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Infiniti electric crossover will mark a milestone at Detroit Auto Show

In November, it was announced that both Nissan and Infiniti will display EV concepts at the 2019 North American International Auto Show in Detroit, taking place in January. Previously, it wasn't made clear what kind of vehicles they would be, but Infiniti stated today that its Detroit concept will be an electric crossover. Both the Nissan and Infiniti concepts will continue the design direction shown by Infiniti's Q Inspiration concept, and later next year, there will be stylistically similar cars shown at the Tokyo Motor Show in October. The luxury brand has released the above teaser photo of the crossover, depicting sharp headlights and a lit grille outline surrounding the badging. We can also see large wheels and tires and sizeable, defined wheel arches. Future Infinitis will be electrified from 2021 on, featuring either serial hybrid tech or full electric drivetrains. Serial hybrid refers to using Nissan's e-power technology, which relies on range extender engines instead of a large combustion engine (such as Infiniti's lauded VC-Turbo). The Detroit Auto Show is also a significant event for Infiniti, as the brand and its first car, the grille-less Q45 luxury sedan, was first displayed 30 years ago at the 1989 NAIAS. "Thirty years ago, as a 24-year-old designer in the audience, I saw the birth of Infiniti in person and am proud to be part of the journey of creating iconic luxury automobiles," said Nissan's senior vice president for global design, Alfonso Albaisa. Meanwhile, Infiniti's November 2018 sales were the best November numbers in the brand's history. "The concept car we will show in Detroit is the beginning of a new era for Infiniti, and an illustration of where we want to go with the brand," said Karim Habib, Infiniti's design director. Earlier, Albaisa echoed his statements, telling us how electrification can inspire the brand's future design thanks to the battery packs' size development, saying: "It's getting denser, it's getting thinner, the cars are able to get a little bit bigger, more space, we can really do much more." Related Video:

Infiniti Q50 Eau Rouge running prototype driven by Sebastian Vettel

Infiniti's high-performance Q50 Eau Rouge concept might be one of the biggest teases in the current automotive world. It was first shown at the 2014 Detroit Auto Show as a body without an engine. Then, the sports sedan arrived at the Geneva Motor Show with a modified version of the turbocharged V6 from the GT-R under the hood, tuned to 560 horsepower and 443 pound-feet of torque, and with all-wheel drive. However, it was still just a concept. Finally, the Japanese luxury automaker is showing us what the Eau Rouge can do on the road - briefly.
The company brought reigning Formula One champ Sebastian Vettel along to get behind the wheel, for this all-too-short video from the Millbrook Proving Ground in the UK. There's more good news too. While Infiniti isn't saying that it's definitely going to build the Eau Rouge, it is "pressing ahead with the evaluation." More info about these tests will be released at the 2014 Beijing Auto Show at the end of April. Scroll down to watch Vettel drive the Q50 Eau Rouge and read a little more about it.

Infiniti invites 22-year-old to work with Red Bull F1 team

Infiniti launched the Infiniti Performance Engineering Academy (IPEA) in 2014, a global talent search for three engineering students from eleven international markets that the automaker would select for a one-year assignment with its Formula One team and road car division. The second year's IPEA competition has concluded, the class of 2015 expanding to five students that get eight months at Infiniti Red Bull Racing headquarters in Milton Keynes, and four months at the company's European Technical Center in Cranfield, UK. Twenty-two-year-old Alex Allmandinger (pictured), a student at the University of Illinois and one of 11 US finalists, is one of those five winners. He'll head to Milton Keynes next month to settle in with the other winners from China, Europe, Russia, and Saudi Arabia. Based on interviews with last year's winners, the IPEA doesn't stick the students in a corner, either – one of them said he had designed seventy parts that went into the RB11 F1 racecar. The video above speaks to some of this year's winners, the video below talks to last year's, and there's a press release below that. This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings. Infiniti gives one U.S. engineering student the Formula One career opportunity of a lifetime NASHVILLE, Tenn. Aug. 20, 2015 – Infiniti has announced that an engineering student from the University of Illinois is one of five global winners of the 2015 Infiniti Performance Engineering Academy (IPEA). For one year, Infiniti will provide 22-year-old Alex Allmandinger with the opportunity to work in Formula One with the Infiniti Red Bull Racing team. After beating 11 other finalists from around the country in an intense shootout event, Allmandinger will move to Infiniti Red Bull Racing headquarters in the UK in September to begin a 12-month placement working with the four-time Formula One World Championship Infiniti Red Bull Racing team, as well as with Infiniti. Allmandinger will spend eight months working on Vehicle Design at the team's headquarters in Milton Keynes, UK – and four months working at Infiniti's European Technical Center in Cranfield – on road car development projects. Formula One technology is more relevant to the automotive industry than ever and will play a key role in the ongoing transfer of technical knowledge and expertise between the race team and Infiniti.