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52K views 101 replies 41 participants last post by  concorso 
#1 ·
The 07 still hasnt grown on me, I think the Infiniti truck is pretty nice any opinions or anything?
 
#3 ·
I dont know about that infiniti, kinda looks like a hippo or rhino. I would rather get a toyota land cruiser, only cause I had one and loved it, and I miss it. Other than that stick with cadillac and get the new escalade!

The qx56 and armada make me sick when i see them. My family wanted to get the armada when I went back this christmas but I told them not to buy anything that ugly. Instead we got another trailblazer but xlt this time. I would rather be seen in a trailblazer or envoy than an armada or qx56 OR qx45.
 
#4 ·
The problem with most of the Japanese based SUV/Trucks is they are not built very strong, and lack power, but they are getting better each year, and the QX although low in HP (315) has good torque. I personally would buy a Ford first, and I can tell you that is no happening. :)
 
#32 · (Edited)
I have an Armada. And let me qualify this, I'm also a Corvette owner, in the local Corvette Club, just drove in the Car and Driver/Road and Track Cadillac challenge where you compare Cadillac vs. Lexus and BMW head to head for a mag review so I am not biased vs. Caddie.

Back to the job at hand. I strongly disagree with the above quote. TOYota and Lexus vehicles aren't very strong in terms of power. They will have a strong drivetrain out in the new one this year though. The Armada and QX have been bench tested vs. the Hemi continuously and they always come out with more power. Nissan has a policy of understating its numbers for insurance, which is nice. Typically, the Hemi is 10-15 lower HP and TQ at the rear wheels.

Next, HP is not what an SUV owner cares about. Obviously, the above poster doesn't know this. TQ is. TQ equals towing power and acceleration. HP equals top speed, which is governed and therefore doesn't matter. In terms of towing power, they tow 9000-9500, or the same as an F150, Dodge Hemi, and more than any GM that wasn't a Super Duty. This year, GM stepped up and upped the anti but prior years were the weakest next to the TOYs. Also, they current crop rating has been upped to 320 393 for the QX as they have introduced improvements this year. And the Fords are the slowest, not because they don't have power, but because they have a 4 speed trans. They are a full second or more behind the Nissan, QX, GMs, and Hemis.

Third, as for rattles, squeeks, repairs, etc. This is a thing of the past. The '04s, a first year vehicle, had its share. The '05s cleared up almost all, and the couple left were gone by '06. I have an '05 and the only repair I've had was to have the late year introduced '05 brake pads and rotors added to mine. Now they have the best brakes of the class and they will stop 60-0 as fast as a Honda Accord. Rattles, etc. are gone. The brake issue gave them a bad rep for reliablity because all the "agencies" looked at this as a repair and major problem, when it was just warping brake rotors. It was classified as a "drivetrain" problem. What a joke. Nissan stepped up and retrofitted all of them under warranty and extended the brake warranty to 3 years, unlimited miles. TOY also had this problem, but they didn't address it for 4 years and didn't cover under warranty. So much for TOY reliablity. The quality however is tops overall after you get out of the first 12 months of production.

And last, as for the ride, this was due to the junk tires Nissan put on. This is the only complaint I have about the stock SUVs. They put $50 tires on them. I swapped to 20" A/T Nitto Terra grapplers in 305-55-20. They are quieter, softer riding, handle better, better grip in all road conditions, wear longer, etc. and shouldn't beat them in any of these areas except off road traction. If you swap tires, you will have a totally new vehicle on your hands, but most don't do this nor do they experience this as they test drive ones with stock tires.

In comparing the two, the GM pre '07 was slower and clunky. I had grave doubts about their long term relability and they had their share of problems. The new ones may have overcomed this, but I'll have to drive one.
Acceleration under tests is within a couple 10ths 0-60 and about the same in the quarter. We are running 6.8-7.2 and high 14s. quarters. I'm a little slower with my Terra Grapplers and 4x4. :D A race would come down to drivers and individual machines. The interior on the new Caddies is nice. I like that more than the rest available. The room is small however. Dodge has the most room, but Nissan is a close second.

