that takes regular.

I get 26-27mpg in my Nissan Altima that also uses a VQ35DE and I only use 87. I've never heard any knocking or had any performance issues. The car is plenty speedy.

Also, Mill... My Altima has all that you want and goes for 32k. Oh and the back-up camera is fantastic.

 

[ElFenix]

Originally posted by: Aikouka

Originally posted by: fbrdphreak
If the engine recommends premium, use it. Yes modern computers will pull back timing to compensate for lower octane gas, but you get lower fuel economy anyway. Spend the extra couple bucks per fill-up or buy a car that takes regular.

I get 26-27mpg in my Nissan Altima that also uses a VQ35DE and I only use 87. I've never heard any knocking or had any performance issues. The car is plenty speedy.

Also, Mill... My Altima has all that you want and goes for 32k. Oh and the back-up camera is fantastic.

the VQ35DE in your altima makes quite a bit less power than the VQ35HR in the new G35.

 

[overst33r]

Originally posted by: xyyz

Originally posted by: mariok2006
Wait a bit longer and get a used 335i

yeah and then pay outta' the nose for maintenance.

CPO warranty should take care of that...

if buying a non-CPO german car, do your own wrenching.

 

[Arkaign]

Originally posted by: ElFenix

Originally posted by: Aikouka

Originally posted by: fbrdphreak
If the engine recommends premium, use it. Yes modern computers will pull back timing to compensate for lower octane gas, but you get lower fuel economy anyway. Spend the extra couple bucks per fill-up or buy a car that takes regular.

I get 26-27mpg in my Nissan Altima that also uses a VQ35DE and I only use 87. I've never heard any knocking or had any performance issues. The car is plenty speedy.

Also, Mill... My Altima has all that you want and goes for 32k. Oh and the back-up camera is fantastic.

the VQ35DE in your altima makes quite a bit less power than the VQ35HR in the new G35.

Not to mention that the FWD setup in the Altima is a borderline matchup with the output of the 3.5L motor. Altima is a great value, but the G35 offers a bit more for those who can afford it and don't mind spending a bit more to get more.

EDIT : Whoops, typed AWD instead of FWD

 

[Aikouka]

Originally posted by: Arkaign
Not to mention that the FWD setup in the Altima is a borderline matchup with the output of the 3.5L motor. Altima is a great value, but the G35 offers a bit more for those who can afford it and don't mind spending a bit more to get more.

EDIT : Whoops, typed AWD instead of FWD

I have no local Infiniti dealer... not my fault . I didn't feel like driving an hour and a half to the closest one.

Originally posted by: ElFenix
the VQ35DE in your altima makes quite a bit less power than the VQ35HR in the new G35.

It makes 30hp and 10 ft-lbs more than my car... how is that "quite a bit less"? Unless you're trying to pass off the new G37 Coupe as also having a VQ35HR when it most certainly has a VQ37VHR.

 

[zoiks]

Infiniti has amazing customer service. I took my car in some time back and they found little things that they considered 'defective', and fixed them in a few days. They gave me a complimentary loaner G35 in the meantime and didn't charge me a penny.
On a side note, Infiniti for the first time was voted as keeping the highest residual value in the luxury segment for the G35/G37 cars.

 

[fbrdphreak]

Originally posted by: Aikouka

Originally posted by: fbrdphreak
If the engine recommends premium, use it. Yes modern computers will pull back timing to compensate for lower octane gas, but you get lower fuel economy anyway. Spend the extra couple bucks per fill-up or buy a car that takes regular.

I get 26-27mpg in my Nissan Altima that also uses a VQ35DE and I only use 87. I've never heard any knocking or had any performance issues. The car is plenty speedy.

Also, Mill... My Altima has all that you want and goes for 32k. Oh and the back-up camera is fantastic.

Fill-up with premium, run through the rest of the regular and top it off. Un-plug the battery overnight to reset the computer and drive it for a few weeks. Get back to us on the performance & mileage.

In all seriousness, it is certainly possible Nissan's amazing VQ motor could be programmed well enough to run efficiently on 87. But it is certain that it won't perform as well as if it were running 93+.

 

[Aikouka]

Originally posted by: fbrdphreak
Fill-up with premium, run through the rest of the regular and top it off. Un-plug the battery overnight to reset the computer and drive it for a few weeks. Get back to us on the performance & mileage.

In all seriousness, it is certainly possible Nissan's amazing VQ motor could be programmed well enough to run efficiently on 87. But it is certain that it won't perform as well as if it were running 93+.

The mileage will vary depending on how I drive it. I found a couple factors in what kills the mileage for people in the VQ35-based cars (well, specifically the Altima). One thing I found is that I stopped using Cruise Control's Acceleration toggle and instead just canceled my set speed and accelerated using the pedal. My mileage is back to normal rather than being 23.5 like it has been lately while I've been using the cruise control's acceleration. Although I did have a little fun with acceleration the other day when my friend's wife thought she could beat me from a stop... in a Dodge Neon .

Also,would the fact that I have a CVT and I rarely take my RPMs above 2k help alleviate needing higher octane gas anyway?

 

[maddogchen]

sat in the TL and IS250 this weekend. The interior of the TL looked better. And supposedly it had a better navi system. It also has a backup camera which was great. All included. very nice package. Just that when I test drove it, the acceleration felt so-so but the car felt heavy.

The exterior of the IS250 looks so much nicer. I have to give it a higher grade for looks. The interior didn't compare the the TL though. I do like the paddle shifters and the start button though, kinda nice gimicks. did not test drive the IS250 though. No one came up to me in the 20 so minutes i was there. I must still look too young.

 

[Mill]

Test drove a bunch of stuff since making this thread.

I'm probably going to go with the Infiniti. I think I can get a good price on it and it has what I want. I'm kind of shocked because I always thought the Infiniti was overrated. I was wrong.

 

[zoiks]

Originally posted by: Mill
Test drove a bunch of stuff since making this thread.

I'm probably going to go with the Infiniti. I think I can get a good price on it and it has what I want. I'm kind of shocked because I always thought the Infiniti was overrated. I was wrong.

Good choice.