I ordered my car from Dryer and Reinbold Infiniti in Indianapolis. After three different test drives over the period of a year, the dealer accepted my offer via phone on Monday, September 8, 2003. My car arrived on Wednesday, Nov 19 and my wife and I drove to Indy to pick it up the following Saturday, Nov 22, 2003. It’s since been the most reliable car I’ve owned and the one in which I’ve driven the most miles.
- 2004.5 G35 Sedan 6MT (6-speed manual transmission, sports suspension, limited-slip rear differential)
- Diamond Graphite Exterior (dark gray color – paint code WV2)
- Graphite Leather Interior (black leather, with gray carpet and floor mats)
- Premium Package with Full Size Spare Tire (dual-sliding glass sunroof with one-touch open/close feature, A/C dual zone w/ rear vents, driver’s seat memory with automatic entry/exit system, auto on/off headlights, HomeLink® Universal Transceiver, inside mirror auto-dimming, one touch up/down on all windows, Bose® premium audio system with 7-speakers, manual reclining rear seats)
- Navigation System
Warranty Repairs
- 10-Sept-2004 – 14,563 miles (warranty): The DVD Navigation system was replaced because it was having problems reading the disc and displayed a disc read error.
- 10-Sept-2004 – 14,563 miles (warranty): Airbag light was flashing. Passenger side airbag replaced
- 10-Sept-2004 – 14,563 miles (warranty): Trunk would intermittently not respond to remote control or interior trunk release switch. No trouble found. (I later learned that the trunk is “locked out” while the vehicle is moving. If you turn of the ignition before the car comes to a complete stop, the trunk remains “locked out”. Problem solved by turning the key switch on and back off. And by not turning off the ignition before the car comes to a complete stop.)
- 27-Dec-2013 – 153,348 miles (campaign recall): Airbag harness and bracket kit replacement
Out of Warranty Repairs
- Fault Code PID P0455 – EVAP System Leak Detected (large leak) – ~130,000 miles: despite many people thinking this is a large leak in the intake manifold or throttle assembly, it is not. It’s actually a failure with the Vapor Canister Purge Valve on the fuel tank. This valve is a common failure for Nissan and Infiniti vehicles.
- I ordered the replacement part from Amazon.com: Dorman 911-503 Vapor Canister Purge Valve for about $40.
- It’s extremely easy to replace. There is a flap underneath the car, in the plastic underbody cladding. It’s on the passenger side of the car, toward the back, under the car, a few feet below the fuel fill door. To replace the valve, open the flap in the plastic under body panel, find the valve, disconnect the wiring harness, twist the valve 180 degrees counter-clockwise, and pull out. Insert the new valve, twist it 180 degrees to tighten it, connect the wiring harness, close the plastic access flap, done.
- Fault Code PID P1273 – Air Fuel Ratio (A/F) Sensor 1 Lean Shift Monitoring Bank 1 – ~120,000 miles: this code indicates that there is a problem with the passenger-side upstream Oxygen Sensor (also known as O2 sensor or Air/Fuel ratio sensor.) This is similar to P1283, which is for the driver-side upstream Oxygen Sensor. These faults indicate that there is a problem with one or both of these sensors being out-of-range and/or not matching one other.
- In my experience, it’s best to replace both of these sensors if there is a fault with either one of them.
- Please note that these are the upstream oxygen sensors, which are located between the engine and catalytic converters, in the down-pipe coming off of the exhaust manifold. The downstream oxygen sensors are after the catalytic converters and do not cause these fault codes – the downstream sensors are only for detecting issues with the catalytic converter.
- I ordered 2 Oxygen Sensors, part number 22693CD700-1431975-109932, from InfinitiPartsUSA.com for about $160 each. I provided them with my VIN and they found out that my 2004.5 car uses the 2005 Oxygen sensors, not the 2004 Oxygen sensors (which are part number 22690AL600-1431984-116154.) Make sure you get the right part
- The sensors are a bit difficult to access, the car needs to be on jack stands/a lift/ramps. But the most difficult part is finding the wiring connectors on the top left and right side of the engine, disconnecting them, and reinstalling the new sensor harness connectors. Dis-assembly of the air intake plumbing is required.
Maintenance
- Oil change every 7,000 miles using Mobile 1 5W-30 Synthetic and Mobile 1 Premium Filter
- Brake pads and fluid every ~50,000 miles using brake pads from Advanced Auto Parts
- Brake rotors @ 145,000 miles using rotors from Advanced Auto Parts
- Intake Air Filter, wiper blades, bulbs, tires as needed
Modifications
It seems like I have to tweak about everything I buy, at least a little bit. Here’s my modification list.
- Aluminum throttle and brake pedals
- Clear side marker lenses with yellow LED bulbs
- Infiniti G35 Coupe 18″ 7-spoke wheels
- Lowered springs from Nissan 350Z (front – 1-inch drop) and G35 Coupe (rear – 3/4-inch drop )
- The suspension is identical between the G35 Sedan, Coupe, and Nissan 350Z
- Identical spring rates between the G35 Sedan Sports Suspension, G35 Coupe with 17-inch/18-inch wheels, and the 2003-2004 Nissan 350Z (unrevised spring rate)
- Spring rate same as original sedan sports suspension: Front:314 pounds/inch, Rear:342 pounds/inch)
- Refer this the forum post on G35Driver.com: http://g35driver.com/forums/brakes-suspension/92682-another-g-sedan-350z-suspension-pix-10.html
- PhatNoise PhatBox digital music player (with voice prompts to easily scan through all stored music)
Other upgrades that I considered but never completed:
- Full navigation menus while moving module from KP Technologies
- Parrot Bluetooth module into the stock stereo system
- Tinted windows, 50% tint to match the shade of the car
- Side markers blinking with turn signals
- Front door speaker upgrade
Related links:
Infiniti – official web site
FreshAlloy – a website and forum devoted to all things Infiniti and Nissan
G35Driver.com – website and forum devoted specifically to the G35 Sedan and Coupe. Forums are sub-divided more than FreshAlloy forums, making answers and topics easier to find.
Infiniti Tech Info – For $20, get a one-day pass to download the current service manuals for your Nissan or Infiniti vehicle in PDF format.
Grubbs Infiniti – Great dealer for online parts ordering. Located in DFW, Texas.
InfinitiPartsUSA.com – Best source for finding the exact OEM replacement parts for your Infiniti.
Never checked the other parts of your blog, didn’t know you had one of these. I had an 03 coupe for 2 years but got rid of it when I moved to the city and didn’t need a car (plus I didn’t want to get it banged up). I drove the 4 door on loaner a few times, I liked it a lot especially the 4 wheel drive one. I definitely had to take mine in more than a few times, but it was always the same two things pretty much, the 6 disc changer would eat the cds and the window motors would break. Other than those two small hi-cups a great car – do you still own the sedan?
Nate
Yeah, I still have my G35 Sedan and I’m still loving it. It’s my daily driver and it has about 70k miles on it — and still no additional problems. The revised 2007 model is a beautiful car, but I don’t see any need to get trade-up from the one I have right now. I’m very happy with it.
That’s a nice car. click my name for a place to get the parts you need for your mods.
Awesome. I really like this car and interested to buy. I also got some good information about Infinti 35 car its also help me a lot.