Overview & Reviews

Infiniti is an upscale automaker from Japan. Though most of its products are related to those sold by parent company Nissan, Infiniti looks to achieve a premium status by infusing its cars and SUVs with spirited performance and additional luxury content.

The brand was launched for the 1990 model year. Its purpose back then, as it is now, was to create premium vehicles for America that wouldn't have otherwise fit in with Nissan's more mainstream image. This was the same tactic Honda used for the creation of Acura, and Toyota for Lexus. In its first full year, Infiniti started out with two vehicles, the Q45 sedan and the M30 coupe and convertible. The compact, entry-level G20 was introduced soon after.

As the 1990s moved along, Infiniti slowly added more vehicles to its lineup. The Q45 luxury sport sedan found its market. The car's 278-horsepower V8 was class-leading in its day. On top of that, the Q45 offered cutting-edge technology such as an active suspension system. By the late '90s Infiniti had rolled out the QX4, an SUV based on the Pathfinder. The sport-ute's truck platform gave it a leg up in off-road performance relative to competing car-based SUVs.

Although Infiniti's sales grew steadily, the marque still fell short of both Lexus and Acura in terms of popularity. The early 2000s saw Infiniti making a determined effort to sharpen its focus and upgrade its products. But it was the introduction of the entry-level, midsize G35 in 2003 that finally gave Infiniti the boost and identity direction it sorely needed. Based on the same platform underpinning the Nissan 350Z, the G35 coupe and sedan met with immediate sales success. The FX35/FX45 soon followed -- a crossover SUV that provided spirited acceleration and sports-car handling with the utility of a wagon.

Today, Infiniti's lineup has expanded to include the G (now a sedan, coupe and convertible) and FX as well as the midsize M sedan, the EX small crossover SUV, the JX midsize crossover SUV and the QX large SUV. Infiniti has also introduced the M Hybrid sedan, its first hybrid vehicle. No matter the model, shoppers will find Infiniti's latest vehicles to be focused on luxury, sport, quality and value.

User Reviews:

• 

  great car, great buy - 2003 Infiniti G35
  By jamG356MT - January 14 - 2:00 am

  i just bought my G35 6MT, and this car is by far the better deal than a BMW. now the german cars might be a little bit better on the interior, but by no means this car is not a comfy and fun car to drive. i have not even got the rpms above 5000 and it redlines at 6500 rpms. i also got the sport package, which is killer, and it does drive on the rough side just a bit, but thats what you expect when driving a great handling car. this car is exactly what i wanted and more. the BMW 325 or 330 cant compare with the price or roominess of this car, and even though i love BMWs design and style, this car is surpassing the BMW by the day.

• 

  Five Months with an I35 - 2002 Infiniti I35
  By SDI35Owner - January 9 - 2:56 pm

  This car provides great value for the money. I test drove quite a few competitors: Lexus ES300 - weird interior, Camry-type feel, weak engine; Acura TL - cramped but well designed interior, sleek look, decent power, but car dealers insist on MSRP, sometimes asking higher prices for certain in-demand colors/options, which I find unethical; Audi A4 - excellent interior, but the smallest of those tested, nice power, very ugly rear end, easily the most expensive car tested, great engine. After working through these cars, I kept coming back to the I35 for its combination of power, luxury, and value.

• 

  Great Car - Poor Transmission - 2009 Infiniti G37
  By Bobby - January 4 - 6:46 pm

  Replaced my G35 with a 37, but I wish I had my 35 back. Pretty much the same car inside the cab, but obviously faster and with a terrible 7 speed transmission. The jerks at low speeds during shifts and jumps into higher gears is frustrating. Takes the fun out of driving an otherwise awesome car.

• 

  Pleasing yourself - 2004 Infiniti G35
  By xmo2rep - January 2 - 10:00 am

  I almost got another I series. It was a nice car and reliable and the 3.5 engine made it go but it did not say, "Let us steal away in the night!" The G-35 did and we did. What a wonderful car to drive...black on black it makes it so cool to look at also. The seat is so comfortable (I have a bad back) and the steering wheel wants you to hold it and hold it.

• 

  Best Sports Car + Luxury Sedan Ever... - 2006 Infiniti M45
  By Maanav Patel - January 1 - 4:56 pm

  Excellent Power + Handling, Great look inside and outside..it beats Beamer, Benz, and obviously Jag..

