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Driving Impressions

The strength of the Infiniti G has always been its edgy performance: based on the Nissan Z, almost a rawness, particularly in the Coupe. Its weakness? It hasn't always been as smooth and quiet as many competitors, though Infiniti has made great strides in this respect the last several years.

For 2009, all G37 variants are equipped with a new engine introduced in the 2008 G37 coupe. This slightly larger 3.7 liter V6 increases horsepower and torque across the line, though exact output varies slightly depending on the body style. The Coupe's 330 horsepower is a lot to get out of a V6, and it ranks right at the top of the G37's class. The engine features the latest in material and control technology, including Infiniti's VVEL, for Variable Valve Event and Lift. This hydraulically-controlled variable valve timing system improves not only performance and response, but also emissions and fuel efficiency.

All G37 variants deliver responsive performance and great acceleration. Stand on the gas and they pull right up to maximum rpm, willingly and heartily revving to levels normally associated with smaller, less complex engines. And the character is as important as sheer performance.

These V6s generate about 270 pound-feet of torque at a peaky 5200 rpm, and rev to a howling pitch at 7500 rpm, where the rev limiter begins to gently cut fuel. The power comes on smooth and quick, accompanied by a unique howl crafted into the exhaust system. You can hear it when a G37 rolls by at 20 mph, and you can hear from the driver's seat with the windows down. It's likely to bring a smile to your face. You can barely hear it with the windows up, however, thanks to improvements Infiniti has made to the G37 by reducing noise and vibration inside.

Despite the extra dose of power for 2009, and acceleration near the top of the class, there's also a slight increase in fuel mileage, at least in cars equipped with the automatic transmission. EPA ratings increase 1 mpg City and 2 mpg Highway, to 18 mpg City/26 mpg Highway for G37s with rear-wheel drive, and 18 City/25 Highway for those with all-wheel drive. The mileage improvement comes primarily from a new seven-speed automatic, which has two more gears than its predecessor. This allows even brisker acceleration, with a big overdrive gear that means lower engine speeds and less noise when cruising on the freeway.

The automatic does its job rather casually at part throttle. Most of the time we stayed in plain old Drive, able to forget the transmission was even there. If the driver moves the moves the stubby leather-wrapped shift lever to the left, however, Sport mode is engaged. The upshifts come at higher rpm, and both upshifts and downshifts are sharper. Holding the right foot unwaveringly hard to the floor produces sharper, more solid shifts at the engine's redline.

For more aggressive driving on lightly traveled back roads, we found that the Manual mode is where we wanted to be. The automatic changes gears quickest and smoothest with either the shift lever or the column-mounted paddles under full throttle; it's like a power shift but without the clutch. Credit this to the engine's electronics, which feather the throttle through the instantaneous shift. The same electronics deliver smooth downshifts, too, whether in full auto mode or manual override, by blipping the throttle to match engine rpm to transmission speed in the lower gear. It's like double clutching a pure manual gearbox.

In short, the G37's seven-speed automatic is excellent, but we still like the conventional six-speed manual. We like it even better that Infiniti offers a manual in a category where such transmissions are increasingly rare. The six-speed's shift pattern is tight, and gear selection precise, requiring little effort. Clutch operation is heavier than we would expect even on a sports sedan. This makes for sometimes rocky clutch engagement, especially at low speeds and light throttle. But once the driver is used to it, it's a satisfying operation.

The balance of ride and handling is consistently good across the G37 line. This luxury car starts with rear-wheel drive, like a BMW, rather than front-wheel drive like an Acura. The G37 base and Journey models are a bit more softly sprung than the Sport 6MTs, but not even the base Sedan is floaty. Far from it, actually.

For hustling down winding roads, though, the Sedan's 6MT model's sport-tuned suspension (optional on all G37 variants) is the preferred choice. It's still quite comfortable cruising the Interstate: solid and taut, managing the G37's mass very well without exacting a price in stiffness. The sport suspension is firmer than the base suspension, to be sure, and it will transmit pavement heaves more dramatically into the passenger compartment. But over anything less than chunking blacktop or weathered concrete, it gives up very little against the standard suspension, which leans a bit more toward supple.

The Coupe might be the sportiest G37 of all. Its redesigned chassis is quite bit more solid than before, and a bit lower, with a slightly wider track. The multi-link rear suspension separates the shocks and coil springs, allowing ideal placement of each. You could forgive some stiffness from any suspension that provides high-performance handling, but as sporting coupes go, the G37 needs no slack in standards of ride comfort.

And we're really impressed with the handling, especially with the Sport package. The speed-sensitive power steering is seamless. It turns precisely into corners, with no dead spots through a long curve. The G's front-midship design, with the engine set farther back behind the front axle, is inherently well balanced. Driving hard over roads that would cause almost any car to twitch, the steering wheel stays remarkably steady.

The Coupe Sport 6MT is so good it almost has a downside. Pushing harder, over remote, twisty and smooth curves, we felt the standard limited-slip differential and stability electronics (VSD) at work. Or rather, we saw them working thanks to a light on the dash, The corrections are beautifully subtle. You can pitch the G37 to a ridiculous point, and the VSD just gently won't allow the car to get out of shape. It doesn't tell you how wrong you were, with a slap upside the head, like some other electronic stability systems might. And maybe sometimes the driver needs a good slap upside the head to know he or she was behaving badly.

For 2009, the new Coupe adds the all-wheel drive option. Infiniti's ATESSA E-TS system monitors data such as wheel spin, throttle position and vehicle speed, and automatically diverts up to 50 percent of the engine's power to the front wheels, improving traction and control when road conditions are less than optimal. Yet in ideal conditions, when the road is smooth and dry, the all-wheel drive system still sends all of the power to the rear wheels, preserving the G's sporty rear-drive handling characteristics. In both coupe and sedan, the G37x's AWD has a snow mode that electronically tempers throttle response, reducing the amount of power the engine delivers for a given movement of the gas pedal.

The G37 Sport models come with bigger brakes than the others. Yet in all cases the G37's four-wheel discs are smooth, predictable, and rock steady, inspiring confidence in any driver. They're also sensitive, and when you jump on them they grab, so it takes a little time to develop the technique for smooth application.

On freeways, all G37s cruise comfortably and quietly, and that may be the biggest improvement of all. While they maintain there sporty performance edge, much of the roughness, almost cheapness, has been refined out. The irritating drone that often plagued rear seat passengers in earlier Sedans is gone, and when it comes to controlling noise and vibration inside, the G37 competes on much better terms with competitors such as Lexus and Audi.

There's little wind noise even at extra-legal speeds. There's more road noise from the optional, larger tire packages than from the standard treads, but the added grip and, frankly, sharper looking 19-inch wheels are worth it.

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