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Back to back test of Q50 loaner and my modded 07 G35S
Last Saturday I had to go to the dealership for an oil change and diagnose a code I've had come on lately. While I was there they gave me a new Q50 AWD 3.7 loaner with 1700 miles to drive while they had my car. While it wasn't the sport, it did have the sport wheels otherwize I believe it was a base. Here is my short review compared to my modded 07 G35S.
Interior- Q50:7/10 G:7/10
When it comes to the interior it does look and feel like they have used better plastics and materials. It does feel like a different bigger car compared to the G35S.
Things I liked: Even though the seat isn't the sport adjustable type it sits lower in the car then my modded lowered G35 sport seat does which makes it feel more cockpit like and less like your riding on the car. The center ter console area is much nicer and more luxurious looking and feeling compared to the G. Does make mine feel more outdated now. The door panel trim and switches look nicer and more high end.
Things I didn't like: the steering wheel and gauges, I think they look and feel less sporty and I prefer the shape and look of the Gs better personally. The extra width between the seat and the door and center console. It's been widened and the door arm rest is further away and it takes away from the cockpit feel as my elbows have to be pushed out to reach the arm rests. The lack of *****. The buttons on the side of the radio however do not feel like a higher quality and after getting used to the way my carsmo ***** look and feel I would miss them for sure. The fake aluminum look trim they have looks to have gone backwards in quality as it does not have a brushed metal feel or look as in a G and it not leans more to a fake aluminum plastic.
Electronics/Sound System- Q50:8/10 G:6/10
When it comes to the electronics the Q50 is a big update compared to my 07 with Non-Nav and Bose.
Things I liked: The app radio screen was clear and easy to touch the icons and responded well once it was loaded. Felt like one of the closest carputers I have used in any new car and with the addition of the buttons on the side of the screen it is much easier to use then a stand-alone touch screen. The nav screen is very clear, detailed, and using the controlled **** on the center console makes it easy to zoom in/out and move the map while driving. The sound system which I don't believe was a bose was louder, more bass, and clearer than my bose-equipped G. This is most likely a combo of age and technology but I was impressed and would like to hear a bose to compare it to. The drive mode selector on the steering wheel is nice to feel and use on the center console and I prefer that much more than having to put the transmission into DS mode to activate a sport mode, I will compare the actual drive modes a bit further on.
Things I didn't like: The carputer loading time. While it may be easy to use and responsive while it is up and running. It takes FOREVER to load when you turn the car on. It easily takes multiple minutes of sitting or driving before the Intel system is loaded and ready for use. The gauges were something I wasn't a huge fan of either. The blue lighting in the gauges gives it a tacky Hyundai like feeling compared to the newer Gs blue and white look.
Handling/Ride Quality- Q50:7.5/10 G:7.5/10
When it comes to the handling I know the non-sport Q has softer ride but it handled surprisingly well compared to my G with Nismo 370 front springs, KYB struts, eibach sway bars, whiteline endlinks and Potenza S04 summer tires. While I enjoyed the ride and handling in the Q when it is compared to my G they feel like two different vehicles. Easiest way to describe both would be the Q felt like a fun, smooth handling sedan and my G feels like a raw, aggressive, rough sport sedan that is more fun but harder to handle on the edge (which I like haha)
What I liked: The biggest shock in the Q to me came from two areas. First was the lack of body roll and the feel of lower center of gravity, I know the Q50S is wider and lower than the G which helps with handling but I am not sure what the specs are on the AWD Q to be exact. However it handled corners much better than expected, it still had a hair more mody roll feel than my car but since it felt like it had a lower center of gravity it was easier to anticipate and happened at a slower degree which made it easier to adjust in corners compared to the on/of switch and twitchier body roll feel of my when pushing hard in the corners. The second was the RWD bias of the AWD system and the ability to slightly drift the back end out still. With the car in sport mode with VDC/TC off I could get the back end to slide out in corners a bit but it felt much harder to get in trouble and almost too easy at times to push the car into corners. All of us G especially the RWD owners know that the car is very tail happy and can have snap oversteer and can be hard to predict sometimes with the VDC off.
What I didn't like: While the handling was smooth and fun, it was a little too unresponsive and easy to drive. This took away some of the enjoyment for me and made the car feel more like a luxury sedan and less like a sport sedan. I know that driving a RWD Q50S would hopefully be different but the combo of no sport suspension and AWD made the car less of a driver's car for me even when I had the car in full sport mode with traction control off.
