This isn’t the first time we hear about a possible Infiniti GT-R model. In fact, this rumor took root as soon as the Nissan GT-R was launched back in 2008, and has resurfaced numerous times since then. Now, it’s making another appearance. According to British magazine CAR, Infiniti may offer a GT-R version after all, hinted by Francois Bancon, Head of Advanced Planning for Infiniti in Tokyo. He stated that the GT-R platform is too good to use for only one model. In fact, he said that the company is taking under consideration ’three or four’ proposals and that an Infiniti GT-R is one of them.
If the decision does lie with the Infiniti GT-R, it would need to counteract the Nissan GT-R’s power with sophistication: "It would have to be softer than the GT-R. And that’s extremely difficult to do. You can’t easily tweak the GT-R to deliver the sophisticated, more refined performance we would need on an Infiniti."
A final decision on the Infiniti GT-R will be made in the next two or three years and, if chosen, a production version should arrive in the next five years.
We’ve heard this rumor for a few years now, but nothing seemed to get any traction apart from the cursory whispers here and there. Well, if you take Nissan CEO Carlos Ghosn’s recent word for more than just a grain of salt, it does open the door a little in seeing a GT-R version for Infiniti down the road.
Now, like we said, this isn’t the first merry-go-round we’ve ridden with regards to a proposed Infiniti GT-R and Ghosn stopped short of saying that there will be, in fact, a car that’s going to be built. But as the glass-half-full optimists that we are, the words that came out of the mouth Nissan’s CEO during a recent interview with Car Magazine were like music to our ears.
During the interview, Ghosn told Car that it would be easy to build an Infiniti GT-R because the "technologies developed for Nissan are all in place and is at the disposal of its sister company, Infiniti."
"The idea makes sense," he said. "The technology is here; the platform is here. It’s a great car, the GT-R. Is it a project now? No. But I don’t want to give you the impression we’ll never do that. But I don’t want you to think that it’s coming in the next two to three years either."
Full story after the jump.
Full story
Last week we reported that Infiniti will bring a four-door model based on the Nissan GT-R and today we bring you the first rendering created by our designer especially for TopSpeed. Set to compete with models like Porsche Panamera and BMW M5, the Infiniti Gt-R will be launched in 2010 and will be priced aground $100,000.
The Infiniti GT-R will drop the current twin-turbo V6 engine and will use the less exclusive 5.0-liter V8 from the Infiniti FX50 SUV. This will provide an output of 420hp and will help the car to make the 0 to 60 mph sprint in about five seconds.
The GT-R sedan will also feature TPMS (tire pressure monitoring system with four-corner readout), ABS with EBD (electronic brake-force distribution), TCS (traction control system) with VDC (vehicle dynamic control), LDW (lane departure warning that beeps); LDP (lane departure prevention through selective brake application); and ICC (intelligent cruise control) with DCA (distance control assist) that maintains following distances at speed, plus IBA (intelligent brake assist).
When it was first announced that the Nissan GT-R would come to the U.S., it was expected to be a part of Nissan’s higher-priced Infiniti brand. Now as rumors about a four-door GT-R are heating up again, AutoExpress is reporting that the family GT-R will be launched in 2011 and will come flying the Infiniti flag.
The future four-door Infiniti GT-R is expected to compete with models like Porsche Panamera and BMW M5, and it uses the same four-wheel-drive chassis and twin-clutch gearbox as the GT-R coupe.
This is not going to just be a GT-R with a few extra doors. The car will feature a longer wheelbase and will be more oriented on luxury than performance. Gone is the custom built twin-turbo V6. Instead it’s rumored the GT-R sedan will get the less exclusive 5.0-liter V8 from the Infiniti FX50 SUV. It should still be good for 420hp and a 0 to 60 time of about five seconds.
For those folks who don’t know, Seibon is a manufacturer specialized in producing carbon-fiber accessories, such as hoods, trunk lids, fenders and lip spoilers. It seems that the guys from Seibon liked the new Nissan GT-R and due to this they decided to create few carbon-fiber accessories for it.
The manufacturer released today a new hood and a new trunk, both made out of dry carbon-fiber. In our opinion the parts would really look awesome if they had the “glossy” look of the carbon-fiber not the “dry” look! What’s your opinion?
