Infiniti chose an alternate location to show off its M56 during the Los Angeles Auto Show.
(Credit: Josh Miller/CNET)
Infiniti didn't make it to the 2009 Los Angeles Auto Show, but the company was near by, showing its 2011 Infiniti M56 in Beverly Hills. The update to Infiniti's top model is an attempt to stay competitive with luxury brands Mercedes-Benz and Lexus, while maintaining a performance focus. As such, the M56 gets a revised interior with some nice woodwork, new running gear, and a raft of driver-aid technologies.
Along with blind-spot detection and lane departure warning, Infiniti adds lane drift prevention, which keeps the car from crossing a lane line by braking the offside wheels a little. This technology can prevent a sleepy driver from going off the road, or a distracted driver from changing lanes into an occupied lane. We've tested this technology previously and found it easily overcome, so it won't prevent a driver making an emergency lane change.
The car also has an adaptive cruise control option, an around-view camera that makes maneuvering through tight parking garages easier, and a new technology called Eco pedal. This last feature pushes back slightly on the gas pedal for heavy-footed drivers as a means of training people to drive more economically. This feature can be easily turned off.
The new power train in the M56 includes a seven-speed automatic transmission and a direct injection 5.6-liter V-8, producing 420 horsepower. This engine is more powerful yet more economical than the outgoing 4.5-liter V-8. The M model is also available as an M37, with a 3.7-liter V-6.
KAMIGAMOU, Japan--Nissan is beefing up quality control at its flagship Infiniti factory, partly by adding more female inspectors to improve the fit and finish of the redesigned M sedan, which arrives next spring in the United States.
According to Nissan, women show better attention to detail. But there are other quality stopgaps, including new laser measuring devices and better instructions for line workers.
"We have been making drastic changes in terms of quality assurance," said Mikio Aoki, general manager of quality at Nissan's Tochigi plant, which builds several Infiniti models including the M. "We are trying to build more robustness into the manufacturing process."
Aoki said some quality checkpoints that used to have human inspectors now use machines that can pinpoint problems more consistently. One additional process entails a new jig that holds the chassis so lasers can measure whether the gaps between the door and body are up to specifications.
Previous checks measured only the seal on the outside; the new one checks the interior seal, too.
"It costs us, so we really had to look at the cost-benefit point," Aoki said during a press tour of the factory this month. "But this is a new idea we applied to the Fuga."
The Fuga, known as the Infiniti M in the United States, goes on sale in Japan this month. A hybrid version of the Infiniti M is due stateside in spring 2011. Nissan is introducing the new quality measures for the luxury sedan's redesign.
A more advanced paint-check system has been brought online to assess the body's color consistency when viewed from different angles. This was introduced to ensure the perception of even color, especially on the M's more curvy body panels and fenders.
This year, Nissan added more women to the final inspection. It's partly to relieve them from more strenuous assembly work, but there are other reasons.
"Women tend to be sensitive and can better check quality elements," the Tochigi production control manager, Yasuhiko Obata, told reporters as he guided them past female inspectors poring over the final finish of cars coming off the line.
"We want to encourage women to work in the processes where they can best exhibit their high level of skill."
Nissan's Tochigi plant, just north of Tokyo, also makes the Infiniti G sedan, EX and FX crossovers and other high-end models, including the Nissan GT-R sports car and 370Z. About 83 percent of the factory's output is exported.
(Source: Automotive News)
We don't often review gargantuan SUVs, but decided to check the Infiniti QX56, as Infiniti is generally a pretty high-tech automaker. What we found is a vehicle that falls behind the technological curve. Other Infiniti models get direct-injection engines, lane departure warning, iPod integration, and around-view cameras, but the QX56 sits in the lineup like a red-headed stepchild, looked over when Infiniti hands out the tech toys.
TOKYO -- Infiniti will get an electric vehicle as early as 2012, and Nissan Motor Co. also will create an electric commercial van to sell to governments and fleet customers.
Nissan CEO Carlos Ghosn said the electric Infiniti will be "a compact luxury car--a stylish, high-performance four-seater with zero emissions."
He did not say whether the electric Infiniti would use a unique platform or one derived from the Nissan Leaf family car. For several years, Nissan has been engineering separate platforms to keep the Nissan and Infiniti brands distinct.
Nissan says it's considering a production vehicle based on the Land Glider electric concept, which has only a driver's seat and a one-person back seat.
(Credit: Nissan)Nissan is ramping up to produce its electric five-passenger Leaf starting in late 2010, with hopes for sales as high as 150,000 units a year.
Ghosn said the commercial van will be an electric version of the NV200, a small light commercial van Nissan is preparing to build in Canton, Miss.
Andy Palmer, Nissan senior vice president in charge of zero-emission vehicles, Infiniti and global light commercial vehicles, suggested the electric vans could be used as taxis or postal delivery vehicles.
He also said Nissan was motivated by requests from governments and large delivery services for an electric delivery vehicle.