Power Delivery/Transmission- Q50:6.5/10 G:7/10
While I know this is a biased comparison as one is stock and mine is modded. Technology should have came far enough to cover the gap between the Q50 3.7HR compared to my 3.5HR with bolt-ons and tune. (UpRev tune, Intake Tubes, K&N drop-ins, HFCs, and true dual exhaust)
What I liked: While I do prefer my car's power delivery and 5at transmission the car did feel quick and responsive. It shifted pretty quick but it limited what gear you could select and made an annoying beep to tell you that you couldn't shift into that gear in manual mode (hopefully that can be turned off). The downshifts were smoother and quicker with the auto-rev matching and it did get better MPG having the extra two gears. It had an active trace mode which I found to be interesting but I turned it off and didn't. The gas pedal had a better, lighter feel to use than my car does and the power delivery wasn't as harsh and had less vibration and strained feeling than my car does even though it didn't feel like it pulled harder.
What I didn't like: As I mentioned above that car took more control of the driver in full manual mode and wouldn't allow multiple gear upshifts or downshifts nearly as much as the G does and that really bugged me. It also felt slower than my car for supposedly having almost 20 more hp then mine would at the crank after my mods. My car shifts harder and felt quicker even if it wasn't by more then a tenth of a second. However this made the Q less fun to drive overall.
Brakes- Q50:8/10 G:6/10
When comparing the base Q50 brakes compared to my S package brakes with upgraded rotors, pads, and fresh brake fluid I would take the pedal feel and stopping power of the Q hands down compared to my Gs. There wasn't anything I really disliked about them, they had a smoother more responsive pedal feel and stopped just as quick. The pedal engaged much earlier and didnt have the slight soft mushy feeling my G brakes have at the beginning of the pedal travel that it has had the past 30k miles ive owned it.
Overall- Q50:6.5/10 G:7/10
While I liked the Q50 AWD and it felt fresh and new and was a fun car to drive, I will have to test a Q50S RWD and Red Sport before I can make a decision to take a Q50 over a G sedan. If I had to choose between these two cars only I would take my G every single time. It is a better driver's car by far and is more fun to drive in almost every aspect. While my G does feel like a sport sedan (just not enough power or engine response than I'd like) the Q50 just felt like a quick entry level sedan at the end of the day without as much sport to it.
In the end when comparing these two cars back to back it felt more of what I'd expect comparing my G to an M37 and not the replacement for the G. The only true way to tell will be testing the Q50s RWD and Red Sport models.
I personally like the beep if I try to upshift at too low an rpm (as determined by some number pulled from the TCU's azz). I tend to look where I'm driving instead of the tach so the audible feedback is nice. I am quite annoyed that when in "D", the transmission will upshift at 1,400 rpm in low-load situations but when in manual mode 2,000 is usually the low limit for upshifts. I could be getting better gas mileage but NOOOO, Infiniti stepped on their ******** on this one.
Actually if you average your own scores using math, it's Q with 7.4 over G with 6.7
Think of the way the review is done each category is separate of each other and overall is not adding the numbers up themselves but literally comparing the car as a whole for fun factor, driving feel, which id rather sit in and which car is a better car to own at the end of the day IMO.
I test drove the Q50S RWD when they first became available. Compared to my G37S 6MT, I had pretty much the same impressions. And I was very happy to get back into my modded G afterwards. It just feels like the better driver's car. Pretty sure the only way I could be happy with a Q50 would be the Red Sport. And even then, just an evolution in more of the same.
I'm not a fan of the steering wheel AT ALL. But love everything else about this car!
Right? Idk about you al but first thing I thought when driving it was it needed a Carbon Fiber flat bottom G37 wheel and rewrap the fake aluminum/carbon fiber trim before I would enjoy the interior haha I actually made multiple side-by-side comparisons of Gs and Qs and asked non-infiniti people what they thought. Using Rochester's G in a few actually haha If you could take the Q50S front with the G37S rear the outside would be perfect
Not much to say about what I think...great personal review Mkhlmnn.
Coming from a modded 2013 G37xS and now into the 2015 Q50S AWD, my thoughts is that the Q50s is the better vehicle.
In the beginning before I actually drove the Q50S (w/DAS), I wouldn't even considered owning one. The loaner I had was a Premium model and lacked the sport suspension and felt quite boring compared to my G37xS...I couldn't wait until I was again behind the wheel of my G37xS.
Even in stock form, the Q50S handle extremely well compared to my lowered G37xS...hardly any body lean around corners and quite tight/planted for a stock suspension.
I've done some mods on the Q50S, but minimal since I've learned my lesson from my past experience with a leased vehicle.
So far, only upgrade on my suspension is the rear sway bar with one from Stillen and now the handling is more neutral and more responsive.
I'm happy that I made the decision to go with the Q50S instead of buying out the G37xS...my wife and bank account is also.
had one Q50 AWD Premium as a loaner yesterday...I was very surprised how quick the tranny shifted when i punched it from a red light stop...Automatics have definitely come a long way...(haven't driven one in 15 years..) and don't plan to either.
The upgraded technology compared to the G37 is awesome
05-19-2016, 03:54 PM
Back to back test of Q50 loaner and my modded 07 G35S
