Yesterday, I was at a local dealer for yet another re-flash of my ECU (another story!), the fifth time in 3 months.
The silver lining is that I finally had a chance to test drive the new JX. The floor model was calling my name and I must say it looked pretty nice with the wheel choice + color combo.
As some of you may know, we were recently in the market for a 3-row luxury SUV as we needed more room than my wife’s Murano offered us. Yes, we settled on a loaded Audi Q7 and have been pleasantly surprised. Our decision would have been more complicated if the JX (and perhaps Pathfinder) were released when we needed to purchase, as we have always been a Nissan family.
My initial thoughts on the JX from Auto Show pictures was one of loathing the D Pillars and wondering why the heck it was a FWD. An Infiniti?? It also reminded me of a larger Toyota Venza.
I decided to take it for a spin to see perhaps what we were missing and to hopefully preview what we may purchase a few years down to the road (Need to get back to 100% Nissan in or house!
). I went in with an open-mind and compared it to our Q7 and what my wife likes about that vehicle.
Here are my personal (not technical) and objective thoughts on what solidified our stance:
FWD (or AWD with front bias) Vs the Q7’s [FONT=&]performance-minded [/FONT]rear[FONT=&] bias all-[/FONT]wheel drive
Not even close. The handling on the JX reminded me of a slightly larger Murano (not bad) but the Q7 allowed me to do quite a bit more without significant lean. Something about peeling out of a corner with the rear-wheels 'pushing' you. The Q7’s Adaptive Suspension also provides even more ride flexibility and directional stability.
Sun-Roof
This was HUGE (Pun intended) to my wife. She has been spoiled by the Q7's Panaroma Sunroof and with a car that long, the far reaching sunroof helps the back not seem like a cave to those seated there. Yes, the JX offers this but the dealership tells me only a small percentage of the JXs were shipped with that option (1 or 2 per dealership in the Chicago area) and that if we wanted it, it would take about 4 – 6 months(!) Big fail IMHO. Especially if you promoted that option. Can we confirm that this is indeed the case? Three dealerships have since confirmed thay got 1 or so and sold those immedietely.
Interior Appointments
The Motor Trend review was right on (I saw that today). The interior appointments were just nice. Nothing that wowed you. I actually think my 50S' interior has more bells and whistles. The Q7 is not as nice as the 50 inside but certainly nicer than a similarly loaded JX.
Exterior
Simple. Needs to be less minivan on the next redesign. Perhaps lowered it will look great. I do like the pictured model I saw on the showroom floor.
Drone
Lastly, the drone! I got excited that the JX may sound a little like my 1[SUP]st[/SUP] Gen FX seeing that the commercials seem to indicate so. No mas! It turns out the JX ‘sounds’ just like the Murano and the drone from the commercial was pure Hollywood. Dang it!
All in all, the JX is a nicely appointed sporty, luxury people-hauler, with the Murano's driving charecteristics. It does not pretend to be what it is not. For me, the Q7 suits us a bit better for the aforementioned reasons. As an introductory entry, it should sell well, even though it deviates a bit from Infiniti’s ‘performance’ mantra. (FWD?) At least it holds up on the luxury end and the personal assistant is a sweet option.
Sorry for my lack of brevity here and excuse any typos.
The silver lining is that I finally had a chance to test drive the new JX. The floor model was calling my name and I must say it looked pretty nice with the wheel choice + color combo.
As some of you may know, we were recently in the market for a 3-row luxury SUV as we needed more room than my wife’s Murano offered us. Yes, we settled on a loaded Audi Q7 and have been pleasantly surprised. Our decision would have been more complicated if the JX (and perhaps Pathfinder) were released when we needed to purchase, as we have always been a Nissan family.
My initial thoughts on the JX from Auto Show pictures was one of loathing the D Pillars and wondering why the heck it was a FWD. An Infiniti?? It also reminded me of a larger Toyota Venza.
I decided to take it for a spin to see perhaps what we were missing and to hopefully preview what we may purchase a few years down to the road (Need to get back to 100% Nissan in or house!
). I went in with an open-mind and compared it to our Q7 and what my wife likes about that vehicle.Here are my personal (not technical) and objective thoughts on what solidified our stance:
FWD (or AWD with front bias) Vs the Q7’s [FONT=&]performance-minded [/FONT]rear[FONT=&] bias all-[/FONT]wheel drive
Not even close. The handling on the JX reminded me of a slightly larger Murano (not bad) but the Q7 allowed me to do quite a bit more without significant lean. Something about peeling out of a corner with the rear-wheels 'pushing' you. The Q7’s Adaptive Suspension also provides even more ride flexibility and directional stability.
Sun-Roof
This was HUGE (Pun intended) to my wife. She has been spoiled by the Q7's Panaroma Sunroof and with a car that long, the far reaching sunroof helps the back not seem like a cave to those seated there. Yes, the JX offers this but the dealership tells me only a small percentage of the JXs were shipped with that option (1 or 2 per dealership in the Chicago area) and that if we wanted it, it would take about 4 – 6 months(!) Big fail IMHO. Especially if you promoted that option. Can we confirm that this is indeed the case? Three dealerships have since confirmed thay got 1 or so and sold those immedietely.
Interior Appointments
The Motor Trend review was right on (I saw that today). The interior appointments were just nice. Nothing that wowed you. I actually think my 50S' interior has more bells and whistles. The Q7 is not as nice as the 50 inside but certainly nicer than a similarly loaded JX.
Exterior
Simple. Needs to be less minivan on the next redesign. Perhaps lowered it will look great. I do like the pictured model I saw on the showroom floor.
Drone
Lastly, the drone! I got excited that the JX may sound a little like my 1[SUP]st[/SUP] Gen FX seeing that the commercials seem to indicate so. No mas! It turns out the JX ‘sounds’ just like the Murano and the drone from the commercial was pure Hollywood. Dang it!
All in all, the JX is a nicely appointed sporty, luxury people-hauler, with the Murano's driving charecteristics. It does not pretend to be what it is not. For me, the Q7 suits us a bit better for the aforementioned reasons. As an introductory entry, it should sell well, even though it deviates a bit from Infiniti’s ‘performance’ mantra. (FWD?) At least it holds up on the luxury end and the personal assistant is a sweet option.
Sorry for my lack of brevity here and excuse any typos.
