[heavyD^2]

Ghosen predicted Nissan would go bankrupt by 2022 and this global pandemic may make that prediction come to fruition. You can argue that Nissan/Infinity could both disappear and few would notice outside of the odd Nissan fanboy. All of their products are also-rans as pretty well all other automakers offer better alternatives.

[eluded]

New z car. New truck. Maybe Nissan makes it but prolly not infinity plus worlds doing electric

[ASAP]

100% should be done with... and with Nissan's recent performance this would not surprise me at all.

I recall when an Infiniti G was THE CAR to have... the first RWD SUV they made was also great... now it's a rebadged group of Nissans...and when I say rebadged I mean same horrible interior / infotainment built on FWD platforms... a joke at best...

Come to think of it... how does Acura still exist?

Come to further think of it... Where do you think Lexus would be without the RX, NX, UX and ES? Basically, the upsell Toyota crowd?

I think the Japanese car industry died as a frontrunner somwhere around 10 years ago and simply stopped developing ahead instead decided on reproducing the same tired designs over and over... Only Toyota can get away with that simply because I believe their crowd is extremely simple minded when it comes to cars...(even their sole perfomance car is... a BMW). I think Mazda is the most innovative Japanese car brand and unfortunately it doesn't get the praise it deserves.

It took the Japanese 10 years to build the LFA and they've been making the GTR 10 years straight now... think about that vs what's been happening in Germany.

[stein_325i]

Originally Posted by ASAP

I think Mazda is the most innovative Japanese car brand and unfortunately it doesn't get the praise it deserves.

100% agree with everything you said. Especially this last part, Mazda deserves so much better in the US, shame the Ford ownership ruined the reputation. Looking forward to the next Mazda6 hopefully with RWD+I6.

[JamesGames]

OP you are spot on. I used to love Nissan and owned a few 1995 Nissan Maxima, 2007 350z, 2008 350z. The VQ at the time (late 90s / 2000s) was a phenomenal motor and was ahead of the competition in terms of power. While the VQ motor was used for many years, they constantly upgraded it unlike the EJ257 motor in my STI. However, post G35 / G37 350z/370z FM years, I agree the company went to crap. I rented a Q60 and completely agree with your take on the interior software / design.

It's unfortunate because I thought Nissan/Infiniti was making a comeback in the 2000s post bankruptcy with the FM chassis. Since then they've lost their touch and at this point I don't see any of their cars having the success of Toyota / Honda / Subaru.

I was a Nissan guy like I am a BMW guy. But if BMW keeps up their direction I may be neither haha.

[SEAT TIME RULES]

Originally Posted by AlexFL

FX design was epic. What a shame they never made a successor. Current Mazda SUVs look a lot like the old FX.

Mazda's are drivers cars....In each of their models segments they consistently are at the top or near the top in ratings and reviews.

I call them budget BMW's...

Infinity and Also Acura right now are a mess. Infinity is in much more trouble, but Acura has been floundering as of late.

[stein_325i]

Originally Posted by SEAT TIME RULES

Mazda's are drivers cars....In each of their models segments they consistently are at the top or near the top in ratings and reviews.

100% agree, they are my favorite mainstream brand, I recommend them to everyone.

My oldest son loves Mazdas. He has an NB Miata, and a 6-Signature which drives really well for a FWD Midsized Family Car, and the interior is gorgeous, honestly nicer than the last M340i loaner I had.

If Mazda actually released a new 6 with RWD and an Inline-6 they will have a sale from me.

[AlexFL]

Originally Posted by SEAT TIME RULES

Mazda's are drivers cars....In each of their models segments they consistently are at the top or near the top in ratings and reviews.

I call them budget BMW's...

Infinity and Also Acura right now are a mess. Infinity is in much trouble, but Acura has been floundering as of late.

yes, they are!

[VisualEcho]

A guy I work with has a 2008 G37 coupe 6MT, and with nothing but the Nismo 370Z wheels and some tint the car is spectacular.

Beyond that? Meh.

[F32Fleet]

Haven't read all the replies, but IMO the problem Nissan has with regards to Infiniti can best be described with one word......Renault.

[Germanauto]

I remember learning to drive on a 2006 G35x, which was my mother's car at the time. It had great power and a sporty interior.

Infiniti had such a strong portfolio at that time: G35 coupe/sedan, FX, M35, QX. BMW was hot back then, and Infiniti was right on their tail in public perception of sporty/luxo brands.

A few years ago I was looking for a new daily driver and test drove the outgoing G37/Q40...I just found it so big with a cheap feeling interior and unrefined in many ways. The Lexus IS had a much better balance between sportiness and refinement/luxury so I opted for that.

Infiniti is just a dead brand now. They lost the recognition their products had when they renamed them these silly Q names. They let their portfolio get stale and didn't innovate. Now they are just that one budget-luxury brand who's showroom you visit once then never step foot in again. What a fall from grace.

[Germanauto]

Originally Posted by ASAP

100% should be done with... and with Nissan's recent performance this would not surprise me at all.

I recall when an Infiniti G was THE CAR to have... the first RWD SUV they made was also great... now it's a rebadged group of Nissans...and when I say rebadged I mean same horrible interior / infotainment built on FWD platforms... a joke at best...

Come to think of it... how does Acura still exist?

Come to further think of it... Where do you think Lexus would be without the RX, NX, UX and ES? Basically, the upsell Toyota crowd?

I think the Japanese car industry died as a frontrunner somwhere around 10 years ago and simply stopped developing ahead instead decided on reproducing the same tired designs over and over... Only Toyota can get away with that simply because I believe their crowd is extremely simple minded when it comes to cars...(even their sole perfomance car is... a BMW). I think Mazda is the most innovative Japanese car brand and unfortunately it doesn't get the praise it deserves.

