Anyone familiar with 03-04 Infiniti M45's?
 

Even with their quirky looks, I've always like them, and having a 340hp V8 doesn't hurt either. The 03-04's seem to have a very low entry cost which usually signals issues, but from the casual reading I've done, it seems this is more due to rarity (only 8k total) and they are fairly reliable.

Anyone own one or know them well? I understand it's a 15 year old car, but well maintained examples with ~100k routinely go for sub $4k around here....catches?

Quirky just because that was the reasoning they gave when they changed the design after only 2 years. They definitely have a unique look, but one I like. For a 15 year old car, they have some very modern options (heated and cooled seats, laser guided cruise, very dated but does have navigation)

I leased a new one for three years. Rocket ship acceleration. Very nice interior. Reliable. Interesting looks. Aweful transmission. Really indecisive. Slightest push on the throttle would kick down a bunch of gear and hurl you down the road. Stamp on the throttle to pass slower traffic and is would hesitate. Tried to get the dealer to fix it and their response was “they all do that sir”.

I just recently purchased a 7 y/o M56 with 60K mi and so far I am impressed. It certainly is the most luxurious car I've ever owned and having 410 hp on tap can be fun.
I'd like to think the Infiniti quality will be equal to or surpass most German vehicles, but that remains to be seen. Time will tell.

How's the gas mileage? I have a bit of a commute but after driving a hybrid for years, I'd like to spend some time in a "fun" car and am prepared to give up some mpg's to enjoy it.

Pretty sure those were the years Nissan, Infiniti were struggling to stay in business.

Same years they produced cars such as i20, j30 and the m.

If you want a nice well built Infiniti m go with the next generation..

I owned a 2007 m35. In 10yrs the only issue i had was a belt..130k when i sold it(gave it to a friend).

Not sure about the M35, but the 2nd gen M45 (2005+) had trouble with excessive oil consumption and it seems like replacement engines were common. The 03-04 M45 had some reports of the same issue, but no where near as big a problem.

I'm going to check one out today. For $3500, I figure if it only lasts a year or two, it will still be fun to tool around in a powerful V8 after having an 08 Camry Hybrid for the past 7 years.

If you want fun and decent fuel economy and disposable, Fiat 500 Abarth?

Hey TobySmileWavy

About time for a new car and this time around, I'm aiming more for fun than practicality. It won't be a forever car, or possibly even only a couple years. I've always liked the looks of that specific generation M45, and seeing how affordable they are, it was worth taking a closer look.

I'll report back.

Its funny how searching for one car related thing can give very different results.

I've been searching for M45 y34(1st gen) and a bunch of Lexus GS forum posts and results kept popping up. Turns out the M45 had HID low beams that seem to retrofit nicely into the Lexus GS cars of the same time period and was a common swap...who knew?

A lot of those and the Maximas got stolen for the HID lights.

I would assume those days are long over since HID's are old tech now.

I remember the first car I ever drove with HID's was a S2000 when I worked for Honda. All the sales people were mesmerized. Cools lights for sure (at least compared to halogen)

G35 is a hecka fun ride too, 4 door Z car

I can't comment on the fuel economy as I haven't put much more than about 400 mi on it since I got it and 250 of those miles were in a terribly snowy, slushy drive home.

With that much power on tap you're always tempted to put your foot into it ( especially since this one is fitted with a Borla exhaust system), but I think that novelty will eventually wear off.

The system does have 4 modes of operation, standard, eco, snow and sport. When in Eco mode there is a green indicator in the instrument panel that will stay lit as long as you drive sensibly and will go off whenever you push it more than deemed necessary. So I would expect reasonable economy when in cruise and in Eco mode. Probably somewhere in the range of 12L/100km. (Sorry, too lazy to convert that over to MPG.

I'm sure it won't be as good as my Tdi Passat but better than my SC.

But, for the price of admission I'm willing to spend a bit more on fuel just for the comfort it provides. Everybody is entitled to an opinion.

Cannot comment on that generation or M series Infiniti but our '11 G37 has been fantastic. Basic maintenance only through 85K miles. It eats up highway miles in comfort and with the 3.7L has plenty of go. Combined mpg for us is around 20, but on freeway trips it hits high 20's. My single complaint echos the transmission comments above in that it tends to pick the wrong gear on surface streets and slow to react. If I'm having some fun I drop it into sport mode and all that fussy stuff goes away.

Thanks guys. I was expecting the car to be a basket case just because the ad was so poorly written but overall, pretty good condition. I was late getting there so only a short drive but definitely seems like a fun car with a pretty smooth ride even being 16 years old. 109k miles, some maintenance records from the dealership but mostly routine things like oil changes.

I was impressed enough that i might head back this weekend for a more complete once over.