Lasting only three years, the original Nissan Cedric/Gloria-based Infiniti M45 made an initial splash, and then faded as if admitted into the witness protection program for cars. With a honking V-8 stolen from big-brother Q, where the old M was an Oriental Mafia Express on the more mainstream success of the G35 sports saloon, the new M is a stretched rendition of the G35's FM platform, and its looks support that. If you ever wanted a G45, but with legroom, the M45 is as close as you'll get. Makes you wonder how many new Qs Infiniti will sell this year?
The Infiniti M-series, debuting at the
2005 Detroit Auto Show, goes on sale in the USA now at about US$52,000 (that's £28,000), hoping to compete against the likes of the Acura RL,
BMW 5-series,
Cadillac STS,
Jaguar S-type and Mercedes-Benz E-class. Though the Infiniti brand is not sold in the UK, the M-series points to a possible large Nissan in the future.
John LeBlanc - 19 Jan 2005