My M37x review and how it stacks up next to the auto TL
06-03-2010, 04:18 PM
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My M37x review and how it stacks up next to the auto TL
WARNING THIS IS A TEXTWALL!
I went to the nearest Infiniti dealer (Infiniti Quebec) to test 2 cars at the beginning of May 2010. I took an appointment with a nice salesman (same age, university degree in business administration, sold Lexus in Nova Scotia for a few years and learn english) who let me drive both cars and “open” them on the highway and back roads. I had good test drives (20-25 minutes each) with plenty of right, left turns, highway merging and braking abruptly…
So I test drove the G37x coupe and the M37x. I pondered during a month about writing a review because 1) I wanted to make a good review with more in-dept information than what you would find in a normal post 2) I was doing home renovations which left me little time to sit and write some cohesive stuff.
Since the M37x and the TL SH-AWD are the same size, same weight and both feature nice electronics and a long list of amenities. I figured I would write a full review to describe how it felt to drive the latest iteration of the M and how it compares to the TL. As I suspected, they are both enjoyable cars!
Exterior:
The new M is a gorgeous car IMHO, the sheet metal is well designed and I thought it looked great from all angles even in grey color. However, while the TL has been criticized for its numerous angles and the “beak”, I think the M goes a little too far with the curves. The hood in particular is too bulbous for my tastes. I won’t comment further on the exterior look as it is something so personal but for me it seems normal that both the TL and M have some design “overflow” since both were criticized to be to plain (3G TL and M35/45) in their older sheet metal. You have to bring the spotlight to you one way or the other, no?
Interior:
This is where both car differ the most. If you like the aluminum trim in the TL, you’ll be disappointed in the M, much like you probably dislike the TL interior if you want wood trims and leather everywhere.
The new M features a very nice interior with soft leather everywhere, very few hard plastics and some wood on the dash and the handles areas. Personally, I don’t like wood trims so the M interior put me off a bit but I can appreciate the interior nonetheless. Even with my tastes (or lack of) I must say the interior is nicely put together with great quality materials and a nice, luxurious feel. Infiniti put a lot of attention to the details and it shows.
Space is more limited in the M than the TL though because the center arm rest sits higher but even then, with my 6’4’’ 215lbs with size 16 shoes, I found plenty of space to be happy. That should tell you that a mere number of cubic space of interior volume don’t mean much. The TL is roomier than the M, like it or not. Even if it boasts bigger numbers, the space in the M has been stored somewhere else than the front seats! Speaking of the seats, they were comfortable and well supportive but not as much as the TL SH-AWD seats. On the plus side, the head restraints were much less intrusive in the M than the TL (which is my only gripe about the interior of the TL). Finally, headroom is good even for tall people.
One note is that the seats are both heated and ventilated in the M, which is good in the hot springs and summers we have now. This is a definite plus compared to the TL.
I did not have the time to test all the electronics so I’ll leave that aside for now.
Driving feel:
Driving the new M was a pleasant experience. The steering is precise and is quite communicative, more so than the TL. However, the steering wheel feeling and thickness are not as great as the nice steering wheel we have in the TL because it’s smaller in diameter. My long fingers think the TL wheel is a delight to grab with the contrast stitching and all, less so in the M. YMMV on this one as you might prefer a smaller wheel.
The M37x suspension works well to absorb the bumps and imperfections of the road. I tested it on some crappy pavement and it was quite smooth. This is due in part to the fact the car come equipped with 18 inches wheels with A/S tires bearing a 50 profile inflated at 32-35 PSI so I expected it to be smoother than my TL with 18 inches wheels using summer tires (245/45R18) inflated at 40/36 PSI.
The car feels composed and quite neutral when pushed a little, a little less than the TL though but not enough to ruin confidence of driving the M37x hard. The brakes felt as good as those found in the TL so it’s a draw here.
Acceleration is about the same as the TL SH-AWD (auto) which means the car acceleration would be deemed “adequate” for luxo-sport sedan territory. The first reports (Edmunds and similar car rags) claim 0-60mph in the 5.8-6.0 range which is the same as the TL. Both have 2 nice engines here but I prefer the J series to the VQ. It felt smoother, maybe it is because I’m used to it? My main question is it a best engine to go with a luxo-sport sedan? It revs up to 7500-7600 RPM and the real juice sits at 4 000-5 000 RPM, seems odd for a luxurious sedan. I’ll let the engine experts argue about this one. The cabin is well isolated with active noise control. It is about as quiet as the TL with A/S tires but the TL does not have to resort to ANC to be quiet…
My main gripe is the M new 7 speed transmission (using 4 modes: Snow, Eco, Standard and Sport). I took great care of letting it in Sport mode all along. The transmission hunts gears (which is normal at 7 speed, the spaces between gears is so small and tight) and the sport mode hold the revs longer but not by much. The gears can be shifted using the lever so no paddles for the driver! I prefer shifting using the lever anyway so it was not a great concern. To make a long story short, I didn’t like it much and I prefer the 5 speed auto of the TL. I also like the S mode in the TL much more than the Sport mode of the M. This also confirmed that from my perspective, a 6 speed automatic for the TL would be the best balance of numerous forward gears without excessive gear hunting.
