Next Infiniti G Will Incorporate Mercedes DNA
Thanks to the modern reality of doing business in the automotive sector, more and more car companies are seeking alliances in order to share development costs.
The Renault– Nissan Alliance is one of the most notable in recent years, but some analysts were quite surprised when back in April 2010, the company announced an alliance with Daimler AG.
At that time, Nissan had planned to introduce an updated, rear-drive Infiniti G, slated for a 2011 model year release, but with new input from Daimler, the introduction was pushed back as the car underwent some significant revisions, including the adoption of a Mercedes chassis, sheetmetal changes, and a Mercedes diesel engine.
As for gasoline powerplants, the decision was taken to stick with Nissan offerings, at present, a 3.5-liter version of the VQ bent-six, possibly turbocharged is the preferred option, though a Hybrid drivetrain, similar to the 2.5 V-6/ electric motor combination currently employed in the M35h could also make the cut.
Scheduled for a 2014 model year release it will be interesting to see what both Infiniti and Mercedes customers make of this car and down the road, what other potential products can result from the synergies between the three automakers. Renault Nissan CEO Carlos Ghosn has said that Infiniti plans to launch some 10 new models by 2016 with a goal of capturing around 10 percent of the luxury car market; the new G is merely the first step.
[Source: Motor Trend]
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If anything, Mercedes should think about using Infiniti parts. Infinitis are much better cars. More reliable by far, way easier to work on. German cars hold nothing on the Japanese in my opinion.