2021 Infiniti Qx80 Luxe on 2040-cars

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Infiniti G37 to be renamed Q40; new flagship sedan confirmed

Infiniti has already made it known that its aging G37 sedan will live on alongside the all-new Q50 through the 2015 model year, but little else for this sporty four door has been announced past the 2013 model year. As of this writing, there is no 2014 model shown on the company's consumer website. A new report from Car and Driver, however, indicates that like other models carried over to Infiniti's new naming convention, the four-door G37 will live out the rest of its days with a "Q" name after all.
Unlike the G coupe and convertible - renamed Q60 - the sedan will reportedly wear the Q40 designation until its ultimate demise. We reached out to Infiniti for more information, but a spokesperson only had this for us: "we have not provided any product details for post-2013 models. That will come at a later time." Previously, we had been told that the sedan would continue to live out its days under the G37 nameplate.
As for products that are actually new to the lineup, C/D says that the Q30 and the next-gen QX50 are both expected to arrive before the company launches a new range-topping flagship sedan as soon as 2016. Aside from a handful of reports suggesting this sedan exists (C/D says it's confirmed for production), there isn't much we know about it - including whether it will be called Q80, Q90 or something else entirely. It would appear there's plenty to look forward to from Infiniti's upcoming product lineup, and we are eagerly awaiting a 550-horsepower Q70 sedan and/or a production version of the Q50 Eau Rouge.

Upcoming QX80 will use current model's platform, powertrain

Infiniti previewed the next-gen QX80 full-size SUV at this year's New York Auto Show with the QX80 Monograph concept. The new model is slated to go into production by the end of this year. Despite the updated look, Motor Trend reports that the next QX80 will ride on the same platform as the current model, carrying along with it the 5.6-liter 400 horsepower V8. The current QX80 shares a platform with the Nissan Patrol globally and the Nissan Armada here in the US. The model has been a success for the automaker, outselling every other Infiniti but the smaller QX60 crossover and Q50 sedan. Though the platform dates back to 2010, it seems Infiniti doesn't want to spoil a good thing. Competition like the Mercedes-Benz GLS-class, Cadillac Escalade, and Lexus LX are about as old as the current QX80. While most new models are more refined than their predecessors, Infiniti Motor Company President Roland Krueger says it should drive about the same as the current model. While the V8 will carry over, Krueger didn't rule out the possibility of a smaller turbocharged V6 for the future. Also carrying over will be the independent, self-leveling rear suspension, though neither the QX80 or Armada get some of the Patrol's really good off-road components. Since there isn't much going on beyond the skin, expect a short development cycle and a full debut sometime this fall. Related Video: News Source: Motor Trend Design/Style Infiniti SUV infiniti qx80 infiniti qx80 monograph

Infiniti Q50 steer-by-wire system took 10 years to develop [w/video]

Infiniti's Direct Adaptive Steering (DAS) is quite a novelty - the system employs no physical connection between the steering wheel and the front wheels under normal circumstances and instead relies on a computer, clutch and steering-angle actuator to guide vehicles down the road with input from the driver.
In our First Drive review of a 2014 Infiniti Q50 equipped with the system, we weren't overly impressed by the artificial feedback. But we can't help but be impressed with how long Infiniti spent on its development: a full 10 years, according to Autoline Daily in the video report below. A staggering 70 percent of the research and development time spent on DAS was devoted to getting the steering feel right, and unfortunately, our first impression suggests their results still leave something to be desired, as we found it lacked the sporty feeling a sport sedan should have.
The weight of DAS is comparable to that of a conventional steering system due to its complexity. For example, three ECUs are used in the first-generation DAS system to ensure there's never a loss of steering, but Infiniti is refining the technology and is working to simplify it to reduce weight. One day Infiniti hopes that only one ECU will be needed to control DAS. We just hope it doesn't take the Japanese automaker another ten years to get the steering feel right.