Nissan’s luxury division Infiniti revealed a modern brand refresh on Friday amid a multi-year sales slump. The revamp includes a new logo and Apple-like stores complete with signature scents and sounds. One thing missing from these showrooms – is fully electric vehicles. Infiniti showed off its first EV at a recent dealer meeting, with dealers describing it as a Tesla Model-like electric sedan.
After car sales fell 46,619 in the US last year, down from 58,553 in 2021 and over 79,500 in 2020, Infiniti laid out a roadmap this week to get the luxury automaker back on track.
The comeback plan, according to Automotive News, involves more than doubling sales to 100K by mid-decade. Infiniti will rely on the brand’s overhaul to drive growth, which involves four new (or refreshed) models, including two fully electric vehicles, by the end of 2027.
At Infiniti’s dealer meeting this week in Los Angeles, dealers got a glimpse of the automaker’s Japanese-inspired redesigned showrooms with big glass windows and plenty of empty space (think Apple stores).
Also included will be “an invigorating new multisensory signature” experience, including signature Japanese forest scents and its own master track, “Moment of Tranquility.”
For the fourth time in the company’s history, Infiniti is introducing a new logo, emphasizing the “infinite road.”
Infiniti shows Tesla Model S-like sedan to dealers
“It’s a new dawn,” Craig Keeys, group vice president for Infiniti Americas, explained. Infiniti plans to advance software and technology to drive profits.
Meanwhile, Infiniti (and parent company Nissan) are getting left behind as the industry transitions to all-electric. One retailer, who wished to remain anonymous, said:
Nissan and Infiniti are about three years behind on product compared to other OEMs. By 2027, many competitors will be way ahead on technology and range.
Although some dealers wished it would be sooner, Infiniti doesn’t plan to release a fully electric car until the second half of the decade. Its first is expected to go on sale in late 2026.
Dealers, who were shown the Infiniti EV model, described it as similar to the Tesla Model S electric sedan in terms of proportion and design. It also had a “striking evolution” of the Q70.
The new Infiniti EV features a longer wheelbase with shorter overhangs, a new headlight and a taillight design, a single light strip across the width of the vehicle, and a sport Porsche-like rear.
Nissan will build the electric sedan at its factory in Canton, Miss, alongside a new midsize electric crossover. Dealers were also shown a picture of the midsize crossover EV, with one describing it as a “futuristic-looking Infiniti QX50.”
City Dwellers’s Take
Infiniti’s new electric model sounds exciting, but waiting until the second half of the decade to release them will feel like lightyears regarding EV battery, software, and tech development.
Tesla and several others will have improved second-gen, third-gen, etc. EV models that will be optimized from what’s on the roads today. Meanwhile, Infiniti will be just launching its first model.
After a multi-year sales slump, a brand refresh (with signature scents and sounds) alone likely won’t turn things around. The market is going all-electric, with many automakers already achieving double-digit and even 100% EV sales.
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