Infiniti Looks at Platform-Sharing GT Coupe and Flagship Luxury Sedan, Emerg-E Nixed

Infiniti Essence concept. Perhaps the best news to come out of Infiniti's Grand Product Renaming of 2012 was that there will, at some point, be a true sucessor to the Q45. Following the original Q45—and unlike the current M37/Q70, we'd contend—Infiniti will try to position the new flagship sedan as an unorthodox entry to the luxury market. Johan de Nysschen, Infiniti's new president, told us recently in more detail what to expect. Above Q70 you need a car that competes with 7-series, S-class, and Audi A8. That's conventional thinking. There's enough action going on in that segment. I don't think the world needs another car like that. But I do think the world needs an upscale, very emotional, high-performance luxury sedan from Infiniti that might be a different concept. How this translates to a vehicle, though, is a challenge: Every luxury automaker pitches their products as emotional and high-tech. Other Infiniti and Nissan execs say that a variety of ideas are under consideration for the flagship. A swoopy fastback, akin to the Mercedes-Benz CLS and the Audi A7, seems to be a good possibility, but there also are some "really wild" shapes getting attention. But wild may not be enough. Infiniti's Q70 already does look quite different from the German establishment, albeit in a bulbous way, but it still remains nearly anonymous. This difficulty isn't constrained to Infiniti, of course; even with distinctive, dramatic styling, the Jaguar XJ hasn't been able to propel that brand into the luxury mainstream. Speaking of propulsion, you may recall Mr. de Nysschen saying last fall that future Infinitis weren't being planned to incorporate V-8 engines. Unless there's been a change to powertrain strategy, it looks like the Infiniti flagship will draw, at most, on a turbocharged V-6. Although this is to be more of a halo product for Infiniti, and as such high volumes aren't demanded, it will help to get some more mileage out of the architecture. How convenient, then, that de Nysschen is interested in spinning off the flagship sedan's platform for a coupe. "I think we need some kind of sexy sports car that might share powertrains and  platforms with [the range-topping sedan], but an even more emotional iteration." Photos and Info: 2014 Infiniti Q50 First Drive Review: 2014 Jaguar F-type Prototype Drive: 2014 Lexus IS Sedan That won't, however, be the Lotus-based Emerg-E. "The world isn't ready yet for a $200,000 Infiniti," de Nysschen offered, confirming what we heard last year from another exec. We won't consider it a big loss. Even Lotus, which co-engineered the Emerg-E by way of the Evora 414E concept, said a sports car wasn't the right application of its EV-with-range-extender tech. In terms of the coupe we are likely to see, questions prevail. The GT segment isn't quite uncharted territory, but it is a generally quiet part of the car world. Some former customers have moved on to luxury SUVs, some to the aforementioned four-door "coupes," and others have just moved on. The Jaguar XK, the BMW 6-series, and the Mercedes-Benz SL- and CL-classes are small sellers, and only the SL is visible enough to be considered a proper halo product. (Jaguar's new F-type, with a lower price tag than the XK's, is a contender.) Even still, for de Nysschen, the man who steered Audi on its course to prominence in the U.S., having two proper range toppers is a requirement. "We need these cars as technological and emotional flagships. They can raise the center of gravity for the brand." That's a great deal of pressure on two cars—almost as much, say, as a new luxury brand trying to challenge the BMW 5-series back in 1989. from Car and Driver Blog http://blog.caranddriver.com

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