[craig]

Peter De Lorenzo from Autoline After Hours had this to say about the Q50 ER in his weekly piece...

How about Gimmicky, Misguided and Chock-Full of Clichés? The Infiniti Q50 Eau Rouge is such a classic screw-up I don’t even know where to begin. This whole business about Infiniti trying to somehow establish a link between hanging its name on the side of the Red Bull Racing Formula 1 machines and translating it into production cars worth desiring is not going well. At all. There is absolutely nothing about this car that suggests that Infiniti’s considerable financial involvement in the Red Bull Racing F1 team and having World Champion Sebastian Vettel act as technical adviser has been worth the effort, or even capable of yielding even a shred of desirability in the future. If the Q50 Eau Rouge concept “provides a glimpse of Infiniti’s design prowess for high-performance vehicles” as Infiniti PR operatives suggest, then the notion of Infiniti becoming “the Japanese Audi” can be put to rest for a long, long time to come. There is no amount of shimmering candy apple red paint in the world that can hide the amateurish, cliché-ridden design chaos at work on this car. And yet Infiniti had the nerve to call it “Muscular, Purposeful, Refined.”

rough, read the rest A kaleidoscope of the pretty good, the really bad and the just plain ugly. Plus a special Bunny Rabbit Express to Nowhere thrown in for good measure. Welcome to The Land of Overpromise and Underdeliver, otherwise known as the 2014 Detroit Auto Show.

 

[jkay]

Wow - just reading the title of his article makes me think someone peed in his Cheerios the morning he went to the car show.

Sounds like a curmudgeon to me.

Let's see how the article reads . . . I think I get the gist.

Edit: skimmed the article (it's a brutal read) obvious pandering to auto curmudgeons as expected. Hyperbole sells and I didn't look at his site but I bet that's what he's trying to attract. The only car he seemed to like was a 1962 concept car - I'm not the least bit surprised. Well, I'm a little surprised - I was expecting him to like something out of the 40's or 50's. Based on the logo on his site, that's probably not far off.

Either way, he's kinda funny. Just don't read the article if you feel any sense of pride in a brand of car you own. He doesn't like any of them

 

[Klamalama]

Executed with a taut restraint that most Japanese designs lack, the Lexus RC F flat embarrassed its direct competitor at Infiniti. And deservedly so, I might add.

Lorenzo added the above, and had a couple more zingers, too.

Lorenzo is pretty tough but I think he missed the mark on the Lexus. If the Eau Rouge is overwrought, then I need an adjective far beyond that for the Lexus.

I don't think the Eau Rouge is a waste of funds or Vettel's advice. I mean, the Q50 is already pretty muscular and aggressive. You can't go too far in that direction. I'm not a fan of black wheels. I think some nice understated Ferrarish ones would have lent class with power. The back end certainly could have been less boy-racer.

Still, Lorenzo is a great read and very insightful of the automobile industry.

 

[z06seal]

He reminds me of a crazy man who makes car reviews, but adds a twist of 'crazy' to his opinions and publishes them. It's like a type of drama. by doing that, he gets readers, because us humans love watching drama happen.

That being said, he's entitled to his opinion. While the Eau Rouge might not be hyped up as the new corvette stingray, him telling Infiniti shut up and take notes from the lexus F car or whatever it is, is just plain dumb.

If I were writing the review, I would demand the Lexus design team get fired and all replaced

 

[hunter81]

Most reviewers seemed to like the Eau Rouge and even if they didn't I think the car is absolutely beautiful. If he thinks the car is "design chaos" I can tell you he and I have zero overlap in fashion or aesthetics which probably puts his feet squarely in a pair of TOMS. Way to over-use "cliché." Really once is already too many times.

 

[andrew]

That guy hated just about everything.
It's like an angry old man at an autoshow.


A forgettable exercise in rote sausage making that will leave the senses cold and dark, to be more specific. Walking, I mean stumbling, through the displays at BMW and Mercedes-Benz was a frightening trip through a minefield of niche marketing that has gone so far off course that I don’t even know where to begin. These two car companies are parsing niche upon niche with the absolute conviction that it will somehow lead them to The Promised Land of Automotive Divinity, when in reality it will lead them both down the primrose path to image annihilation. As I mentioned early on, the Mercedes imperative to become a youthful brand has become excruciatingly embarrassing, having taken on all the gravitas of yet another Justin Bieber-acting-like-an-idiot story. And what about the Big Plan to have the CLA set the table for the new C-Class? How’s that working out? Especially when the two of them together were so resolutely uninspiring that it was simply shocking. And the new C-Class? It’s as dull as it gets.

