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Infiniti replaces Americas chief

The Nissan-Renault alliance has been something of a revolving door for high-level executives of late, and the latest shakeup comes at its luxury unit, Infiniti, where Michael Bartsch (shown above) has been replaced as vice president of its Americas division by Randy Parker. Bartsch had a short tenure – he only took the helm in September 2013. In a press release, Infiniti said he was leaving to "pursue other interests." Bartsch, a veteran of more than 30 years in the auto industry, came to Infiniti from Porsche. Parker comes from within the Nissan empire, formerly heading up the company's sprawling west region, including its marketing, distribution and dealer network. Before that, he served stints at GMAC and General Motors. Bartsch isn't alone in leaving Renault-Nissan recently. Ex-Renault COO Carlos Tavares took the top spot at Peugeot, Infiniti boss Johan de Nysschen left for Cadillac and Nissan executive vice president Andy Palmer took over at Aston Martin. Scroll down for the full press release from Infiniti. Feb. 17, 2015 Infiniti Motor Company announces leadership change at Infiniti Americas NASHVILLE - Infiniti Motor Company, Ltd. today announced a leadership change at Infiniti Americas aimed at growing the brand's presence in the U.S. Randy Parker is appointed Vice President, Infiniti Americas, effective immediately. He succeeds Michael Bartsch who will leave the company to pursue other interests. Most recently, Parker, 48, was Vice President, Nissan West Region, Nissan North America, Inc. "Randy has been a key contributor to the growth of Nissan in the United States," said Jose Munoz, chairman, Management Committee, Nissan North America and executive vice president, Nissan Motor Co., Ltd. "He has overseen strong growth for the Nissan brand in our western region, and we look forward to the skills that he will bring to Infiniti." "It is our pleasure to welcome Randy Parker to Infiniti," said Roland Krueger, president of Infiniti Motor Co., Ltd. "Randy will be responsible for accelerating Infiniti's progress in our largest worldwide market and driving our brand transformation as we execute an expanded product portfolio of premium luxury products." Most recently, Parker was responsible for regional marketing, distribution, dealer network development and financial controls for Nissan's largest U.S. regional operation.

Submit your questions for Autoblog Podcast #344 LIVE!

We're set to record Autoblog Podcast #344 tonight, joined by Doug DeMuro, author of Plays With Cars, formerly of Porsche Cars North America, and all-around swell guy. You can drop us your questions and comments via our Q&A module below, and we'll give them extra-diligent attention. Subscribe to the Autoblog Podcast in iTunes if you haven't already done so, and if you want to take it all in live, tune in to our UStream (audio only) channel at 10:00 PM Eastern tonight.
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2020 Infiniti Edition 30 models priced

The 2020 model year marks the 30th anniversary of Infiniti, and as announced back in August, the brand is rolling out specially tweaked Edition 30 models across the bulk of its lineup. We now have more details and pricing for the commemorative editions, which are available on the Q50 sedan, Q60 coupe, QX50 compact crossover, QX60 mid-size crossover, and QX80 full-size SUV. The Q50 Edition 30 sedan's starting price is $43,700 with rear-wheel drive and $45,700 is all-wheel drive. The Q50 Edition 30 is priced between the Luxe and Sport trim levels, but its equipment is closer to that of the Sport. Although it's $4,800 cheaper than the Sport, the Edition 30 adds full-speed adaptive cruise control, but it uses the smaller brake rotors of the Luxe trim and it skips the Sport's adaptive damping. Unique Edition 30 elements include dark-chrome 19-inch wheels and exterior trim, black mirror caps, and a black mesh grille. The Q60 Edition 30 coupe is offered as a $4,200 package for the Luxe trim level. Added to the $45,500 base price of the rear-wheel-drive Luxe coupe, and you get a starting price of $49,700 for the Edition 30. All-wheel drive is another $2,000. Exterior enhancements mirror those of the Q50 Edition 30. The Q60 Edition 30 package also adds navigation, an around-view monitor, power-adjustable steering column, memory settings, rear auto-braking, adaptive cruise control, heated seats and steering wheel, and a few lesser items. The QX50 Edition 30 compact crossover builds on the mid-level Essential trim level. It's sold as a package for $1,200 and includes adaptive cruise control, blind-spot intervention, lane-depature prevention, and adaptive front lighting, plus 20-inch dark-finish wheels, dark-chrome exterior accents, a body-color rear diffuser, and a black headliner. For the range-topping QX80, the Edition 30 is a package that adds $3,500 to the Luxe (base) trim level. Besides the dark-chrome exterior trim and dark-finish 22-inch wheels, it includes a rear camera mirror, lane-departure prevention, adaptive cruise control, blind-spot intervention, and a black headliner. On Infiniti's most popular vehicle, the QX60, full details of the Edition 30 are not yet available, but we're told the model will start at $50,850. That represents a $4,700 premium over the Luxe trim level, and includes the content of the ProAssist package as well as the Edition 30 design enhancements.