Smoking Crack or not?

[Spidee]

Recently I decided on renting out my house in Tracy. The selling market is really bad out there. Even though my mortgage is not that high, I'll have to come out of pocket to keep it. So it's time to get rid of some toys. I'd rather keep my house than have toys.

I've been thinking of selling my Denali and just keeping the A4. My other idea is to trade-in the Denali and A4 for another car. The big question I've been trying to answer for myself is, which car would I get next? I'm keeping my total cost to $35k.

Now that I've come to a serious option, I want to get your' feedback. Is getting rid of the A4 for a 07' G35 Sport Sedan with 306hp, rwd, all wheel steering, roomier than the A4, is lighter by 100lbs than the A4, pretty much bulletproof drivetrain, an interior that rivals the A4(IMO), and looks sexy as hell from the outside, worth it?

Here's a pic of one I found modded on a forum with 19" staggered wheels that got my juices flowing.
http://www.vintagemicrochips.com/lower03.jpg

This one is on 20" staggered wheels.
http://i23.photobucket.com/albums/b389/hikoRR/DSCF0044_800x600.jpg

[AudiBoy305]

WoW nice cars, I would go for that in a heartbeat. Ive been inside a new G35, very impressive, did not drive it so cant comment on that. But I would get it.

[Slo.Mo.Shun.]

Pontiac GTO

Not a sedan but is big, fast, and handles well.

[VroomVroom]

Honorable Spidee, Jerry here from the great state of WonderingIfIShouldSellMySUVToo. I respectfully withhold my vote until gathering more information.

If you sell the Denali, will you regret losing that cargo and passenger space?

I've not driven an Infiniti so this is kind of a generic question, but will you miss the Audi driving experience? I admit to dismissing that in the past when others would talk about it, but now I'm hook, line, and sinker into it. The steering, the handling, the braking... Will the Infiniti do it for you?

Good luck with the decision. For what it's worth, my wife and I have been going round and round on a similar dilemma...whether or not to keep the Denali, and if "not" do we replace it with something?

[Spidee]

Captain VroomVroom, my decision is made to sell the Denali. We currently have the RX350, Denali, and A4. The RX will get the job done in terms of space, overall use for camping, and long road trips. All I have to do is find a stiffer shock for the rear as you know that thing likes to bottom out.

As for the G35 fulfilling that "driving experience", that is yet to be known. I haven't test driven one. I will most likely test drive one until I sell the Denali, and I'm ready to do something. Right now I want to get some feedback on what others think.

As for that GTO option, they have some serious problems fixing those cars when things go bad. Most of those parts have to be sourced in Australia with Holden. How do I know? The cadillac/Pontiac/GMC dealership I used to take my CTS-V to for service briefed me on that.

[INTEGRATION]

The G35 rides nicely, I'd think of it more as a luxury car than a cross between sports and luxury like the A4. Depends if you want more goodies, gadgets and a rear seats that you can sleep in or the A4.

[ron8818]

Spidee, I know you track your A4, with the G35 sedan, I doubt it would handle as good as German engineers.

I love both cars, A4 and G35, but your point is to save money, buying a new car will cost you more upfront again.

At least we didnt loose another Audi owner to BMW. haha

[ExpLlclT]

G35 is a nice car but way get rid of the Audi? Denali's cost a lot don't they? Just buy another car cheap one like a honda commuter or something. But if you do want to get rid of the A4 G35 isn't a bad option at all. good luck

[evoic]

Drive the G35.

THEN let's have this conversation.

I was not impressed and felt very disconnected from the driving experience.

[davis449]

If you're looking for a Jap car to replace the A4, I would go with a Lexus IS 350 over a G35. Costs a bit more, but if you're trading two cars in on it, why not push over a bit? Personally, I wouldn't get rid of an A4 for either. You aren't going to feel the same driving a Japanese Luxury Sports Sedan. If it were me and I wanted to get rid of my 2.0 T for a faster car, I would go hunting for a B6 S4 CPO'd with low miles.

[ImpalorA4]

I dont know how everyone else feels but besides the looks of the infinity G they have nothing else going for them. Interior looks nice at first then after couple thousand miles you start to notice how horrible and boring it is. I dont know but my coupe is not what I expected from them and frankly it dissapointed me.

So im probably going to sell it after the A4 comes and get a beater for regular commute.

Also, my 97 B5 had better interior fit and finish then this thing.

[TJHUB]

Drive the G35.

THEN let's have this conversation.

I was not impressed and felt very disconnected from the driving experience.

Well said. You really need to drive the cars you're interested in before you can really make any decisions. Asking others for their opinions really gains you nothing. I often find that I don't agree with the masses on what they think is good or not. Make your own observations, then the best you can do is compare your own thoughts to what others think.

Also, you have a lot of nice vehicles that cost big $$. Now to cut back you're going to dump 2 of those big money losers to buy another big money loser? That's painful. I think you should just sell the Denali like you were thinking. In my opinion, it's the best idea you threw out there.

Good luck with your decision.

[VroomVroom]

I agree that the GTO is a bad choice, even though from a visceral perspective I love the thing. The new G8 should be very interesting - essentially a sedan version - but I'm curious about the reliability and longevity.

Just a guess, but you might be in a better position once you sell the Denali. Resale values are all over the place right now. If you can be patient, you might make another $2-3k over any initial offers. Anyway, that cash in hand might open up some more possibilities for you as you then factor the A4's status into the equation. Maybe the cash and the A4 toward an S4? :)

[Spidee]

Tell you the truth, I initially bought the audi because we were commuting from Tracy and needed that third car to put mileage on. I know, nice commuter. [:D] However, for my line of work, it just doesn't feel right pulling up in a Toyota Yaris. At the end, I became more connected with this car in terms of an overall package for commuting, track fun, and family activities, that I didn't flinch getting rid of the cts-v 500hp beast. So I can see how the A4 is an integral package.