Don't forget, the Government has deemed the Tahoe/Yukon/Escalade an Import due to the high amount of parts made outside the US and its assembly in Mexico. The QX/Titan/Armada, made in Mississippi, has more US made parts.

To sum it up, I would have a much tougher time trying to decide this time between GM and Nissan. I couldn't tell you what I'd buy. But from last year before, Nissan/Infiniti won hands down. I hope this helps. And BTW, the SRX was the best of the group in the C&D test. We compared it to the Lexus RX350 (junk) the CTS, and the BMW 530. It outdrove all 3 and I would say won overall. The CTS was the worst handling of the bunch, right there with the Lexus, but it had good acceleration, so it was tied with the BMW, which had nice handling but poor 2nd gear acceleration.
 
#5 ·
Well, I'm somewhat biased since I just recently bought a '07 Escalade but I did cross-shop other brands before my purchase. IMO, the Infiniti styling, esp from the side is just terrible--looks lke they welded the front and rear ends of 2 different vehicles. IMO, the Escalade just looks more classy and is a head-turner everywhere I go---I see other drivers literally straining their heads to look at my truck as they pass by. The new Escalade has a lot more power, better handling, smoother ride, and a much better interior than the Inifiniti--which has more cheaper plastics, inferior NAV system, and suspicious rattles and squeaks when I test drove it. No brainer for me.
 
#6 ·
PeteESC07 said:
Well, I'm somewhat biased since I just recently bought a '07 Escalade but I did cross-shop other brands before my purchase. IMO, the Infiniti styling, esp from the side is just terrible--looks lke they welded the front and rear ends of 2 different vehicles. IMO, the Escalade just looks more classy and is a head-turner everywhere I go---I see other drivers literally straining their heads to look at my truck as they pass by. The new Escalade has a lot more power, better handling, smoother ride, and a much better interior than the Inifiniti--which has more cheaper plastics, inferior NAV system, and suspicious rattles and squeaks when I test drove it. No brainer for me.
That seems VERY accurate. I've yet to read a review that didn't comment on both the Armada and QX56 not feeling all that toughly built and having a cheap interior that is full of random squeaks and rattles.

Some owner boards seem to have a lot of satisfied owners without any problems and "noise free" trucks, but it's still a problem.

The QX56 does have a LOT more room than a regular Escalade, though, along with an actually usable and comfortable 3rd row that folds flat. That's one strong area.
 
#7 ·
Having owned both vehicles. I can tell you as far as features...the Qx56 is great. The interior is very large and nice looking. But thats it. As far as ride...it sucks. Thats why everything rattles inside. It takes bumps horribly. The Dvd player rattled from day 1 and I had it fixed 3 times and it still rattled. The brakes were horrible. They had to be replaced after 2300 miles. The escalade rides much better and I have 20 inch rims on it. Nothing rattles. So you be the judge. i dont think I would purchase another QX until I hear that they addressed all those issues.
 
#8 ·
white lade said:
Having owned both vehicles. I can tell you as far as features...the Qx56 is great. The interior is very large and nice looking. But thats it. As far as ride...it sucks. Thats why everything rattles inside. It takes bumps horribly. The Dvd player rattled from day 1 and I had it fixed 3 times and it still rattled. The brakes were horrible. They had to be replaced after 2300 miles. The escalade rides much better and I have 20 inch rims on it. Nothing rattles. So you be the judge. i dont think I would purchase another QX until I hear that they addressed all those issues.
They have addressed the brakes, finally, according to what I've read (and it seems to be a real fix this time too), and the build quality, especially inside, seems to have gotten quite a bit better the later they were built.

What year Escalade do you have? If you have the short one, do you miss actually having a comfortable 3rd row that goes flat and cargo room at the same time, or was that not important to you?
 
#9 ·
I had a 2005 Qx56 which I traded for a 2005 Escalade because I couldn't deal with going to the dealer every other week to fix something. I now have a 2005 escalade and have not had any problems with the car so far. I do miss the third row seats not folding flat. I can't believe they didn't address that in the new escalades.
 