• 

  Great Car - 2005 Infiniti G35
  By Great Car - January 1 - 4:10 am

  This is the best looking car(coupe) hands down under 40k. Its fast, sleek and sexy. This machine will have you doing things you didnt know you could do. Infiniti out did themselves with this one. Get a used 2005 coupe while you still can. Caution: leave your girl or boyfriend at home when driving this coupe.

• 

  This car is amazing! - 2003 Infiniti G35
  By r8rfan - December 31 - 7:03 pm

  Full of raw power, hugs the road and curves like a rollercoaster, and is absolutely exhilarating to drive. This car is so much fun to drive that I consider it to be therapeutic to get behind the wheel. It drives just as smooth at 120 mph as it does at 35 mph. It is an eye catcher as well. I have had people stop me in the middle of the road to tell me how beautiful this car looks. I am 64" and it is a very comfortable car to drive, with all the amenities of a luxury car (including an awesome BOSE stereo system). Infiniti hit an absolute home run with this automobile!

• 

  The second owner - 2002 Infiniti QX4
  By dblazzinhot - December 31 - 10:00 am

  Bought this qx4 used with 193k miles on it-yes you may think Im crazy but this car had all that I was looking for and the price was workable. One owner all maintenance records, just need new tires and wiper blade-so I thought. Needed oil rings replaced- $2,200.00! Running like brand new. Now at 196,114k on it will drive to Miami in a New York minute! I want to hit 300k then maybe I will trade it for a pathfinder le since they stopped making these in infiniti.

• 

  Loved my Gs, but the Q50 is a beaut! - 2015 Infiniti Q50
  By rogue36 - December 30 - 11:54 pm

  Ive owned 5 Infiniti G-Series vehicles over the past 12 years, starting with the original G35 in 2003. Needless to say, I love the car. Ive always preferred its styling, comfort, and value compared to other entry luxury sedans. I was hesitant to get a Q50 after reading the bad press it received, but the new styling really appealed to me and the technology in my 2012 G37 was feeling old (particularly the audio/navigation system). After several test drives of the Q50 and its competitors, I liked the Audi A4 the best, but only slightly more than the Q50 and the lease deal on the Q50 was so much better there was no way I could pass it up. Looking back, Im glad I didnt get an A4 -- its styling is so boring compared to the Q50. Overall I really like the Q50. The powertrain is excellent - smooth acceleration and quiet at highway speeds. The cabin is comfortable with nice feel to the materials, supportive seats, minimal wind and road noise, and good visibility. The Bose "studio on wheels" is thankfully just as good as it was in the G37. I didnt get the Technology Package (which I somewhat regret) so I cant comment on all the cool ADAS features. I like the car, but I do have two reservations: the steer-by-wire system, and the infotainment system. I wanted Around View Monitor to help with parking in my cluttered garage, and I really like entry/exit assist where the seats and steering wheel move out of the way to make getting in & out of the car easier, but to get these two features I had to take the "direct adaptive steering" system. Im not a professional driver, but even I can easily feel the difference between DAS and the hydraulic steering gears used on the G-series in the past, and I prefer the old steering feel. That said, it wasnt a deal breaker for me. I use this car for my daily commute on boring mostly-straight highways. After three months I can honestly say Ive gotten used to the DAS feel and it doesnt bother me anymore. In fact I appreciate the lightness of the steering while making low-speed maneuvers. I did however have one incident where I was taking a tightly curved on-ramp at excessive speed just for the fun of it (which I did all the time in my Gs) and in the middle of the maneuver I felt the car turn in slightly without me moving the steering wheel. It scared the heck out of me. I dont know if it was the DAS system making an adjustment, or something else happening, but it was very disconcerting. Bottom line: DAS makes me nervous and I would prefer not to have it. As for the infotainment system, it has a nice set of features but the execution is bad, not terrible, but bad. I have a lot of complaints about the system, but Ill limit myself to just mentioning two of them: 1) When listening to HD Radio the song title and artist name do not appear on any screen anywhere. Not on the radio screen, not on the navigation screen, and not on the instrument cluster screen. Its ridiculous. I eventually found that information buried two levels deep in the "controls" menu, where it makes no sense for it to be and is basically useless. When you listen to music from your phone or iPod the song title, artist name, and even album art are prominently displayed -- why wouldnt they do the same for HD Radio? Even more crazy, if you turn HD Radio off you do get the song title and artist name displayed - though in the old style scrolling text format. Its really frustrating and I hope Infiniti offers a software update to fix it. 2) I like to put my iPod or phone into random mode and just manually cycle through my songs. Weirdly, in the Q50 there is a span of time where you cant hit "next" to go to the next song -- the system says "retrieving album art" and wont respond no matter how many times you hit the button. That window of time seems to be from 1 - 3 seconds after a song starts playing, which can really be annoying when I hear a song I rather not listen to and want to quickly skip to the next one. I either have to hit "next" immediately or wait 3 seconds. Its a minor thing, but still, didnt anyone do user testing on the system? Anyway, it is a great car and I am happy with my purchase. I recommend it to anyone who appreciates a sporty rear-wheel drive (or rear-wheel biased AWD) sedan and wants something that looks more elegant and interesting than the boring German sedans.