Separately, Nissan officials indicated that Infiniti also is considering a production vehicle based on an electric concept vehicle called the Land Glider. The futuristic concept is a narrow motorcycle-shaped car with only a driver's seat and a one-person back seat.
(Source: Automotive News)
Infiniti's first hybrid will be the 2012 M35.
(Credit: Infiniti)Nissan/Infiniti has so far only dabbled in hybrids, choosing to buy technology from Toyota for the Nissan Altima Hybrid. The company is really attempting to leap past that technology by going straight to electric vehicles, with the Nissan Leaf. But the upcoming Mercedes-Benz S400 Hybrid must have lit a fire under someone at Infiniti, because the company just announced the Infiniti M35 Hybrid.
The M35 Hybrid will use a mild hybrid system.
(Credit: Infiniti)With a V-6 engine mated to what sounds like a mild hybrid system, the car will be aimed more at performance than maximum fuel economy. Infiniti describes the hybrid system, which was built in-house, as combining twin clutches and an electric motor on the propeller shaft coming out of the engine. This arrangement allows the electric motor to provide extra boost to the rear wheels and, according to Infiniti, drive the car under only electric power under certain circumstances.
Honda says the same of its mild hybrid system, but we've never actually noticed pure electric drive power in any Honda hybrid. Infiniti is using the same laminated lithium ion batteries in the Infiniti Hybrid as will be used in the Nissan Leaf.
The Infiniti M35 Hybrid will come out in 2011 as a 2012 model.
To commemorate Infiniti's 20th anniversary, Infiniti Canada collaborated with Cirque du Soleil and Montreal artist Heidi Taillefer to create a one-of-a-Kind, Cirque-inspired Infiniti G Coupe. The intricate design was hand-painted over a period of a month and was unveiled last week at the 14th Annual Canadian Art Gallery Hop Gala. The anniversary vehicle will be displayed at events and galas over the next few months and will ultimately be auctioned off for charity.
The Nissan GT-R proves that the coupe is the best body style in the world.
(Credit: Corinne Schulze/CNET)
I love coupes. I would go so far as to say that the coupe is the best style of car in the world. Limiting a full-size car to two doors may fly in the face of practicality, but it allows for much more body style than a sedan. Automotive designers get to play with the roofline and equip a coupe with real fenders, making for a sporty-looking package. The best a sedan can do is look stately.
Roadsters are loads of fun, but a soft top just says you're not taking driving that seriously. A coupe means business, ready to take on all sorts of weather, with a hard top that can be shaped for aerodynamics.
The only negative aspect of a coupe is the rear seat. Most coupe rear seats are a joke, cramped little spaces that serve as much purpose as your appendix, or a vestigial tail.
In honor of the coupe, I've collected our last 10 coupe reviews and added a little commentary about those rear seats. Enjoy! I certainly did while driving these cars.
Clunkers ends with a bang, Toyota is either smarter--or dumber--than other car companies, we'll turn you on to an unintentional collectible car, and yes, FINALLY, we take a ride in the new Camaro!
Listen now: Download today's podcastSubscribe now: iTunes (audio) | RSS (audio)
SHOW NOTES
• CNET review of the 2010 Camaro
• Big, bad Infiniti M56 on the way
• Aha Mobile traffic app for iPhone is, er, interesting
Tramontana showed off this tandem two-seater at Pebble Beach.
(Credit: Stephen Shankland/CNET)
Last weekend's Concours focused on vintage cars from Porsche, but also showed an array of rare cars from other manufacturers in pristine shape. Because of the well-heeled crowd that attends the Concours, including Jay Leno and Jerry Seinfeld, luxury automakers show off some of their newest cars and concepts. This year saw entrants from Lotus, Mercedes-Benz, Tramontana, and even Lincoln.
Check out photos of the newest cars from the Pebble Beach Concours d'Elegance.
The 370Z might get extra boost from an electric motor, if the rumors are true.
(Credit: Corinne Schulze/CNET)Rumors running around the Internet suggest that Nissan will offer a hybrid version of its 370Z sports car somewhere around 2012. Currently, Nissan's only hybrid is the Altima sedan, with a power train licensed from Toyota. But Nissan has long promised a car with a hybrid system developed in-house, and showed off a concept car that would use this system, the Essence, at the Geneva auto show. The first production car featuring Nissan's own hybrid system should be based on the Infiniti M45, expected to come out in 2010. Nissan has been working on lithium ion battery development in partnership with NEC.
The 370Z hybrid could be the first hybrid sports car, although Honda has been working on its own CR-Z, which should come out as a sporty but compact hybrid. Even if Honda beats Nissan to the punch, a 370Z hybrid would be more powerful and likely have better handling, if our experience with the 2009 Nissan 370Z is any indication. According to the rumors, the 370Z hybrid would use the same 3.7-liter V-6 as the standard version, but would get extra boost from an electric motor. The car is supposed to also have plug-in capability, and use similar battery technology to that which Nissan is developing for its pure electric vehicle.
(Source: 370Z.com)
