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Luxury Performance Sedans

10003 messages,  Last post on Nov 25, 2009 at 8:27 AM

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What is this discussion about? Lexus GS 430, Acura RL, BMW 5 Series, Volvo S80, Audi A6, Infiniti M35, Infiniti M45, Mercedes-Benz E-Class, Cadillac STS, Sedan

#9692 of 10003 Infiniti M35X - A Work in Progress by mdboater Jan 18, 2009 (9:40 pm)
I have put off posting this message for 72,000 miles. Finally, I think I know this car. I bought the 2006 M35X based on the reviews and my first experiences. After 72K+ miles I feel I am well versed on the vehicle. The plus: It has more gizmos and gadget then you could ever use. Secondly, I have never had a major repair. The build quality is excellent. The minus: The ride   IHO, the ride is the key factor on a car. I have changed tires twice, been to Infiniti several times, and found that, in short, the ride of the M35X is sub-par. A vehicle of this price should be fun and safe. This car is fun but hardly safe. I have "changed lanes" by running over pot holes more then once. I commute 125 miles daily and have given this vehicle a workout. It has a great deal of difficulty traveling a straight line.   I feel bad posting this, however, I do not want others to face a similar experience. I am off to Lexus or BMW....a better bet.
#9693 of 10003 What Should I Expect To Pay For A 20k/Yr/ Lease On An M35x? by draz2 Jan 21, 2009 (10:08 am)
My lease on my Lexus ES350 is up in June and I'm beginning to look around. I like the specs on the M35x as I want an awd vehicle this time around. But the 1st salesperson I spoke to said the lease now would be about $899/month for that car with nav. Hell, I can get into a M-B E350 4matic with nav for about $725/month.    What gives? Can I do better than this $899 price on the M35x? And please don't hit me with a bunch of fancy numbers and jargon like "money factor," etc. as all I care about is the bottom line.....what I need to pay each month.    Thanks for any help/advice you guys can offer. Replies to this message: lexusguy (Jan 21, 2009 6:45 pm) tayl0rd (Jan 22, 2009 6:35 am) sanjaysdca (Jan 22, 2009 8:16 am)
#9694 of 10003 If you don't care by dhamilton Jan 21, 2009 (4:35 pm)
about "fancy jargon" then be content to be uneducated about the nuances of leasing. There is no free lunch, do your research.   Hint1. Your in the wrong thread, try the Infiniti lease questions one.   The rest you must do for yourself grasshopper! Replies to this message: draz2 (Jan 22, 2009 6:10 am)
#9695 of 10003 Re: What Should I Expect To Pay For A 20k/Yr/ Lease On An M35x? [draz2] by lexusguy Jan 21, 2009 (6:45 pm)
Replying to: draz2 (Jan 21, 2009 10:08 am) But the 1st salesperson I spoke to said the lease now would be about $899/month for that car with nav. Hell, I can get into a M-B E350 4matic with nav for about $725/month.   I'm sure you can do better than $899. Talk to the posters in the M35 prices paid forum, and talk to Mercedes, Audi, BMW, anyone else you might be interested in. If the Infiniti is still your first choice, go back to them and let them know what the competition is offering.
#9696 of 10003 Re: If you don't care [dhamilton] by draz2 Jan 22, 2009 (6:10 am)
Replying to: dhamilton (Jan 21, 2009 4:35 pm) Thanks so much for the condescending, patronizing response.   I hope someone else is just as helpful when you need a hand.
#9697 of 10003 Re: What Should I Expect To Pay For A 20k/Yr/ Lease On An M35x? [draz2] by tayl0rd Jan 22, 2009 (6:35 am)
Replying to: draz2 (Jan 21, 2009 10:08 am) There are 20K/yr leases out there?? Learn something new everyday! For that kind of mileage, you shouldn't be surprised about the $899/mo payment. The interest rate is probably astronomical. You probably could actually purchase it for about the same payment; possibly w/ no money down. Replies to this message: sanjaysdca (Jan 22, 2009 8:16 am)
#9698 of 10003 Re: What Should I Expect To Pay For A 20k/Yr/ Lease On An M35x? [tayl0rd] by sanjaysdca Jan 22, 2009 (8:16 am)
Replying to: tayl0rd (Jan 22, 2009 6:35 am) tayl0rd is right   a 42K loan at 10.3% for 5 years will cost you 899/month a 45K loan at 7.37% for 5 years will cost you 899/month   You are better of doing some work... Self teaching is an amazing experience... try it.   Also this is what (can) happen if you ask for help on internet ENJOY!!   link title   http://willyyilly.blogspot.com/2008/09/why-you-should-never-ask-help-from.html
#9699 of 10003 No offense intended by dhamilton Jan 22, 2009 (9:58 am)
but you are going to get yourself nowhere with your current mindset.   You have the cart so far past the horse that it's impossible to answer your questions.   We are helping you by encouraging you to dig deeper. Don't be in a hurry, the answers will come. The journey is the best part.
#9700 of 10003 Re: help! [cdnpinhead] A4 by markcincinnati Jan 23, 2009 (11:00 am)
Replying to: cdnpinhead (Dec 23, 2008 4:58 pm) Due to a looonnnggg lead time, I was forced to keep my A6 for, hmm 41 months, 5 months beyond the contract term. By the time I turned it in it had gone faithfully for about 60,000 miles. Three sets of tires and the only real issue with it was the first few months where every month I had to have the pushbutton start replaced.   Actually when I drove in to pick up the shiny new (Ibis white) B8 A4, I had a momentary pang of regret, "what have I done? I love this A6, it has been a joy to drive and at this moment it, apparently, looks pretty much as it did the day I got it and the body style of the 2008 is identical. Why not just keep the thing?"   For a week or so, much as I liked and appreciated the new A4, I still felt that I had not actually moved forward, despite my dealer's assertions that the new A4 was "better" in so many ways than the C6 A6 3.2.   About 2,500 miles into it, I really started to feel the A4 had much to like, more to love and very little to not like.   Note: My Ibis white A4 2.0T quattro is the Prestige version and is optioned with the following: 1. 19" sport package; 2. nav+backup camera w/voice; 3. power rear window shade and manual side shades; 4. Audi Drive Select; and, 5. Wood trim on the dash and doors. I also added Audi chrome tips and Audi maintenance. It was all of $49,000 (almost exactly). My outgoing A6 was $53,286. They have the same lease term and the same lease price per month (almost to the dollar.)   The new 2.0T is -- hold on -- a 4 cylinder turbo engine powered vee-hick-L. It has a 6 speed tiptronic transmission that bears little resemblance to the one in my 2005 A6 3.2, other than having the same name.   The 4 offers up 211HP, the outgoing 6 255HP. The 4 cranks out 258 foot pounds of torque at "idle" (well, practically); the 6 delivers 243 foot pounds at something north of 3,000 RPM.   The wheelbase of both cars is about 1" different, the A6 being the longer in that category. The 4 has been lengthened several clearly noticeable inches, but is still shorter than the A6. The wheels of the 4 are pushed closer to the "head and tail" of the car than on the 6 and the 4 benefits further from a 40/60 f/r torque split and better weight distribution.   The new 4 is much wider than the old 4, but still slightly more narrow than the 6, but when you are driving the 4, the look from behind the wheel is almost the same as it was from behind the wheel of the 6.   The ride of the 4, due, one would imagine, to engineering and wheelbase and width is more like an A6 than it is a B7 A4. Heck, the dash of the 2009 A4 is a carbon copy of the 2005 A6 (which, for me, is a small nit, since I would like to have had SOMETHING that looked a little bit different or newer -- but the '05 A6 interior was so sweet, perhaps Audi restrained itself opting not to mess with what many call "the best interior" period.)   The new A4, were there not already an A5 model, could probably be called an A5 it is so different from the outgoing A4 and so close to the current (2008 MY) A6.   The new tiptronic transmission is the smoothest transmission I have ever driven and the paddle shifters on the steering wheel cause "instantaneous" shifts when flicked.   The torque combined with the smoothness of the engine (vibration free, no kidding) makes you wonder if someone didn't insert a larger engine under the hood -- this is quicker than my 1995 S6 turbo manual shifter, quicker than my V8 A6's, quicker even than my 2003 2.7T manual transmission allroad and quicker than my chipped 1.8T TT (6 speed manual.)   It is, however, not as quick as the last available S4 model with that gutsy 4.2 V8.   It is, oddly, quicker and more responsive than the same A4 equipped with the lovely 3.2 V6 Audi offers as an up-price down-grade (performance and mileage wise, that is) version. It also weighs less than the 3.2, so there is even more of that nimbleness Audis are often famous for especially the "S" versions.   The tires are 255 x 35 x 19" MAX performance Dunlops and they are sticky, sticky, sticky -- coupled with the sport seats, sport suspension and Audi Drive Select this car goes with even more aplomb than a snake in a rat hole (as my wife says.)   The B&O sound system blows the A6's Bose system away. Finally an in dash 6 disc CD changer, too.   In any case, you can find out, elsewhere about the power and performance and something one step above Entry Level Luxury that Audi has imbued this new A4 with -- suffice it to say, I am still fond of my 2005 A6, but the 2009 A4 (at least optioned as I have mine) is the next step up.   Here is what I miss: the headlights articulate UP and DOWN based on road speed, but they do not articulate LEFT and RIGHT based on steering wheel position; I miss folding outside rear view mirrors, but love their built in turn signals and blind spot warning feature; I also miss the halo of light that the interior of the A6 was bathed in after dark -- but many people don't even seem to know they have it.   The Audi Drive Select, no hype, is literally like getting four personalities available one at a time in a single car -- from Comfort to Dynamic and 24 combinations you can dial in through the MMI. This is an amazing innovation. If this car had torque Vectoring and a slightly different tuned exhaust note under part throttle, it would render the A6 C6 3.2 "outclassed" and "over priced."   Remember, I still have nothing but love for my '05 A6 -- this new A4 is just plain wonderful though.   Did I mention it has but 4 cylinders? And, all things considered, it ain't very thirsty.   Replies to this message: cdnpinhead (Jan 23, 2009 11:55 am) rayainsw (Jan 23, 2009 12:21 pm) markcincinnati (Jan 23, 2009 2:12 pm) rockshocka1 (Jan 23, 2009 2:43 pm) james27 (Jan 23, 2009 8:16 pm) lexusguy (Jan 24, 2009 1:30 am) markcincinnati (Jan 24, 2009 9:06 am) lexusguy (Jan 24, 2009 10:14 am) and 2 more... blckislandguy (Feb 15, 2009 12:02 pm) lexusguy (Feb 15, 2009 4:51 pm)
#9701 of 10003 Re: help! [cdnpinhead] A4 [markcincinnati] by cdnpinhead Jan 23, 2009 (11:55 am)
Replying to: markcincinnati (Jan 23, 2009 11:00 am) Interesting review. Welcome back.   Don't be a stranger.

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