My sweetest moment when test-driving the M37x compared to the TL was the RWD bias of the AWD system found in the M. It is nothing but personal preferences but for me it was a big eye opener. RWD biased AWD is good fun and the overall driving feel is greatly enhanced IMHO. The TL can be driven much more aggressively but it lacks the panache and driving feel of having the power sent to the rear wheels. I don’t want to start an argument about the SH-AWD power distribution since it is clearly very effective but I think the overall driving experience could be enhance by simply sending more or all the power to the rear wheels. This is a subject to a more casual debate though…
Overall, the M is a nice package. I would say it seems more fitted for older people (40+) who might like wood trims and leather everywhere. I know I do not. I am a carbon fibre, aluminum and titanium guy. The M interior feels more luxurious with the leather on the door panels but it was a bit too much for me. On the bright side, it features plenty of amenities, good acceleration, braking and balance. The steering feel is great while the cabin is comfortable, roomy and quiet.
There is no denying that the M is a neat car. If you want a package similar to the TL with a more luxurious feel and a more "organic" look, the new M37x is a great place to start looking…
But then there is the price…the new M37x is around 56K $CDN compared to 48K $CDN for the TL. The 8 000 $ (9 000 $ with sales taxes in Quebec) seems a steep price increase for a more conservative look, leather on my door panels and ventilated seats. I’ll let the potential buyer ponder the pluses and minuses and enjoy the test drives as while I question the value equation of the M37x, I can not say it is not a nice package and a well-thought car…
In traditional Internet fashion where we hijack threads my final comment will go to the M56x. While the prospect of a V8 is a nice one, the price Infiniti is asking is simple robbery at 65-69 000 $CDN IMHO. At that price, you can buy so many cars than a luxo-sport sedan featuring a 4.8-5.0 0-60mph as the only bonus is asking for trouble. I’ll let you decide if it is worth it or not.
I hope this review proved to be entertaining to all the readers. Feel free to comment!
My Canadian
-YetiTL
I went to the nearest Infiniti dealer (Infiniti Quebec) to test 2 cars at the beginning of May 2010. I took an appointment with a nice salesman (same age, university degree in business administration, sold Lexus in Nova Scotia for a few years and learn english) who let me drive both cars and “open” them on the highway and back roads. I had good test drives (20-25 minutes each) with plenty of right, left turns, highway merging and braking abruptly…
So I test drove the G37x coupe and the M37x. I pondered during a month about writing a review because 1) I wanted to make a good review with more in-dept information than what you would find in a normal post 2) I was doing home renovations which left me little time to sit and write some cohesive stuff.
Since the M37x and the TL SH-AWD are the same size, same weight and both feature nice electronics and a long list of amenities. I figured I would write a full review to describe how it felt to drive the latest iteration of the M and how it compares to the TL. As I suspected, they are both enjoyable cars!
Exterior:
The new M is a gorgeous car IMHO, the sheet metal is well designed and I thought it looked great from all angles even in grey color. However, while the TL has been criticized for its numerous angles and the “beak”, I think the M goes a little too far with the curves. The hood in particular is too bulbous for my tastes. I won’t comment further on the exterior look as it is something so personal but for me it seems normal that both the TL and M have some design “overflow” since both were criticized to be to plain (3G TL and M35/45) in their older sheet metal. You have to bring the spotlight to you one way or the other, no?
Interior:
This is where both car differ the most. If you like the aluminum trim in the TL, you’ll be disappointed in the M, much like you probably dislike the TL interior if you want wood trims and leather everywhere.
The new M features a very nice interior with soft leather everywhere, very few hard plastics and some wood on the dash and the handles areas. Personally, I don’t like wood trims so the M interior put me off a bit but I can appreciate the interior nonetheless. Even with my tastes (or lack of) I must say the interior is nicely put together with great quality materials and a nice, luxurious feel. Infiniti put a lot of attention to the details and it shows.
Space is more limited in the M than the TL though because the center arm rest sits higher but even then, with my 6’4’’ 215lbs with size 16 shoes, I found plenty of space to be happy. That should tell you that a mere number of cubic space of interior volume don’t mean much. The TL is roomier than the M, like it or not. Even if it boasts bigger numbers, the space in the M has been stored somewhere else than the front seats! Speaking of the seats, they were comfortable and well supportive but not as much as the TL SH-AWD seats. On the plus side, the head restraints were much less intrusive in the M than the TL (which is my only gripe about the interior of the TL). Finally, headroom is good even for tall people.
