M35 Stagea's.

[Bis-e Bee]

Andy is correct, the car was never taken off any of the websites it was advertised on after I purchased it.

I'm not concerned about it however, but it isn't for sale

[zei20l]

there are actually plenty of aftermarket bits for the car, what are you complaining about?? but remember its a MUCH newer model than the C34 so of course it wont have as much aftermarket support. and as for not having interchangable parts, what did you expect?? THEY ARE DIFFERENT CARS!!!!! if you dont like the tv screen incompatability, dont get one with tv. problem solved!

and +932842734523 on how awesome m35s are. ive never looked back, the only thing im not 100% happy with is that they is no manual option. but i drive in the city mostly so it doesnt matter anyway.........

[BezerkR32]

ive had mine about a month, did a service and brakes on it last week and was surprised how easy it was to work on.

i love driving it, find it hard to behave. lucky the wife has it most of the time. It is the most comfortable, smooth and strong ride i have driven for $20K. And it has all the bells and whistles. It is a touch thirstry ie 400km around town but thats 100 more than my SS. So far i am more than happy and most importantly so is the wife. It has much better build quality than an australian built car and please dont compare them to a Hyundai. seriously. Cant wait to get it out on a longer drive. Excellent bang for buck like all Nissan imports.

there are actually plenty of aftermarket bits for the car, what are you complaining about?? but remember its a MUCH newer model than the C34 so of course it wont have as much aftermarket support. and as for not having interchangable parts, what did you expect?? THEY ARE DIFFERENT CARS!!!!! if you dont like the tv screen incompatability, dont get one with tv. problem solved!

and +932842734523 on how awesome m35s are. ive never looked back, the only thing im not 100% happy with is that they is no manual option. but i drive in the city mostly so it doesnt matter anyway.........

[TokyoTaxi]

Let me just start by saying AT NO POINT DID I COMPARE A STAGEA TO A HYUNDAI !! Nice one Craig !! I said that the 2 vehicle options we are looking at for my missus are an M35 ARX and an i30 Hyundai wagon.

The Stag looks like a great a B4YB option that has some minor issues. The i30 wagon is a huge compromise in many ways but it's a brand new car with 5 years warranty and I don't have to work on it Also, if the missus gets the occasional scratch / ding on the i30, I won't care whereas if she dings the Stag, we will have "discussions".

The main reason I included ( and lean towards ) the M35 Stagea is because I've been driving import Nissan's for almost 15 years so I know about "bang 4 your buck". And I'm not here to sh!t on the M35 Stagea. I just want to put some issues to bed and be a little more confident about stepping into something very different from all the other Nissans I've ever owned. In my eyes, I see the M35 as more Renault than Nissan and that concerns me a little since I've worked on Renault's in the past and I hate them. BezerkR32, your comment has just gone a long way towards reversing that apprehension.

Anyway, thanks to those for their constructive comments

Bis-e Bee, Cheers for clearing that up You do have a very nice ride !

[StageaTypeS]

Hey, interesting discussion going on and all are good points. I am sure that you would enjoy an M35 Stagea its a very nice luxo barge (its never going to be a track weapon) but if its for the wife I am sure she'll love it. Just to throw a bit of fuel on the fire have you ever thought of a Toyota Caldina GT4. I was in NZ recently and I saw a couple and I was very impressed, If I hadn't already spent so much money on my Stag I would definitely be getting one of these.

http://www.carsales.com.au/used-cars/priva...9&D=6986709

[TokyoTaxi]

Hey, interesting discussion going on and all are good points. I am sure that you would enjoy an M35 Stagea its a very nice luxo barge (its never going to be a track weapon) but if its for the wife I am sure she'll love it. Just to throw a bit of fuel on the fire have you ever thought of a Toyota Caldina GT4. I was in NZ recently and I saw a couple and I was very impressed, If I hadn't already spent so much money on my Stag I would definitely be getting one of these.

http://www.carsales.com.au/used-cars/priva...9&D=6986709

lol.... Actually, I did look at & consider a Caldina but it's not enough of a "wagon" and too much of a "weapon" for our needs. Also, it's something I would be hesitant in handing over to the missus. Could just see the headlines........ "Young mum in high speed pursuit with toddler on board had no idea she was being chased".

I think it's time to go check out the M35.

[Jetwreck]

I think it's time to go check out the M35.

Come to the meet on the 7th! Pretty sure just about every model of Stag will be there.

http://www.skylinesaustralia.com/forums/Ns...rs-t266253.html

[TokyoTaxi]

Come to the meet on the 7th! Pretty sure just about every model of Stag will be there.

http://www.skylinesaustralia.com/forums/Ns...rs-t266253.html

Now we're talking !! I'll do all I can to be there. SMS me the addy when the time comes Craig. Cheers.

[iamhe77]

Have been thinking about getting a M35 for a while now so I've been tracking / trolling info re M35's and I've noticed that not many people hang on to their M35's for that long.

Have noticed some M35 owners selling their car within months of owning it. Anyway, is their something specific about M35's that's wrong ?

