1996 Infiniti Q45 A review from North America

Alternator died in first week of ownership. Had to get work done at a strange shop, had to same day the part in - $370.

Replaced all serpentine belts - $196.

Replaced front inner tie rods - $318.

Bad alignment (which probably caused the next problem) - free from friend of mine.

Power steering pump starting to go.

Weird crunching noise intermittently coming from rear brakes when I let the pedal up.

Pros:

- Gorgeous car, even 13 years later. Still get thumbs up when I'm seen in it.

- I love the leather bucket seats, the rear defrost, the anti-glimmer rear view, and the Bose sound system.

- Not awful on gas, but you should give it at least Plus grade (89) gas half the time.

- Acceleration is crazy for a car this size - I've caught myself doing 90 and not feeling it.

Cons:

- I didn't properly look it over before I bought it (love at first sight/drive), and all the problems listed above have happened in the first 2 months since I bought it. Hopefully after replacing the steering pump and finding the source of that noise, it will just need routine maintenance.

- I have a history with my mechanic and he helps me out with prices, but still - it's been almost $850 in repairs so far.

- Parts are expensive for this model and in most cases, will be NOS (new old stock - been sitting in warehouses for a few years). I've been looking for a stop light bulb for 2 months now with no luck.

- If you want to add a CD player, they'll need to rip the dash apart. But you can add a universal CD changer that will play through the FM stereo for about $200.