Infiniti Q50 Eau Rouge Concept Might Have 500HP
Infiniti just announced complete details about its high-performance Q50 Eau Rouge concept at the Detroit Auto Show.
The car, which makes heavy use of carbon fiber body panels, stands 20 millimeters wider than the normal Q50. Infiniti hasn’t announced which engine is sitting under the hood and there probably isn’t one at all. But if there were, Infiniti president Johan de Nysschen says he “would expect it to feature over 500hp and 600 lb-ft of torque.”
He went on to say that the engine under consideration uses a V cylinder configuration with forced induction. The biggest news is that it almost certainly isn’t a Nissan engine.
“Through our various alliance partners we have access to a range of engines featuring this performance capability which, with a fair amount of engineering effort, can be developed to exhibit Infiniti character and accommodated within the Q50 engine bay,” he said.
There aren’t explicit plans to build the car, but it seems like something is just around the corner.
“Q50 Eau Rouge provides not only a glimpse of the design language, but also the performance capability of a future special series,” he said.
While it isn’t clear what that engine will turn out to be, it seems obvious that Infiniti is hellbent on offering a legitimate competitor to Mercedes’ AMG and BMW M performance vehicles.
Aside from the mostly carbon fiber body, Infiniti equipped the car with 21-inch wheels, aerodynamic enhancements.
GALLERY: Infiniti Q50 Eau Rouge Concept
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Luke is an energetic automotive journalist who spends his time covering industry news and crawling the internet for the latest breaking story. When he isn't in the office, Luke can be found obsessively browsing used car listings, drinking scotch at his favorite bar and dreaming of what to drive next, though the list grows a lot faster than his bank account. He's always on <A title="@lukevandezande on Twitter" href="http://twitter.com/lukevandezande">Twitter</A> looking for a good car conversation. Find Luke on <A title="@lukevandezande on Twitter" href="http://twitter.com/lukevandezande">Twitter</A> and <A title="Luke on Google+" href="http://plus.google.com/112531385961538774338?rel=author">Google+</A>.
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I love every detail of this car. It was never an issue of performance, Infiniti has always been faster than the its rivals, but the handling was always a little step behind. If they could make a car that handled as well as the Bimmer or Benz, it would be amazing.
Too bad it's not going to be an Infiniti engine. My 2003 G35 is solid.