One note is that the seats are both heated and ventilated in the M, which is good in the hot springs and summers we have now. This is a definite plus compared to the TL.
I did not have the time to test all the electronics so I’ll leave that aside for now.
Driving feel:
Driving the new M was a pleasant experience. The steering is precise and is quite communicative, more so than the TL. However, the steering wheel feeling and thickness are not as great as the nice steering wheel we have in the TL because it’s smaller in diameter. My long fingers think the TL wheel is a delight to grab with the contrast stitching and all, less so in the M. YMMV on this one as you might prefer a smaller wheel.
The M37x suspension works well to absorb the bumps and imperfections of the road. I tested it on some crappy pavement and it was quite smooth. This is due in part to the fact the car come equipped with 18 inches wheels with A/S tires bearing a 50 profile inflated at 32-35 PSI so I expected it to be smoother than my TL with 18 inches wheels using summer tires (245/45R18) inflated at 40/36 PSI.
The car feels composed and quite neutral when pushed a little, a little less than the TL though but not enough to ruin confidence of driving the M37x hard. The brakes felt as good as those found in the TL so it’s a draw here.
Acceleration is about the same as the TL SH-AWD (auto) which means the car acceleration would be deemed “adequate” for luxo-sport sedan territory. The first reports (Edmunds and similar car rags) claim 0-60mph in the 5.8-6.0 range which is the same as the TL. Both have 2 nice engines here but I prefer the J series to the VQ. It felt smoother, maybe it is because I’m used to it? My main question is it a best engine to go with a luxo-sport sedan? It revs up to 7500-7600 RPM and the real juice sits at 4 000-5 000 RPM, seems odd for a luxurious sedan. I’ll let the engine experts argue about this one. The cabin is well isolated with active noise control. It is about as quiet as the TL with A/S tires but the TL does not have to resort to ANC to be quiet…
My main gripe is the M new 7 speed transmission (using 4 modes: Snow, Eco, Standard and Sport). I took great care of letting it in Sport mode all along. The transmission hunts gears (which is normal at 7 speed, the spaces between gears is so small and tight) and the sport mode hold the revs longer but not by much. The gears can be shifted using the lever so no paddles for the driver! I prefer shifting using the lever anyway so it was not a great concern. To make a long story short, I didn’t like it much and I prefer the 5 speed auto of the TL. I also like the S mode in the TL much more than the Sport mode of the M. This also confirmed that from my perspective, a 6 speed automatic for the TL would be the best balance of numerous forward gears without excessive gear hunting.
My sweetest moment when test-driving the M37x compared to the TL was the RWD bias of the AWD system found in the M. It is nothing but personal preferences but for me it was a big eye opener. RWD biased AWD is good fun and the overall driving feel is greatly enhanced IMHO. The TL can be driven much more aggressively but it lacks the panache and driving feel of having the power sent to the rear wheels. I don’t want to start an argument about the SH-AWD power distribution since it is clearly very effective but I think the overall driving experience could be enhance by simply sending more or all the power to the rear wheels. This is a subject to a more casual debate though…
Overall, the M is a nice package. I would say it seems more fitted for older people (40+) who might like wood trims and leather everywhere. I know I do not. I am a carbon fibre, aluminum and titanium guy. The M interior feels more luxurious with the leather on the door panels but it was a bit too much for me. On the bright side, it features plenty of amenities, good acceleration, braking and balance. The steering feel is great while the cabin is comfortable, roomy and quiet.
There is no denying that the M is a neat car. If you want a package similar to the TL with a more luxurious feel and a more "organic" look, the new M37x is a great place to start looking…
But then there is the price…the new M37x is around 56K $CDN compared to 48K $CDN for the TL. The 8 000 $ (9 000 $ with sales taxes in Quebec) seems a steep price increase for a more conservative look, leather on my door panels and ventilated seats. I’ll let the potential buyer ponder the pluses and minuses and enjoy the test drives as while I question the value equation of the M37x, I can not say it is not a nice package and a well-thought car…
In traditional Internet fashion where we hijack threads my final comment will go to the M56x. While the prospect of a V8 is a nice one, the price Infiniti is asking is simple robbery at 65-69 000 $CDN IMHO. At that price, you can buy so many cars than a luxo-sport sedan featuring a 4.8-5.0 0-60mph as the only bonus is asking for trouble. I’ll let you decide if it is worth it or not.
I hope this review proved to be entertaining to all the readers. Feel free to comment!
My Canadian
-YetiTL
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