2005 Nissan Fuga from Australia and New Zealand

Faults:

My dad recently bought a 2005 Fuga; it is a very nice car, he got it cheaply, and it hasn't done many km and only had 1 or 2 owners before him :)) It is a lovely car, but it is all in Japanese!!! I've never had a car where there is not a English version manual available, and I have been searching frantically online to find one... It's unacceptable! My dad shouldn't have been given that car; he doesn't know Japanese. Of course we won't be pushing buttons when we are driving, but not everyone is the same and they could seriously get hurt or hurt someone else.

General Comments:

* So after some research, some suggested replacing the whole dashboard for an English version leaving buyers thousands more out of pocket.

Why should we have too do that?

* Use a Japanese translation app 0.o

I hope that is not how we will have imported cars to drive on our New Zealand roads. Please make sure there is a English manual version available.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Don't Know

Review Date: 28th June, 2019

30th Jun 2019, 21:50

That’s the price to pay for buying a cheap car. My parents have owned four Japanese domestic-market imports in NZ over the years, and the lack of a manual printed in english has not posed any major problems, as the essential buttons and display info are mostly in english.

Their current car, an ‘09 Mazda Axela (aka Mazda 3) has all the essentials in english, apart from the mileage read-out screen which is in Japanese. The only issues they’ve really had are that the Japanese FM radios have the wrong band range; easily solved by either replacing it or installing a range band extender.

Apart from the first two Japanese-import cars they had which were mid ‘80s Mitsubishis with wound-back odometers that were absolute dogs, their next two which were Mazdas, have been brilliant. I used to hate Japanese imports when I lived in NZ, but after living in Australia for 17 years, I now really wish Australia would let more of them in than the small handful they allow in at present, as they aren’t the garbage that flooded NZ in the 1990s any more, and are really good, high-specced cars.

2007 Nissan Fuga GT350 3.5 Petrol from Australia and New Zealand

Summary:

Poor man’s Jag

Faults:

New set of tyres and brake pads.

General Comments:

Easily the best car I’ve ever owned, these are the Japanese version of the Infiniti M series, so are a direct competitor to Lexus. The engine is a 3.5 litre 206 KW version of the respected VQ series and in this car has a sportier exhaust note under acceleration than the Maxima. The 5 speed transmission is generally very smooth, but it does have an annoying thump when cold and manually shifted from second to third. Being a Japanese import, the entertainment system/trip computer is in Japanese and apparently there is no conversion.

The interior is traditional, wood and leather, and very comfortable with electric everything including a leg rest for the front passenger. It has a premium/well-built feel about it. The boot is smaller than the Maxima’s; it will cope with two people’s luggage on the airport run, but three would be a problem.

It is a big, heavy car and next to my wife’s MX-5, it feels it, but has a better ride, is still very sure-footed and is a much better long distance tourer. On a recent trip it achieved around 8.5l/100km, which is impressive for a heavy, powerful automatic.

Compared to an XF Jag of the same year, it has the same sort of performance, bigger interior, but the price and running costs are much lower. It doesn’t feel like a poor cousin at all.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes

Review Date: 17th February, 2018

28th Feb 2018, 06:36

I also have a Nissan Fuga 350 GT. By using injector cleaner, I now get 9.9 Ks per litre on highway driving.

Ray, NZ.

In reply to 28th Feb 2018, 06:36

4th Oct 2018, 20:13

I've got a 2011 Y51 Fuga. Around town it's 8.2 kpl, but on a trip I can get 12.1. The only trouble is that it 'tramlines' and road irregularities upset the steering. The steering wheel pulls from side to side and it takes an effort to keep it straight on anything other than a smooth road. Had 2 wheel alignments and it's worse with any more tyre pressure than 30 PSI. Heaps of power from the VQ37, but annoying to drive.

In reply to 4th Oct 2018, 20:13

20th Jun 2019, 09:49

That could be the tyres. Mine is still on the original dealer-fitted set so they are nothing special. On some surfaces they do tram line a bit, but in general it’s nothing to worry about.

In reply to 4th Oct 2018, 20:13

24th Sep 2020, 02:36

Yip, I've got a 2011 VIP Fuga and you can't drive it one handed, it tramlines also and I've had numerous wheel alignments. I wonder if the S model with 20 inch wheels is any better. I can get about 8.5 around town and have had over 12 on a trip with gentle driving; it certainly likes the open road more than town.

Recently 3 of the remote controlled door lock mechanisms have failed requiring new replacement units ex Japan. We have paid for the parts and it has been 11 weeks waiting for them to arrive. $1250.00 for parts and $530.00 for labour and now the one remaining fully working door will lock but not unlock like it's sticking. So annoying when someone wants to get into the back seat. Heaps of power, 330 hp but my wife won't let me put my foot down...