Infiniti's Flagship Model Will Be a Car, Not An SUV or Crossover

InfinitiInfinitiJapan, 1989 > present31 models
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thinks that it is better off to have a car has its halo model, rather than an SUV. The company has set a goal of having a 10% market share among premium automakers, and it believes globally that a car is a better choice. To reach that market share, it will have to sell around 500,000 cars a year.

"I’ll leave you to decide whether our new flagship is a saloon, coupe or supercar, but it will be a car. We won’t have an SUV like it is now," said Infiniti President Johan de Nysschen. 

Since 2009, Infiniti has shown the Essense and Emerg-eInfiniti Emerg-eJapan, 2012 > 201212 photos
concepts that imagines a future supercar and grand tourer. Regardless of what Infiniti chooses, it will likely be a hybrid and will likely feature its steer-by-wire technology. If Infiniti goes the sports car route, it will likely play up the brand's sponsorship of the Red BullRed BullAustria, 2004 > present12 models
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Formula 1 team and Sebastian Vettel's role of Director of Performance in tuning its cars. 

"We have no ambition to expand Infiniti to one million or 1.5m cars per year, but we will have a very healthy business when we approach 400k to 500k," said de Nysschen.

To grow, the company plans to add five new vehicles to its lineup including the compact Q30Infiniti Q30Japan, 2014 > present and whatever the flagship model will be. 

Source: Autocar