► Infiniti Q Inspiration concept
► VC-Turbo tech, Mission E shape
► Plus a meditation assistant
After the first teasers, Infiniti has revealed fresh pics and all of the details on its new Q Inspiration concept car, revealed at the 2018 Detroit motor show.
The new concept car apparently represents a new design form language for the brand (hasn’t Infiniti had plenty of those already in recent years?) ‘for an era of advanced powertrains.’
It certainly looks swish; there are elements of Porsche’s Mission E in its shape and Panamera in the rear light arrangement but it’s clearly an Infiniti from the front.
The ‘advanced powertrain’ comments stem from the Q Inspiration’s use of Infiniti’s pioneering VC-Turbo variable compression engine technology. Infiniti says that the engine under the skin ‘continually transforms, adjusting its compression ratio to optimise power and fuel efficiency.’ It also goes on to say that the use of it here provides the shove of a V6 petrol engine mated to the efficiency of a four-pot diesel.
The compression ratios bounce between 8:1 for better performance and 14:1 for better fuel economy, while the inclusion of a turbo ‘enables immediate throttle response at any speed.’
Inside, the Q Inspiration has a minimalist cockpit. You notice the enormous displays set into the dashboard first, then the huge raised centre console.
The ‘human-centric’ interior includes a meditation mode that switches off a lot of extraneous information from the infotainment screens, monitors passengers’ biometric patterns and ‘offers guided mediation’.
And as Infiniti is the luxury arm of Nissan, the concept car is also beset with autonomous technologies including Nissan’s ProPILOT self-driving tech.
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