Saturday, January 6, 2007

Infiniti is Japanese automobile manufacturer Nissan's luxury brand in the United States, Canadian, Mexican, Middle Eastern, South Korean (first dealership opened in July 2005) and Taiwanese markets. Nissan also has plans to release Infiniti into many European markets (Russia & Ukraine in 2007, United Kingdom in 2008 [1]), China (10 dealerships by 2007), as well as in Japan sometime after 2008.Infiniti vehicles are traditionally based on the same automobile platforms as Nissan models. In some cases, similar vehicles are sold as upscale Nissans in the same market, while other Infinitis are rebadged models from the Japanese market, where Nissan's model range includes high-end luxury vehicles. More recently, the differentiation between Nissan and Infiniti vehicles has become greater, and even where two models may share a similar platform, Infinitis tend to feature more powerful engines, tuned suspensions, steering systems, and more luxurious interior appointments.Infiniti's model name designation includes one letter for coupés and sedans (two letters for SUVs) and a number reflecting engine displacement. For example, the QX56 is an SUV featuring a 5.6 L engine and the Q45 is Infiniti's flagship sedan, featuring a 4.5 L engine. The one exception to this was the QX4 SUV, which featured a 3.3 L engine (1997-2000) and later a 3.5 L engine (2001-2003). An 'x' following the engine displacement of Infiniti sedans denotes an all wheel drive model (e.g. Infiniti G35x).