(newspressUSA)
After negotiating the BMW display at Cobo, I’m quite certain that a BMW pickup truck is in our future. BMW was only marginally better than the minions at M-B, at least they aren’t attempting to shove “look at us, we’re hip” down our throats. The new 2 series made its debut, with the red M235i supposedly getting most of the attention, or was it the new M3 getting all the attention, or, wait a minute, maybe it was supposed to be the M4 Coupe? I’m not really sure. Or was it the 3 series GT? Or the X1, X3 or X5? Or the i3 or i8? And does it really matter? BMW, like Mercedes, has decided that a scorched-earth policy is simply the most brilliant stroke for this market. The Magic Formula (at least in their minds) goes something like this: More Vehicles + More Nameplates = Spectacular Results. That both manufacturers have managed to lose the plot entirely is inconsequential, apparently.

 

[andrew]

Man just keep reading.
It just gets funny.
He craps on everything.
He Likes the 2 door ATS.. then dumps on cadillac.



The Cadillac ATS Coupe is much hotter than expected. Nicely drawn and tautly executed, it definitely has its merits. But, Cadillac is having trouble delineating its new offerings in the market, despite the rosy boasts at the ATS Coupe media conference. It’s the old GM way coming through, as a matter of fact. Launch the ATS sedan, the CTS suffers. Launch the rejuvenated CTS, and now the ATS is suffering. Same as it ever was, eh, kids? The new ATS Coupe is a nice piece. I have zero confidence, however, that Cadillac marketing has a clue as to how to establish momentum for it in the market. One of the giant “we’ll sees” for 2014, at the very least.

(newspressUSA)

 

[marquee50]

Nissan should have just badged the GTR as an Infiniti in the beginning. Infiniti would have received more respect. Oh well...

 

[JayG35]

Holy poopies I need some brain cells back. Why did I read that? This guy is clueless, but acts like he has one and needs to let everyone know about it.

I like how he doesn't even mention the Eau Rouge's projected power stats, but brings up the RC-F's in the next passage, in which he makes love to the Lexus while defecating on the Infiniti. Hilarious how this guy moves the goal posts by criticizing the styling of the Eau Rouge while ignoring the performance potential/hints by DeNysschen, yet he mentions only the performance stats of the RC-F while not touching on perhaps its weakest link- the styling. How much did Toyota pay this guy? I hope he enjoys his free Tundra.

And what about the Big Plan to have the CLA set the table for the new C-Class? How’s that working out?

Record sales and taking the USA crown from your beloved Lexus, that's how it's "working out."

Especially when the two of them together were so resolutely uninspiring that it was simply shocking. And the new C-Class? It’s as dull as it gets.

 

[JayG35]

Man just keep reading.
It just gets funny.
He craps on everything.
Like the 2 door ATS.. then dumps on cadillac.



The Cadillac ATS Coupe is much hotter than expected. Nicely drawn and tautly executed, it definitely has its merits. But, Cadillac is having trouble delineating its new offerings in the market, despite the rosy boasts at the ATS Coupe media conference. It’s the old GM way coming through, as a matter of fact. Launch the ATS sedan, the CTS suffers. Launch the rejuvenated CTS, and now the ATS is suffering. Same as it ever was, eh, kids? The new ATS Coupe is a nice piece. I have zero confidence, however, that Cadillac marketing has a clue as to how to establish momentum for it in the market. One of the giant “we’ll sees” for 2014, at the very least.

(newspressUSA)

He doesn't dump on everything. He treats Lexus with such kiddie gloves it's as if he's a regular over at CL.

 

[madmax2k1]

He's one angry writer, but I do agree with his view on the Eau Rouge and Infiniti in general. The Eau Rouge is just a Q50 with a fancy body kit, bigger wheels, and minor interior changes.

 

[Sinecure]

Nissan should have just badged the GTR as an Infiniti in the beginning. Infiniti would have received more respect. Oh well...

I've heard that it was supposed to be an Infiniti but ended up in a video game with the Nissan badge and thereafter they were stuck with it as a Nissan. I've seen dealerships where they put the GTR in the Infiniti showroom rather than the Nissan one next door (co-owned dealership where QContinuum works, I think).

 

[z06seal]

Maybe he needs to start his own car company with all his years of experience in the field when he buillt cars

 

[JayG35]

I've heard that it was supposed to be an Infiniti but ended up in a video game with the Nissan badge and thereafter they were stuck with it as a Nissan. I've seen dealerships where they put the GTR in the Infiniti showroom rather than the Nissan one next door (co-owned dealership where QContinuum works, I think).

That GT-R fiasco (and I agree with you guys- it should have been an Infiniti) was the first flag to me that Ghosn may be regarding Infiniti as an afterthought. He, of course, confirmed it just over a year ago, right after JdN became Pres. of Infiniti, in that article with the leaked quote, "We don't need Infiniti... we don't have to do it."

This really dumb move, perhaps the only one I can fault Ghosn for aside from making every FWD Nissan CVT-only, was the beginning of the erosion of Infinit's perception as a performance brand. Despite the spectacular G and the nearly-as-spectacular M, Infiniti began to look a lot like old, pre-LFA Lexus in the eyes of many. The Eau Rouge is supposed to signal a departure from that regression. If it ends up with any GT-R/AMG-derived parts in production form, I take it as a sincere apology for not making the GT-R an Infiniti.

 

[andrew]

He's one angry writer, but I do agree with his view on the Eau Rouge and Infiniti in general. The Eau Rouge is just a Q50 with a fancy body kit, bigger wheels, and minor interior changes.

If it wasn't called a Q50 Eau Rogue, maye I would take exception to the car.

But they didn't pull Q50 out of the name

I guesss I parralell this to AMG for mercedes.
I can see though how expectations may differ.

 

[Klamalama]

Eau Schmo! Infiniti already has a performance car called the HP (hybrid performance). They just need to realize it, and promote it. The halo car idea is okay, but the HP is in showrooms right now.

Tesla has already shown what performance an electric can provide. Infiniti is the first to do it in a hybrid. Somebody tell them.

 

[vbx]

Someone had to say it. The Q50 has no soul. Just Infiniti trying way to hard to be something it isn't.

The G35 6mt coupe. That car had soul. Q50 might as well be those gimmicky Google robot cars that drives itself.

 

[andrew]

Someone had to say it. The Q50 has no soul. Just Infiniti trying way to hard to be something it isn't.

The G35 6mt coupe. That car had soul. Q50 might as well be those gimmicky Google robot cars that drives itself.

The Q50 isn't a coupe.
Your comparing apples to oranges when you try to compare a Q50 to a 2 door sports car with stick (even though it's a G35).
They are two entirely different car segments.

If you wanted something like a G35 6MTcoupe, you probably should have been looking at a Nissan Z.
Not a large 4 door sedan.

 

[Klamalama]

Someone had to say it. The Q50 has no soul. Just Infiniti trying way to hard to be something it isn't.

The G35 6mt coupe. That car had soul. Q50 might as well be those gimmicky Google robot cars that drives itself.

Maybe your Q50 is soulless, mine isn't.

Lorenzo has a heavy bias for GM. Although he criticizes them too, he does overly praise anything they do in a positive direction. He isn't as generous with others.

I'll tell you why the Q50 has soul. It isn't a product of bean counters, but of engineers, and management willing to take huge risks. This curmudgeon is not easily impressed, but the Q50 is an excellent car.

You can feel the soul every time you place your sole on the hybrid throttle - to the floor.

 

[JayG35]

"Soul" has always been automotive forum code for "Not European."

Well, the Q50 may well be the last Infiniti not to be built from mostly Daimler parts, so enjoy your "soul-less" Infinitis while they last, folks. Then there will have to be some other point of contention. Reliability? That would be a safe bet, if MB weren't on a collision-course with Lexus lately. I'm still soiling myself at the charts for the E-class and C-class at Consumer Reports. Might as well be freakin' Toyotas.