Alternatively, what's good or bad about the M35 ?

Would really like some input please.

The only negatives I have experienced is that the turbo has a tendency to give up as Craig said.

Also, if you are in a very warm climate, I would suggest getting a radiator made up. 16mm core is waaaaayyyyy undersized for what we have.

I actually think that heat is the biggest issue with the M35.

Tight low mount turbo fit and an undersized radiator (for Australia) help to add lots of heat in the engine bay.

Check out the majority of Japanese tuned M35's (Yes, there are quite a few now. There are also a few used for racing in Japan.), they all have upgraded their colling systems (radiator, coolant breather tanks etc).

Selling? 2+years of owning it and I would not consider selling now (not with my S-tune on the way and the eManage waiting)

More and more tuning parts are becoming available and there are already quite a few options for the usual bolt on mods

lol.... Actually, I did look at & consider a Caldina but it's not enough of a "wagon" and too much of a "weapon" for our needs. Also, it's something I would be hesitant in handing over to the missus. Could just see the headlines........ "Young mum in high speed pursuit with toddler on board had no idea she was being chased".

Caldina's are nice (I like both models available over here), but are not up to par with the M35.

No where near the space and M35 interior is much nicer than a Caldina's.

Caldina = weapon? Nah, my uncle-in-law has a Caldina, which always sits distantly in my rear view mirror.

I think it's time to go check out the M35.

Definitely.

Edited May 25, 2009 by iamhe77

[pixel8r]

Wow, so that's what happens when you throw a rock at a wasp's nest

OK, firstly, I'll explain some of the comments I've been hearing re the M35.

1. They're thirsty !

2. Availability of aftermarket parts for the M35 is poor to hopeless. ( backed up yet again by Duncans comment )

3. There's little to no interchangeability of parts between this model and previous models ( inc Skyline's ) for both maintenance and upgrades. ( backed up yet again by Duncans comment )

4. The room for passengers in the back seats is pretty much the same as most Jap Imports ( far from that of most Aus delivered cars ) ( I'll have to see about this for myself though ).

5. Getting usability from the screen ( MFD ? ) is annoying / costly.

There's more but I can't think of them ATM.

Ok, let me just clear up a few things. The M35 doesn't weigh 1800kg, its actually only 1680kg which is only 30kg heavier than s1 & s2 stageas. Sure, with a couple of people in it it will weigh over 1800kg but no manufacturer ever mentions the weight when there's people in it - so for comparing to other vehicles, a 2003 ford falcon wagon is around 1630kg and a 2008 model is about 1684kg - same as the M35.

Fuel economy-wise, I dont think people realise that your average aussie wagon gets pretty similar fuel economy, and yet they cant match the performance. The M35 would be pretty close on fuel consumption in the city, its only really the highway consumption where it falls behind the aussie wagons - and that would be mostly due to the turbo I would think. But for a wagon with over 200kw and AWD, 12-14L/100km city and 9.5-10L/100km highway is not too bad in my opinion.

Aftermarket support is pretty poor - but if you're only interested in minor mods (exhaust, boost etc) then thats all fine, plus you can get any standard parts through nissan (for a fee + 2 week wait) if you need. They're a pretty reliable wagon so fingers crossed you wont need anything other than the usual maintenance items - most of which are readily available in australia.

Rear seat legroom is actually an extra 10+ cm lengthwise compared to the previous models. This might not sound like much but its quite a lot. I've had plenty of passengers in mine, including some guys who are over 6'2 and they had no trouble with legroom in the back. Its probably not quite as much room as with say a ford falcon but I think the difference would be pretty negligible. The room in the boot is about the same as any aussie wagon - possibly more? You have extra space under the boot floor (about 10-15cm high and about 80cm long) too, which not many other cars have.

But again, the rear seat legroom is much more than most other jap imports (i've owned a s2 stagea as well as a nissan silvia, and i've sat in the rear seat of a 4door skyline).

The seats may not feel as comfortable as an aussie wagon, but the firmer seats mean you can sit in them for much longer without getting aches and pains. Plus there's more side support too in the front seats.

I say, go for the RS models, no screen, but you get the centre guages and the stereo is a single DIN unit which can be switched for an aftermarket one. Plus they're cheaper. Should be able to find one in australia under $19K these days...?

Great Turbo Performance, 5sp auto, AWD safety, Climate Control, and the convenience of a wagon - you wont find a better wagon for anywhere near the same money. I may be biased.

[iamhe77]

I may be biased.

Factually biased.

[mxfly]

I was actually considering a new Sportswagon last year because I wanted to tow a car but when I went to my local dealer to drive and compare the Stag, in the end I decided not to go ahead and just keep the M35. There were certain apsects of a Sportswagon I didnt like. First and most importantly, the build quality. A Commodore is just terrible. Secondly, the boot space. Although the old VZ had a massive boot area, the new wagons are ridiculously tiny. Another crappy thing about a Sportswagon are the brakes. I can go on and on but in the end, a Stag still reins supreme over any other wagon (well maybe an RS4)..