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Infiniti Q30 spied again

The Infiniti Q30 is back in the news thanks to the imminent debut of the QX30 Concept as its crossover counterpart at the upcoming 2015 Geneva Motor Show. The siblings are Infiniti's entrants into the popular premium compact ranks, and the standard hatchback was recently spotted in Europe with the least amount of concealment yet. Granted, this tester is still pretty heavy camouflaged, but this is a lot better aesthetically than the previous garbage-bag-covered look. While the pattern makes specifics hard to discern, the translation from the motor show stand to the road appears to be leaving the Q30 Concept's styling largely intact. Up front, the squinting headlights and swollen-rectangle shape of the grille remain similar, and while they are pretty hard to spot, the slashes down the side are faintly visible from some angles. The rear hews even closer to the original design with a comparable shape for the taillights and hatch, but exhausts are much smaller on this test car. Underneath the skin, the Q30 reportedly shares its platform with the Mercedes-Benz GLA-Class, and the engine is also expected to be the 2.0-liter turbocharged four-cylinder available in Mercedes' compact lineup. Official details should start spilling out soon, though, because Infiniti wants production of the hatchback to begin in 2015 at the Sunderland plant in the UK. A launch for the US market is expected in 2016. Featured Gallery Infiniti Q30 Spy Shots Image Credit: CarPix Spy Photos Infiniti Hatchback Luxury infiniti q30 infiniti q30 concept

Race recap: 2015 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix is Germany rising as sun sets

Mercedes-AMG Petronas driver Nico Rosberg Rosberg doesn't attribute anything mystical to the form that got him ahead of teammate Lewis Hamilton. He said simply, "Before it was close in the other direction, now it's close in this direction." Mercedes non-executive chairman Niki Lauda went further, saying Rosberg's "brain has switched." Under the desert spotlights it switched so far ahead that Lewis Hamilton qualified nearly four tenths behind the German. Kimi Raikkonen flew the scarlet for Ferrari in third position. Being three spots ahead of Valtteri Bottas gave Raikkonen a huge advantage in locking up fourth position in the driver's championship. Even if he doesn't care about it, as he's publicly stated, Ferrari probably does. Teammate Sebastian Vettel was classified 16th after the German slowed down after making a mistake on his final hot lap, and neither he nor his engineer realized how quickly times were falling on a cooling track. He'd be promoted to 15th when Lotus driver Romain Grosjean was penalized for a gearbox change. Sergio Perez knocked it out of the park for Sahara Force India, claiming fourth ahead of Daniel Ricciardo in fifth for Infiniti Red Bull Racing. Williams driver Bottas was in sixth, in front of the second Force India of Nico Hulkenberg and the second Williams of Felipe Massa in eighth. Daniil Kvyat ensured both Red Bulls were in the top 10 with his ninth position, and Carlos Sainz got the upper hand in qualifying over his Toro Rosso teammate Max Verstappen for the final time this year, rounding out the top 10. Beyond Nico Rosberg's mind, one of his weaknesses was his slow starts. Those are stronger, too, the German tearing off away from the field when the lights went out. Hamilton bogged enough to have to defend from Perez behind, the Mexican trying to slide between Hamilton and Raikkonen on the run to the first corner. Rosberg held the lead into Turn 1 and likewise held it through Turn 21 on the last lap of the race, only ceding it during pit stops. Rosberg's 14th victory gets him level with Graham Hill on the wins list – on the anniversary of Hill's death in a plane crash – and marks the first time in his 10-year F1 career that he's won three races in a row. More proof of his strength: the last few races we haven't heard Rosberg ask for regular updates about what Hamilton's doing, he just drives. Hamilton gave it his best but that wasn't enough.

2022 Infiniti QX55 marks the company's foray into crossover 'coupes'

Using a formula proven by the major German luxury car companies, Infiniti is now getting in on the crossover "coupe" game. The 2022 Infiniti QX55 takes the QX50 small crossover and adds a fastback roofline for a sportier look. Infiniti says the design makes the QX55 a spiritual successor to the FX crossover of the mid-to-late-2000s and early 2010s. We're not sure if the mechanical bits live up to the rear-drive-based FX chassis, but the low roof and curvy body do share a connection to that old SUV. In fact, the QX55 looks rather striking, and the flowing lines work nicely with the simple, arcing roof. Some other small tweaks to the base styling emphasize the QX55's style focus including a more pronounced grille with larger air intakes surrounding it at the front. At the back, the license plate mount has been moved to the bumper, allowing for prominent Infiniti lettering on the hatch. Additionally, 20-inch wheels are a standard feature on all QX55 models. The rest of the QX55 is basically the same as the QX50. It shares the turbocharged, variable-compression engine making 268 horsepower and 280 pound-feet of torque. It's mated to a CVT and all-wheel-drive, which is standard on all QX55 models. The interior is carry-over with dual infotainment screens and an asymmetric, driver-focused dash design. Like the QX50, it can be slathered in two-tone leather for a very premium feel. The debut vehicle features a bold black and red color combination. The QX55 goes on sale this coming spring. It will be available in three trim levels: Luxe, Essential and Sensory. Pricing hasn't been announced, but expect it to be a bit more costly than the equivalent QX50. For reference, a QX50 Luxe with all-wheel-drive starts around $44,000, and at the other end of the spectrum is the QX50 Sensory with all-wheel-drive starting at around $53,000. Related Video: