Infiniti Q Concept Partially Revealed

Infiniti releases its least-concealed view yet of the new Q concept sedan, heralding a new design language for the Asian luxury brand.

Following last month’s close-up of its inset grille, today a rear three-quarter view of the concept car, dubbed the Q Inspiration, is revealed in a photo provided to media. The car is to be fully unveiled Jan. 15 at the 2018 North American International Auto Show in Detroit.

Inset grille featured on Q Inspiration concept.

The concept’s sleek, coupe-like lines are reminiscent of current Jaguar and Tesla designs, and reflect a move away from an undulating, more complex look worn by today’s Infiniti cars and light trucks.

“The Q Inspiration offers an alternative form; something more flowing in appearance with an unusually long and balanced cabin,” Karim Habib, executive design director-Infiniti, says in a statement, adding the concept’s short hood (aided by more compact engines) and long body result in good interior comfort and space for passengers.

Infiniti has stuck with relatively the same design language for over a decade, since the second-generation G sedan, the Q50’s predecessor, arrived in fall 2006. The brand heavily refreshed the car’s look for the 2013 introduction of the Q50. At that time, former Nissan chief designer Shiro Nakamura described the Q50’s exterior appearance as “athletic and tightened.”

The Q Inspiration concept appears larger than the Q50, indicating the new design language likely will first appear on a next-generation Q70 mid-large luxury sedan, which hasn’t been redesigned since the ’11 model year when it was called the Infiniti M. WardsAuto product-cycle data shows a redesigned Q70 will arrive this year as a ’19 model, while a full makeover of the Q50 isn’t expected until ’22.

Much like the entire industry, Infiniti has seen its light-truck sales increase and car sales decline. The QX60 3-row CUV was Infiniti’s best-selling model through November, just edging out the Q50.

However, adding together Q50 sales with those of the new 2-door Q60, Infiniti’s midsize luxury car still is its top seller, with 45,038 sales through November 2017.

Q70 sales rose 1.4% in the period but tallied only 5,366, reflecting the car’s age and the shrinking mid-large segment in the U.S.

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