FX35/ 50 or Cayenne

[Mike K]

Which would you choose and why?

This is for the wife. She's given me complete freedom. I was big on the newer X5's but reliability on them is supposed to be worse than terrible and after dropping 5k into A8 maintenance this past few months I'm so over that.

I'm leaning towards the 2009+ FX because it addresses all the complaints I had about our 2006 (crap Bose stereo, no iPod adapter, crap Bluetooth, shitty interior) plus reliability wouldn't be an issue. The exhaust sound was crafted by God and it's a good handling SUV.

Cayenne would be a 2008+ likely the V6 model. I gave it a pretty scathing review a couple years ago but it's safe, handles well and is actually quite reliable. Downsides here are the interior of the last gen has a lot of hard plastics and crappy tech and it's slow. Upsides are it looks great, sounds nice, handles amazingly and oh yeah, it looks great.

Which one and why? If not these, what else? No Ford, Chevy or Chrysler, no MDX and no Lexus.

Click to read more...

 

[RedBeard]

FX for sure. Can't beat the reliability of an Infiniti and they're a lot cheaper to fix the few small things they have issues with. Obviously you know the gas mileage on them sucks though.

 

[daturbosix]

y no tbss option?

 

[EmersonHart13]

Cayenne is ugly.

Love the FX.

BUY A TESLA.

/rant

 

[SaturdaysGS]

FX. It might not be the fastest but it sounds damn good!

 

[IceCreamAssassin]

I'm gonna be the odd ball and say the Porsche. Went for a test drive in one with my uncle and the salesman. Was super impressed with how car like handling the giant vehicle had. Plus I personally think it looks better.

 

[Rebel]

I pick the FX. Driven both and I like the infiniti a little more. Nicer interior imo. Same opinion about the plastics. I feel for a 70k car, especially porsche there should be less plastic.

 

[serb82]

Say away from the turbo cayenne, lots of issues, I like the fx based solely on looks

 

[MikeyLikesIt]

Why no MDX? Top rated reliability with consumer reports and it has a decent engine. I am considering this for the wife at the moment. ML350 has always rated well also but the engine is not that exciting. The ML550 with the new twin turbo V8 has been reviewed well, but there are so few out there.

 

[cacicgtp7]

I'll be honest... I vote neither?

 

[Bru]

I don't really see a need for the FX50 unless you want that V8 sound. Actually never felt much quicker than the FX37 but sure did sound awesome. We haven't received a V8 FX in the fleet for years. Hell, they don't even offer the engine anymore. The V-6 also had a more neutral feel with less weight over the nose.

What about the Audi Q5? Done with Audi? That car has nearly as much cargo room and a bigger backseat than the FX. CPO car: 2011 Audi Q5 2.0T Premium quattro, $29,990 - Cars.com

 

[boostedguy05]

ive driven the FX50 and it just felt odd. sounded great but that was about it. the whole time it felt like it was stuck in low gear.

Q5 or Touraeg
http://www.cars.com/vehicledetail/detail/611910076/overview/

2014 Volkswagen Touareg VR6, $33,995 - Cars.com

 

[Mike K]

The Audi has really turned me off to anything Audi for her. The A8 needs an entire intake manifold now to the tune of $1500 because a small plastic part broke off inside. I've dumped $5,000 into that car over the past couple months. I've never seen a car with more needlessly complicated systems than the A8. You're really a dumbass if you want to own this car out of warranty. As far as cost of ownership between the $5000 it's cost me to operate it and the $4,000 I'm going to lose in selling it, I'll have spent $9,000 for less than a year of ownership. I could have gone out and bought a very lightly used 4.0T A8 for that money. I actually love the Q7 but can't help but to feel like it's not going to be any more reliable.

That and the fact that my wife is a typical woman and she treats a car like it's less delicate than it is and Audi's don't have interiors that are forgiving, at least not the A8. The buttons are soft touch and the material easily comes off of them. The leather scratches, the dyed colors in the center console wear from purses being set on it. A Q7 or Q5 would feel like I'm making a lateral move. No more reliable from a power train standpoint, no more resilient to kids and just more physical real estate for my wife and toddler to wear out.

In that respect the FX35 seems like a good fit and the hard plastic'd Cayenne does as well.

Joe, only reason I was considering the FX50 is because you really don't pay in gas mileage for the extra power. I think it was something like 1 mpg less in the city and the highway. For a V8 that's nothing however I'm finding that the V8's are a LOT more expensive so I'd probably nix that idea anyhow. How would you rate the FX compared to other SUVs like the X5 or Cayenne? People generally toss the Cayenne and FX into the same boat as far as being fun.

Bottom line for me is fun and reliable which I think makes the FX the clear winner. This experiment with having two out of warranty German cars has failed, at least with respect to the 4 ringed example. The Bavarian one is still flawless.

 

[Bru]

Totally understand about the bad taste left by Audi.

Unfortunately don't have much time in a V6 Cayenne. Last one I drove was a 2009 GTS, which was fantastic at the time but looks way dated right now. Especially compared to a late model FX with dark interior. The darker interior FXs are very nice, and their multimedia system has held up well too.

 

[BeerOrGasoline]

Infiniti makes one hell of a car for someone who just gets in and drives everyday. My pops rocks about 30-35k miles a year in his vehicles and his current M56xS has been the best vehicle he has had in terms of reliability and the cars overall resistance to looking "beat" despite his best efforts. Roster of the last 3 vehicles he's had includes a '10 E550, '06 LS430 and '03 LS430. None have looked as good after similar periods of time nor caused as little of headache as the Infiniti. I'm not a fan of imports in the slightest but this thing has done nothing short of been impressive.

 

[framos242]

FX. /thread

 

[Angus]

If you won't consider a Q7, then why would you consider a Cayenne? Aren't they basically the same thing?

 

[radioguy6]

I'd vote Infiniti FX37/QX70. If she liked driving the 35, she will like the 37. The VQ37 and 7AT are a nice matchup. Like you said they addressed the complaints with the 1st gen (which was mostly rushed, premature tech) and it looks good. You get a lot for your money and reliability. It a functional SUV built off a modified Z/G chassis, so you get impressive handling and the sexy exhaust note. I've put 100K on my G35, it feels and drives the same as when I got it. They are solid cars.

 

[Primalzer]

V10TD Toureg

/Thread