The Infiniti Q60 Coupe Is Dead so Infiniti Can Make More Crossovers
Another 400 HP, rear-wheel-drive ICE coupe bites the dust.
The Infiniti Q60 was only introduced five years ago and yet Infiniti has confirmed to Car and Driver that 2022 will be its final year of production. It's a bit of a sad day whenever a twin-turbo, rear-wheel-drive, 400-horsepower luxury coupe disappears, and even more so when it's got no replacement in the works.
The Q60 concept's 2015 debut garnered praise for its crisply drawn lines and aggressive style, and it sold reasonably well in its first year of production as a 2017 model, although sales dipped precipitously afterward and no more than 2,800 a year were sold for the past two full years of production. Still, it was one of the few rear-wheel-drive, ICE-powered, two-door options left on the market with 400 hp (in Red Sport 400 guise, at $59,225 after delivery), and it was handsome at that.
There's no gas-sipping luxury-coupe replacement planned, either; Infiniti told Car and Driver that part of the reason the Q60 is going away is because the company is "focusing on the most popular luxury automotive segments such as crossovers and SUVs" as well as concentrating on its push for electrification.
While I haven't driven the Q60, I did drive the predecessor G37 and quite enjoyed it; our own Peter Holderith called the Red Sport 400 "a riot to drive" and praised its powertrain, although he also noted it "badly needs an update it's likely not going to get." Unfortunately, he was right; Infiniti notes that it still expects to sell a few into next year as stock dwindles, but buyers seeking the twin-turbo VR30DDTT powerplant going forward will need to either opt for Nissan's sportier Z or Infiniti's four-door Q50, which has its own Red Sport 400 trim and is still on sale.
Personally, I'm wondering if the Q60 will hit cult-classic status because of its svelte looks and relatively modifiable twin-turbo V6, or if I'll actually be able to pick one up cheap and make it into a drift car in about a decade because I bet it would look real good sideways. Plus, there's already a Pandem widebody kit for it; it's practically begging for a welded differential!
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