2008 Infiniti G37 Sport Road Test Review
G37 Coupe Photos
In the last ten years only one coupe/sedan has knocked the vaunted BMW 3-Series
off the top of its segment, and that has been the Infiniti G35. Fast forward a few years and the BMW is still very smooth, but it’s taller, it’s wider, it’s heavier and it’s definitely more expensive.
And while the 3 is not as “bangled” as its larger kin, the G37S is downright handsome. The C-pillar has an arc that is almost a direct steal from the graceful 300ZX. The body just looks like someone made a mold out of milk chocolate, letting warm water gently flow over until all the rough edges were smoothed away, net result ~ a .30 drag coefficient.
There is a huge amount of irony here. Forty years ago Volkswagen made a monumental success of the Beetle, and in the last twenty years BMW did the same with the 3-Series. They did it by evolving and improving the design, with every step they took the opportunity to improve the model, and the market responded. The new Beetle lacks the purity and simplicity of the original and that is exactly what is happening to BMW’s 3. On the other hand, Infiniti has eschewed radical changes and adopted evolution as a motto.
The interior of the G37S feels Danish modern, artistically done in coal black with real satin-buffed aluminum contrasts. The seats appear hand-stitched and very purposeful with solid bolsters and excellent support for the front and rear. A six foot one passenger has room for a hat plus three inches to the sunroof, and huge elbow room. The rear passengers have the same wide elbow space and share copious legroom, but if those in back are over five-foot-eight then they best be prepared to slouch. For long trips or to carry a load, however, one needs that rear seat folded down, as otherwise two sets of golf clubs is all she wrote for the trunk.
Press the “START” button and the variable-valve 3.7 liter VQ engine bursts to life with 330 horses at 7,000 rpm, sailing easily to a 7,600 redline. 270 foot-pounds of torque are on offer, 35-percent more torque at mid-range than the 3.5; very tempting, very useful. Another noticeable improvement is that the G37S’ chassis, with a wheelbase of 112 inches, is 36-percent stiffer than that of the G35.
Clutch engagement is an on-off switch. On the scale of the Caterham Super 7 being perfectly intuitive, the G37S is a step behind the Lotus Elise, but simply about the best amongst the sports coupes under fifty large. Throttle tip-in is quick and takes practice to modulate in stop-and-go traffic. But ahhh, that torque, the best to pass through a 25 mph zone is to throw the close ratio box into fifth or sixth and ride it out. Thankfully the power is so massive that this is an easy way to stay away from insurance points. The chassis and tires are so well-matched that off-camber switchbacks and decreasing-radius turns feel like they can be taken as if on rails, dead flat, with total control.
Sixty-five mph at 2,500 rpm means that things are busy rather than relaxed at freeway speeds, but it also means that the lightest touch of the throttle yields a strong push of your backside into the sculptured seat ~ the thrumming basso exhaust as acoustically satisfying as that of any Ferrari. The look, the feel, the sound ~ everything about the G37S speaks with the same accent.
My neighbor, Al Ginn, took one look at the G37S and said “That’s my car.” In a short hop across town, Al noted the stability of the G37S when pushed hard. He also mentioned how the tires really grabbed the road, and how huge 14-inch front/13.8-inch rear pie-plate-sized brakes drew the car to a halt with little effort and zero fuss. The tight 36.1 foot turning radius was very handy when we got a bit lost on a back road. Neither of us was sure how much the viscous limited slip differential adds to street driving, but clearly lots and lots of Nurburgring thrashing has had a real payoff.
The basic G37S comes loaded with lots of goodies, such as leather, ABS and Electronic Brake Distribution, et al, for $35,550. The sole option on the tester was the Premium Package that included the sunroof, the Bose audio system that offers a tremendous feel of being in the center with the music wafting around you, power this and that, and the latest Bluetooth connectivity. That added $3,200, which with $750 destination hit a grand total of $39,465 loaded to the gills, and less than you’ll ever see a similarly-equipped BMW on the lot for. There are plenty of fairly well-serviced Infiniti Coupes running around the Bay Area, where I live, with over 200-grand on the odometer and shaved-depth tires, attesting to the build quality, owner driving attitude and quite reasonable costs of ownership.
Any penalties involved? Yes, the ride is on the stiff and sporty side and the G37S hits the scales at 3,668 pounds, the latter unfortunately being the norm for a good-sized coupe these days. The high performance 225/45/19 front and 245/40/19 rear tires must have taken an absolute pounding as 13,000 press fleet miles had reduced the tread to below shaved depth. Go lightly on the go-pedal and you earn 18 to 19 mpg on premium drawn from the 20-gallon tank. Hammer that sucker and it drops to 17 plus with an EPA rating of 17/26.
The G37S is not going to overwhelm you with gadgets and electronic whoop-de-doos. Instead, it offers an honest simplicity that less can be more. Infiniti has definitely evolved the G35 over the years, and in doing so has moved the bar up a notch with each incarnation, while keeping the value proposition very strong.
My overall sense of the G37S is that of a stallion ready to gallop with the slightest encouragement. Infiniti calls it “intensity captured”, and in a very balanced Zen sort of way Nissan’s luxury brand has hit their target right on the schnozola.
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