Infiniti QX80 Review – Why Should You Buy?

And the Car God said that Nissan will beget Infiniti and Nissan Patrol will beget Infiniti QX80. And the Car God looked at his creation and said it was good.

It’s big. It’s beautiful. The Infiniti QX80 is arguably the largest full-size SUV available in Australia.

“Harness the road’s boundless potential, as well as your own, in the QX80. Exceptional capability, inspired design and a luxurious expanse converge for an experience that challenges the limits of your next journey.”

Hi, Bob Aldons, The Car Guy with a review on the Infiniti QX80, a large SUV. Infiniti has limited the number of QX80’s coming to Australia as have Nissan with the Patrol. Arguably, both companies have researched their market and don’t expect to be a Lexus or Toyota yet. Infiniti expects to sell around 100 of this model for the entire year.

What is it? Infiniti QX80 is one of the largest SUV’s available anywhere in the world if you ignore custom built off-road vehicles. It seats 7  comfortably in three rows of seats. How big? Think Lexus LX570 or Landcruiser 200 and bigger. And a lot of prospective buyers ask why it isn’t available in diesel? Infiniti QX80 runs a stonking 5.6 litre V8 petrol engine. Simple answer really. The QX80 is pointed at the luxury end of the US market and over there a V8 petrol engine is king.

Competition. Full-size SUV’s aren’t numerous by any stretch. As mentioned, Landcruiser 200 Sahara, Lexus LX570, Range Rover 5.0 Vogue, Mercedes GLS 500,

Price. Infiniti QX80 starts off at $100,329 plus on-road costs taking it $123,825 drive away in Queensland. In this class of vehicle, it’s relatively close to the Landcruiser Sahara in price and way cheaper than any of the others. The Lexus LX570 retails at over $143k so value for money on the Infiniti QX80 is fantastic

Front: The Infiniti QX80 has a presence. A massive grille with chrome highlights, enormous bonnet and quaint headlights, if you’re coming up towards traffic, there’s no doubt that the car in front will notice you. Under the bonnet is a 5.7-litre V8 engine with a 7-speed automatic transmission.

The Infiniti QX80 also has the benefit of low range 4WD which takes it above and beyond the likes of the large SUV class – Kia Sorento, Hyundai Sante Fe Ford Everest, Isuzu MU-X, Toyota Prado, Mitsubishi Pajero and Pajero Sports and others

Down the Side:

There’s no doubting that the Infiniti QX80 is big – in any sense of the word, there’s no escaping its size. It can be a little difficult to get in and out of this vehicle and the large side steps are handy to assist.  If you’re interested, you can access the full specification information from the Infiniti Cars website.

Infiniti QX80 – Safety and Security

• Anti-theft system

• Backup Collision Intervention (BCI)

• Blind Spot Warning (BSW) & Blind Spot Intervention (BSI)

• Brake Assist (BA)

• Child safety rear door locks / 2nd-row ISOFIX points

• Distance Control Assist (DCA)

• Forward Emergency Braking

• Forward Collision Warning (FCW)

• Front-seat Active Head Restraints (AHR)

• Predictive Forward Collision Warning (PFCW) & Forward Collision Warning (FCW)

• Intelligent Brake Assist (IBA)

• Intelligent Cruise Control (ICC)

• Lane Departure Warning (LDW) & Lane Departure Prevention (LDP)

• Remote keyless entry system with selective unlocking

• Roof-mounted curtain side-impact supplemental air bags with rollover sensor

• Second-row outboard 3-point height adjustable seat belts

• Third-row 3-point seat belts

• Vehicle Dynamic Control (VDC) with Traction Control System (TCS)

• Zone Body construction with the reinforced passenger compartment and front and rear crumple zones

Infiniti QX80 – Technology

• 8-inch VGA colour touch-screen display

• Around View® Monitor with Moving Object Detection and Front and Rear Sonar System

• Auxiliary audio/video input jacks

• Bluetooth® Hands-free Phone System

• Dual 8-inch colour monitors for multimedia video playback integrated into the front headrests

• Infiniti Controller for navigation, audio, climate control, fuel economy, maintenance, and comfort and convenience features

• Infiniti Hard Drive Navigation System

Rear End:

What I Like

Green Vehicle Guide

The Federal Governments Green Vehicle Guide (http://www.greenvehicleguide.org.au) presents laboratory tests of the fuel consumption of vehicles available for sale in the Australia market. instead of the politically correct term Urban, I use City, Highway and Combined to provide information. Later in the year or perhaps in 2019, we’ll be provided with real-world fuel consumption numbers, and not before time.

• City (litres/100km)  20.9

• Highway (litres/100km) 10.8

• Combined (litres/100km) 14.5

During my week with the Infiniti QX80, I achieved around 15 litres per 100km for a mix of highway and city driving but skewed to more city use. For such a large and heavy vehicle, I was pretty impressed with those numbers. And if you refer to the Green Vehicle Guide, you’ll see that my results are pretty much spot on with the published ‘combined’ numbers.

Towing: The Infiniti QX80 has almost unlimitless power, particularly for a vehicle that will be towing something large. Infiniti says that you can confidently tow up to 3500kg so that’s more than enough for a VERY large caravan, boat, yacht or a multi-vehicle trailer.

As in all cases, I strongly suggest that you confer with the boat or caravan dealer to gauge exactly what you can and can’t tow sensibly.

I generally use RACQ Insurance to give you a guide as to what you’ll pay for your annual comprehensive car insurance. Conditions precedent for this cover are:

• A male driver over 60 years of age, having held a license for over 10 years
• Bronze member of RACQ with 2 other insurance policies
• Has paid cash for the car for private use with the car parked in a garage overnight and another quote for business use
• The driver resides in postcode 4019
• The car is fitted with an engine immobilizer
• 1 at fault claim in the last 3 years, with no license suspensions
• Rating 1 currently having held that rating 1 between 5 and 9 years
• No driver under 25 will use the vehicle.

The premium quoted online by RACQ Insurance is:        Private Use – No Finance:  $715.30 with a $750 excess      

Variations from the information above may result in different outcomes. Check online with RACQ Insurance for your own particular quote.

Where to buy. My test vehicle was supplied by Infiniti Cars Australia and a big thank you to them. Presently Infiniti doesn’t have dealer representation in Queensland. A new dealer is expected to be appointed shortly. In the meantime, Infiniti owners can have their vehicles served at Springwood. Call 07 3442 8270 or visit at 3468-3476 Pacific Highway Springwood Q 4127

Hi,  Bob Aldons here, the owner and founder of The Car Guy, and Car Business, reviewing cars, reporting on car industry matters, car tech, Formula 1 and the world at large. I’ve spent the last forty years immersed in the automotive industry from salesman to the owner of a 7 brand multi-franchise dealership. I know cars.

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