Photo: Infiniti
Nissan's luxury division has been pretty quiet lately, to the point where you'd be excused if you had no idea what it was up to these days. Well, sensing we might need a little jolt to wake us up, Infiniti delivered this teaser image.
A few black lines on an almost white background are hardly something to lose your mind over, even if they do suggest the shape of what appears to be an SUV/crossover. Even though the manufacturer did not release any other info attached to the picture, looking at its lineup and its recent activity, this can't point to anything other than the new QX50 compact SUV.
The current one looks, feels, and IS outdated. Its exterior design hasn't aged well even though it's been just four years since its release, while its interior is reminiscent of the old Mercedes-Benz layout with spades of wood and lots of buttons.
The upcoming second generation has been previewed twice so far, first through the QX Sport Inspiration Concept and then the QX50 Concept, and it looks to right the wrongs of the first generation. For starters, the new model will have a much more commanding presence.
Gone is the taller station wagon silhouette and in comes a classic SUV stance. A massive vertical grille with metallic mesh and tall, aggressive air vents on the sides gave the QX50 Concept a less goofy appearance compared to the outgoing model. And even though it was still a concept, it looked at least 90 percent production ready.
The same goes for the interior. The central console had two separate displays and touch-sensitive buttons, with just a volume knob protruding from its otherwise plane surface to offer a more precise and rapid control. The instrument cluster featured two analog dials, but it also had a rather large digital display in the center, so there was plenty of space for all the important information.
But none of this explains what Infiniti means by the "most advanced" vehicle it has produced so far. The most obvious answer to that is the implementation of Nissan's ProPILOT semi-autonomous driving features. The Concept made it abundantly clear the advanced driving aide suite would be featured on the car, and even if it didn't, it would have been an easy guess.
The second novelty the new QX50 might debut is the 2.0-liter VC-Turbo engine - a four-cylinder unit that can vary its compression ratio depending on the driving style. It's all done by controlling the stroke of the pistons which allows for a compression variation between 8:1 and 14:1. That means the same engine can offer the performance of a V6 unit and the fuel consumption of a 2.0-liter mill, though not both at the same time.
Infiniti will launch the all-new QX50 later this month at the 2017 Los Angeles Motor Show which will start November 29 (December 1 for the public). That means we might get a few more teasers over the coming weeks which will hopefuly confirm the model's resemblance to the QX50 Concept.
The current one looks, feels, and IS outdated. Its exterior design hasn't aged well even though it's been just four years since its release, while its interior is reminiscent of the old Mercedes-Benz layout with spades of wood and lots of buttons.
The upcoming second generation has been previewed twice so far, first through the QX Sport Inspiration Concept and then the QX50 Concept, and it looks to right the wrongs of the first generation. For starters, the new model will have a much more commanding presence.
Gone is the taller station wagon silhouette and in comes a classic SUV stance. A massive vertical grille with metallic mesh and tall, aggressive air vents on the sides gave the QX50 Concept a less goofy appearance compared to the outgoing model. And even though it was still a concept, it looked at least 90 percent production ready.
The same goes for the interior. The central console had two separate displays and touch-sensitive buttons, with just a volume knob protruding from its otherwise plane surface to offer a more precise and rapid control. The instrument cluster featured two analog dials, but it also had a rather large digital display in the center, so there was plenty of space for all the important information.
But none of this explains what Infiniti means by the "most advanced" vehicle it has produced so far. The most obvious answer to that is the implementation of Nissan's ProPILOT semi-autonomous driving features. The Concept made it abundantly clear the advanced driving aide suite would be featured on the car, and even if it didn't, it would have been an easy guess.
The second novelty the new QX50 might debut is the 2.0-liter VC-Turbo engine - a four-cylinder unit that can vary its compression ratio depending on the driving style. It's all done by controlling the stroke of the pistons which allows for a compression variation between 8:1 and 14:1. That means the same engine can offer the performance of a V6 unit and the fuel consumption of a 2.0-liter mill, though not both at the same time.
Infiniti will launch the all-new QX50 later this month at the 2017 Los Angeles Motor Show which will start November 29 (December 1 for the public). That means we might get a few more teasers over the coming weeks which will hopefuly confirm the model's resemblance to the QX50 Concept.
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