Ozmoose, IMO there was never a question about the Zeiss G lenses. For me the deal breaker was the G bodies... auto focus and a deadly long shutter lag. I'd snap them up in an instant if they were in M mounts.
Noted and agree. Just for the fun of it, I took my G1 with the 45mm out this morning for a stroll, and took several shots. It must be age (the shooter's, not so much the camera's), but I didn't notice any particularly long time-lag between pressing the button and the actual exposure. I tried to recall how my M2 and M3 (both owned and sadly sold in the 1980s, but still missed) did this same process, but cannot recall as it was too long ago. At any rate, I tend to shoot mostly static subjects (buildings), so any time lag between the two acts would mean little or nothing to me.
A point I had originally intended to make but forgot (another senior's moment at play, ha!) was that of electronic cameras and the age factor. G1s date to the mid-1990s and the 'innards' are aged now, many are unreliable. G1s were plagued by LED 'bleed' (my four have escaped this) and the one I purchased new way back when occasionally refuses to rewind the film, which means I have to carry a black change bag in my kit. Not a big problem for me, but one worth noting.
As well, my most reliable (he is older than I am) camera repair person in Melbourne has warned me that while he is able to CLA the Gs, spare parts are no longer available and what he cannot cannibalize from two spare G bodies he has in his workshop will never be fixed.
I believe the same warning applies to Leica digitals. I've had two friends who bought M8s only to have them 'pass away' with less than 25,000 clicks ('actuations' isn't a word I particularly like).
So the summing up would have to be, whichever camera or lenses you buy, the defining factor would definitely be that of Caveat Emptor. Nothing is eternal. Camera/lens electronics, even less so...
Of the lenses, Leitz or Zeiss, to me there is no question that they are absolutely the best in optics. Which is what I aimed for when I made my investment in the G1/Zeiss lenses, and earlier on into Leica Ms.
Enough said of Contax Gs. I'm greatly enjoying all the posts in this thread and look forward to many more. Eight pages so far, 140+ posts, and some superb photos. Good one!!
