Struggling to counter an ongoing decline in sales, Infiniti has downsized its dealer operations and scaled up incentives. Now, as retailers gather in New Orleans for the annual National Automobile Dealers Assoc. convention, the luxury brand is set to reveal major changes in its product strategy. Among other things, at least two familiar product lines will end their run while Infiniti prepares to add its first all-electric models.
Among the product lines at risk: the QX55, shown here, and the more conventional QX50 crossover.
After years of struggling to position itself as a viable player in the U.S. luxury vehicle market, Infiniti is set to announce a number of changes to its product line-up as its retailers gather in snow-covered New Orleans for the annual gathering of the National Automobile Dealers Association.
At least two key models, including the QX50 and QX55, will be phased out this year due to weak sales, several sources confirmed on background. But Infiniti officials are also expected to reveal plans to launch the brand’s first battery-electric vehicles after years of delay.
These product changes follow a number of other strategic changes Infiniti has made in recent months. Among other things, some retailers will now move away from standalone Infiniti dealerships, merging them with their into Nissan operations.
Downsizing to meet demand
Infiniti’s flagship QX80.
The luxury arm of Nissan Motor Co. has spent years – and billions of dollars – trying to stand up alongside key rivals such as Mercedes-Benz, BMW and Toyota’s Lexus division. But it remains, at best, a second-tier player despite recently being ranked second among luxury brands in the 2024-2025 Automotive Reputation Report.
Infiniti ended 2024 selling 58,070 vehicles in the U.S., down 10.2% compared to the 64,699 ordered the year before. Passenger car models like the Q50 and Q60 were off 24.5% for the year, SUV demand tumbling 8.4%. By comparison, the overall U.S. market had its best year since the start of the COVID pandemic. By another comparison, Lexus sold 345,669 vehicles in the U.S. in 2024, a 7.9% increase. The Toyota luxury division sold more of its compact NX crossovers – 74,488 – than all Infiniti models combined.
Those are numbers making it difficult for Infiniti to justify its current product line-up, said several insiders, asking not to be identified by name. As a result, they said, at least two products the entry-level are slated for phase-out this year. That was echoed by analyst Sam Fiorani, of AutoForecast Solutions, who expects the QX50 and QX55 – Infiniti’s base crossovers – to end their production runs no longer than December 2025. But observers said they’d not be surprised if the one remaining Infiniti passenger car, the Q50, were also to be slated for the automotive rust heap.
Electrifying news
The Infiniti Qe, a 2023 EV concept previews what the brand may soon bring to market.
Even as Infiniti prepares to downsize its existing line-up it is also getting set to introduce two new EVs, those sources revealed. Barring any last-minute changes, the brand is expected to begin production of both a compact battery-electric crossover and an all-electric sedan late in 2025, likely to be marketed as 2026 models.
Even with the new Trump administration scaling back support for EVs, analysts like Fiorani see the addition of the two new models to be critical. Infiniti is now the only major luxury brand without any battery-electric products in its line-up.
It has been laying out plans to add EVs for more than a decade, originally indicating it would add a more upscale version of the original Nissan Leaf which launched in 2011. There is, however, still a chance Infiniti might delay, even scrub plans for one or both of its new EVs. Nissan reportedly has dropped plans to bring another small battery-electric model to the U.S. that was expected to debut over the coming year. And other manufacturers have also been scaling back EV plans in light of slower sales growth and the shift in government support now that Donald Trump is in office.
More Infiniti News
Nissan Announces Major Management Changes As It Fights For Survival
Infiniti rethinks its retail strategy
Infiniti of Las Vegas.
With sales last year dropping below 60,000, retailers have become increasingly concerned about the cost of maintaining Infiniti operations. The real problem is that, according to Automotive News, each dealership is moving an average of only 24 vehicles a month.
To help retailers stay in the black, some are now being given permission to combine Infiniti and Nissan dealerships. They’ll need to maintain separate showrooms but other operations will be combined. The luxury brand has not revealed how many of the 197 retailers it ended 2024 with will be impacted.
By contrast, the relatively new Genesis brand sold 70,816 vehicles in the U.S. last year, an 8.3% year-over-year increase. That’s encouraging more and more dealers to set up separate showrooms as they try to differentiate the luxury brand from Hyundai, the mainstream Korean parent from which it was spun off in 2016.
More may be in the works
Infiniti continues looking for ways to gain both share-of-mind and market share. One step may require it to rethink its current pricing strategy for those models remaining in its line-up.
That includes the recently relaunched Infiniti QX80, the brand’s flagship. It now starts at $84,445 and goes to $112,950, depending upon trim and options. Several sources told Headlight.News those figures may be dropped “substantially,” as one suggested. But it appears such a move has not been locked down and, if it does happen, won’t be announced until sometime after the NADA convention in Las Vegas.
There would be something of a ripple effect if Infiniti does go ahead and reduce the price of the QX80. It would then require Nissan to cut the cost of its new Armada SUV. It would cause problems trying to sell the less luxurious Armada at about the same price as the QX80, said analyst Fiorani.
I confess to being a bit skeptical we’ll see either of these new EVs by the end of the year. Weren’t there stories last year that both the new US built Nissan Infiniti EVs were delayed? Although, yes, I suppose it’s possible both vehicles could be coming from Japan. But if these vehicles are so close to launch, how come nobody has spotted a prototype driving around?