[Orrin]

Not familiar with this writer from Toronto but he has written a favorable and informative first impression review for the Q50.

Link is below

Sporty new 2014 Infiniti Q50 packed with interesting technology | National Post

Orrin

 

[SimpsonTide985]

Nice find! This seems like a true preview/review. I smiled a little at the grille comparison they made to Lexus.

 

[gbert15]

Nice! Thanks for sharing man! Much appreciated!

 

[fromSVXtoSTi]

Review, eh.

A Canadian journalist's take on the Q50. That red looks pretty great!

 

[Q50Aggie]

Thanks! Cool review!

 

[NissLover]

I take the Lexus comparisons as a jab at Infiniti. The automotive media should know that the grill on this car is taken almost directly off of the Essence, which again debuted before any Lexus spindle anything!

And it also aggs me that the media continues to refer to Infinitis as "the Nissan" in their articles... they don't call a Lexus "the Toyota." These are some of the things that limit Infiniti in improving the perception of their brand when reviewers insist on making snide remarks like these.

 

[interalia]

Press Release and Preview, not Q50 Review

It's more of a press release and not a review, certainly not a road test or even a first drive. The preview comments about his opinion of the car are all in the little side bar, the rest is basically Infiniti marketing.

If the Q50′s new Direct Adaptive Steering system is a pleasant technological surprise, then combining it with Infiniti’s Direct Response Hybrid system is truly a high-tech feast. Indeed, unlike so many other hybrids, the electrified Q50 actually is a better drive than the conventional car. A 302-horsepower 3.5-litre V6 combines with a 50 kilowatt electric motor (fed by a 1.4 kW-h lithium-ion battery) for a total peak power of 360 hp. More importantly, the electric motor’s low-end torque makes the combination feel particularly lusty and, because the entire shebang is routed through a conventional seven-speed automatic transmission, there’s none of that CVT tomfoolery common to so many other hybrids. Indeed, the Q50 Hybrid is smoother, torquier and quieter than its conventionally powered counterpart. Other than some slightly wonky regenerative braking habits, it’s quite a sophisticated ride and definitely worthy of consideration. Oh, and it averages about 7.0 L/100 km on the highway at 120 kilometres an hour and not much more in the city.

Editing that down to opinion of the writer and removing most of the feature talk (but not all) I get

If the Q50′s new Direct Adaptive Steering system is a pleasant technological surprise, then combining it with Infiniti’s Direct Response Hybrid system is truly a high-tech feast. ... Indeed, the Q50 Hybrid is smoother, torquier and quieter than its conventionally powered counterpart. Other than some slightly wonky regenerative braking habits, it’s quite a sophisticated ride and definitely worthy of consideration.

But then we all know that Hybrid's are "smoother, torquier and quieter". So in summary his review is he likes the technological, and maybe "it’s quite a sophisticated ride" means he likes the ride. I find nothing else useful..... maybe "no news is good news", he had a sport with the new steering and had nothing bad to say.

 

[CarolinaQ50]

Thanks for sharing.

Quote: "..... the only criticism of the Q’s new look being that the 50′s new grille looks suspiciously like Lexus’ new spindle motif-...."

I do wish that the writers of these would actually do some type of research or know the product before they do their writing. At least know about concept cars, design, etc.

 

[BenW]

Thanks for sharing.

Quote: "..... the only criticism of the Q’s new look being that the 50′s new grille looks suspiciously like Lexus’ new spindle motif-...."

I do wish that the writers of these would actually do some type of research or know the product before they do their writing. At least know about concept cars, design, etc.

I agree, you don't even have to look at the concepts, if you look at the G37's grill, that shape has been on Infiniti for quite a while, not to mention the M. Lexus is the one that did the copying and quite frankly the spindle on the new IS looks like they copied a girls bathroom sign. (shoulders, narrow waiste, wide skirt!)

 

[Gandhi]

Lexus is the one that did the copying and quite frankly the spindle on the new IS looks like the copied a girls bathroom sign. (shoulders, narrow waiste, wide skirt!)

LOL - that's funny

 

[CarolinaQ50]

Lexus is the one that did the copying and quite frankly the spindle on the new IS looks like the copied a girls bathroom sign. (shoulders, narrow waiste, wide skirt!)

That is very funny...lol

Sometimes I think that they know they need to get an article written, and they just look around the room and find the person that is usually in charge of writing in the Recipe Section, and say "Hey you...I need you to quickly write this!"

 

[Gandhi]

That is very funny...lol

Sometimes I think that they know they need to get an article written, and they just look around the room and find the person that is usually in charge of writing in the Recipe Section, and say "Hey you...I need you to quickly write this!"

i don't give much weight to car reviews. I mainly read them for the entertainment value. Because really, that's what they really are at the end of the day. I suspect these car reviewers spend less time driving and evaluating any given car than tech reviewers spend time evaluating smart phones. To extend the tech analogy further, car reviews basically run benchmarks (0-60 mph times, braking, skid pad, etc) and sprinkle in some metaphors to describe how it feels like to drive the car.

