Infiniti to launch without G37 sedan

Prestige brand Infiniti will open its doors in Australia from August of this year, but the company will not have the four-door G37 sedan (pictured) filling out the range at that time.

In fact, even the G37 coupe and folding hardtop convertible models won't arrive here until around November or December this year — so the brand will be introduced to Australia with just the FX SUV and the M Series sedan to offer the buying public.

It seems that a successor to the G Series sedan is due in the not too distant future, according to Infiniti Australia General Manager, Kevin Snell. Neither of the two-door body styles will be ready for replacement for perhaps at least a couple of years after their launch here, which explains in part why the importer is bringing the two-door models to Australia first up. There is some better news on the four-door front, Snell also says.

"When we go to the new G Series sedan, we will pick up new, entry-level variants; with the Daimler [Mercedes-Benz four-cylinder] engines."

As part of a deal with Daimler AG, Nissan/Renault (and Infiniti) gain access to the technology of the Benz four-cylinder engines — both in petrol and diesel form. So when the G Series sedan finally arrives in Australia, it will offer an expanded range including four-cylinder variants to compete directly with similarly powered cars from rivals in the marketplace. These engines supplied by Benz form part of an agreement that also sees Renault's Twingo underpin the next-generation smart fortwo/forfour models.

When Infiniti does commence retail trading in Australia during August, it will launch with a facelifted version of the FX SUV. In Europe, FX is still some months out from the facelift, which involves adopting grille that resembles that of the M Series sedan.

The FX will consist of three engine variants — FX37 petrol V6, FX30d diesel and FX50 petrol V8. Supplied by Renault, the V6 engine in the FX30d was rumoured at one stage to be the engine slated for use in the new P61G Patrol when that vehicle arrives. It's the same engine in the diesel variant of the M Series sedan. Likewise, the petrol V6 is shared across the Infiniti range, powering the M Series and the G37 as well. The petrol V8 of the FX50 is a 5.0-litre unit.

Infiniti has further divided the FX range into regular or 'Sport' grades for the FX37 and FX30d, but the V8-powered FX50 is trimmed to Sport level only.

The G37 lands in Australia with four-wheel steer for the coupe, but not the convertible. By way of compensation the G37 Convertible comes with a wider rear track, which changes the proportion of the car at the rear, but also eases accommodation of the folding roof between the rear wheel arches. Asked how much luggage space the G37 Convertible had to offer with the roof lowered, Snell was pragmatic.

"If you want looks and driving, this is the convertible for you," Snell said of the car, which will likely be cross-shopped against the Lexus IS250C, but could also rival similar-sized convertibles from German prestige brands. "If you want a big boot, I would question why you would want a convertible in the first place."

 In addition to the G37 coupe, four-wheel steer will also be standard for all Sport grades of the FX and M Series models. In the M Series range, the flagship is the Hybrid.

Infiniti is on track for launch and the schedule for the rollout of additional models suits the importers plans to perfection, according to Snell.

"Timewise, its played out better than we could have hoped," he said, further explaining that the brand would be constantly in the media limelight as it launched "six or seven" new cars over the first two or three-year period in Australia.

Looking further ahead, Snell says that the EX crossover SUV that's available in Britain is on the cards for Australia, but not in this generation. The local market will need to wait — at least — for the next generation model to arrive. Looking a little like a downscaled BMW X6, the EX measures around the size of an Audi Q3. The earliest we can expect to see it will be about two years after the launch of the brand in August.

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