#10 ·
white lade said:
I had a 2005 Qx56 which I traded for a 2005 Escalade because I couldn't deal with going to the dealer every other week to fix something. I now have a 2005 escalade and have not had any problems with the car so far. I do miss the third row seats not folding flat. I can't believe they didn't address that in the new escalades.
Yeah, the seating and space is still an issue. The ESV is huge and solves the room issue, but since they kept the solid rear axle and didn't figure out any better layout for the last seat, it's still not the best back there.
 
#11 ·
Infiniti QX 56 is the ugliest SUV I have ever seen , it looks gargoyle like to the front sode of the car . Why would buy and waste some money for it that's what I find it out of sense
 
#12 ·
I actually like the QX56 very much. I took it for a test drive and it drove like a car. It's VERY quick! Mid 6's 0-60 - faster than most "quick" cars.. I thought it handled very well.. But I hear a LOT of complaints from owners... Personally, I'd stay away from the Infiniti QX56 and go with a new Escalade.. Now that the interior is just as nice as the Infiniti, if not better, there's really no reason to choose the QX56..
 
#13 ·
A close friend of mine has a white QX56 on 22" Giovanna Gello rims with part of the rims painted to match the truck. He had tv's and a computer installed which has internet access in the truck. He has cable installed and the interior on his truck is beautiful. Money wasn't really an issue and I asked why he bought the QX56 over the Escalade and he said the interior. The interior of the QX56 is a little more spacious, which I agree with, but the ride of that truck is horrible. He hasn't had any problems mechanically with it, but he says my Escalade has a nicer ride. With all that he did to the QX56, it looks real smooth. He had the stock grille switched out with billet inserts and also had the lower mesh grilles matched to the billet. All the chrome was painted white to match the truck and it looks tight. I will get some pictures from him and post them along with pictures of my Escalade. You can see what I am talking about.

Thanks.
 
#15 ·
hcvone said:
The problem with most of the Japanese based SUV/Trucks is they are not built very strong
What?? Not one single domestic vehicle can compare to japanese quality. Forget the features and functions for a second, think reliability and parts quality, inside and out. No domestic vehicle has ever come close, and I doubt ever will.

If you need stats let me know, Ill be happy to find some, but google the topic. I'd take less power over having to take my ride to the dealer often, anyday. Power is the easiest upgrade on a vehicle.

THAT SAID, I cant stand the Infinity.
 
#16 ·
Marc Kessler said:
The Infiniti QX56 and the Armada are both built in Canton, MS where they have had horrible quality control problems. I think they actually shut down the plant awhile ago to try to get their act together. Who knows if they improved?
Very, very true. All of the vehicles that Nissan builds in that plant came out as new designs for 2004, the Armada, Titan, QX56, and Quest, and ALL of them had moderate to serious quality problems the first year particularly. Actually, the Quest had so many known issues, that Nissan actually sent letters to people who owned '04 models that they were extending the bumper to bumper warranty from 3/36 to 5/60 on all of them because there were so many bugs.

That said, checking internet message boards, the general consensus is that '05 models of all of the Canon, MS are better than the '04s and now the '06s are still a bit better than the '05s.

I really like the styling of both the Armada and QX56 myself, as well as the power and interior room and adaptability (comfortable & fold flat 3rd row mainly, with cargo room behind). It's just that the overall level of quality feels and looks like something GM might have turned out in the mid 80's...bad fits, cheap materials, flimsy parts, etc. And because of that, most have quite a bit of nasty noises inside.

Consumer Reports, whether you believe them or not, actually rated the QX56 the WORST vehicle in their rankings, for both '04 and '05 I believe. I watched an episode of "Autoline Detroit" on Speed TV a couple months ago where they interviewed a CR guy, and when asked about Nissan and if they had really made noticeable changes after calling in the engineers to the plant, he said that they actually noted no real change in the level of problems or quality in the later vehicles, hence the still bad ratings.

All that said, the Escalade definately has the leg up in terms of build quality and refinement, but can't compete when it comes to true 7-passenger and cargo space in the regular short models which are the most commonly compared. Well, that, and the Caddy costs thousands more than the Infiniti when fully loaded.
 