• 

  Loved my Gs, but the Q50 is a beaut! - 2015 Infiniti Q50
  By rogue36 - December 30 - 11:54 pm

  Ive owned 5 Infiniti G-Series vehicles over the past 12 years, starting with the original G35 in 2003. Needless to say, I love the car. Ive always preferred its styling, comfort, and value compared to other entry luxury sedans. I was hesitant to get a Q50 after reading the bad press it received, but the new styling really appealed to me and the technology in my 2012 G37 was feeling old (particularly the audio/navigation system). After several test drives of the Q50 and its competitors, I liked the Audi A4 the best, but only slightly more than the Q50 and the lease deal on the Q50 was so much better there was no way I could pass it up. Looking back, Im glad I didnt get an A4 -- its styling is so boring compared to the Q50. Overall I really like the Q50. The powertrain is excellent - smooth acceleration and quiet at highway speeds. The cabin is comfortable with nice feel to the materials, supportive seats, minimal wind and road noise, and good visibility. The Bose "studio on wheels" is thankfully just as good as it was in the G37. I didnt get the Technology Package (which I somewhat regret) so I cant comment on all the cool ADAS features. I like the car, but I do have two reservations: the steer-by-wire system, and the infotainment system. I wanted Around View Monitor to help with parking in my cluttered garage, and I really like entry/exit assist where the seats and steering wheel move out of the way to make getting in & out of the car easier, but to get these two features I had to take the "direct adaptive steering" system. Im not a professional driver, but even I can easily feel the difference between DAS and the hydraulic steering gears used on the G-series in the past, and I prefer the old steering feel. That said, it wasnt a deal breaker for me. I use this car for my daily commute on boring mostly-straight highways. After three months I can honestly say Ive gotten used to the DAS feel and it doesnt bother me anymore. In fact I appreciate the lightness of the steering while making low-speed maneuvers. I did however have one incident where I was taking a tightly curved on-ramp at excessive speed just for the fun of it (which I did all the time in my Gs) and in the middle of the maneuver I felt the car turn in slightly without me moving the steering wheel. It scared the heck out of me. I dont know if it was the DAS system making an adjustment, or something else happening, but it was very disconcerting. Bottom line: DAS makes me nervous and I would prefer not to have it. As for the infotainment system, it has a nice set of features but the execution is bad, not terrible, but bad. I have a lot of complaints about the system, but Ill limit myself to just mentioning two of them: 1) When listening to HD Radio the song title and artist name do not appear on any screen anywhere. Not on the radio screen, not on the navigation screen, and not on the instrument cluster screen. Its ridiculous. I eventually found that information buried two levels deep in the "controls" menu, where it makes no sense for it to be and is basically useless. When you listen to music from your phone or iPod the song title, artist name, and even album art are prominently displayed -- why wouldnt they do the same for HD Radio? Even more crazy, if you turn HD Radio off you do get the song title and artist name displayed - though in the old style scrolling text format. Its really frustrating and I hope Infiniti offers a software update to fix it. 2) I like to put my iPod or phone into random mode and just manually cycle through my songs. Weirdly, in the Q50 there is a span of time where you cant hit "next" to go to the next song -- the system says "retrieving album art" and wont respond no matter how many times you hit the button. That window of time seems to be from 1 - 3 seconds after a song starts playing, which can really be annoying when I hear a song I rather not listen to and want to quickly skip to the next one. I either have to hit "next" immediately or wait 3 seconds. Its a minor thing, but still, didnt anyone do user testing on the system? Anyway, it is a great car and I am happy with my purchase. I recommend it to anyone who appreciates a sporty rear-wheel drive (or rear-wheel biased AWD) sedan and wants something that looks more elegant and interesting than the boring German sedans.