Comments on: Infiniti considering front-wheel drive entry-level model

By: Lyndongolden

Lyndongolden — Mon, 16 Aug 2010 01:10:23 +0000

Laugh at the G20, but I’m sure it brought aspiring, younger folks into the Infiniti brand. Sure, our standards and expectations have grown tremendously in the last ten years, but a modern-day replacement could work. Keep it simple and elegant, with a hint of sporting ability, and I think they will sell…at the magic $27K to $30K sweet spot. There are enough folks motivated by the Infiniti nameplate (image, luxury dealer experience) who will make the leap to the “New G20″ over a similarly priced (though faster, roomier) Altima.

By: 85ZingoGTR

85ZingoGTR — Tue, 26 Jan 2010 13:50:35 +0000

Troll Killer – The EX needs to be larger to compete with cars like GLK and Q5. Everytime I look at one I just can’t see it as an SUV. Rather a station wagon version of a G35. And it has no cargo room at all.

By: ricky_b

ricky_b — Tue, 26 Jan 2010 13:43:11 +0000

A4 – I like the way you think. Infiniti should not give us another one-off from an existing Nissan model. If they’re going to make an entry vehicle, really make it an Infiniti. A cool entry hatch like an A3 would really be nice.

By: sharpie

sharpie — Tue, 26 Jan 2010 07:14:19 +0000

I don’t see why not. FWD = simpler setup, lower production cost, better fuel economy than AWD and with the proper tires, still can be driven in snow country in winter, considering that this car will be light weight.

The G20 was sweet, would even be better if they would put the JDM SR20DET (T for Turbo) in it. And no, it is NOT a Nissan Sentra, at least not the regular model. The Sentra /200SX SE-R used the same engine. I should know. I had 2 classics (93 and 94) and a 200SX SE-R, all with rock solid engine!!! I didn’t need four door back then so the G20 was not favored, otherwise I would have ended up with the G instead.

Here’s an idea, Infiniti is one of the sportier luxury brand. While Mazda and VW are not a luxury brands, take a page out of the Mazdaspeed3 (minus the happy face please) and GTI. In another word, a luxury hot hatch. Price it at 25k, and voila!

By: bigdman

bigdman — Tue, 26 Jan 2010 02:59:39 +0000

I personally don’t think they really need to. A lower output G is good enough.

A super sentra will be nice… preferable in hatch.

Restyle that car and I think it can be a go.

By: v8funone

v8funone — Tue, 26 Jan 2010 02:01:27 +0000

Oh yeah, the EX35 should be discontinued also. What were they thinking? Instead of appealing to women like the rx350 they grabbed the same market of men that bought the new beetle. It should come with a standard rainbow sticker on the rear window

By: v8funone

v8funone — Tue, 26 Jan 2010 01:49:29 +0000

After working at an infiniti dealer as a service manager for almost 8 years and until this post I have been behind Infiniti 100% since they got away from the cross breeding image as dressed up maximas pathfinders and sentras. The last thing Infiniti needs is the dressed up Nissan image to come back. They have finally started grabbing the German car customers interest by providing a 9/10th’s German driver car at a lower price without the overengineering electrical gremlins that German cars all have. They have come up with a reliable high performance car line that has more and more german car drivers converting over to them for lower maintenance costs at a lower purchase price. The last thing they need to do is start going back to their old ways of being an acura competitor that almost put them out of business in the late 90′s. Leave the reliable soft personalityless women cars to Lexus and keep Infiniti a reliable exciting alternative to BMW.

By: Troll Killer

Troll Killer — Tue, 26 Jan 2010 01:12:16 +0000

The most important thing they need to do is release a new EX that isn’t as small so they could capture more of the luxury crossover market. Then up their interior quality across the whole lineup. But if they were to release a FWD car, I would have to agree that it should be a hatch.

By: DrFill

DrFill — Tue, 26 Jan 2010 00:45:03 +0000

Dumbing down a brand that Infiniti has fought so hard to rehabilitate is a mistake
Infiniti has an outstanding line-up, once the new M and QX truck come out later this year
If I were them, I wouldn’t change a thing, just amp up the advertising

Infiniti is finally living up to the promise
We don’t need another A3 or TSX
Or a knocked-off Sentra
There is nowhere worth going.

