2008 Infiniti G37 Sport

2008 Infiniti G37 Sport - Extra crash structure adds weight, but don’t expect a “Safety Kills the Sports Coupe” headline any time soon. Larger brakes and a slightly heavier engine contribute some pounds as well. Gaining 100 pounds is an unfortunate but not inexcusable way to shed the family-car image and increase your sex appeal.

The extra power doesn’t make much of a difference at the test track. The 0-to-60 sprint of 5.3 seconds is 0.2 second quicker than that of the G35 we compared with a BMW 328i [“Winds of Change?” April 2007], but 0.1 second slower than the first ’07 G35 we tested in October 2006. By the quarter-mile mark, the G37 is dead even with that October G35: 13.9 seconds at 103 mph. A far more important improvement in the G37, power increases aside, is the fact that it no longer sounds like it’s making grits inside the engine. The VQ is smooth again, and the exhaust note is a pleasing burble that’s always available with a quick mash of the electronically controlled throttle.

The G37 suspension is the same control-arm-front and multilink-rear configuration as the G35 sedan’s. Our test car came with the Sport package, which is standard with the six-speed manual and optional with the automatic transmission. It adds a red “S” to the rear badging and includes a stiffer suspension, limited-slip differential, and 19-inch wheels with high-performance Bridgestone rubber. The setup is good for 0.89 g on the skidpad, and the G37 is impressive on the road.

Dive into a turn, and the G37 transfers its weight gradually and without any surprises. Oversteer can be achieved on corner exit, but the neutral balance of the car means that any opposite-lock maneuvers are more of a four-wheel drift than throttle-induced tail wagging. The only thing we would ask for is a stiffer brake pedal, even though the 70-to-0 stopping distance is a respectable 164 feet. Still, the G37 is a most-satisfying driving experience. It has the trait of any good sports car: Driving the G37 hard is so enjoyable that you forgive its faults.

The rear seats fold in one piece to extend the length of the trunk, a good thing because seven cubic feet of storage isn’t much. There’s a diagram that illustrates how to load two golf bags, but the first impression of the shallow trunk is that a case of beer might risk getting crushed (it doesn’t).

So that’s the price of vanity, and thus the real issue with the G37. The previous-generation coupe was far more attractive than its sedan counterpart. The ’07 four-door G35 is significantly prettier than its predecessor, and the aesthetic gap has been narrowed. As far as most drivers will be able to tell, the performance of the two is nearly equal.

There’s another question, though: How does the G37 stack up against the BMW 335i coupe? It’s hard to say without putting them side by side in a comparison test, but you can bet the G37 will give the Bimmer a good fight.