[G_man]

Hello Q50 enthusiasts. I had a chance to attend a ride and drive comparing the Q50, Audi A4 and BMW 328 on an auto-cross course.

The cars tested:
Infiniti Q50 AWD 3.7 Sport

Audi A4 Quatro with Prestige Pkg, S Pkg, Titronic Quatro MSRP: $52K

BMW 328 AWD Sport, Tech Pkg, Driver Asst, Premium Pkg, Lighting & Dynamic Handling Pkg MSRP: $52K

The course consisted of a straight away, hard right, evasive maneuver, hard left, s curve, hard right and a chicane.

We first drove the Q50 then the Audi and then the BMW.

There was a radar set up to measure speed at the end of the straight. The Audi was the slowest at 48 mph. Then the BMW at 52. The fastest was the Q50 at 58 mph.

The most sluggish handling was the A4 which handles like a Chevy Impala in the hard turns and MUCH more steering effort through the evasive and chicane maneuvers. The turbo lag hurt responsiveness coming out of the turns.

The BMW starts off really slow due to the 4 cylinder until the turbos kick in then it takes off nicely. But surprisingly, it too seemed to have a mind of its own during hard braking and turning. Braking was good but the car really didn't want to turn as readily as I expected.

The best (by far) was the Q50. The handling and braking was very balanced and even in the hands of an amature, it handled and felt more in control than the others...by a wide margin.

We then got to drive the Hybrid AWD on a road course. This thing is a rocket! 0-60 in less than 5 seconds! Handling and braking was on par with the gas version despite the extra 300 pounds it carries due to the hybrid system. Accelleration out of a turn was instantaneous no lag waiting for the power.

The takeaway was, Infiniti is no longer lagging behind the benchmark handling and ride of the 3 series. The new Q50 exceeds BMW in every category when it comes to performance. The other was, Infiniti while still offering purchase options under $45K well equipped, will not shy away from and can command comparable pricing to the best Europe has to offer when it comes to performance, interior quality and technology. Oh, and the new Bose stereo is amazing! MUCH better than anything before.

IMO, once the auto media folks start testing the Q50 and comparing it to the BMW, there will be a new "ultimate driving machine" and it won't be built in Germany.

 

[gbert15]

Thank you very much for the info man! How was the infiniti intouch system? Was the touch screen quite responsive/sluggish? Did u get to play with the adaptive steering?

 

[SimpsonTide985]

The best (by far) was the Q50. The handling and braking was very balanced and even in the hands of an amateur, it handled and felt more in control than the others...by a wide margin.

We then got to drive the Hybrid AWD on a road course. This thing is a rocket! 0-60 in less than 5 seconds! Handling and braking was on par with the gas version despite the extra 300 pounds it carries due to the hybrid system. Acceleration out of a turn was instantaneous no lag waiting for the power.

The takeaway was, Infiniti is no longer lagging behind the benchmark handling and ride of the 3 series. The new Q50 exceeds BMW in every category when it comes to performance. The other was, Infiniti while still offering purchase options under $45K well equipped, will not shy away from and can command comparable pricing to the best Europe has to offer when it comes to performance, interior quality and technology. Oh, and the new Bose stereo is amazing! MUCH better than anything before..

 

[SimpsonTide985]

G man! Please come back!

 

[yourinfinitiguy]

I've driven the Q50 but not the Hybrid. I also got to drive a competitive 328i loaded to the hilt at a whopping 55k and it still sounded like a Honda to me.

The adaptive steering is awesome. We were changing the sensitivity in the middle of turns and it was crazy how heavy it could be one moment and how quickly it could change when you pressed the touch screen.

 

[SimpsonTide985]

I've driven the Q50 but not the Hybrid. I also got to drive a competitive 328i loaded to the hilt at a whopping 55k and it still sounded like a Honda to me.

The adaptive steering is awesome. We were changing the sensitivity in the middle of turns and it was crazy how heavy it could be one moment and how quickly it could change when you pressed the touch screen.

We haven't heard a ton of feedback about the adaptive steering functionality, so it's always nice to hear!