I kinda thought they wanted Infiniti to be associated with Premium
Stay focused!
DrFill

By: 85ZingoGTR

85ZingoGTR — Mon, 25 Jan 2010 23:44:27 +0000

Whatever works Infiniti. Make sure it looks like a luxurious plow in the front like the rest of the new lineup.

By: Borat

Borat — Mon, 25 Jan 2010 23:30:21 +0000

@carstuff, do you think many Buick drivers will buy another car? Perhaps so, if we’ll make tremendous leaps in life expectancy of octogenarians. Of course in Communist China it is completely different story.

By: BAD124

BAD124 — Mon, 25 Jan 2010 22:36:01 +0000

I dont think the Audi/VW comparison is totally accurate. There is a clear separation in technologies and structure i.e. Phaeton v A8. Could have easily just changed body panels and interiors but the entire chassis is different – A8 is aluminum space frame VW is conventional steel and it wasn’t due to price as they sold for about the same. From a structured perspective, Audi is in direct control of Lambo and does not have to pass every decision by VW execs.

Nissan/Infinity on the other hand is just another Japanese brand exercise like Acura and Lexus. All about what it can get away with for a price… semi independent trailing arm suspension on their 4DSC? Please..

By: Madcapp

Madcapp — Mon, 25 Jan 2010 22:04:20 +0000

Its 1989 again.

By: e46Ne90

e46Ne90 — Mon, 25 Jan 2010 22:04:19 +0000

Nissan can quad turbo charged it all they want, I wouldn’t touch anything that’s based on FWD platform in this segment

By: sj79

sj79 — Mon, 25 Jan 2010 21:04:22 +0000

this will cement their place as a 2nd tier luxury brand. They are desperate to add volume at this point.

By: carguy70

carguy70 — Mon, 25 Jan 2010 20:56:16 +0000

I also think FWD would be wrong in this market. Instead of deluding the Infinity brand they should replace todays Nissan Maxima with a RWD version and begin selling Nissan and Infinity together in the same dealerships.

By: SoTXFord

SoTXFord — Mon, 25 Jan 2010 20:38:22 +0000

This is a tough segment in the US these days.

Back in the true heyday of the Integra where a Type R was considered a high performance hatch with numbers around 200hp, it stood out from the pack and warranted a higher price point. Most of your “sport” Compacts were in the low 120s for HP and didnt offer much for features to keep the price down.

Now days, you have every day cars like the Kia Forte or Ford Focus that are less than 20k, loaded with features that first time buyers expect and host HP numbers around 175 while still claiming mileage in the low to mid 30s.

Infinity has a tall order to fill to keep in line with their performance image, keep gas mileage up, keep the price low, and somehow show this new “entry level” to be a premium over the likes of these lesser entry level vehicles.

I hope they can pull it off, but I cant imagine them doing it for less than 25 or 27k… You can get an nice Altima for that…

By: Vosotros

Vosotros — Mon, 25 Jan 2010 20:23:12 +0000

@JakeK66 – agreed, a neo-G20 would be great. That car might not have been great for the Infiniti brand, but it was a nice step up from econoboxes. Sort of like the Jetta today, but with better quality and great dealer treatment. Never bought one, but I always liked them well enough for what they were.

By: idrinorbarsaku

idrinorbarsaku — Mon, 25 Jan 2010 20:11:09 +0000

The G20, as shown in the pic, is nothing like the sentra that you guys are talking about! You are pretty much making that judgment on the basis that they are both front wheel drive, one from nissan, one from infiniti, companies are related, so that must mean they are the same rebadged car. WRONG! If I could get that G20 brand new right now, I would have gotten it already! It was a good car then, and still is now!

By: Hyperion

Hyperion — Mon, 25 Jan 2010 19:39:49 +0000

I think Infiniti should sell their “entry” FWD car at about the same price as a G25 sedan or maybe the G37. Lexus does something very similar with the ES (FWD) and IS (RWD) and other than the RX330 SUV it’s their only FWD model to my knowledge.

I wish they wouldn’t dilute themselves like this when they’re already prepping the G25 but what do I know? Maybe their FWD entry level car will be like the original lightweight Acura Integra complete with sporty 170-200HP variants to keep in line with their performance image.

By: carstuff

carstuff — Mon, 25 Jan 2010 19:14:00 +0000

Do you guys really think the ES/LaCrosse buyers even care which end drives the vehicle, or even know?

