Infiniti M35x Reviews

"The 280-hp V-6 offers gobs of go across the rev band and rarely leaves you thinking that you shoulda had a V-8."

"The stiff superstructure, with wheels stretched to the corners and the engine behind the front wheels, adds up to a package more than capable of hitting the sweet spot in balance, ride and handling in a sport-luxury sedan."

"[The Sports Package] sounds gimmicky, but it helps you to storm through decreasing-radius corners more smoothly."

"On narrow, twisty stretches of road, hustling the M along at higher than customary rates seems easier than it should be, almost effortless."

"...we were impressed with its absolute sure-footedness during our drive through sopping wet wine country. Under ideal conditions, it splits torque 50/50 front-to-rear, but can put 100 percent of the power at either end, depending on conditions."

"The buttons [on the dash's control panel] are large, almost too large, but it makes things as easy to operate as any on the road right now."

"...we soon discovered that the adaptive transmission logic-when left in automatic-interprets your intentions accurately and performs so well in that mode that one soon forgoes the manumatic system in order to keep one's hands on the wheel."

"This car has lots of style, but it's generic style."

"Like its G35 sibling, there's some trailing-throttle oversteer to be had in tight turns, but just as in that car, the slide is easy to catch."

"...the rear center seat is much less inviting, with a broad transmission tunnel consuming much of the floor space, forcing the middle passenger to splay his legs and have his feet share the front seatback cutouts with the outboard passengers."

"...the cabin materials, if not best in class (Audi), are on par with Mercedes and superior to Cadillac."

"It's a much roomier, more contemporary design that should be competitive with the Acura RL and Audi A6."

"As with the G35, the M35/M45's engineers have targeted the German competition, and the resulting car compares favorably with the BMW 5-series, the Mercedes-Benz E-class, and the Audi A6, not to mention the Cadillac STS, the Acura RL..."

"The M's chassis is a stretched, updated version of the G35's FM platform, which Infiniti says has 30 percent greater torsional rigidity and 1200 percent - yes, 1200 percent - more front lateral rigidity than the old car."

"Actually, on Napa Valley roads that twist up and down like a grapevine, even the base M35 delivers body control and steering feedback that are at least equal to those of the Audi and the Mercedes, which is to say quite good but a little soft, and the chassis is more tied to the task of hard driving than is that of the front-wheel-drive-biased Acura."

"[the M35/M45 is offered with] option packages that should satisfy the tech geeks and audiophiles alike."

"Though one or two drives aren?t enough to draw more than a sketch, you will be empowered enough by the experience to be impressed."