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Nissan sets 2017 sales record with help from Rogue, Titan, and Armada

Nissan Group said its U.S. sales climbed 1.9 percent in 2017 to an all-time record of more than 1.59 million vehicles sold. Free pizza in the conference rooms in Nashville, right? But a closer look shows the company mirroring overall industry trends, with plenty of declining-popularity cars but also a few aging trucks and SUVs. Taken together, Nissan's trucks, SUVs and crossovers saved the day, selling an all-time high of 765,624 total units, up 15 percent from 2016. That offset a 10.9-percent drop in sales of Nissan's cars, as volume sellers like the Altima and Versa posted steep drops. Also buoying overall results was the Infiniti division, which gained 10 percent from the previous year on the strength of models like the Q60 and QX30. Nissan's record year owes a lot to the Rogue, its compact crossover, which set an annual sales record with 403,465 vehicles, an increase of 22.3 percent. Sales of the Titan, Nissan's full-size pickup, grew an impressive 141.9 percent to 52,924 units, while the Armada, a full-size three-row SUV that was all-new for 2017, also saw a huge jump in sales (154.1 percent) to 35,667. Infiniti, meanwhile, saw overall sales climb 10.9 percent on the strength of huge gains by the Q60 Coupe, which rose 170.8 percent, and the QX30 crossover, which grew almost 524 percent. That being said, Infiniti volume is relatively low. The Q60 Coupe sold a total of 40,444 units and the QX30 14,093 for 2017, while Nissan shifted 40,172 Rogues in December alone. On the car side, the Maxima did well, gaining 7.9 percent to finish at 67,627. Volume-wise, the Sentra dominated, nudging up 1.7 percent to 218,451. But the rest of the lineup mirrored industry trends for the car segment, with steep drops for the Altima (down 17 percent), battery-electric Leaf (-19.8 percent), Versa (-19.2 percent) and Juke (-48.1 percent). Several truck, crossover and SUV models are also not faring so well. The aging Frontier pickup, last updated in 2005, fell 14.5 percent, the Pathfinder slipped by 0.8 percent, the Quest minivan plummeted 55.5 percent and the upscale Murano crossover fell by 11.8 percent. A Nissan spokesman says the Quest is no longer being built for the U.S. market starting with the 2018 model year. Meanwhile, reinforcements are coming. Nissan has said it's planning a new generation of the Frontier, its entry-level pickup, but hasn't clarified when.

Infiniti QX50 concept previews production model with variable compression engine

Infiniti revealed its QX50 concept ahead of its official debut at the Detroit Auto Show, and despite the concept title, it looks pretty much production-ready. The company calls the crossover "an evolution of the QX Sport Inspiration" concept, and that's certainly accurate. Side-by-side, the QX Sport, which we already figured was previewing a new QX50, and this concept look nearly identical. The primary changes are bumpers and side skirts that feature the obligatory aluminum trim to look like skid plates, and simple black plastic fender flares. The overall result is a crossover that is pleasant but not exactly exciting that bridges the gap between the small and swoopy QX30 and the large QX60. The plain wrapper hides plenty of impressive technology, though. Under the hood is Infiniti's fascinating variable-compression turbocharged engine. It's a 2.0-liter inline-four that can alter its compression ratio to anything between 8:1 and 14:1. The result is an engine that produces an estimated 268 horsepower and 288 lb-ft of torque. Infiniti says the four-cylinder should be about 27-percent more efficient than a comparable V6. In addition, while the company says this concept just shows a potential application of the engine, it's safe to say that you can expect it in the production model. With the new engine, the QX50 will also switch from to a front-drive platform, with all-wheel drive definitely an option or possibly standard; the current QX50 is based on the aging rear-drive FM platform used on other Infinitis and the Nissan 370Z. The other new tech buried in the QX50 concept's body is what Infiniti calls the "first production-ready incarnation" of its ProPilot semi-autonomous technology. The company doesn't go into great detail about what it will do except for handling stop-and-go highway traffic. We would hazard a guess that the system is functionally the same as the one introduced on the Nissan Serena minivan in Japan. It goes by the same name and can handle stop-and-go traffic, as well as maintain the car's lane position and distance behind other cars. It's another safe bet that we'll see this system in the production model. Other details about the car, such as the interior, have yet to be revealed. We're sure to see it as well as other information about the QX50's technology when it makes its full debut in Detroit. Related Video:

8 fastest depreciating cars in America

Getting a new car is an amazing experience. The fresh new scent, the barely touched interior, the double digit miles on your odometer, and... the depreciation once it leaves the car dealers lot? Maybe not that last one. To save you from the hurt of a quickly depreciating new car, we collected 8 of the fastest depreciating cars in America. And here's a surprise, one of them is a Toyota. Learn more at Autoblog.com Cadillac Infiniti Jeep Kia Lincoln Toyota Autoblog Minute Videos Original Video jeep compass cadillac xts infiniti q50 camry q50