There is a much bigger market for “who cares” which end is driving the vehicle than those who want RWD. Just not much of a market. Of course if you look at this LLN sample of 20 data points you would get a skewed curve.

By: G20t99

G20t99 — Mon, 25 Jan 2010 18:58:10 +0000

@johnnycanuck

The G20 is not a rebadged Sentra. To be more correct, it is a rebadged Nissan Primera.

There are many differences between the G20 and the Sentra that differentiate the two. Firstly, they were manufactured in different places. The G20 being born in Japan, the Sentra in Mexico. Secondly, they had different chasis, thus different front and rear suspensions. The G20′s was praised by many publications back in the day. Lastly, the G20 had a slightly longer wheel base. So, hardly a rebadged Sentra. Pretty much the only thing the two cars shared was the engine, SR20.

As far as the article I think it’s a good idea. Call me biased. They will get more entry-level buyers that may turn into higher-end buyers down the road.

By: howsmydriving

howsmydriving — Mon, 25 Jan 2010 18:26:38 +0000

If Audi can take VW platforms and turn them into pseudo-luxury cars, then certainly Infinity can pull a similar stunt.

By: gas_pig70

gas_pig70 — Mon, 25 Jan 2010 18:12:18 +0000

Infiniti should totally add a few re-hashed FWD cars to the lineup for low dollar entry points. Just look how well it worked for Jeep with the additions of the Compass and Patriot. Nothing holds up a brands image better than a rush to the bottom end.

By: F50

F50 — Mon, 25 Jan 2010 18:09:33 +0000

They can add more Luxury for the Maxima, but a Lexus ES/Buick LaCrosse fighter from Infiniti isn’t a very bad idea.

By: l.sanchez

l.sanchez — Mon, 25 Jan 2010 18:03:12 +0000

Seems like they would steal even more business from Maxima and high end Altimas…not sure if thats a good idea…

By: hoppy6698

hoppy6698 — Mon, 25 Jan 2010 17:48:27 +0000

FWD = Fail for Infiniti. They have made a very good segment of RWD platforms. Rebadging a Nissan with leather (ie. G20) will result in distortion of the branding they have built so far.

I agree they need a lower model than the G37 however. Compared to what they are probably aiming for (BMW 135i, Audi A3, etc), I think they need to steal the Sentra platform and build a RWD coupe out of it.

Altima platform may not work, too close to the G37, in both size and styling. Caveat: Unless they drop a turbo-4 in something like the Altima Coupe with RWD – then it would be most of the fun like a G37, but a lot cheaper, without damaging the G37 sales. Might work.

I think if they go FWD they will only create a mediocre car. Some will like it, G37 shoppers will laugh at it, and almost no one looking for an entry luxury car will take it seriously when they could get a Maxima (well-equipped) or Altima (near fully-equipped) at about the same price (just under $30k).

By: zfenderguy

zfenderguy — Mon, 25 Jan 2010 17:43:13 +0000

@A4, agreed. A sweet little sporty hatch that the enthusiast market can really get into. Like Infiniti’s version of the RSX/Integra. That’s the ticket. Especially since Honda has turned on the entry-premium hatch market and left it wide open now.

By: JakeK66

JakeK66 — Mon, 25 Jan 2010 17:18:03 +0000

The first and second gen G20 was just that Johnny! Infiniti already beat you to the punch!

By: johnnycanuck

johnnycanuck — Mon, 25 Jan 2010 17:15:07 +0000

Who says you can’t have performance and front wheel drive? Whatever they do just don’t take a page from Acura’s Canadian handbook and slap different badges on a Sentra and try to pass it off as an Infiniti.

CSX anyone?

By: A4

A4 — Mon, 25 Jan 2010 16:49:07 +0000

How bout a fresh little hatchback?

By: JakeK66

JakeK66 — Mon, 25 Jan 2010 16:48:36 +0000

Love the G20 picture LLN – ahh how it brings me back to my youth in 2002. That was a pretty cool car back then, I remember not affording one for it was too expensive at $21,000. Good times!

I don’t think FWD is a bad idea – but with Altima 3.5SR’s creeping up to $30,000 – I don’t know where they want this at? Make it too small and people will just buy a Nissan, make it too big, well it will be bigger than the G37 since it’s pretty darn small itself.

They are on dangerous ground with this idea. I like to see what it will look like though, I’d be very interested as one who did fall in love with th G20 back in the day.