2003 Infiniti Fx45 Base Sport Utility 4-door 4.5l on 2040-cars

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Weekly Recap: Automakers rethink the definition of luxury

Variety is the spice of life, but it's becoming a prerequisite for luxury carmakers in the ultra-competitive US market. The Detroit Auto Show was strong evidence of this reality. It's not enough to offer attractive and well-appointed cars and SUVs anymore. Luxury brands that want to be competitive need to invest in everything from high-powered supercars to clever hybrids. To be relevant, you need to be green and mean – and everything in between. As General Motors product chief Mark Reuss said after the reveal of the 640-horsepower Cadillac CTS-V: "We are not leaving anything on the table." He was speaking for Cadillac, but he might as well have been speaking for the luxury car market. The CTS-V debuted in Detroit about an hour after Lexus surprised showgoers with the reveal of the RC F GT3 race car and then announced ambitious plans to return to competitive racing. That almost overshadowed the fact Lexus had just revealed another potent addition to its growing F line, the 467-hp GS F. View 20 Photos But for luxury brands, it's not just about maximum horsepower for well-heeled enthusiasts or decadent amenities for the Grey Poupon set. Strong competition from all corners has forced automakers to refine and expand their lineups in ways unforeseen even a few years ago. Case in point: Mercedes-Benz finally has an answer to the BMW X6, rolling out the GLE coupe in Detroit. The X6, which blends coupe-like styling cues with some of the functionality of an SUV, debuted in 2008. Back then it was a punchline, but seven years and more than 260,000 sales later, the X6's success has compelled Benz to respond. Mercedes – one of the strongest proponents of diesel technology – also debuted the C350 plug-in hybrid sedan, which promises a range of 20 miles on electricity, though fuel economy figures were not announced. The car pairs Mercedes' well-received 208-hp turbocharged four-cylinder with an electric motor for total output of 275 hp and 443 pound-feet of torque. Meanwhile, Infiniti will add the Q30 hatchback to its lineup by the end of the year, new president Roland Kruger reiterated in Detroit. It's expected to be joined by a crossover variant, and the additions will help strengthen Infiniti in the United States and abroad. "While we're expanding our product line, we're also expanding our market reach," he said. That's something echoed by Jaguar executives, who are preparing to launch the brand's first crossover, the F-Pace, in 2016.

2015 Japanese Grand Prix is a little Mercedes, a lot of zen

Just one week on from the issues in Singapore Mercedes-AMG Petronas appeared to have solved its clamp problems and everything else. Daniil Kvyat at Infiniti Red Bull Racing took the two Free Practice scalps on Friday, but when it came time for qualifying the front of the grid looked really familiar: Mercedes' Nico Rosberg took his second pole position of the season, Lewis Hamilton next to him in second. Kvyat had a hand in that, too, the Russian getting into a big accident in Q3 when he put two wheels on the grass heading into the hairpin and veered into the tire wall so hard that he flipped. That ended qualifying before a number of drivers had a chance to improve their times, Hamilton among them. That's how Valtteri Bottas got in third for Willliams ahead of Sebastian Vettel fourth for Ferrari. Felipe Massa had the second Williams in fifth, ahead of Kimi Raikkonen in the second Ferrari. Daniel Ricciardo lined up sixth for Infiniti Red Bull Racing, a team we're going to have to enjoy watching for the rest of the season since it might not exist come 2016. Romain Grosjean gave Lotus some good news by getting into eighth, the team so strapped for cash that it couldn't get into its hospitality area, so it held press conferences outside and ate at Bernie Ecclestone's Paddock Club. Sergio Perez took ninth for Sahara Force India, and Kvyat slotted into tenth after not setting a time. The Russsian's race would begin from the pit lane once his mechanics rebuilt his car. It wouldn't be a Formula One start lately without someone at the front having clutch problems. This time it was pole man Rosberg, whose power unit got too hot and put him a few horsepower down on Hamilton through Turns 1 and 2. That's half of how Hamilton took the lead from the lights going out, and the Brit kept it throughout the race. Rosberg, however, said his race was lost when Hamilton pushed him wide through Turn 2, a move Hamilton defended. Rosberg finished almost 19 seconds behind his teammate, a gap that probably isn't fully explained by that opening incident. Hamilton's race was so uneventful that we almost never saw him on camera – that is, we saw him so much less than we usually see him when he's out in front and unpressured that Nikki Lauda said he'd ask Ecclestone why the cameras avoided him. The conspiracy theory holds that FOM was punishing Mercedes for not supplying Red Bull with engines next year.

Infiniti's Vision for Gran Turismo revealed in full [w/video]

Just about any car has to be designed with some sort of limitations, whether it's a production car that has to be usable on the road, a racecar that has to comply with regulations, or even a concept car that does, at the end of the day, actually need to be crafted out of real materials and wheeled onto a stage. But the Vision Gran Turismo series imposes no such limitations. Designed only for a virtual reality, the project allows for designers to craft a purely fantastical design whose limits fall barely short of their own imaginations. It presents companies with the opportunity to represent their brand as they want to, so it comes as little surprise that every automaker from here to Hong Kong has been lining up to take part. And the latest is Infiniti. Previewed in a pair of teaser renderings barely over a week ago, the Infiniti Concept Vision Gran Turismo is a suitably striking addition to the virtual world of the Gran Turismo video game franchise. Designed at the company's Beijing studio, the brief calls for a 4.5-liter naturally aspirated V8 hybrid powertrain, with a front mid-ship layout driving a rear transaxle for ideal 45/55 front-rear weight distribution. Beyond that it's all flowing forms, extreme aero and signature Infiniti design cues like a widened version of the brand's trademark grille shape and the kink in the rear pillar. It's got butterfly doors hinged ahead of those spindly mirrors, center-lock alloys crafted from carbon fiber, deeply sculpted aerodynamic elements, a large boomerang-shaped rear wing and aggressive long-hood/low greenhouse proportions. It's F1 meets GT, to hear Infiniti tell it, and whether you've got a PS3 and a copy of Gran Turismo 6 to play around with it or not, you can check it out in the images above and the video below. This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings. Introducing the INFINITI CONCEPT Vision Gran Turismo The "INFINITI CONCEPT Vision Gran Turismo" has been released on "Gran Turismo 6", available exclusively on PlayStation®3. Infiniti has continued to break new ground in design since the brand was first established. This is a sensuous GT car brimming with the Infiniti philosophy. How to receive it After Update 1.15 has been installed, the car can be purchased from the [Vision GT] area within the [CARS] section in "My Home" (here, you can also find the car's presentation movie).