The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety announced three years ago that it would change its side-impact test for the better. More specifically, the nonprofit organization raised the speed of impact, raised the weight of the moving barrier that acts as the striking vehicle, and redesigned said barrier.
All changes taken into consideration, the modified test configuration has 82 percent more energy than the previous side-impact test that the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety rolled out back in 2003. The Acura RDX has been recently tested with the modified test configuration, passing the side crash test with flying colors. On the other hand, Infiniti could do better with the compact-sized crossover it refers to as the QX50.
As you can tell from the video below, the movable barrier strikes the driver’s door and driver-side B pillar. The way the driver-side window reacts to the impact is one thing, but seeing the driver-side front wheel lift off the ground is pretty darn scary. The nonprofit organization isn’t particularly happy with how the structure and safety cage took the 37-mph (60-kph) impact, giving the QX50 an “acceptable” rating for potential driver torso injuries and a “marginal” rating for the driver’s pelvis. On the upside, the rear-seat crash test dummy didn’t exhibit any signs of injuries.
Redesigned from the ground up in 2017 for the 2019 model year, the QX50 comes exclusively with a VC-Turbo variable compression ratio engine. The 2.0-liter turbo four-cylinder mill can switch its compression ratio from 14:1 to 8:1, depending on the driving scenario. On full song, it produces 268 horsepower and 280 pound-foot (380 Nm) from 1,600 rpm.
Prospective customers who prefer the QX50 over the safer RDX will need to shell out $40,300, excluding destination charge for the lowest specification available. The RDX currently retails at $41,350 in the U.S.
After a 1:43 scale model of a Ferrari 250 GTO sparked Mircea's interest for cars when he was a kid, an early internship at Top Gear sealed his career path. He's most interested in muscle cars and American trucks, but he takes a passing interest in quirky kei cars as well. Full profile
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