American
Woman Road and Travel's Most Dependable Award is reserved for vehicles of the
four-door sedan variety, since more families have depended on them over time than
any other type of vehicle. With such popularity, the sedan market is fiercely
competitive, so you know whichever fresh four-door face takes the trophy, it's
got to be good. This year's winner, the Infiniti G35
near-luxury sedan, beat out such heavy-hitters as the all-new Toyota
Corolla and the fresh, suddenly stylish Honda Accord (which also comes in two-
and four-door bodystyles). And beating an Accord in any respect is no small feat. Inside
and out, the G35 has a tastefully restrained form vocabulary. No clutter on the
exterior, with stacked headlights leading into an uncluttered fuselage that stretches
along a long wheelbase all the way back to a tidy tush. Inside, the metallic-finished
dashboard is fresh, contemporary and all-business, with a gauge cluster that moves
up and down with the steering wheel. Ergonomics are user-friendly, while all seats
are snug and well-supported (you can even order a reclining rear seat option).
Nissan's
sinewy 3.5-liter (which explains the "35" in G35) V-6 produces gobs
of power (265 hp), and sends it all to the rear wheels-not the front-which is
good news for those of us who prefer the fair-weather charisma of rear-wheel-drive
cars. Standard traction control makes snowy roads less daunting, and there is
a full compliment of safety equipment, including curtain air bags, offer the kind
of occupant protection that is expected on luxury sedans. Truly,
the G35 is a fantastic product: luxurious, engaging and dashingly good-looking
-- in short, it's fully warranting of the Most Dependable Award on its product
merits alone. And this rings only truer when price is factored in: both models
start under $30,000, with top-of-the-line G35s with all option boxes checked coming
in still well under $40K. Additionally,
however, it's impossible to overstate the impact the G35 will have on the once-struggling
Nissan Motor Corporation (parent company of Infiniti) here in the United States.
Like the underdog baseball team that came from behind to make it into the World
Series, Nissan has hit home run after home run at crucial points during the last
couple of years: first with the Frontier Crew Cab, then with the Altima sedan.
This year came the historic 350Z
sports car (another RTM winner this year). And now, with the Infiniti
G35, Nissan Motor Corp. seems to have scored the fairy tale grand slam home run
to win the series. The folks at Nissan should be proud. They've earned it.
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