Club Lexus Competition Test: 2019 Infiniti QX50 First Drive
The Drive
Once I get past the remarkable comfort of the Zero Gravity seats, I push the start button. The QX50’s all-new 2.0-liter VC-Turbo snarls to life. The crossover employs its 17-speaker Bose Performance Series audio system to add drama to the engine note, but the aural embellishment does the VC-Turbo no favors. It actually sounds better from outside the cabin. In fact, it’s one of the better-sounding turbocharged four-cylinder engines I’ve ever heard.
Infiniti’s revolutionary VC-Turbo is the world’s first production engine that can vary its compression ratio — and consequently its displacement — on the fly. The company uses a pivoting multilink assembly connected to the bottom of each of the pistons that allows them to vary their travel by as much as 6mm, thus enabling the compression ratio to modulate infinitely between 8:1 for performance and 14:1 for efficiency. The result is 268 horsepower at 5,600 rpm and 280 lb-ft of torque from 1,600 – 4,800 rpm. Use only some of that power, and the EPA says you’ll net 27 mpg combined, or two mpg and four mpg better than the Lexus NX and RX respectively.
Those are comforting efficiency numbers, but the knowledge of those power figures makes my right foot itch. Once the coast is clear on Mulholland, I squash the throttle to make that VC-Turbo as inefficient as possible. While the novel engine looks revolutionary on paper, in execution it’s commendable, but not a standout. The VC-Turbo has all the grunt anyone in this segment could want, but Audi’s 252-hp 2.0L turbo feels almost as alert when hauling around the 700-pound-dearer Q7. The Lexus 3.5-liter V6 also feels more caffeinated when provoked, but the VC-Turbo outclasses the Lexus 2.0-liter turbo in refinement, power delivery and sound.
Once those 268 ponies gallop me to my first set of turns, the Infiniti leans away from them as I expect with a midsize crossover, but it carves corners almost with the speed of a sports car. When you’re leaning hard on the suspension, though, the QX50 tends to move around over mid-corner bumps. However, most people who will buy these will steer clear of blinding cornering speeds, and that’s fine. When you’re at a pace more meandering than menacing, the QX50’s suspension tuning stands with Lexus among the most comfortable in the segment.
ALSO SEE: 2019 Infiniti QX50 – Club Lexus – Lexus Forum Discussion
But let’s step away from the subjectivity and run some numbers one more time. The 2019 Infiniti QX50 offers more cargo volume, more second-row legroom, more torque and more combined MPG than both the Lexus RX and NX. Crossover shoppers zero in on stats like that. Most frightening to ardent NX and RX fans is that the QX50 starts at $37,545, undercutting the NX by $565 and the RX by $6,720. The QX50 gets pricey, though, if you option it all the way to the $58,195 limit. That’s $9,155 more than the NX 300 F Sport’s $49,040 maximum, but still $2,530 less than a fully loaded RX 350 F Sport at $60,725.
Are those numbers enough for you to think about stepping behind enemy lines for the QX50 once you’re ready for a new crossover? Let us know in the comments. As for me, Infiniti’s disruptive soft-roader is a fresh and formidable contender in a jam-packed luxury SUV segment. If I were in the market for one, I’d strongly consider it.
Words and Photos for Club Lexus: Manuel Carrillo III
