Hits the lake sometime next year

Infiniti made quite a splash at this year’s Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance. The company brought its gorgeous Essence concept car—a coupe whose proportions and grace would certainly land it on the lawn for the 2059 Concours—and also (virtually) announced the 2011 Infiniti M.

Back in April, we brought you news of a partnership between Nissan and Daimler and now we have news that certain Infiniti models may carry “Powered by AMG” badges. Nissan’s Luxury Line, Infiniti, is considering all options for their Performance Line, dubbed Infiniti Hot Models by British Magazine Autocar. Options include styling add-ons to full-blown Performance Hot Models with AMG Engines built on the main production line.

The halls are empty now. The offices quiet. The window blinds drawn. After 40-odd years of daily hustle and bustle, Nissan's headquarters in Gardena, California, sits idle, a "For Sale" sign staked in the front yard, the company name yanked from the building's facade. All mail has been forwarded to Nashville, Tennessee.

Infiniti is preparing to enter a new market segment with the launch of the JX crossover, a 7-seater luxury model. The company hasn’t revealed many details on this concept as of yet, and apparently they are not going to until the vehicle makes its official debut at the 2011 Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance in August. A production version will be revealed in November at the Los Angeles Auto Show, but the vehicle won’t be going on sale until Spring 2012 as a 2013 model.

How odd would it be for rally fans to see a Nissan, let alone an Infiniti, getting its tires dirty in the world of rallying? The Japanese automaker isn’t exactly a name synonymous with rally racing, so you might need to excuse us for being a little apprehensive when word broke out that an Infiniti G37 S Coupe would be part of the Spanish Rally Championship.

The full-size Infiniti may not be the prettiest vehicle in the fleet, but it has a lot to offer for its $72,000-plus price. Logs photographer Julia LaPalme, "Some friends of mine, upon seeing the QX, commented on how ridiculously huge and ugly it is. But the fantastic turning radius is such a pleasant surprise!
"Passengers stay comfortable in luxurious reclining leather heated and cooled captain's chairs in the second row. I will admit, for hauling people and/or stuff, the QX56 does a great job. The third row folds flat for more cargo room in the back. Even the footwells of the second row have gobs of room for bags and such when you're not hauling passengers. And the power! I can really feel the V-8's 400 horses kick in when I put the pedal down."

When the tachometer in the new Infiniti M35h (called Nissan Fuga Hybrid in Japan) fell while we were cruising along at 40 mph, we couldn't help but do a double take. But as the needle hit zero and the car continued to hum along, we realized there were no gremlins in the system. The engine had simply cut out and we were driving in electric-only mode.

When we first drove Infiniti's new entry-level G25 sedan late last year, we found the car to be a mixed bag. While the G25 was far from a standout dynamically and was relatively light on luxury equipment, it did offer a few advantages over its more expensive G37 brother, namely a lower base price and a smoother V-6 engine. Our impressions remain largely the same after a full week behind the wheel and a trip to our testing facility, where we ran the usual gauntlet of acceleration, braking, and handling measurements.

Does the world need a better Cadillac Escalade? That's the question we'll ask ourselves for the next 12 months as we run around the country in our newest long-termer, the 2011 Infiniti QX56. While the latest and largest from Infiniti didn't win our SUV of the Year calipers, it did well enough in the competition for us to hound Infiniti into giving us one for a year. In other words, we like it.

After 10 minutes behind the wheel of the 2012 Infiniti M35h, one thing becomes crystal clear: Infiniti engineers must despise hybrids. Rocketing up the twisting, hilly side streets of West Hollywood, this car sure doesn't feel like the next-door science teacher's hybrid. It's got gobs of rich, torquey power and an audible growl from its twin chrome exhaust tips. It even handles well and drives -- dare we say it? -- almost like a sports sedan. So what gives?

With a history of only three years, the Infiniti EX is entering the 2011 model year with a new 7-Speed automatic transmission, 18-inch alloy wheels, and other refinements. The 2011 Infiniti will be offered in four models: EX35 RWD, EX35 AWD, EX35 RWD Journey and EX35 AWD Journey, with prices ranging from $34,150 to $37,750.

Like with all the other G models in Infiniti’s line-up, the Convertible model is entering the 2011 model year with a few updates, including a new Limited Edition model.

Nissan’s Infiniti brand is poised to introduce the new 2012 Infiniti G37, including a coupe variant that’s scheduled to be launched to the market around 2012.

The Japanese automaker, Infiniti, has confirmed that the finer line of Nissan automobiles will indeed produce the M35 hybrid luxury sedan. The hybrid will join the rest of the conventional internal combustion only vehicles when the 2012 M arrives in showrooms.

Infiniti is one of those brands that tuning firms just skim past while deciding on their next project, so finding a decent package for Nissan’s luxury division is not something we come across on a daily - or even monthly - basis.