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2014 Infiniti Q50

Avoiding An Identity Crisis... For Now
Infiniti is a brand that has been quietly undergoing major upheaval - and not just with the numbers and letters on its trunklids. Back in December, Nissan's premium brand rankled fans and pundits by announcing it would redo its alphanumeric nomenclature, yet that decision was but a PR speedbump - there are bigger fish to fry. After all, this is a marque that was on the chopping block just a couple of years ago, and now it has a major opportunity to succeed thanks to new investment, new independence (Infiniti is now responsible for its own design, engineering, marketing, quality and human resources), a new global headquarters in Hong Kong, and new marching orders from new leadership that calls for a revitalized and expanded portfolio.
Yet if you think that the Q-based naming convention is the first sign of the brand's new direction, you might have missed Infiniti's biggest signal flare: the 2013 JX crossover. Fine premium three-row crossover that it may be, it's still the first Infiniti in ages that operates without a scintilla of driving entertainment at the core of its genetic makeup. (The last - and perhaps only - previous example was also Pathfinder-based, the 1997 QX4). To be fair, three-row CUVs have a laundry list of priorities before driving enjoyment figures in, but the message the JX (henceforth known as the QX60) sends is clear: Infiniti is going after more segments and more customers. Plans are afoot to expand the company's product line by a whopping 60 percent over the next five years, and in short, that means Infiniti is no longer content to be the unsung Japanese BMW - it needs vehicles that satisfy a wider swath of consumers. Despite all this, Infiniti officials we spoke with were keen to assert that driving pleasure remains very much core to their mission, and to that of this 2014 Q50 in particular.

1992 Infiniti Q45 with under 9,000 miles is a window into the glory days of Japan, Inc.

The 1980s saw Japanese auto boom in the U.S., while at home the "Bubble Economy" of the latter half of the decade swelled corporate coffers. The heady atmosphere lead first Honda, then Toyota and Nissan, to launch luxury divisions, aimed primarily at the U.S. market. Nissan formed a secret task force in 1985 to create Infiniti, and the brand launched (simultaneously with Lexus) at the 1989 Detroit Auto Show. The Infiniti Q45 was the brand's flagship and displayed a distinctly Japanese take on the luxury sedan. Whereas the Lexus LS400 was like the world's most perfect Cadillac — all silence and smoothness — the more driver-oriented Q45 was something akin to an Asian Jaguar. The Zen-like styling eschewed luxury car cliches such as interior wood trim and a fancy chrome grille. Instead, the nose of the Q45 was adorned with a stylized badge that was suggestive of a samurai shield. When Lexus stormed out of the gate and left Infiniti far behind, Nissan's luxury division began to dial back the iconoclasm and tack toward conventionality. All of which makes this early, 1992-model Q45 a rare and intriguing machine. It's all the more representative of Infiniti's early days because of its ultra-low mileage: just 8,800 miles are on the clock. Up for sale right now on the auction website Cars & Bids, this Q45 reportedly had just one owner up until last year. It features a leather interior, power seats, a sunroof and a trunk-mounted 10-disc CD changer. Under the hood is a DOHC 4.5-liter V8 that's good for 278 horsepower and pairs with a four-speed automatic transmission to drive the rear wheels. Of note is the factory case that houses the original titanium keys. At this writing, bidding for this rarely seen Japanese luxury sedan stands at $11,000 with two days left to go in the auction. That seems a small sum for such a well-preserved totem of the Japanese auto industry's master-of-the-universe period. Related Video:

Nissan could report first quarterly loss since March 2009

TOKYO — Nissan may report its first quarterly loss in more than a decade on Thursday because of slumping sales, sources familiar with the company said, adding more pressure on efforts to rebuild the company after Carlos Ghosn's ouster. Deteriorating profits underscore the challenges facing Nissan, which is unwinding many of the expansionist strategies championed by ex-Chief Executive Officer and Chairman Ghosn by slashing jobs, production sites and product offerings to save cash and ensure its survival. In addition to slumping sales, production disruptions caused by China's coronavirus outbreak could also drag profits lower. Three senior officials at Japan's No. 2 automaker told Reuters that they anticipate a poor results announcement on Thursday, with one of them calling the figures "dismal". Two of the officials cautioned that there is the possibility of an operating loss, which would be the first quarterly loss since the period ending in March 2009. Nissan said it could not comment on its financial results ahead of its official announcement. The company is likely to report operating profit of 48.6 billion yen ($442.5 million) for the quarter ending in December, less than half the 103 billion yen profit a year ago, according to SmartEstimate's survey of three analysts, who revised their forecasts in January. However, those forecasts were issued before the release of the December vehicle sales figures on Jan. 30, which show third-quarter sales dropped by 11% from the year earlier period, according to Reuters calculations. That is the biggest quarterly slump of its current sales downturn that began two years ago. That sales decline led one auto equities analyst based in Japan to scrap his forecast and also warn that Nissan could post a loss. "It will be a question of whether there will be a profit or a loss. For the quarter, a loss is a possibility," he said, declining to be named as his forecast had not been updated to reflect his latest view. One of the three Nissan officials said there is a risk the automaker may cut its full-year profit forecast of 150 billion yen, which would be an 11-year low. The company announced that forecast in November after an initial 230 billion yen outlook.