It doesn't work that way. Most car makers use a thin veneer of 'real wood' glued to a shape for either dash or console or door inserts, for example. The material used for the 'shape' is what determines the sound you'd hear when you knock on it, not the wafer thin wood glued to it.

 

Where do you get these prices? I don't believe the MSRP on the new GS300 with AWD and navi will be that low.

 

From reading this (very interesting) thread, I'm coming to the conclusion that the new Infiniti M really is what the new 5 series should have been. It's fast, handles well, is likely to be reasonably priced for what you get, and it looks good. The 5 (545 at least) is fast, handles well, but is ugly and expensive.

 

it will not be similarly priced but think what you want. Just to let u kno i am a loyal acura owner at that...

 

I don't doubt that you're a loyal Acura owner (probably more loyal than me), but I'm sincerely interested in finding out how you know that a similarly loaded GS AWD won't be similarly priced. Did Lexus release some preliminary pricing info that I obviously don't know about? Of course, a base GS300 will be cheaper, but that is to be expected.

I'm just basing my pricing estimates on:

$45,600 (MSRP of current GS300 RWD with Navi and premium audio)
$1,600 (AWD)
$2,300 (General improvements, additional features, inflationary increase)
-------------
$49,500

RL=$49,500


Hopefully, I'm wrong, and Lexus will undercut RL prices. The consumer wins in the end.

 

Those maybe true for a new Gen 2 GS, but not for the new GS300 AWD. Those numbers are not even official, just guesses.

 

yup, ever since we found out (well someone proved me) how the wood trim are done on the center console and the door on the second gen gs, i think just listening to the sound is very hard to tell...

 

yeah, if the new gs3 awd is that cheap, then man, that's going to be very very attractive

 

RL interior has always been made of real wood. The previous generation also carry the distinction of being the only Acura not offered with fake wood.

The wood in new RL is nautral maple.




Link

Personally I think new GS is very disappointing in terms of styling especially when compare to LF-S. I like M35/45 styling but the rear leaves a lot to be desire. If Infiniti could make the tailights a bit smaller it would look a whole lot better. Acura is a bit of a mystery to me as I don't quite understand how they think. A high ouput V6 is fine but at least upgrade the tranny to more gears so you get better performance and less fuel consumption to stay in the game. Acura has a 6 speed DSG style gearbox they been developing since the late 90's and I have yet to see them put it into any Honda/Acura applications.

 

RedAtNine welcome to the forum!

If that is real wood than it's really thin layer like tracing paper. I don't know but even if the sound of a wood depends on the material where it's mounted like Bitkahuna said it also has to depend on the thickness of the wood piece. Thicker the wood, thicker the sound is and RL doesn't sound like that.
So it's either imitation, thin layer of wood that lacks some soft material underneath it or it's mounted poorly (which I don't believe it's the case).

I am not convinced that It's real wood from my experience in RL, it doesn't feel like, it doesn't sound like. But if Acura says that all wood inserts are real than they probaly are , it's just that they did a bad job with it. They could have used their plastic imitation which is the best on the market cause on touch and sound it's same like their wood in RL. So what is the purpose of the wood then?

 

Yes that is true but it's not simple as that also. Plastic and wood have different sound no matter how thick or thin they are. When you knock on the piece in a car what you hear is the piece bouncing of what's underneath. So when plastic bounces it's different than genuine wood. I think one of the solutions to isolate the sound and bouncing is to mount it on something soft, like rubber than you will get deep sound out of plastic.
You can do the experiment yourself. Take the plastic and wooden rulers that are same thickness and place them on the same surface and do the knock.
It will not prove much cause wood and plastic used in cars are hundred thousand times more refined and processed than two rulers but you will see that at least it's not the same.

 

All I can say is: WOOD IS FOR FURNITURE!!!!! not a car.

 

Great point. And I really think Infiniti dropped the ball not offering a manual. If they had a manual, the automotive press would simply claim it probably, the new king. Infiniti says they are serious about performance, but offers a 5 speed automatic only. When the competiton has 6 speed autos.
Even if they didn't make a manual M45, it would have been easy to make a manual M35, since its a G35 engine/tranny/parts350Z etc.

Biker, I think you Europeans started putting wood in cars. I think. I like tasteful wood. The Infiniti Ms looks pretty good though I would like some more shine (just a tad more). The GS, Lexus has ALWAYS had real wood, so they always provide solid real wood. The Acura's looks weird and cheap, even if its real. Just a sign of in-experience, at least it is real (right?.

RedAtNine, welcome to Clublexus.

 

GS vs RL door.
Autospies released their most disapointing cars of the year.
1. Honda Odyssey
2. Acura RL
2. Acura RL- Is everyone else driving a different version of the RL than us? Or are they scared to death to jeopardize the huge ad dollars Acura is throwing at them? We drove this thing and couldn’t believe how awful this thing drove. It was heavy feeling and the steering was absolutely numb. It felt like a 1995 E-class gone WAY wrong. The suspension is so brittle and stiff (maybe due to the SHAWD?) that is very uncomfortable over rough pavement. Then there was the space issue. This car is TINY inside the cabin! It feels slightly larger than a 3-series and even the TL feels more roomy. Acura will tell you the specs say there is more space in the RL than the TL but we didn't see it. Go sit in both and you make the call. It’s not even close. Now let’s talk about the exterior design. How can their flagship not be the best looking car in their product line? We think the TL beats it there as well. Now price…$50k for the RL? You have got to be kidding us! Not a chance this things worth over $40 grand. The only redeeming feature? The dash/console design and the best nav system on earth. Keep those, scrap the rest and start over. BMW, MB, Lexus and Infiniti are laughing in their halls!

5. Cadillac STS (a great car but sadly true, we are not even comparing it here).

 

This is pre-production but a very flattering look at the M45. Very nice here. Followed by the current M45. They look nothing alike. Infiniti should not have brought that gap filler in. This is why people say no one knows what an Infinti looks like. too much change. this also kills re-sale

I am trying hard to find pics with similar poses. Not many production M35/45 pics.


A6
NEW PASSAT!!


I added the Passat, which also debuted in 1998 with its fastback roofline and still to this day looks great. Kudos to Lexus and VW/Audi for bringing this look to sedans.
Old vs New GS