Detroit reveal for vital Infiniti G

Ambitious luxury brand Infiniti will stage the global debut of its vital new G Series sedan at the Detroit Motor Show in January, rather than Geneva three months later as has been widely reported.

Rather than riding on the same platform as the Mercedes-Benz C-Class, as has also been reported, the Japanese premium brand’s direct rival for BMW 3 Series will debut a new Infiniti rear-wheel drive architecture developed in Japan.

The G, which will be the first production realisation of the Nissan-owned brand’s new design language, is the lynchpin of Infiniti’s plan to lift global sales to 500,000 per annum from the 200,000 forecast for 2012.

The G's roll out was confirmed today at the Australian launch of Infiniti by Johan De Nysschen, the brand's global president, and his boss Andy Palmer – the Executive Vice-President of Nissan Motor Company.

“It is a beautiful, beautiful motor car,” Mr Palmer told motoring.com.au.

“It is the most beautiful car I have been associated with in 30 years in the automotive industry. It is vital for us,” he added.

“It solidifies the talk, it is the symbol of the new Infiniti, it is the symbol of the autonomous Infiniti, it is the symbol of what the brand stands for us.”

Mr De Nysschen said different variants of the G sedan would be shown at Detroit and Geneva, although both would be fully production-ready. He also confirmed a long-wheelbase version of the car will be built for China.

Infiniti has launched in Australia with the FX crossover wagon and M large sedan. The current G convertible and coupe will follow them on sale here in December. The new G series will be on sale here by mid-2013.

“The car is the epicentre of the Infiniti brand today and it is a key model for the volume plans we have set,” Mr De Nysschen said.

“The new G will be delivering volumes for us at a level that has never been done by its predecessors.

Rumours that the new G sedan was underpinned by a Benz platform were borne out of a technical agreement between Infiniti and Benz’s parent Daimler. However, Palmer refuted that.

“Incorrect,” he stated flatly, “It (the architecture) is pure NML-based development.”
    
However, the car will feature three Daimler-sourced drivetrains, including a 3.0-litre V6 turbodiesel and four-cylinder turbodiesel and turbocharged petrol engines.

A refurbished version of the sole current G Series engine, a 3.7-litre petrol V6, will also carry over.

The supply of diesel engines is crucial for the G to make sales ground in Europe in the big-selling compact premium class.

“The current G relies on the 3.7-litre engine and with the new G we will be able to access a broader section of the luxury segment with the 2.0-litre turbo gasoline and with the diesel powertrains,” Mr De Nysschen said.

Infiniti’s new design language has been previewed on concepts such as the Etherea compact (which will use elements of Benz’s new MFA front-wheel drive architecture as well as Benz drivetrains), the LE EV and the EMERGE_e and Essence sportscars.

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