Infiniti is bringing back the Project Black S Prototype with an updated powertrain made up of its 3.0-liter VR30 twin-turbocharged V-6 engine and a unique energy recovery system. The powertrain is one of a number of improvements Infiniti made on the concept, which was first unveiled at the 2017 Geneva Motor Show. The Project Black S Prototype represents what Infiniti describes as the “very top end of electrification in the (Nissan-Renault-Mitsubishi) Alliance portfolio. It also acts as a benchmark in the company’s pursuit to electrifying its lineup by 2021.

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Just so you know, the Infiniti Project Black S Prototype is the same Infiniti Q60 Red Sport 400-based concept as the previous one that Infiniti showed at the 2017 Geneva Motor Show. It gets a few aesthetic updates like the yellow trim on the intakes, but for the most part, the new prototype is the same model that we saw in Geneva more than a year ago.

The first version of the concept specified the powertrain details up to a certain point, referring to it as a combination of Infiniti’s 3.0-liter biturbo V-6 engine that produces 400 horsepower and an electric powertrain that contributes an undisclosed amount of power, giving the concept “more than 500 horsepower” to play with.

The new concept, on the other hand, is more generous on the powertrain details. The same 3.0-liter bi-turbo V-6 unit still sits at the heart of its powertrain, but it’s now joined by a unique energy recovery system that’s made up of three motor generator units, or MGUs. One of these three MGUs is called MGU-K (kinetic), which is in charge of harvesting kinetic energy from braking. The other two units, called the MGU-H (heat), harvests heat energy from exhaust gases. These setups, according to Infiniti, allows the Project Black S Prototype to generate electrical power at all times, whether the car is accelerating (the two MGU-H units) or braking (the MGU-K unit). The output from the V-6 engine and the energy harvested by the motor generator units combine to produce a total output of 563 horsepower, an improved and more specific output number than the one on the previous concept. Infiniti finishes it off by saying that the new concept can sprint from 0 to 62 mph in under four seconds.

Infiniti has no plans to produce the concept, but is instead using it to illustrate its “commitment to developing exciting high-performance electrified powertrains, drawing on expertise from across the Renault-Nissan-Mitsubishi alliance.”

The Project Black S Prototype is a symbol of what Infiniti plans to do when it starts launching electrified cars from 2021 and beyond. As provocative as the concept looks, I’m afraid there’s nothing more to it than that, at least for the time being.

Further Reading

Read our full review on the 2017 Infiniti Project Black S.

Read our full review on the 2017 Infiniti Q60S.