But very little attention is paid to how it is like to live with the car in daily use. Simply because car reviewers rarely do that, if at all. In comparison, smartphone reviewers actually spend time using the phone for a week or two before they put thoughts down to paper. Frankly, for something that someone will be spending tens of thousands of dollars buying/leasing, car reviewers are doing a disservice to their readers. Which probably explains why so many car magazine viewerships are shrinking or going away.

I would bet the car reviews posted here will be more helpful in making a buying decision than any professionally written review in the big car mags. Outside of instrumented testing (only important for bench racing and for the likes of Ferrari, Porsche, Corvette, etc), professional reviews don't really offer much of value to their reader as they are written today. and that is why car magazine circulations are shrinking by the day.

Bottom line - read professional car reviews for their entertainment value, not informative value.

 

[Orrin]

It's more of a press release and not a review, certainly not a road test or even a first drive. The preview comments about his opinion of the car are all in the little side bar, the rest is basically Infiniti marketing.



Editing that down to opinion of the writer and removing most of the feature talk (but not all) I get



But then we all know that Hybrid's are "smoother, torquier and quieter". So in summary his review is he likes the technological, and maybe "it’s quite a sophisticated ride" means he likes the ride. I find nothing else useful..... maybe "no news is good news", he had a sport with the new steering and had nothing bad to say.

I agree its mostly a preview and certainly not a full road test, but I did find interesting the his description of the steering and how it can be customized/paired. Here is the quote I thought was useful and I think it infers the car was driven and reviewed to some extent.

Orrin


In other words, in making the choice between Light, Standard and Heavy effort setting, you’re also selecting to make the steering Casual (paired with Light), Standard (obvious) and Quick (paired with Heavy for sporting drivers who, again, want quick response paired with greater feedback). Some further customization is also available; Standard can be paired with Quick for reasonably low-effort lighter steering but superior response. In fact, this last proves to be the sweet spot as many testers found the Heavy setting just a little too much effort, even when hooning about on twisty roads.

 

[interalia]

i don't give much weight to car reviews. I mainly read them for the entertainment value. ...But very little attention is paid to how it is like to live with the car in daily use. Simply because car reviewers rarely do that, if at all.

Like most things the review usefulness varies based on the reviewer and reader. Living with the car comments are helpful. I like the way Motorweek covers that with both reviews that go inside the car and drive on normal roads, plus long term tests. Also Car and Driver long term tests where many use the car and they have a diary. Things like road noise, uneven roads, do the controls and features work well in the real word. C&D long term did found the M tech package more annoying then useful. That's good to know.

I would bet the car reviews posted here will be more helpful in making a buying decision than any professionally written review in the big car mags.

mmmmm maybe. I like seeing people that say things like "I drive a G ??? now and I found the Q's XXXX to be [better|same|worse]".

Most reviews now are short rides, and I think people are very pumped up. I was the first time I drove a G. I recall one of the longest write ups here, it was not really a review of the car because it said something like "I'm not going to describe the test drive, I was very excited and I talked to the salesman the entire time". That does say it something, it's the way I want the car to make me feel.

For me I want to see someone like Motorweek or C&D give the Q50 a good test and see all of it functions very very well at the limits and in normal use.

A little off topic.... I was wondering if the steering engages the clutch at low speeds and in reverse (so is not electric). I pull in/out of parking spots that are surrounded by concrete supports and are a tight fit. If that steering goes wacky (or lane departure moves steering) the possibility of damage is scary. That's the kind of real world use I would like to see Motorweek or CU really stress test. I'm going to try some parking during my test drive.

 

[afrosheen]

A little off topic.... I was wondering if the steering engages the clutch at low speeds and in reverse (so is not electric). I pull in/out of parking spots that are surrounded by concrete supports and are a tight fit. If that steering goes wacky (or lane departure moves steering) the possibility of damage is scary. That's the kind of real world use I would like to see Motorweek or CU really stress test. I'm going to try some parking during my test drive.

Drive one with deluxe touring. It will have the around view camera system and tilting side rearview mirrors. If you eat a curb with both of these systems on and you're paying attention, you're drunk.

 

[interalia]

Drive one with deluxe touring. It will have the around view camera system and tilting side rearview mirrors. If you eat a curb with both of these systems on and you're paying attention, you're drunk.

As I said I'm talking about a defect in the electric steering (aka "wacky"). E.g. Pulling into a slanted parking spot at a few miles per hour while tightening the turn radius. If the steering system computer decides to suddenly turn the wheels straight then I will crash into another car or concrete. I'd feel better if reverse and low speed steering engaged the clutch and did exactly what my wheel turning commanded.