A major redo is in the works for Infiniti’s G lineup. An Infiniti insider in Japan recently spilled the beans to Motor Trend about the brand’s future plans.
Motor Trend reports that the new G will go on sale in summer 2014 and will share the platform underpinning the Mercedes-Benz C-Class — part of Infiniti’s growing technology-sharing arrangement with the Daimler brand.
The new G will be a couple of inches longer and use a more muscular design, taking some design cues, particularly in the front end, from the Etherea concept car above that was at the Detroit auto show this year. The sedan model will have a lower roofline than the current model and a four-door-coupe-like silhouette. Both sedan and coupe models will return; the coupe won’t arrive till 2015. And a crossover is being considered.
But the biggest news is in the powertrain department, where choices may greatly expand. Infiniti is exploring whether to bring diesel power to its U.S. lineup, by borrowing the Mercedes-Benz C-Class’ 2.1-liter four-cylinder diesel engine that’s available in Europe.
It’s also “a foregone conclusion,” according to Motor Trend’s source, that the next G will offer a hybrid powertrain version of Infiniti’s 3.5-liter V-6 as well as a conventional gasoline powertrain.
Also in the works is a “Super G” powered by a twin-turbocharged 3.7-liter V-6 with direct injection that will be good for 530 horsepower. The G IPL will be part of brand’s new Infiniti Performance Line brand — Infiniti’s AMG-like series of models.