Infiniti is something of a comeback kid in the automotive business. Every time somebody starts measuring it for a coffin, the company produces something that reminds us why we paid attention in the first place. Unfortunately, the stretches between those reminders have gotten a little long. You can only tell people you’re reinventing yourself so many times before they start wondering whether it’s serious or lip service.
Cole Attisha
The brand launched in 1989, and its history includes some genuinely compelling vehicles. The Q45 had attitude, the G35 made BMW nervous, and the FX proved an SUV could look like a running shoe and still be desirable. More recently, however, Infiniti has struggled to maintain that momentum while Genesis has been eating its lunch. Presumably, off a silver platter.
Today, Infiniti’s U.S. lineup consists of three SUVs: the QX60, the new QX65, and the QX80. That’s a pretty thin menu, but the reported product pipeline suggests the company finally has something cooking.
Infiniti
What’s in the showroom?
The QX60 handles traditional family duty. It’s a three-row crossover with seating for up to seven, although second-row captain’s chairs reduce that count. Its 2.0-liter variable-compression turbocharged four-cylinder produces 268 horsepower and 286 pound-feet of torque, paired with a nine-speed automatic. Front-wheel drive is available, as is all-wheel drive.
Cole Attisha
Properly equipped, it can tow up to 6,000 pounds, which makes it useful beyond transporting children and their apparently mandatory collection of sporting equipment. I appreciate the QX60’s comfort and practicality, although I still have questions about replacing the old V6 with a considerably more complicated four-cylinder. Clever engineering is wonderful. So is an engine that doesn’t sound irritated by its assignment.
The new QX65 takes much of that formula, removes the third row and adds a swooping roofline. It seats five and uses the same 268-horsepower engine and nine-speed automatic, with standard all-wheel drive. Think of it as the more fashion-conscious sibling, the one who takes considerably longer getting ready.
Cole Attisha
Its styling invokes the old FX, but expectations need managing. Sharing a family crossover’s underpinnings doesn’t automatically recreate the rear-drive character that made the FX special. Still, the QX65 gives Infiniti something fresh and visually distinctive, and the cabin makes a convincing argument for spending time inside.
Then there’s the QX80, which occupies approximately the same visual territory as a nicely furnished embassy. This body-on-frame flagship shares its foundation with the Nissan Armada and packs a 3.5-liter twin-turbocharged V6 producing 450 horsepower and 516 pound-feet of torque. It’s bolted to a nine-speed automatic transmission, seating accommodates up to eight, and maximum towing capacity reaches 8,500 pounds.
It’s a substantial improvement in technology and interior presentation over its predecessor. It also demonstrates that Infiniti can build something luxurious enough to justify a serious price tag. Whether your bank account agrees is a separate conversation.
The departed QX50 and QX55 leave a hole below these vehicles. More importantly, Infiniti currently lacks an entry point that can consistently bring new buyers into the family.
A sports sedan? With a manual?!?
The most entertaining part of Infiniti’s reported comeback is a new rear-wheel-drive sports sedan, widely expected to revive the Q50 name. Industry reporting points toward a 2027 arrival as a 2028 model, with a twin-turbo V6 and, delightfully, a possible manual transmission.
Yes, three pedals. In a luxury sedan. Somebody apparently found the enthusiast suggestion box before it went into the shredder. Praise be.
Related: This Is What the Bentley Torcal Looks Like Up Close
Reports connect the project to the next Nissan Skyline and suggest powertrain links to the Nissan Z. However, final specifications, pricing, and the complete transmission lineup still need official confirmation. I wouldn’t start ordering Red Sport badges quite yet.
Nevertheless, the idea matters. A sedan probably won’t become Infiniti’s biggest seller, but it could remind people that the brand once built cars you bought because you wanted to drive them. That’s considerably more valuable than another commercial featuring an SUV outside an architect’s house.
Nissan
The hybrid Infiniti actually needs
The more important vehicle for sales may be a new compact crossover expected in 2028, potentially wearing a 2029 model-year designation and reviving the QX50 badge.
This vehicle is expected to share technology with the next Nissan Rogue, including Nissan’s e-Power series-hybrid system. In that arrangement, a gasoline engine generates electricity while electric motors drive the wheels. You get electric propulsion without needing to plug in. It’s unique, and I’m curious if it’s a big threat to Toyota.
That could be a compelling fit for luxury buyers who appreciate smooth acceleration but have no desire to organize their lives around charging stops. Infiniti still needs to deliver competitive efficiency, refinement, and pricing, but the basic proposition makes sense.
Bringing boots and horsepower
Farther out, reports describe two body-on-frame SUVs arriving around 2029 and 2030, tied to Nissan’s next-generation truck architecture and its Canton, Mississippi, manufacturing operation. V6 and hybrid powertrains have been discussed. It’s rumored to be based on the upcoming XTerra.
Names and final specifications remain unsettled, but the opportunity is obvious. A genuinely capable luxury off-roader could give Infiniti a credible alternative to the Lexus GX. Give me low-range gearing, useful ground clearance and an interior that doesn’t punish my large American backside, and I’m listening.
Related: Scout’s $1 Billion Budget Overrun Isn’t Stopping Expansion
The QX80 Track Spec and Terrain Spec concepts also suggest an appetite for more adventurous flagship derivatives. The former explores serious horsepower; the latter emphasizes off-road hardware. Production details deserve watching, but concepts and order sheets remain two different things. Once again, if they hit production, I suspect they will riff off the Nissan Armada PRO-4X and Nismo. We’ll see.
Cole Attisha
Final thoughts
Spend enough time around Southern California, and you’ll discover that older VQ-powered G35s and G37s still have an enthusiastic following. Yay. Occasionally, that enthusiasm arrives sideways, accompanied by tire smoke and an overambitious (obnoxious) exhaust note audible in another ZIP code. I’m not endorsing the behavior, but it does demonstrate that these vehicles left an impression.
Infiniti needs to recapture that appeal while giving ordinary buyers practical reasons to visit a dealership. A hybrid crossover can pay the bills. A sports sedan can restore credibility. A capable luxury 4×4 could do both.
Three SUVs aren’t much of a lineup. Fortunately, they are good SUVs. The encouraging part is that Infiniti’s next chapter might involve some real personality.
Let’s hope.
Related: Lucid Air vs. Lucid Gravity: Sleek Sedan or Family Spaceship?
