2006 Infiniti R-Coupe Review

Specifications

Could This Be The Next G35? Quite Likely.

Infiniti has come a very, very long way since its early days. Originally known as Nissans “stick some wood panels to a leather Nissan interior and call it a day” branch, first-generation Q45 aside, Infiniti was ages and acres behind its competitors; Acura and Lexus. Fast forward a decade or so and Infiniti is no longer struggling to keep up with its luxury Japanese stablemates. With tight, comfortable interiors that are gorgeously laid out and easy to use, some would argue (including this writer) that Infiniti hasnt simply drawn up alongside its uber-Honda and Toyota competitors; its run them down, blown them out of the water, and kept right on going.

And they owe it all to the G35. Selling over twice as many G35s as any other model in the Infiniti lineup, the G35 sedan is Infinitis sales leader. And why shouldnt it be? After all, with attractive, graceful styling, a nice interior, and an even friendlier MSRP, the sedan would be the way to go, if the G35 coupe didnt exist.

The 2+2 sibling of Nissans impressive 350Z, the G35 coupe should be the best selling Infiniti. It looks better, goes faster, seats four (and lets face it; who really uses the middle rear seat of a car on a daily basis?), sounds absolutely astonishing, and is an excellent deal even at its $33,200 MSRP. In fact, if you can afford it, its probably the best GT in its price range. But, if the G35 has one single flaw, its its age. Introduced in 2003, the coupe, although young, is starting to look a little tired. So, Infiniti has unleashed this; the aptly-named Infiniti Coupe Concept.

An evolution of the current G35 coupes design, the new concept uses what Infiniti calls its “design vocabulary”, that is, according the press release, “used to define both the premise and promise of Infiniti vehicles - usually with just a gesture or a simple line or two.” And its true. As the Infiniti ads illustrate, its possible to draw a recognizable profile of the G35 using two simple lines. The effect of this simple design is that the coupe looks dramatic and simple at the same time. The concepts exterior also includes a full-length glass panel roof, a deep front spoiler, polished “bare metal-look” paint and large projector LED headlights and taillights with a special sunglass-style multi-layered surface treatment.

Lastly, and perhaps most notably are the nifty touch-to-open door handles, plus compact cameras in place of traditional outside rearview mirrors,  completely uncluttering the sides of the sleek Coupe Concept.

Pairing with the bare-metal-look paint is both polished and brushed aluminum, appearing in tandem on the signature “double-arch” front grill as well as the side sills, exhaust, and integrated rear spoiler. Finally, huge 20-inch 9-spoke aluminum alloy wheels that have been painted to match the body give the car a hunkered down and ultra-wide stance, especially from the rear.

Moving inside the Coupe Concept, the drama continues. Using what initially looks like a normal dash layout, but is apparently an Infiniti signature “double wave” instrument panel to keep the driver abreast of the engines activities, the interior is an equal blend of luxury and performance. While cool violet interior illumination adds some life to the unfortunately drab interior color scheme, the console is the most useful interior piece. Running down the full length of the car, it looks both commodious and comfortable, as this writers pet peeve is cars that lack elbow rests. Also, the console gives the ultra-cool, almost snake-head like shifter somewhere to live.

Unfortunately though, if the interior has one major flaw (besides the bland color scheme, which hopefully buyers will be able to change) itd have to be the seats. They are, to be frank, somewhat hideous. Looking more like props from “Star Trek” than body-hugging performance seats, they do have one redeeming feature; built-in speakers. No word yet on whether or not the car will respond to voice commands beginning with “computer…”

As far as production goes, Infinitis senior vice president of design, Shiro Nakamura admits the concept uses some production parts; the headlights and taillights for example are the same as those found in the upcoming G35 sedan, however there is no official word about whether or not this is in fact the next Infiniti coupe. Given that it already has some of its parts making it into production (albeit on different cars), you can expect the next G35 coupe to look suspiciously similar to the concept.

The powertrain is the final question to be answered, since Infiniti has been incredibly tight-lipped, saying only that it will be “improved.” There are rumors, however, of some sort of V8 being made available, meaning that the G35 coupe, er… G45 coupe could possibly reach near-Skyline GT-R performance figures. We can only hope.