#20 ·
Go with the Cadi. I believe the Cadi to be the best luxo SUV out their hands down. The only other SUV's i would consider if 3rd row was not important would be Range Rover and maybe the Navi. i drove one afew months back and was actually kinda impressed. I dont konw about the infinity but sounds like trouble. Good luck. Get the cadi, u wont be disappointed!!
 
#21 ·
mikeee said:
What?? Not one single domestic vehicle can compare to japanese quality. Forget the features and functions for a second, think reliability and parts quality, inside and out. No domestic vehicle has ever come close, and I doubt ever will.

If you need stats let me know, Ill be happy to find some, but google the topic. I'd take less power over having to take my ride to the dealer often, anyday. Power is the easiest upgrade on a vehicle.

THAT SAID, I cant stand the Infinity.

No domestic vehicle has ever come close, and I doubt ever will.


That's not true, my last 5 C5 Corvette's, last 2 Grand Cherokee's and all 6 Suburban's NEVER went back to the dealer for any warranty or repair work, and my 03' Escalade was at the dealer once 4 days after I purchased it for a burnt ballast on the HID lighting. My M5 and Jag have been back to the dealer for warranty repair several times. :(
 
#22 ·
It's sometimes luck when it comes to cars. Some people will never have any problems with their car, some will have their car in and out of the shops half of the year. Just take care of your car ie oil changes, trans flush, filter, differential fluid, brakes, ac, etc. and your car should be fine.
 
#24 ·
hcvone said:
No domestic vehicle has ever come close, and I doubt ever will.


That's not true, my last 5 C5 Corvette's, last 2 Grand Cherokee's and all 6 Suburban's NEVER went back to the dealer for any warranty or repair work, and my 03' Escalade was at the dealer once 4 days after I purchased it for a burnt ballast on the HID lighting. My M5 and Jag have been back to the dealer for warranty repair several times. :(
Very true. My dad's 745 seemed to be in the shop more than it seemed to be in our garage. It stalled twice on him at freeways speeds. When i say stall i mean the whole car shut down. power everythuin at like 80. Umm its not how muhc money u pay its the car. also they say cars built on mondays and Fridays are hte worst. so you can check production dates too.
good luck.
 
#25 ·
Administrator said:
Unfortunately, the first year really gave the QX a bad name. They should have never let that truck into showrooms the way it was... I'm sure it's much improved now - but I'd still go with the Escalade.. The QX will be up for a redesign sooner than the Caddy...
SO true. Based on the problems with undersized and rapid wearing brakes, loose and misfitting pieces, and rattles galore, the first model year versions were like 85% complete...almost a bit prototype like, as if they had really been rushed and skipped a few steps.

They've worked to fix most of the issues over the '05 and now '06 model years, but they still don't set all-time quality or refinement standards.

blingblingcv said:
wow, i didnt know how horrible the qx56 was until i posted this. I owned a 2001 qx4 a few yrs ago and it was a great truck. But the whole forum is sayin that the qx56 is not great quality.
Strange, but true. If you actually look at all of the vehicles in the Inifiniti line or drive them, most all are amazing, and have terrific levels of refinment and quality. Unfortunately, for the QX56, it got styling the match the rest of the family, but they left out a lot of other stuff...like making sure all the pieces fit the pricetag, and the refinement was actually at luxury levels.
 
#26 ·
hcvone said:
No domestic vehicle has ever come close, and I doubt ever will.


That's not true, my last 5 C5 Corvette's, last 2 Grand Cherokee's and all 6 Suburban's NEVER went back to the dealer for any warranty or repair work, and my 03' Escalade was at the dealer once 4 days after I purchased it for a burnt ballast on the HID lighting. My M5 and Jag have been back to the dealer for warranty repair several times. :(
You cant use personal experience as a wide statistic. Look it up man, domestic vehicles' records suck compared to foreign.

That said, I doubt all those cars never needed ANY repair, with that many cars I can only assume you owned them for too short a period of time, or.. your 300 years old. :)
 
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