While I was sitting in brain melting traffic today, shifting back and forth endlessly from 1st to 2nd gear, I was passed (albeit very slowly) by a guy in a really clean Infiniti Q50s. And that got me thinking... what's the deal with these? I'm familiar with the old G35/37, and my parents have a 2014 Q60 (which is just a rebadged G37 Coupe that year) that has been pretty good to them. But the 2015-up cars? I don't know a ton about them.
They come up locally for pretty affordable prices, and I've been thinking that one might make a good daily driver/commuter. They seem to be the last bastion of old, good Nissan left, and I was a huge fan of old, good Nissan.
This is really all I know about them:
-They are all automatics, probably the same 7-speed my parents have in their older Q60, I'm assuming. And as far as automatics go, that one's a good one.
-Some of them have a steering-by-wire system that honestly sounds terrible, but I've been told lots of manufacturers do that now, so who knows.
-I know they offered it with the 3.7 and later a few flavors of twin turbo 3.0. I don't know much about what it takes to keep either one alive, although my parents have the 3.7 in their car and it has been flawless and makes good power.
-There is one flavor of the 3.0T in the Red Sport 400 that makes 400hp. That is appealing.
-They sound like Chewbacca on a bender when you put exhaust on them.
Are these a hidden bargain, or a putrid road loaf? Most auto publications seem to detest them when compared to the competition, but how bad are they really?
Q60 is the coupe. Q50 is the sedan. I think there was also a Q40 with a smaller 2.5L V6, unique to Infiniti.
They are all dirived from from Nissan 350z which came out in 2003. So, mostly they get bashed in print for being a old chassis hold over kept going via name changes.
It doesn't make them hateful to drive just eclipsed by more innovative offerings.
Yes, that is correct. The Q60 is the 2-door, I forgot to mention that.
And the little 2.5L V6 made it into the Q50/Q60 line? It used to be in the G25. Those are to be avoided.
My son has a 2017 Q50S AWD identical to your picture. 3.0T V6 with 7 speed automatic. (Q50 are only available in AWD in Canada). Bought used a year ago, has approximately 70k miles on it. No complaints as yet. Sporty and comfortable cruiser...
I'm actually scanning local ads for something similar, but likely will settle for a G37 version given the $$ difference locally....
Edit... Not aware of any 2.5 variant in the Q lineup
Gordon
Looks like the Q40 was a one-year rebadge of the G25 for 2015, much like my parents' one year rebadge Q60 for 2014, which is just a previous gen Q60 Coupe. I don't think that engine made it into the newer generation cars.
EDIT: They DID, however, offer these things with a 2.0T 4-cylinder for a time. I think it made around 200hp. That must be abysmal to drive. Woof.
I know nothing about them, but I'm appreciative of the name explanation. The names have had me confused.
It seems like about 26 people bought them as I rarely see them on the road. I like the way one of them looks, my guess is it's the q50 but I'm not even sure.
I will say the one 370Z I drove had the worst engine I've ever experienced. So rough I thought it was misfiring. Maybe they cleaned that up with the Infiniti somehow.
In reply to CyberEric :
I think the 3.7 is a bit rowdy for a N/A V6, so I can see that. The automatic paired to them seems to keep them in line pretty well though.
The one in my parents' car has around 320hp and it wants to GO. And it doesn't help that when the exhaust rotted off, they bolted on a stainless Magnaflow catback that makes it even more rowdy. They do sound funky though, like someone tried to shave a Wookie and failed, but it sounds decent for what it is.
The VR30DETT engines are terrific, especially the one in the Red Sport 400.
There's no manual.
They handle every bit as well as the old G35s did if you get the right suspension setup.
DAS came on all of the press cars and got universally panned from start to finish. You need to avoid it.
Doing more research, and it looks like they messed with the already confusing names some more around 2020-21. It used to be Base, Premium, and S for "Sport". Now, all the trims have these dumb names:
Pure: These have the 2.0T. The base trim.
Luxe: The old Premium trim, but with a 3.0T now instead of the 3.7 as of 2017ish
Signature: Not entirely sure what this one has. Might have been the Sport or S model at one point?
Sensory: This is a Sport-oriented model that slots under the Red Sport 400, not sure why they called it this though, seems odd. Has better seats and maybe better wheels/brakes?
Red Sport 400: This is the top model with the 400hp 3.0T and all the performance goodies
It is all very confusing. Probably a factor in no one wanting to buy one.
In reply to chaparral :
Just did a quick search and saw that they made the DAS (the drive-by-wire BS) an option on whatever the "Sport" model is called and the Red Sport 400. It's called the Proactive package. So, it seems this can potentially be avoided.
I had a 2015 Q50 with the 3.7. It was the most reliable BMW I've ever owned. I had an 2007 BMW 335i that it reminded me of without the huge repair bills.
The Q50 was comfortable, fast, handled well enough, and reliable. The infotainment was weird. Two screens if I remember right. One for the NAV and one for controlling in car stuff or something.
It was hard on fuel as Nissan VQ's are known to be. It was RWD so would do totally controllable doughnuts.
It was invisible to the cops which was crazy because it was great at going fast and being comfortable.
I had no complaints about the trans but then owned a 2018 Dodge Charger Scatpack with the ZF 8 speed. The difference was significant but that ZF 8 speed is amazing. The Nissan 7 spd was still very good.
If my kid wanted one, I'd be ok with them getting it with a caveat to keep the skinny pedal off the floor. "That advice is for your own good, Son."
God, what was Nissan thinking with these NAMES! It makes me want to roll on the floor kicking.
It's a shame, because it sounds like it's a solid competitor to the BMW option, even if the engine is not as sweet. At least it's less maintenance heavy.
I'd like to drive one to see if I can deal with the rough motor. It was a no go for me in the Z. Seems like it checks a lot of boxes: RWD, sporty, sedan, relatively low maintenance, I like the looks, relatively affordable.
That said, if you can't get it in a manual, what's the benefit over a Lexus IS? I suppose they are cheaper?
Avoid the twin turbo V6. There are casting porosity issues and an apparent 100% failure rate. Coolant leaks into the oil through the engine block material.
In reply to Pete. (l33t FS) :
Oof. And that's all they have been putting in these cars for around 8 years. That may kill this whole expedition.
Tony Sestito said:
In reply to Pete. (l33t FS) :
Oof. And that's all they have been putting in these cars for around 8 years. That may kill this whole expedition.
The 3.7 isn't turbocharged. They turbo'ed the 3.0. Unsure why except maybe for more mpgs? The 3.7 is the same motor in the 370z and just about every other V6 powered Nissan of that era. It's a solid motor as it's a slightly modded and bored out 3.5 VQ.
In reply to Xceler8x :
The 3.0 is an evolution of the VQ and probably has a smaller bore for more cylinder wall strength and more detonation resistance.
In reply to Xceler8x :
Right, but I was looking for newer, low mileage ones. I believe they stopped putting the 3.7 in these around 2017, but I could be wrong.
Ive always thought they looked sharp. They seem to have caught on with the "tuner" folks around here. Im seeing more and more of them lowered with nice wheels and exhaust.
I had a base model q50 as a rental car and I was quite impressed. Very tight, quick and comfy.
