REWARDINGLY SPORTY DRIVE AND GOOD LOOKING
Infiniti is giving its crossover portfolio a major shakeup. Later this year, the QX60 three-row crossover will arrive. First, however, is the 2022 QX55.
It's an aggressive-looking piece with a much sharper rake to the rear roofline. Behind the QX55'S strong outward visage sits a cabin that's class all the way.
It's well-equipped in Luxe form, with a standard power moonroof, heated seats and steering wheel — although the thought of leatherette upholstery is off-putting. The mid-range Essential Proassist adds navigation, leather-appointed seats, an around-view monitor with moving-object detection, and a solid Bose audio system with 16 speakers, as well as adaptive LED headlights and intelligent cruise control. The Sensory model, tested here, brings all of this plus real wood accents, an available Monaco red and black two-tone finish, and a nine-inch head-up display.
The layout gives two colour displays pride of place. The top eight-inch screen looks after navigation and phone functions, including standard wireless Apple Carplay, wired Android Auto and Wi-fi connectivity for up to seven devices. The lower seven-inch screen is flanked on three sides by hard buttons, which give quick and easy access to the key functions. It is a co-ordinated approach that's quickly mastered.
The QX55 has the expected driver-assistance systems, including predictive forward-collision warning with pedestrian detection, blind-spot monitoring with rear cross-traffic alert and rear auto braking, lane-departure warning, and auto high beams. The Essential Proassist adds adaptive cruise, lane-departure protection, and blind-spot intervention. The annoying part is the lane-departure warning system vibrates the steering wheel and dabs the brakes when the driver encroaches on the lane markings.
The Sensory adds a more advanced cruise control with stop/ go functionality and Propilot Assist, which gives the QX55 a semi-autonomous capability.
The front seats provide generous amounts of comfort and lateral support. The rearward seats slide to maximize leg space or cargo volume, and they recline as well. There's enough head and leg room to accommodate a pair of six-footers with ease.
While the raked rear roofline adds some undeniable style, it does so at the expense of cargo capacity. Where the QX50 delivers 1,822 litres of space with the seats folded, the QX55 is capped at 1,532 L. The 290-L difference could be enough to dissuade those not in love with the QX55'S bolder look. In fairness, this is something that affects all coupled crossovers.
Pop the hood and there sits Infiniti's variable-compression-ratio engine, which was the first of its kind when it went into production in 2019. The 2.0-L Vc-turbo alters the compression ratio anywhere between 8:1 and 14:1. When running on the low compression ratio, the turbocharger blows a gale to deliver V6-like performance and the output is rated at 268 horsepower and 280 pound-feet of torque at 4,400 rpm. At the opposite end, the high compression ratio delivers much better fuel efficiency. The blended abilities delivered a run from rest to 100 kilometres an hour of 6.7 seconds and an average fuel economy of
8.9 L per 100 km, which bettered the QX55'S posted rating of 9.5 L/100 km. The engine works with Infiniti's Xtronic continuously variable transmission, which upshifts during hard acceleration in a similar fashion to a regular automatic. This minimizes the monotonous motorboating sound that so many drivers dislike. It also has eight pre-selected ratios when the manual mode is selected. It is well suited to the engine — just don't pick the Eco driving mode. It puts economy so far ahead of everything else it neuters the performance. Standard mode, however, is just fine, and Sport is better. There is also a Personal mode, which allows each facet to be customized.
All QX55S have all-wheel drive. The system powers the front wheels under most driving conditions, but it can send up to 50 per cent of the drive rearward to prevent wheel spin, and hard acceleration from a standstill sees the system split the power evenly to provide an uneventful launch.
The suspension, AWD and faster steering make the QX55 feel rewardingly sporty.
The 2022 Infiniti QX55 is hitting Canadian roads now. Pricing ranges from $51,995 to $60,998 for the as-tested Sensory.