I'm taking all of your' advice and think some more. As of today, I had the denali cleaned up nice. It will be on craigslist and autotrader tonight. I want to see what the market is like for a used denali.

[turbo4s]

Sell the Yukon and Keep the audi would be my 2 cents. But if your really crazy about wanting the G then sell both. Much rather have the german rather then a jap car

[A4TwoZeroT]

how about a lexus GS?? i would say the IS350.. but you want more room.. so that's out of the picture..
The new G35s are nice also!!

[sleepera8]

I vote g35, on the basis....
that you live in Cali
You don't drive in the snow/ice

my concerns with the old G
very torquey
over 80mph doggy
dash is confusing, and not user friendly.

I'm holding off till the A4 3.0TDI is available
233hp, 331ftlbs, 26city/46hwy

[darren @ SW]

Frank....SELL THE AUDI !!!! Part it out....dont waste a second...
My audi will be here in the next week or so, and I need some parts....

HE HE HE HE HE

JUST KIDDING, Don't sell it.....Once my Audi is track ready we will have fun homie.

[mioStile]

personally, I think the new g35's look less sophisticated, edgy, and sporty than the previous model. Also, the S badge was taken right off their toyota mother brand - stick with the a4

[rds0000]

I dig the new G35. I agree on the drivetrain too, at this point that VQ engine should have all the gremlins out. Since you actually like to "drive" your car, i am sure you know, you can make this platform handle really well. There are a huge amount of mods available, but i am sure you know that too. I guess one of the biggest knocks on the old car was the interior, but i know thats been improved. Its not better or worse than the Audi (A4) IMO, its just different. Call it a different flavor. In this price range (32-38-ish), i think you get a lot for the $ ,feature wise with Infiniti, and you could make it look very sexy. If i had to guess, you would rather have a manual, how about an S2000?Talk about bulletproof.

[INTEGRATION]

If you're looking for a Jap car to replace the A4, I would go with a Lexus IS 350 over a G35. Costs a bit more, but if you're trading two cars in on it, why not push over a bit? Personally, I wouldn't get rid of an A4 for either. You aren't going to feel the same driving a Japanese Luxury Sports Sedan. If it were me and I wanted to get rid of my 2.0 T for a faster car, I would go hunting for a B6 S4 CPO'd with low miles.

Please refrain from using the word "Jap", I find it offensive as I am from Asian descent.

I also have an IS350, aside from the power everything else in that car is lacking. If you're over 5'7 (I am 5'10), you will the driver's seat area feels very cramped. When you pull the sun visor down, it blocks 70% of your vision (no kidding here). The interior is more cramped than the A4 and the suspension feels EXTREMELY sloppy. And also the brake balance on the IS350 is way off. I slammed on the brakes once and I nearly slid forward into the person in front of me and his was with ABS being active (too much force in the front).

[Spidee]

I dig the new G35. I agree on the drivetrain too, at this point that VQ engine should have all the gremlins out. Since you actually like to "drive" your car, i am sure you know, you can make this platform handle really well. There are a huge amount of mods available, but i am sure you know that too. I guess one of the biggest knocks on the old car was the interior, but i know thats been improved. Its not better or worse than the Audi (A4) IMO, its just different. Call it a different flavor. In this price range (32-38-ish), i think you get a lot for the $ ,feature wise with Infiniti, and you could make it look very sexy. If i had to guess, you would rather have a manual, how about an S2000?Talk about bulletproof.

You're right on everything. I've been researching the different aftermarket parts out there. There still is limited availability of aftermarket parts for it. However, I don't know if I would want to modify it too much. All I had planned to do was some springs/shock suspension, swaybars, and nice 19" staggered wheels. I want it to handle good for what it is. Don't want to go overboard with coilovers since I won't make it a track car.

The track car is in my garage. I have an 89 mustang LX 5.0 that I've decided to prep for track fun. I bought it a few months back but hesitated to mod it. Now I will go forward with the project. So that is another reason why I see getting rid of the Audi is ok. I have about $10k of equity in the Audi I can use for the stang project.

The S2000 is too small for me. I'm 5'11" and the steering wheel still rested on my knees even with the seat all the way back.

Integration, I found out how tight that rear seat is on the IS350 at the SF car show. I set the front seat my way. Then I got out and tried to sit behind the drivers seat, NO WAY! I don't know how I ended up getting my feet in between the drivers seat and back seat. When I tried to get out, I had to take off my shoes and pry my shoes out from in between. Quite embarrassing when there's about 10 people waiting outside to sit in it.[:o]

[Coker Rat]

wrong forum

[nSun]

the nissan FM platform is infamous for its handling, i'm sure that the new g35 wont disappoint you in terms of driving pleasure, and plus its always nice to whip the tail out once in a while :) but refinement is the issue that infiniti has been struggling with. it's not that they aren't luxurious, they are, and they have everything you have in the a4 if not more (fully loaded you get backup camera, birdview navigation etc.). but for myself i think i can never go japanese from german cars unless its something like a skyline GT-R or the controversial new lexus IS-F
personally i think you can't go wrong with the new G35. it took a huge leap from the last generation and is a very nice vehicle. if i didn't have my a4 i would be very happy with the G35.

[marty was here]

few things ill concede to the infiniti are the interior features, RWD platform and engine.

what i wont concede are the following; brakes on the G35 are not up to snuff imho, handling is again same deal, and the engine dont feel like chipped/testpiped 2.0t, its navi system (on the east coast) isnt as good as the audi one, and it feels like a downgraded M35.

all said and done, i was tempted by the G35, i kept my audi!