BY TONY SWAN, PHOTOGRAPHY BY PATRICK M. HOEY AND ROBERT KERIAN
June 2011
Date: June 2011
Months in Fleet: 14 months
Current Mileage: 35,876 miles
Average Fuel Economy: 20 mpg
Range: 400 miles
Service: $622
Normal Wear: $1464
Repair: $1050
Damage and Destruction: $2661
As noted in our Infiniti M56’s introduction report, the surest index of approval for a long-term test car is how often it’s signed out for lengthy trips, and how rapidly it accumulates mileage. Measured against that index, and amplified by multiple logbook rants, our long-term Infiniti M56 hasn’t been as popular with horizon-chasing staffers as one might expect of a luxed-up sports sedan with 420 horses pushing it down the road.
Even more telling, the long-distance users have disappeared almost entirely, preferring to log the long hauls in other rides. During its first 20,000 miles in the fleet, the M56 was recruited for runs from Ann Arbor to such disparate destination as Winnipeg, upstate New York, and Minneapolis, as well as shorter visits to Michigan’s border states.
Since then, however, it hasn’t seen many lengthy voyages, venturing far from home just twiceâ€"to April’s New York auto show and, more recently, to West Virginia. As a consequence, almost 15 months into the test, the M56 is still some 4000 miles short of its 40,000-mile goal.
Electronic Hiccups
Many, if not most, of the M56’s logbook gripes have to do with the car’s electronics, an operating area that began to draw flak in the first 20,000 miles and have drawn even more as we head down the home stretch.
Most egregious under this heading was an episode during January when various warning lights began flashing on the dashboardâ€"warning lights that defy interpretation without consulting the owner’s manual. This went on intermittently for about 1500 miles, and during those miles the stability control ceased to functionâ€"always exciting during a Michigan winter. Ultimately, the electronic hysteria was curbedâ€"though not entirely eliminatedâ€"with the installation of a new CPU, replaced at no charge under warranty.
Since then, there have been reports of random electronic weirdness. For example, on occasion, the adaptive cruise control refuses to set, flashing the IBA (Intelligent Brake Assist) warning light. This can usually be cured by shutting the car off and re-startingâ€"the basic reboot approach. It’s not the end of the world, but it’s irritating nonetheless.
Most recently, there have been reports of the right-front power window occasionally failing to respond to the switch, and the power-adjustable steering column failing to return to its preset after the driver has belted up and started the car. It responds to its basic controls, but its short-term memory shows lapses. We’ve also seen some peeling and delaminating of the rubbery coating on the steering wheel and door handles.
Uncomfortable Comfort
The other ongoing area of kvetching falls into the comfort categoryâ€"ride quality bordering on harsh, seats that begin to feel inhospitable after a couple hundred miles, and persistent mechanical noise. There’s also the road noise transmitted by the suspension, which is particularly loud in the rear cabin.
Based on our experience to date, we regret checking the Sport package’s option box, which added $3650 to the $67,980 as-tested total. The combination of stiffer suspension and low-profile rubber (245/40-20 Bridgestone Potenzas) add up to ride quality that’s simply out of step with this car’s luxury mission, at least on the roads we travel regularly in southeast Michigan.
Beyond that, there’s the suite of passive safety features bundled in the $3000 Technology package: adaptive cruise control, distance-control assist, blind-spot warning and intervention, lane-departure warning and intervention, brake assist with forward collision warning, pre-crash front seatbelt response, and adaptive headlights. Reactions to these features have ranged from indifferent to irritated, and drivers quickly identified the functions that could be defeated, leaving them dormant as much as possible.
And then there’s the car’s “Eco†setting, which manages throttle response and makes it pretty much impossible to summon all of the car’s robust horsepower when desired. Reaction to “Eco†mode has been uniformly hostile. It was switched off at about mid-test and to the best of our knowledge hasn’t seen any use since.
Tallying the Expenses
To date, our total out-of-pocket outlay for the Infiniti stands at a hefty $5797, excluding charges for swapping to winter tires and back again. However, we hasten to point out that $2661 of the total was accounted for by costs that were no fault of the car: a cracked windshield ($1121) and a very expensive cracked wheel ($1539). We also replaced all four tires at the same time (31,022 miles), for $1464â€"less than the cost of that one wheel. There have been four routine service visits to date, totaling $622. There have also been eight unscheduled visits, most of which were for warranty matters, but three were not covered and added $1050 to our costs.
Specifications
VEHICLE TYPE: front-engine, rear-wheel drive, 5-passenger, 4-door sedan
PRICE AS TESTED: $67,980 (base price: $58,425)
ENGINE TYPE: DOHC 32-valve V-8, aluminum block and heads, direct fuel injection
Displacement: 339 cu in, 5552 cc
Power (SAE net): 420 bhp @ 6000 rpm
Torque (SAE net): 417 lb-ft @ 4400 rpm
TRANSMISSION: 7-speed automatic with manumatic shifting
DIMENSIONS:
Wheelbase: 114.2 in Length: 194.7 in
Width: 72.6 in Height: 59.1 in
Curb weight: 4136 lb
PERFORMANCE: NEW
Zero to 60 mph: 4.7 sec
Zero to 100 mph: 11.3 sec
Zero to 130 mph: 19.9 sec
Zero to 150 mph: 29.9 sec
Street start, 5â€"60 mph: 4.8 sec
Standing ¼-mile: 13.2 sec @ 108 mph
Top speed (governor limited): 157 mph
Braking, 70â€"0 mph: 165 ft
Roadholding, 300-ft-dia skidpad: 0.84 g
FUEL ECONOMY:
EPA city/highway driving: 16/25 mpg
C/D observed: 20 mpg
Unscheduled oil additions: 0 qt
WARRANTY:
4 years/60,000 miles bumper to bumper;
6 years/70,000 miles powertrain;
7 years/unlimited miles corrosion protection;
4 years/unlimited miles roadside assistance
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