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Infiniti teases November debut of new QX55 crossover-coupe

Infiniti will officially unveil its new QX55 crossover-coupe via social media on Nov. 11, Nissan's luxury subsidiary announced early Wednesday. Infiniti is calling it a return to the segment which the company helped pioneer when it launched the FX crossover back in 2002.  "With a roofline and visual elements inspired by the iconic Infiniti FX, the QX55’s provocative design will fuse the stance and versatility of a premium midsize crossover with the sleek profile of a sports coupe," Infiniti's announcement said. "Beyond its provocative looks, the QX55 will also feature innovative technologies designed to empower, engage and connect luxury customers to the road ahead." The announcement was accompanied by the above teaser image, which depicts the QX55's tapered liftgate. It's quite a bit more conservative than the previously released design sketch suggested, but certainly looks the part.  The QX55 is one of five new vehicles Infiniti plans to launch in the next three years. It was first teased last August during Monterey Car Week. While Infiniti has been leaning heavily on the heritage of the original FX (which later became the QX70) since releasing that first design sketch, the QX55 will actually have little in common with its spiritual ancestor. While they may share fastback SUV looks, the QX55 will be based on the QX50 — a modern, front-wheel-drive crossover with small, efficient engines. The FX was derived from Infiniti's sport sedans and coupes, and even boasted a V8 option for much of its existence. Production of the new crossover-coupe was slated to begin in June, but was reportedly pushed back due to complications at its production facility in Aguascalientes, Mexico. The facility is a joint-venture project between Mercedes-Benz parent company Daimler and Nissan, and produces several other front- and all-wheel-drive vehicles for both companies.  Related Video: This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings.    

Nissan exec Andy Palmer derides Toyobaru coupes as 'midlife crisis' cars

Andy Palmer, Nissan's executive vice president, does not like the Scion FR-S or Subaru BRZ. To us, that's like saying you enjoy barbecuing puppies, but we'll let him slide, because his statements about the Toyobaru twins are much, much more than just idle trash talk.
Speaking to Motor Trend's Nate Martinez, Palmer said, "Do we have any competitors [in the small, rear-drive coupe segment]? Are you talking about the Subaru [BRZ]? It was a car designed for a 50-year-old. It's for a midlife crisis. That's not what we do." Strong words, but what followed was even better.
"Are you coming to the Tokyo Motor Show? You'll see the answer to the midlife crisis. Except it won't be for the midlife crisis." So, if you were wondering whether Nissan is working on a competitor to the Scion FR-S and Subaru BRZ, the answer seems to be a resounding "yes."

Nissan slashes profit forecast as Ghosn arrest hurts brand appeal

TOKYO — Nissan cut its profit forecast for the fiscal year through March on Wednesday to reflect slowing sales, higher costs and the fallout from a criminal investigation of its former chairman, Carlos Ghosn. Nissan Motor Co. expects to post a 319 billion yen ($2.9 billion) profit for the fiscal year, marking a 22% drop from its earlier 410 billion yen ($3.7 billion) forecast. Nissan said the downgrade reflects higher costs in the U.S. from a warranty extension campaign for some vehicles and falling sales due to "corporate issues," alluding to the Ghosn scandal. Ghosn was arrested in November and is facing charges of underreporting his income and breach of trust. He says he is innocent. He was released on bail in March and is awaiting another court decision on bail after his re-arrest on April 4. Nissan, which is allied with Renault SA of France, has seen sales lag in France and Japan, where Ghosn is widely known. In the U.S. and China, buyers aren't as affected by the scandal, but the markets there overall have slowed. Other factors contributed to the revision, such as production not keeping up with demand for the Note, an extremely popular model in Japan. But the high-profile scandal has weakened the brand appeal of the maker of the Leaf electric car, Infiniti luxury model and X-trail sports utility vehicle. Nissan said it expects to sell 5.5 million vehicles in this fiscal year. Earlier it predicted it would sell 5.6 million. The company sold nearly 5.8 million vehicles in the fiscal year that ended in March 2018. The automaker reduced its sales outlook by 0.2% for the fiscal year through March 2019 to 11.5 trillion yen ($103 billion), compared to its previous forecast. It was Nissan's second downgrade for its outlook following one in February that cited faltering sales in China and the U.S. At that time, Nissan also logged costs about 9.2 billion yen ($83 million) related to the alleged underreporting of Ghosn's compensation. Nissan has promised to strengthen its corporate governance to prevent a recurrence of what it says is serious wrongdoing by Ghosn. Ghosn was sent by Nissan's French alliance partner, Renault SA, to help turn the Japanese automaker around when it was near bankruptcy 20 years ago. The future of the alliance is one of many questions clouding Nissan's future following Ghosn's ouster since he was the main liaison for the alliance, which includes smaller Japanese automaker Mitsubishi Motors.