Infiniti Americas President Michael Bartsch took the stage at the New York International Auto Show to tell the public about the latest versions of Infiniti’s flagship models, the QX80 luxury SUV and the Q70 luxury sedan.
Infiniti, now its own separate brand after 25 years as a branch of Nissan, and the marque demonstrates how it earned a quarter-century of success with its latest offerings.
QX80 Limited
The QX80 Limited luxury SUV is, according to Bartsch, “the most premium product we have ever offered. There really is no other luxury SUV like it.
“Nothing else offers a real third row of seats a crafted superior premium interior true off-road capability and massive towing ability of 8500 lbs.”
The QX80 Limited is a huge vehicle, with three full rows of seats capable of carrying seven passengers in supreme comfort. Powered by a 400-horsepower 5.6-liter V8 driving all four 22-inch wheels, the QX80 can not only pull its passengers along briskly, it is also rated to tow an 8500-lb. load—perfect for bringing the sailboat to the sea, one would suppose.
Bartsch says the SUV’s performance belies its size, saying it is a “sprightly energetic car to drive.”
The QX80 features Infiniti’s Hydraulic Body Motion Control, which means that no matter how bumpy the ride, the passengers will never be shaken up.
The QX80 Limited is aimed at young, wealthy, upwardly mobile buyers who demand the ultimate in luxury and exclusivity, and the interior meets those expectations, wrapped entirely in leather accented with wood. On the outside the car has been updated with a revised front fascia featuring new LED high/low beam headlights, LED turn signals, LED fog lights and a new bumper with flush-mounted sonar sensors.
Infiniti offers the QX80 with the latest in driver aids and safety systems, including predictive forward collision warning system and a backup collision intervention system. There are no options; Infiniti has already included everything any customer could want.
Q70L
Bartsch said that some customers told Infiniti they wanted the cabin space of an SUV but preferred driving a luxury sedan. Infiniti responded by building the Q70L, a long-wheelbase version of its already comfortable Q70.
The Q70L’s wheelbase has been extended 5.9 inches to give rear-seat passengers limousine-like roominess; even some six-foot-two could sit back and cross his legs with room to spare, Bartsch commented.
“We know our customers desire more choice and prestige. The long wheelbase Q70 is our offer to them,” said Bartsch. “The Q70 delivers on all accounts—attention to detail, highly crafted materials, rear roominess, comfortable ride, and superior levels of interior quietness.”
The new standard-wheelbase Q70 is lower, wider, and sleeker than its predecessor, with updated styling in keeping with the latest Infiniti design language, including compact LED headlights set in an entirely new front end.
The car is available with either a 3.7-liter aluminum-alloy DOHC 24-valve V6 rated at 330 horsepower, or a 5.6-liter aluminum-alloy DOHC 32-valve direct-injected V8 is rated at 420 horsepower (416 bhp and 414 lbs-ft of torque for the Q70L.) Infiniti also offers a hybrid model which provides V8 performance with four-cylinder economy. The Infiniti Direct Response Hybrid® system’s gasoline and electric motors combine to provide a net 360 horsepower.
The Q70 also offers the full array of driver aids and safety systems, making the new car even safer and more stress-free to drive.
The new 2015 QX80 Limited, QX80, Q70L and Q70, along with the Q50 Eau Rouge, Q30 Concept and the complete line of 2014 Infiniti vehicles, will be on display at the Infiniti stand at the New York International Auto Show at Jacob Javits Center from Friday, April 18 through Sunday, April 27, 2014.
