Infinti undoubtedly sells more crossover SUVs than anything else in its line. Still, somehow, the company is much more identifiable for its Q series sports coupes. While the new 2017 Infinti Q60 won’t suddenly turn those numbers on their heads, it’s a worthy successor to the automaker’s linage of tight, stylish luxury sport cars.
Beyond the obvious of transportation, a sports coupe serves no utilitarian purpose. Maybe it can carry four people, but the back seat is often big enough for a couple action figures. It has a trunk, but you’re lucky if you can a couple suitcases or a golf bag in there. Buyers hook up with a sports coupe because of the way it looks and (most importantly) the way it drives.
Also: Chasing Trouble & Tornados in the 2016 Jaguar XF
A coupe should always be a driver’s car. If it can’t be powerful, it should at least be fast (…Yes, there’s a difference…). If it can’t fast, it must at least be quick. The car must be tight, nimble and responsive. If a buyer wants comfy and numb, there are endless luxury sedans to explore. A good sport coupe should let you feel the road and go where you put it when you want it there when you want it there.
The machine should catch the eye as it goes back. Modern automotive aesthetics demand it be sleek, sloping and muscular. It can’t be too flashy or two stuffy. Thr former is left for sport hatchbacks and the latter is assigned to sedan duty. A sport coupe’s grille should be identifiable, and it should hold the gaze from the time it approaches, through when it passes and until it’s gone.
The 2017 Infinti Q60 checks all of the above boxes. First of all, it’s stylized for grownups who like an aggressive looking vehicle. In an era when automotive design language is growing similar from company to company, you’ll find a few familiar touch points. There’s a little Lexus GS in there along with echoes of Maserati.
But, there are enough dedicated flares to distinguished the Q60 from the narrow, angled headlights to the sweeping fenders to the abbreviated haunches, the car looks eager to move. That’s key.
The Q60 employs a twin turbocharged V6 capable of top end 400 horsepower. Infinti puts the teeth of technology to work in the extensively adjustable driver mode system. Dynamic Digital Suspension and Direct Adaptive Steering all combine with the adjustable mode settings to offer one of the most “fine-tune-able” cars you’ll find on the road.
It’s the bellow of a dinosaur, but the entire driving experience leaves a man wondering what it would be like with a turbocharged V8 under its hood. The V6 fights off a minot turbo lag that knocks acceleration down a peg. Once moving, the Q60 will push you back in the seat quite nicely.
Still, an already pleasurable ride would add an element of ferocity and make the car irresistible with two more cylinders. Perhaps a V8 in a Japanese luxury sports coupe might seem like putting shoulder pads on a ninja, but it’d still be fun to see. It’ll never happen as V8s will continue to go the way of the dodo.
The reliance on the charged V6 not a criticism of the Q60 specifically as it’s an outstanding car and its highly adjustable V6 power train and suspension reward the driver with a quality ride. It’s more an expression of yearning for just a little more power from such a high-tech creation.
As is, the 2016 Q60 warrants every dollar of its $38,950 price tag. It will get the buyer down the road with precision and style as the most advanced Infiniti sports coupe ever.
