In the early 2000s, when it came to Japanese sports cars, you were frequently forced to choose something that wasn’t particularly pleasant.
Don’t get us wrong: a lot of these cars were a blast to drive, particularly the Mazda Miata and Honda S2000. Unfortunately, they didn’t usually have much in the way of pure luxury and comfortability.
Fortunately, the folks at Nissan’s sibling business Infiniti saw the potential for a specialized sports vehicle that didn’t break your back every time you hit a pothole.
They then set out to design the ideal entry-level sports car that would fit into this market perfectly.
As a result, the 2003 G35 was developed and produced (which was first sold in 2002). The car began to garner high accolades from a number of well-known automotive institutions almost immediately.
Motor Trend, Car and Driver, and the North American International Auto Show were among them. As you might expect, Infiniti hailed the G35 as an all-around and official success.
So, you’re probably wondering, “why did the G35 get so much praise in the first place?” After all, it’s just a Nissan, and we’ve all heard about their recent troubles (admittedly, their situation is improving).
The truth is that there were a number of reasons why this car was so popular among collectors (as well as one very big reason).
The Flexibility
The flexibility to choose several body types appears to be a quality that has grown less common in today’s automotive market.
For example, in the past, you could choose between a two-door and a four-door Volkswagen Golf GTI.
Volkswagen, on the other hand, decided in 2017 that the four-door would be the only option going forward.
However, the G35 offered a two-door coupe or a four-door sedan. As a result, a variety of customers were able to enjoy a semi-luxurious entry-level sports car without having to make many sacrifices.
The G35 could be ordered as a speedy family saloon or as a sporty-looking two-seater with very cramped back seats, thanks to these choices.
Engine Option
The G35, like any other good sports vehicle, comes with a terrific engine under the hood. The G35 was powered by Nissan’s VQ35DE 3.5-liter V6 engine. Between 2002 and 2007, the engine was so good that it was named to Ward’s “Top 10 Engine” list every year.
The engine may produce between 260 and 298 horsepower depending on the body style, transmission, powertrain (rear-wheel or all-wheel drive), trim level, and model year chosen by the customer.
A stock G35 may theoretically run from 0-60 MPH in 5.3 seconds as a result of fitting such a powerful engine to such a light-ish car (2007 Infiniti G35 Sport Sedan).
However, because of the extensive aftermarket assistance that was and still is available for this car, you can get a G35 up to 60 MPH significantly faster.
Transmission Option
Infiniti did, as previously said, provide customers with a transmission option. You could get a 5-speed automatic or a 6-speed manual transmission, just like many other cars at the time.
The automatic transmission would be your sole option if you choose the AWD sedan. As you can expect, aficionados loved the combination of rear-wheel drive and manual transmission.
Performance
Finally, the G35 was constructed on the Nissan FM platform, which is its strongest feature.
The engine was situated directly behind the front axle, as a result. As a result, the G35 has a 52 percent front weight distribution and a 48 percent rear weight distribution.
The G35 was intended for drifting because of its nearly perfect weight distribution. The Falken Drifting Team ran their own G35 in many events throughout the 2004, 2005, 2006, and 2007 seasons because it was so good at kicking the tail out. It even managed to win a handful of games!
As a result, you could argue that the G35’s trendiest feature isn’t necessarily its most useful.
After all, drifting will almost certainly cost you a lot of money in tire replacements as well as traffic violations.
But hey, if a cop pulls you over and asks why you’re sliding around, you can say, “I was just testing out my G35’s coolest function!” (Just keep in mind that saying this will almost certainly land you in the back of a cop cruiser).