The Courier & Advertiser (Fife Edition)
On the road to Infiniti
Has Nissan’ s luxury arm produced a world beating small hatch?
Infiniti has come a long way since its arrival in this country eight or nine years ago.
Back then it marketed a range of large SUVs with horrendously uneconomical V6 and V8 petrol engines. They were clearly built for the American market and sold here as something of an afterthought.
Since then the brand jokingly known as the posh Nissan (it is the firm’s luxury arm, as Lexus is to Toyota) has really pulled up its socks.
A range of diesel engines have been introduced and the cars have been tailored for twisty European roads instead of wide open American highways.
They have also brought out a raft of new and smaller models. Arguably the most important is this, the Q30.
The compact hatchback takes aim at the Audi A3, Mercedes A-Class and BMW 1 Series.
It’s differentiated by the fact it has a slightly increased ride height and that hardly anyone else owns one.
Prices start at around £20,550 and there’s a choice of two petrol and two diesel engines.
There’s a 1.6 litre turbo petrol, twopetrol and 1.5 and 2.2-litre diesel units.
By far the biggest seller will be the 1.5 diesel my test car came with.
It has 108bhp, which is a lot less than some rivals but it doesn’t feel particularly underpowered. Zero to 62 does take 12 seconds but that’s more than made up for by economy of 68.9mpg.
That raised ride height does nothing for the Q30’s handling. The A-Class, 1 Series and A3 all have it licked when it comes to taking a bend.
What the Q30 has in spades, however, is comfort. For such a compact car it’s an absolutely wonderful cruiser. The suspension soaks up bumps like a memory foam mattress and sound insulation in the cabin is excellent.
There’s slightly less room inside than in some rivals and larger adults may find it a little cramped in the back.
However, all occupants will be delighted by the quality of the Q30’s interior. It has a proper premium feel to it, with stitched leather trim.
The lights and dash curve round in a nice little piece of design flair.
The control interface combines a touchscreen with a wheel and selection buttons on the centre console.
This gives the best of both worlds: the buttons mean you can operate controls while driving without taking your eyes away from the road, something that can’t be done with a touchscreen.
I had a happy day driving all over Courier Country in my Infiniti as one of the judges for the Dundee Institute of Architects annual awards.
From the back roads of Arbroath and Fife to cruising along the A92 dual carriageway, it was a very comfortable steed indeed.
Although it’s not built to barrel around bends it’s a tremendously relaxed cruiser, soaking up whatever the road and weather conditions throw at it. Miles go by with deceptive ease and conversation can be heard without voices having to be raised.
British built, the Q30 is put together at Nissan’s massive Sunderland factory. The make also scores well on reliability surveys so it’s safe to assume that the Q30 won’t give you much trouble.
It’s a is a far from perfect car and goes up against some very strong rivals indeed. Some of them are very dynamic cars and Infiniti has wisely not tried to beat them at their own game.
Instead, it has gone for comfort and a quality feel. Few cars at this price level offer as refined a driving experience as the Q30.
It has its faults: Infiniti could have broadened its appeal with better rear space and a bigger boot.
For childless couples or retirees with grown-up kids this may not be an issue, however.
The Q30 also appeals to the part of me that likes to be a little bit different. The fact not many people will buy one endears it to me.