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Infiniti QX80 to spearhead new direction for Nissan's luxury brand

Infiniti has had a tumultuous time in the last few years. However, a new plan is under way to revive Nissan's luxury marque, and to give it some much-needed direction. Now, Infiniti chairman Peyman Kargar has detailed his plans for the first time, and revealed that the QX80 will be at the vanguard of this new push. Left to languish under former Nissan CEO Carlos Ghosn's quest for market share at the cost of all else, Infiniti's lineup failed to receive the necessary updates in several hotly contested segments. In a time when the luxury brands have seen record profits, Infiniti has instead seen its sales plummet. In 2018 the brand was among the first to announce a date by which it would "go electric." That was taken by many to mean solely electric or hybrid vehicles after 2021, but that time has come and gone. Infiniti missed its own deadline for a first EV model last year, and sales have nosedived by more than 50 percent since 2019 (117,708 in U.S. sales in 2019, versus 58,553 in 2021). Part of that is due to the  pandemic and resulting semiconductor shortage that's plagued the entire industry, but there's no doubt that the brand is seldom uttered in the same breath as Mercedes, BMW, Lexus or Audi. Speaking with Automotive News, Kargar outlined a three-phase plan to get Infiniti back on its feet. The first phase, focusing on restructuring and recovery, was just completed in March. Infiniti has now turned record profits globally, Kargar said.  Phase two has now begun and will play out through March 2026. By this time next year, designers will have locked in a new corporate face to take over on all new models. Leading the charge with that identity will be a new QX80 that arrives in late 2023 or early 2024.  Kargar didn't disclose details, but called it the future flagship of the marque. It will have enhanced performance specs to distance itself from the Nissan Armada on which it is based. Infiniti hopes that the QX will be seen as a competitor against the likes of the Cadillac Escalade Lexus LX, and Range Rover. Despite riding on the same platform as the Patrol — a Land Cruiser-like body-on-frame SUV — since 2010, the QX has not fallen in sales as much as other models. Part of the rebranding also includes a unification of Infiniti's identity. Kargar spoke of a new dealership look and feel, which includes a "brand scent" for showrooms and a "sound signature" that will tie in apps, websites, and call centers.

2024 Infiniti Q50 prices up $475, start at $44,200

The Infiniti Q50, like some small geologic formation, carries its graceful, aged sculpture into 2024 fearless and unchanged. Whereas in 2023 Infiniti added a new interior color, included Infiniti Premium Care, and increased prices, 2024 only sees higher prices. MSRPs are up $400 and the destination charge rises $75 to $1,150, for an additional premium of $475. Starting sums including destination are:  Q50 Luxe: $44,200  Q50 Sensory: $49,900 Q50 Red Sport 400: $58,050  Every Q50 is powered by a twin-turbo 3.0-liter V6, the Luxe and Sensory trims making 300 horsepower and 295 pound-feet of torque, the Red Sport 400 making the eponymous 400 hp and 350 lb-ft. As standard, all send their power to the rear axle through a seven-speed automatic. Sending power to the front axle adds $2,000.  The Black Opal Edition Package that we expected to be of limited supply returns for 2024. Its black opal iridescent paint job shifts from black to blue to green to purple depending on the light and viewing angle. The paint is matched with satin black badging and an exposed carbon fiber trunk spoiler, adding $2,200 to the price of the sole trim it's available on, the Q50 Red Sport 400. The package traces its lineage to the legendary iridescent Midnight Purple II, a color introduced on the R34 Nissan Skyline GT-R in 1998, and counts recent reboots elsewhere in the Nissan range with the 2014 GT-R with a Midnight Opal paint job and the 2022 GT-R T-spec in Midnight Purple.    It's understandable that a brand built on premium and sporty offerings doesn't want to give up its last unabashedly sporty offering, but this seems like a natural time to again wonder what is the endgame for the Q50, the final car in Infiniti's U.S. lineup. Automotive News reported over the summer that Infiniti showed its U.S. dealers a fastback sedan called a "striking evolution" of the Q70 boasting a longer wheelbase and shorter overhangs, a full-width headlight and taillight, and a "sporty and Porsche-like" rear end. That's anticipated in 2026. Maybe then the Q50 will be allowed to go off somewhere and rest.

Infiniti to launch first electric car, to be made in China

BEIJING — The first electric car for Nissan's premium brand Infiniti will be a sporty sedan produced in China, the Japanese carmaker said in a statement viewed by Reuters ahead of a public announcement expected as soon as Wednesday. The vehicle would hit the market in around three years, and consumers would get a taste when the company unveils a concept car, dubbed the Qs Inspiration electric sedan, at the Shanghai auto show later this week, Nissan officials said. "China has the most growth potential for electric vehicles globally, especially in the premium segment," Infiniti Chairman Christian Meunier said in the statement seen by Reuters. Automakers operating in China have to sell more so-called new-energy vehicles, either battery electric cars or plug-in electric hybrids, to comply with official production quotas designed to reduce smog. It was not immediately clear whether Infiniti planned to produce its first electric vehicle in other markets. An Infiniti spokesman said, however, the brand did not intend to export the e-sedan from China. The planned e-sedan is part of Infiniti's longer-term strategy to significantly electrify its product lineup. Brand officials have said that from 2021 every Infiniti model launched will be either an all-electric car or so-called "e-Power" hybrids, underlining Nissan's previously announced plan to make Infiniti primarily an electrified offering. The sedan likely would be built on a new flexible architecture developed specifically to accommodate electrified powertrains, Infiniti said in the statement. Its design, especially the interior, would be significantly different than current models, design chief Karim Habib said. EVs do not have bulky gasoline engines and transmissions, opening up space inside the car. "It will have a flat floor, and if you are a passenger you can cross your legs or stretch out your legs," Habib told Reuters. Competition in China's rapidly emerging electric car market is heating up amid an onslaught of models from startups such as Nio and WM Motor, as well as those from established automakers. In the luxury segment, Infiniti will be competing with Tesla Model S and Model X, as well as other models due to be launched in coming months by Audi, Mercedes-Benz, BMW and Lexus.