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Car
Review
FewSUVs epitomise ‘bigger is better’ than the Infiniti QX80
Q
uick
, j o t d own
everything you know
from memory about
the Infiniti. Need an
A4 piece of paper?
How about a Post-It
note? After 25 years,
despite being to Nissan what Lexus is
to Toyota, the Infiniti name still doesn’t
register too highly with most luxury car
buyers. This, however, will hopefully
change soon.
One of the reasons is their involvement
in Formula 1 (Infiniti are a business partner
to Red Bull Racing) but the other is the
excellence of their products. The brand
had a record year in 2014, notching up
186,200 new vehicle sales, representing a
13.5% up tick, which is impressive when
you consider the depth and breath of their
immediate rivals from Germany.
For the Malaysian market their best
selling model is the Q50, a BMW 3 Series
and Mercedes-Benz C-Class rival but
Infiniti also has other more ‘noticeable’
models such as this SUV, the Infiniti QX80.
When it comes to letting people know
you’ve arrived, few can do it better
than the QX80. It isn’t just the biggest
vehicle Infiniti has but one of the biggest
production models in the world too. This
is big on an aircraft carrier scale.
Take overall length for instance. At
5,305mm, the Infiniti is 185mm longer
than a Mercedes-Benz GL-Class and
285mm longer than a Lexus LX570.
A Range Rover is a compact SUV by
comparison. A 3,075mmwheelbase brings
with it a concert hall sized cabin while the
1,945mm height and 2,030mmwidth will
test height limitations at shopping malls
and make fitting into just one parking
space a test of driver precision. In fact,
the QX80 is so massive its wheels look
small despite running on 22-inch alloys
shod with 275/50 R22 rubber. Just in case
you’re wondering, it’s also the heaviest
of the lot, tipping the scales at 2,829kg,
Size Really Does Matter
making it nearly a half-tonne heavier than
its nearest rival.
Size does have its drawbacks though.
Beauty is in the eye of the beholder but
the words “elegant” and “aerodynamic”
were not included in Infiniti’s design
brief. This SUV is huge and if you see the
massive front end closing in on you the
most prudent course of actionwould be to
get out of the way or risk being run over.
There are of course some styling
elements to tie it in with other Infinitis.
The four-point grille for instance is the
same shape as the one you’ll find on a
Q50 though it’s been super-sized like
a McValue Meal while the bonnet it is
attached to is so large it could serve as
a helipad. Interesting design touches
include the three-hole vents ahead of the
front doors, acres of chrome detailing
and organically inspired curves to try and
soften up the styling.
Despite the massive size and weight,
the QX80 has the required muscle to
Thismassive
SUV is luxurious
and imperious
but it has an
enormous thirst
to gowith its size
and equally big
price tag, says
Faisal Shah.