It took the Japanese 10 years to build the LFA and they've been making the GTR 10 years straight now... think about that vs what's been happening in Germany.

I'll give credit to Acura where it's due. The MDX/RDX have consistently been strong sellers despite being sort of mediocre, but with this new RDX they launched recently Acura is showing they mean business. The upcoming TLX follows the same formula, and I'm sure the next MDX will be a much better product as well.

Lexus did well with the new LS and LC, but they are wasted efforts at the end of the day. They let the previous LS linger on for like 12 years; by the time the new one hit the market the segment had contracted considerably. The LC is stellar but also enters are basically dead segment.

My daily is a Lexus IS and I have no plans to replace it with another Lexus. This second refresh on the 3-IS looks great from outside but it still has that same boy racer looking interior. The RC is an over-styled boat and the LC is too expensive for the under 60 crowd.

[AlexFL]

The Q60 coupe still looks very sexy. The problem is that horribly outdated stacked screen interior.

[stein_325i]

Originally Posted by AlexFL

The Q60 coupe still looks very sexy. The problem is that horribly outdated stacked screen interior.

And the way the car drives and steers...

[SteveinArizona]

Even when the company tries to build a sporty car, it fails. Look at the current Maxima: claimed to be a mid size sports sedan but it is a large, heavy front wheel drive sedan with a CVT. it could not be further from the truth to describe it as anything but a dog.

I agree with the posters who said that Nissan used to be a great company with great cars. It will take a major mind change to restore the company.

[Mason Hatcher]

The Max isn't a "dog" by any stretch.

[Tacoma]

Originally Posted by ASAP

100% should be done with... and with Nissan's recent performance this would not surprise me at all.

I recall when an Infiniti G was THE CAR to have... the first RWD SUV they made was also great... now it's a rebadged group of Nissans...and when I say rebadged I mean same horrible interior / infotainment built on FWD platforms... a joke at best...

Come to think of it... how does Acura still exist?

Come to further think of it... Where do you think Lexus would be without the RX, NX, UX and ES? Basically, the upsell Toyota crowd?

I think the Japanese car industry died as a frontrunner somwhere around 10 years ago and simply stopped developing ahead instead decided on reproducing the same tired designs over and over... Only Toyota can get away with that simply because I believe their crowd is extremely simple minded when it comes to cars...(even their sole perfomance car is... a BMW). I think Mazda is the most innovative Japanese car brand and unfortunately it doesn't get the praise it deserves.

It took the Japanese 10 years to build the LFA and they've been making the GTR 10 years straight now... think about that vs what's been happening in Germany.

To paraphrase Mark Twain, the reports of the death of the Japanese car industry are greatly exaggerated.

From a performance & technology perspective, the Germans are ahead but in terms of sales revenue (i.e., what really counts to survive), Toyota recently took over as the #1 brand in the world, ahead of the top German brands, VW (which includes Audi, Porsche and others) and Daimler. Honda sits around #6 and Nissan has dropped but still ranks near BMW in the world at the tail end of the top 10.

Sales speaks volumes. It's not a coincidence that BMW has been moving away from it's heritage as performance cars to something more softer, more road isolation... more like Japanese cars, and the result has been BMW has had record sales (pre-COVID) recently year-over-year.

As for Infiniti, in the US market, sales peaked in 2017 at ~150K vehicles and dropped to 118K in 2019. So, they are in a slump but it does not point to killing off the brand unless this slump continues for a few more years, at least.

[Firaxis]

Despite Covid BMW managed to sell over 50,000 cars over here this year. Guess how much Infiniti sold?... 0.!

Every now and again I loose enthusiasm for cars, because I didn't care and the Q50 was cheap I decided to give it a go. Let's just say I really appreciated my BMW afterwards.

[Burrcold]

Originally Posted by Firaxis

Despite Covid BMW managed to sell over 50,000 cars over here this year. Guess how much Infiniti sold?... 0.!

Every now and again I loose enthusiasm for cars, because I didn't care and the Q50 was cheap I decided to give it a go. Let's just say I really appreciated my BMW afterwards.

I don't doubt you, but where is "here"?

[Goneinsixtyseconds]

Originally Posted by Burrcold

I don't doubt you, but where is "here"?

U.K.

And Infiniti sold none in the U.K. in 2020 because they pulled out of the U.K. market closing all dealerships at the end of 2019.

In 2019 they only sold around 300 cars here, so not surprised.

[Firaxis]

Originally Posted by Goneinsixtyseconds

U.K.

And Infiniti sold none in the U.K. in 2020 because they pulled out of the U.K. market closing all dealerships at the end of 2019.

In 2019 they only sold around 300 cars here, so not surprised.

How strange, they still had cars on the lot but ahh well I obviously cared so much that I didn't notice either way.!

[Goneinsixtyseconds]

Originally Posted by Firaxis

How strange, they still cars on the lot but ahh well I obviously cared enough that I didn't notice either way.!

“UK sales will end early next year as part of a complete withdrawal from western Europe. Japanese luxury car manufacturer Infiniti has confirmed that it will stop selling its vehicles in the UK from early 2020, as part of a withdrawal from western Europe.“

I read this last year, so perhaps not 100% sure they’ve closed, I just assumed it had happened as you said there’d been no sales this year.

I test drove an almost 400 bhp Q50 (not the hybrid) a few years ago before buying a 440i GC. It didn’t make much of an impression on the test.