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Leopard walks in, shuts down a Mercedes-Benz plant

In recent months the auto industry has seen plant closures due to a host of reasons — parts shortages, recalls, natural disasters, and even a once-in-a-lifetime pandemic. Now it can add to that list the threat of an invading leopard. A Mercedes-Benz factory in Pune, India, was forced to halt production for a few hours when a wayward jungle cat wandered into the facility, When the 3-year-old male leopard was spotted inside the manufacturing unit of the factory, it caused a panic among workers, according to a release by rescue organization Wildlife SOS discovered by The Drive. The site was shut down for about six hours as a Wildlife SOS rapid response team from the Manikdoh Leopard Rescue Centre and the State Forest Department safely removed the curious cat. This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings. The team's veterinary officers Dr. Nikhil Bangar and Dr. Shubham Patil carried out the rescue operation, tranquilizing the feline and loading it into a wildlife carrier. The rescue took about four hours, and Wildlife SOS reports that neither the creature nor any workers sustained injuries. The leopard was released back into the wild.  No one is quite sure how it got onto the factory grounds, but Wildlife SOS says that the forests in the surrounding region have one of the highest densities of leopards in the world. It's also suffering from rapid deforestation. That encroachment by humans has led to a decrease in the leopard's natural prey as well, so wildlife experts think it may have been looking for food.  The Mercedes plant builds the Maybach S 560, S-Class, E-Class Long Wheelbase, C-Class, CLA, GLA, GLE and GLS for the Indian market.  We have a different theory. We believe that the cat was seeking to set the record straight with Mercedes. When the S 65 AMG debuted, Mercedes claimed it featured the world's first Road Surface Scan technology to detect pavement undulations and adjust suspension damping accordingly. The only problem with that claim: Nissan had the technology some 30 years earlier in several mid-80s models, including the Maxima and Japan's version of the Infiniti M30, which was called — you guessed it — the Leopard. 

Infiniti QX50 confirmed for NY debut

It's been eight years now since Infiniti took the wraps off its smaller crossover. The model initially known as the EX was subsequently renamed the QX50 in the brand's broad nomenclature shakeup a couple of years ago, but now it's received what promises to be a comprehensive makeover to be revealed at the New York Auto Show next week. Though it hasn't given us any photos to go on (that's the current model pictured above), Infiniti has revealed that "the updated QX50 has a wheelbase increase of more than three inches, creating additional rear legroom and interior volume." We're also told to expect "new front and rear fascias, wheels, side sills, as well as a slightly higher ride stance." Nissan's rival to the likes of the BMW X3, Audi Q5, Volvo XC60 et al is offered Stateside with a 3.7-liter V6 driving the rear wheels or all four, but is offered overseas as well with a 3.0-liter turbodiesel. We'd expect the revised model to carry over the same engines, perhaps with some revisions, when it reaches showrooms this fall.

2023 Infiniti Q50 gets small price bump and Premium Care

The Infiniti Q50 sedan continues for 2023 without the support of its coupe sibling, the Q60. There are just three small changes on the way, one being the addition of Infiniti Premium Care. Expanded to every Infiniti sold or leased in the U.S., Premium Care is a regular maintenance program for items like oil and filter changes, tire rotations, and inspections for up to three years. The second change is a higher price, the Q50 starting at $43,725 including the $1,075 destination fee, a $610 increase over 2022. MSRPs for the three trims next year and differences from 2022 are: Q50 Luxe: $43,725 ($610) Q50 Sensory: $49,425 ($400) Q50 Red Sport 400: $57,575 ($600) The last change is the availability of a Saddle Brown interior, which used to require stepping up to the Sensory. Rear-wheel drive is the standard layout, all-wheel drive can be optioned to any trim for $2,000. The twin-turbo 3.0-liter V6 hold steady at 300 horsepower and 295 pound-feet of torque for the Luxe and Sensory, or 400 hp and 350 lb-ft for the Red Sport 400, shifting through a seven-speed automatic no matter the output. It's possible there are more people who want to know where the Q50 is going than want to buy the car. The brand sold 8,482 Q50s in the first half of 2021, but just 3,717 units in the first half of this year. The high point came in 2016 when 44,007 units moved that year, two years after the sedan went on sale, and the model heading into 2023 has been hanging on for 10 years. The brand talked about a potential new electrified platform for the sedan in 2018, but come 2021 Nikkei Asia reported parent company Nissan would be ending development of all sedans in Japan excepting the Skyline. The Q50 seems like it's doing circles in a product cul-de-sac, knowing there's no point in revamping the current generation or developing a new one. But the car on sale is just bringing down values; unlike much of the rest of the market, there's real money to be saved on a one- or two-year-old Q50. Perhaps when the electric revolution has some power behind it in 2027 or 2028, we could see a return to the hot Infiniti sedans of yore.