 

[mrjoshua]

Were you able to discern any difference/improvement in the 7-speed automatic transmission? I've heard it was retuned/calibrated but am not certain as to what if anything they've done to improve upon it. The one gripe I have with my '10 G37x S sedan is the transmission - it isn't smooth off the line and tends to be clunky, something the major mag critics have noted for some time and why they've given the nod to the BMW 3 Series and Audi A4 when comparison testing. What p's me off is that they make this complaint when comparing cars with 100+ less hp and that cost $10K+ than a comparably equipped G.

 

[afrosheen]

They said they completely remapped the 7 speed to provide a continuous, smooth push from 1st to 3rd. Infiniti is well aware of the hatred for the current 7 speed.

 

[SimpsonTide985]

What p's me off is that they make this complaint when comparing cars with 100+ less hp and that cost $10K+ than a comparably equipped G.

Tell me about it!

and yeah, the transmission isn't perfect, but I've never really complained about it. All of the cars that I've had prior to the G have had much much worse transmissions, so I'm not hurtin' at all.

However, the word concerning the retuning and reprogramming of the 7-Speed intrigues me..

 

[gbert15]

I've driven the Q50 but not the Hybrid. I also got to drive a competitive 328i loaded to the hilt at a whopping 55k and it still sounded like a Honda to me.

The adaptive steering is awesome. We were changing the sensitivity in the middle of turns and it was crazy how heavy it could be one moment and how quickly it could change when you pressed the touch screen.

Thanks for sharing that info! Hmmm...so its easily changeable even while your driving! I would habe thought that u would be unable to change it once the car is already rolling!

 

[G_man]

G man! Please come back!

Still here. Nothing much to report other than my youtube video is approaching 3K views.

I'll be back in 30 days after I get another chance to see and drive the Q50 when it comes to our dealership for training and a preview party.

Thanks for your interest...it's gonna be GREAT!

 

[AFRigger]

Great info. Definitely keep us abreast. Thx!

 

[trey100]

Isn't it strange that this car hasn't been reviewed by the car magazines yet? I think it's great that Infiniti dealerships are feeding us small (really small) bits but I would have expected to see tests by now. Isn't the car hitting the US in a couple of months?

 

[afrosheen]

Isn't it strange that this car hasn't been reviewed by the car magazines yet? I think it's great that Infiniti dealerships are feeding us small (really small) bits but I would have expected to see tests by now. Isn't the car hitting the US in a couple of months?

Not really. The press usually nitpicks Infiniti to death. The last thing they want is the automotive press dogging a preproduction model. Once the software is perfect and they land production models the press will get some to drive. I expect articles in a month.

 

[SimpsonTide985]

Yeah, it's not too strange...I mean, it's hard to say. I think if it's July and we haven't seen anything, then I'd start to get worried.

I'm actually more weirded out about the opposite---The 2014 Lexus IS350 doesn't hit dealers for another few months, but the car has been everywhere and it seems like it's been in the hands of every major car magazine and blogger for a really long time.

 

[MonteZ]

I'm actually more weirded out about the opposite---The 2014 Lexus IS350 doesn't hit dealers for another few months, but the car has been everywhere and it seems like it's been in the hands of every major car magazine and blogger for a really long time.

I concur!

 

[afrosheen]

Probably because the IS350 is just a body kit and ugly headlights away from the 2012 model. Really easy to give the same car to the press that they drove last year.

 

[SimpsonTide985]

Probably because the IS350 is just a body kit and ugly headlights away from the 2012 model. Really easy to give the same car to the press that they drove last year.

Hey, those headlights are growing on me...

 

[afrosheen]

Hey, those headlights are growing on me...

Like fungus? They were revolting at the auto show. Those teeny tiny pinched headlights under their little plexiglas bubble with a fully separate Nike LED swish underneath them. That whole car just looks like a nightmare to me now from a design standpoint. The rest of the models are nice though, and the predator grille doesn't bother me as much as Audi's "from the top of the hood to the ground" mouth.

 

[BMF]

Probably because the IS350 is just a body kit and ugly headlights away from the 2012 model. Really easy to give the same car to the press that they drove last year.

Actually the IS is a whole different car, it shares hardly anything with the out going model. I do think the engine is from the out-going IS350 though, no "facelift" or anything of that sort.