Infiniti: Empowering performance and growth
As I write this article, it marks only a few days into my new role as managing director for Infiniti in Canada. However, through several progressive roles with the company since 2011, I have been an active player in Infiniti’s evolution. The past five years have seen unprecedented sales growth for Infiniti in Canada, with 2016 sales totaling 12,094, an increase of 6.8 per cent over last year. So far in 2017, sales are up almost 10 per cent.
I’m proud of what this team has accomplished, and I’m excited for what we will do next. With an arsenal of highly-advanced technology coming out in our gorgeous vehicles, we are redefining the driver and passengers’ experience. Through initiatives like Formula One and Infiniti Lab, we’re also showing how a luxury automotive brand can change the industry, and how we can foster better business and education in Canada.
At Infiniti, we drive ourselves beyond our comfort zone. We’re always challenging ourselves to explore the limits of potential, and we design cars to empower those who do the same.
Take the QX30 premium active crossover or Q60 premium sports coupe, for example. Through these vehicles, we have created technology that enhances the senses, paired with striking design that demands a response. Performance that makes customers feel more alive and drives to challenge the limits of possibility.
And we don’t just build vehicles; we build potential.
Infiniti Engineering Academy and Infiniti Lab showcase potential in motion — Infiniti brings two key elements to the Renault Sport Formula One Team: expertise in Energy Recovery Systems through Performance Hybrid technology, and an international diversity of young, fresh-thinking engineering talent. The Infiniti Engineering Academy (IEA)is the premier technical recruitment initiative in Formula One, offering engineering students a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to work alongside world-leading engineers. Across a 12-month placement, the students work on both automotive and Formula One technology, allowing for knowledge transfers between Infiniti road car and Renault Sport Formula One race car projects.
In its inaugural year, Félix Lamy from Gatineau, Ont., was the first Canadian to win IEA. This past summer, we named the second Canadian IEA winner, Matthew Crossan from London, Ont. Félix and Matthew are pursuing their dream jobs by working at the highest-level of motorsport, and we are proud to be involved in a program which affords what was, previously, an almost non-existent placement opportunity.
This year, Infiniti launched the Canadian unit of Infiniti Lab, a technology accelerator program designed to grow companies focused on the Internet of Things and smart city initiatives. The group of selected startups work closely with corporate and industry partners like Techstars and Telus Ventures, who provide the participants with access to technology, mentorship and education throughout the program.
Rover Parking, a marketplace for shared parking that allows users to easily access shared parking spaces all over the city using their smartphone, has been named the top startup at the Canadian program’s inaugural Demo Day. This Toronto startup will go on to participate in the three-month Hong Kong program, the home of Infiniti’s head office.
The VC-Turbo engine, a feat in
engineering — Infiniti sets the standard when it comes to worldfirst technologies and is still the only brand to offer Predictive Forward Collision Warning. We pioneered Direct Adaptive Steering, Active Lane Control, Around View Monitor with Moving Object Detection, Backup Collision Intervention, and Lane Departure Warning and Prevention. When it comes to breakthrough technology, we aren’t done yet.
Last year, Infiniti unveiled an advanced Variable Compression Turbo (VC-Turbo) engine — the world’s first, production-ready variable compression ratio engine. Our competitors have entertained the idea of an engine like this, but we will be the first to put it into production.
Infiniti’s VC-Turbo engine promises to be one of the most advanced internal combustion engines ever created. It combines the power of a high-performance 2.0-litre turbo gasoline engine with the torque and efficiency of an advanced diesel powertrain — without the equivalent emissions.
The arrival of the variable compression ratio engine in 2018 will establish new benchmarks for power, efficiency and emissions.
Empowering the drive — Driving customers forward — that’s what drives us. Because ultimately, we believe that every Infiniti vehicle — whether it’s the Q50 premium sports sedan, QX60 premium crossover, or QX80 premium SUV — should unleash the driver’s potential.
This principle is at the heart of every Infiniti vehicle. Since 1989, we’ve released a series of worldfirst technologies that effortlessly extend capabilities. Innovations that put our customers at the centre of every journey, responding to the conditions — and cues — so they are empowered to go beyond.