So, my older sister has been in the market for something to replace her Scion TC. It's too small for her and her two growing kids and her dog, and it has not been the most reliable car. She works in the car business, and found a clean 2006 Infiniti FX35 that came in on trade. She took it home last night for a test drive and loves it. She has always wanted one.
I got to check it out too, and it feels like a jacked up G35X in wagon form. Surprisingly, I liked it. It has lots of bells and whistles, seems surprisingly light on it's feet for it's size, and sounds like Chewbacca on a drunken bender when you hit the gas. It even has a real automatic transmission with actual gears!
And I think it looks WAY better than the melty-faced current generation FX.
Two questions:
One... are there any general pitfalls or trouble spots that these have? Honestly, for something so loaded up, it looks really easy to work on.
And Two... has anyone tried to hook up one of the aftermarket iPod interface kits to one of these? That's the only thing this car doesn't have.
AFAIK, there is no aftermarket dash kit, but there are iPod adaptors that will plug directly into the back of the factory radio. The USA Spec will work with a Lightning to 30 pin adaptor, and with the older IPad/Pod models.
m4ff3w
UltraDork
10/23/12 7:46 p.m.
I have nothing to add other than I like em.
They like to go through wheel bearings (all Infinitis do, as I've come to discover in my 1st year at an Infiniti dealership), and the door lock actuators always go bad. Nothing major comes to mind, just the usual maintenance (belts, batteries, air filters, brakes). Parts are a little pricey since it's a luxury car-even though they all just say Nissan on them. There were a few recalls, but nothing major. Oh, and if the dash starts to bubble up, they extended the warranty on them to pretty much lifetime-all of the dashes start to look like they have leprosy after a while. Not the best gas mileage, but one of the better Infiniti models. Enjoy!
frenchy
New Reader
10/23/12 8:57 p.m.
I don't know anything about the vehicle but for the audio go to www.crutchfield.com Really good company for anything audio, home or mobile. Just enter the vehicle info and they spit out the options. If you need to take anything apart to install they include vehicle specific instructions. They usually throw in free wiring harnesses and dash kits.
I think the FX35 is front drive, the FX50 is all-wheel. That's all I've got.
DoctorBlade wrote:
I think the FX35 is front drive, the FX50 is all-wheel. That's all I've got.
35 can be RWD or AWD (it's got the FM platform, not whatever the Murano is on). There's also the FX45.
Osterkraut wrote:
DoctorBlade wrote:
I think the FX35 is front drive, the FX50 is all-wheel. That's all I've got.
35 can be RWD or AWD (it's got the FM platform, not whatever the Murano is on). There's also the FX45.
Yeah, it's RWD or AWD. The only Infinitis that have ever been FWD are the G20, the I30/35, and the current JX35(don't think I'm forgetting any). The FX50 is a MONSTER, but the 35 & 45 are no slouch either...they will scoot! 
This one is AWD. 
The interior is pristine. no weirdness on the dash or anything like that. The exterior has a couple chips, but zero dents anywhere. It also has 3M clear nose protection on it, so the front end looks brand new.
As far as the iPod and stereo goes, it has the non-NAV stereo with the big screen and backup camera. It also has Bose, which means 11 or so individually amped speakers, so an iPod interface cable is really all I want to do there.
And I've used Crutchfield many times.
m4ff3w
UltraDork
10/24/12 8:45 a.m.
DoctorBlade wrote:
I think the FX35 is front drive, the FX50 is all-wheel. That's all I've got.
All FX are RWD/AWD. The numbers (nominally) indicate engine displacement.
V8 models don't seem to bring much if any premium over the V6.
keeping fuel in them however....
