HOw many of you actually pay any headance to what the Car Magazines ( e.g. MOTOR TREND,CAR AND DRIVER) say especially when they do their comparisons before buying a car...I mean they do a pretty thorough test by professionals.( the comparos are like 10 pages long yipes!) If they suddenly wrote in their comparos that the M35/M45 is the best car out right now..would you


WOULD YOU ACTUALLY BUY AN INFINITI ? which has No history whatsoever

 

I wouldn't want an Infiniti because their relibility and service isn't up to par with Lexus yet.

 

I read the mags. It's a good source of information. I wouldn't go out and buy a car solely based upon a magazine review though.

We have an Infiniti - an '05 FX 35 (wifey's car) She loves it. Sounds nice - goes pretty decently for a car of it's type and is cool for hauling little stuff, camping, the dog etc.

Love it or hate it looks - but she loves it.

Not as nice as an M-B or Audi or Lexus as far as the interior is concerned though.

One of my best pals just picked up an M35. I don't happen to like the exterior - but it drives well (certainly more sporting than my E320 was) and I actually like the M interior.

I don't give a hoot about history - I care about the product itself.

 

I read them all and study the numbers, but take conclusions with a grain of salt.
In periodicals like MT, Car&Driver and Road&Track, MB is usually penalized because the ride leans toward comfort in the balance between comfort and handling. BMW leans toward handling. From the seat of my pants, Infinity lacks any suppleness or comfort and Lexus is all suppleness and comfort with no handling. My last 6 cars have either MB or BMW, I would love to buy Japanese for the electronics and reliability but every time I test drive one it comes up short vs the Germans.

 

I have never bought a car soley based on a magazine review but they can stir interest in a model. I also would not be seen in the winner of that comparison, the brand is still in chaos.

 

Many years ago, I bought Motor Trend's "Car of the Year". It was the biggest pile of crap I have ever owned. Since then, I read the reviews but don't believe much of what they say. My own judgement has proven to be more valuable that the magazine reviews. And, both my Mercedes have proven to be excellent cars in spite of the opinions stated in the printed reviews.

 

don't mean to burst your bubble, the E's actually do well on the C&D comparos, the current E was the top in the C&D comparo in 03'.. the previous generation was the top in teh comparo done in the previous comparo. I guess the 07' was just getting old with alot of competition from newer models that pushed it back in this latest comparo.

 

...Or the car's reputation for Owner Aggravation.

 

I read both car magazines and Consumer Report. The car magazines almost never touch on the reliability issue for most cars unless they do a long term report, which only covers very few cars. I read the Consumer Report for the the reliability of the make. Yea, I know our E is rated poor by CR, but I bought it before they rated the E. What can I say, a mistake on my part.

 

I read them all the time, even though I don't usually agree with their top choice and buy something else. In this particular case I understand perfectly why they chose the M45 over a pretty stellar lineup of Luxury cars. Motor Trend tends to add a LOT of points for sportiness, even in 4,100 lb large sedans, and there is no question that the m45 is the sportiest car in that bunch, especially the sport model. Drive one this week and you'll see for yourself.

Does that make it the best car for you, or me? In my case probably not, as I would rather have a sports car (cayman S,M coupe) for those times I want to rip through the canyons and a sporty cruiser for those 2-4 hour drives. For this job, I'd choose the E550 in a heartbeat over the rest of the cars in that comparison.