Infiniti QX80 2018 Review

Looks that won't scare the kids

The Infiniti QX80 wasn't a car that won over the design critics for its looks when it arrived here not quite three years ago. But since then its lock on the title of Australia's least attractive family wagon has been prised loose by the Bentley Bentayga, a vehicle clearly from the school of thought that nothing succeeds like utter vulgarity.

Now, the arrival of a facelifted Infiniti QX80 has distanced the large SUV from the ‘Australia’s Ugliest’ booby prize.

Infiniti claims that the new-look QX80 large luxury SUV is more aerodynamic, boasting a respectable 0.36Cd (coefficient of drag) and reduced lift. This has been achieved by a new under-body cover and the visible changes to the exterior panels, which include a new tailgate and bonnet (raised 20mm and extended forward 90mm).

The grille, headlights and bumpers are also new. New front quarter panels incorporate functional air vents and the tail lights have also been redesigned.

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Fettled suspension

Leaving aside the Infiniti QX80's more palatable looks, the great news for prospective buyers is the large luxury SUV’s revised underpinnings. Over the course of the drive program for the updated model's local launch, it was clear that the new QX80 is a bit more agile and feels more secure in corners.

Body control is significantly better, with noticeably less squirm over bumps and lateral movements. The changes to the suspension have also had a positive impact on steering response and roadholding, with the new Infiniti QX80 feeling unexpectedly nimble and ‘smaller’ at touring speeds.

While the big SUV’s suspension certainly soaks up most of the vices of Australian country roads, the Infiniti QX80 also feels properly damped – so passengers won’t feel seasick. That's despite the chassis engineers reducing damping force by 30 per cent for each wheel.

Infiniti claims that the reduced damping force further isolates the cabin from transmitted road noise.

What helps the new Infiniti QX80 feel smaller on the road at touring speeds is the flat cornering. This is thanks to Infiniti's Hydraulic Body Motion Control, a system of linked hydraulic cylinders that divert pressure to one side of the vehicle or the other, in order to counteract body roll.

Active safety equipment is comprehensive, with the lane departure warning a constant reminder to the driver to get back on the correct side of the centreline if taking a ‘racing line’ through a bend, for instance. And the QX80 clenched the seatbelts immediately when I braked hard for a left-hand turn.

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Poised, but not precariously

In the bush the well-controlled compliance of the Infiniti QX80 is a boon, the large SUV shrugging aside ruts and rocks while scrabbling up steep grades and splashing through a moderately deep boghole.

Ground clearance is respectable, at 246mm, which is more than 20mm better than that of the LX 570. Approach, departure and break-over angles for the QX80 are 24.2 degrees, 24.5 degrees and 23.6 degrees, respectively. And in keeping with its bush-bashing reputation, the QX80 comes with a full-size spare and matching 22-inch alloy rim.

The drive program offered an opportunity to test the QX80’s traction and torque, but there was no real test of wheel articulation or breakover angle.

On flowing, winding gravel tracks the Infiniti QX80 felt surefooted and largely unperturbed by all but the worst of corrugations. Hill Descent Control kept the QX80 creeping safely downhill, but the track we tested on was dry and firm underfoot.

A further assessment of the QX80’s off-road competence is warranted, but all the preliminary signs are good.

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Proven powertrain

Under the bonnet of the QX80 resides the same 5.6-litre petrol V8 engine as before, driving through a seven-speed automatic transmission (also carried over). As a genuine four-wheel drive, the Nissan Patrol-based Infiniti is equipped with a ‘proper’ high-low range transfer box.

For the avoidance of doubt, the QX80 is petrol only. There is no foreseeable possibility of Infiniti following Lexus’ lead with its LX counterpart and adding a turbo-diesel option. There's a 4.4-litre V8 turbodiesel co-developed with Cummins available in the Nissan Titan in the USA, but that engine is physically too large to squeeze under the bonnet of the QX80.

The petrol engine is the very epitome of creamy, V8 output, but while the acceleration of the QX80 is fine for a 2.8-tonne (tare) SUV, it’s not producing neck-snapping g forces. Infiniti reckons it will complete the 0-100km/h run in 7.5sec, which sounds about right.

The Infiniti QX80 is rated at up to 3500kg towing capacity.

Off-road, however, was where the QX80's V8 shone. It stumped up bags of torque to power up hills. And that was all the more impressive with 560Nm, when ‘experts’ will tell you a vehicle of this size and weight would definitely benefit from 700Nm. So the rest of the powertrain had some part to play in the QX80's off-road performance.

Fuel consumption finished up at 14.1L/100km for the full drive program, which included about an hour’s worth of freeway driving. Prior to hitting the freeway back to Melbourne, the QX80 had posted a fuel consumption figure of 15.8L/100km, which was the result of mixing some open-road country driving with some low-speed off-roading, in four-wheel drive low range with the diff lock operating.

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Cabin comfort and kit

The Infiniti QX80 is very quiet at speed. The cabin was well insulated from road noise, even on coarse-chip bitumen. There was some wind noise present, and just the barest of engine rumble. On occasions, our test vehicle exhibited a light rattle from around the dash ahead of the driving position.

While the front seats are comfortably cushioned, you do tend to sit on them, rather than sink into them. There’s less support under the thighs, but it’s fairly likely that won’t matter as much to QX80 owners. In fact, comfort will probably be much more desirable than body-hugging snugness to anyone lashing out nearly $111,000 on the QX80.

To its credit, the driving position is quite commanding and a grab handle on the A pillar makes it easier to hoist yourself into the driver's seat.

There's also easy access to the second-row seat, with plenty of legroom and headroom for adults. Two USB charging points are located back there, along with switchgear for two climate control zones, seat heating and rear-seat entertainment.

The 60/40 split-fold seat folds up on either side with simple, one-handed operation. Although the larger section of the seat is on the near side (left/passenger side), it’s easy to fold down and forward to leave plenty of room for access to the third-row seat, which has its own adjustable vents overhead.

The Infiniti has seatbelts for seven.

Despite the best efforts of Infiniti designers to upgrade the interior with quilted semi-aniline leather upholstery and a new transmission shift lever, the QX80 interior is looking a bit dated.

We note that instrument panel trip computer is a monochrome display limited by its grainy and jagged resolution. Disappointingly, for a vehicle priced at this level, there's no standard Apple CarPlay or Android Auto facility – although Infiniti is understood to be developing connectivity for both.

But a range of standard driver-assist/safety features include the lane departure warning already mentioned, plus blind spot monitoring, intelligent parking system, forward emergency braking, predictive forward collision warning and back-up collision intervention, to name just a few.

Overall, the updated and facelifted Infiniti QX80 has moved the game forward.

Infiniti hopes that the big SUV will achieve sales of 100 units per annum with the upgraded model (in 2017, 83 were registered).

Frankly, that seems unambitious, when Lexus sold over three times as many of the LX 570 last year. Indeed, now that Infiniti has addressed some of the worst excesses of the QX80’s design, this large, capable SUV deserves a wider audience.

2018 Infiniti QX80 pricing and specifications:
Price: $110,900 (plus on-road costs)
Engine: 5.6-litre eight-cylinder petrol
Output: 298kW/560Nm
Transmission: Seven-speed automatic
Fuel: 14.5L/100km (ADR Combined)
CO2: 341g/km (ADR Combined)
Safety Rating: TBA