The Infiniti dealership closest to my home is now gone, with even the Infiniti logo having been removed from the building. Meanwhile, the Mercedes dealer next door is expanding, and the Lexus and BMW dealerships in the same town are apparently thriving. So, I decided to see how the marque is doing overall, and this is what I found:
I would buy no Infiniti with that troublesome variable compression turbo 4. Power and economy aren’t great, either. Unfortunately that’s what the new one will have.
Perhaps being an Infiniti dealer is a bit better than trying to sell Mitsubishis in The US. A different article that I read a few days ago, stated that the typical Mitsu dealer sells only 15 cars per month. That might help to explain the following:
I don’t understand why Mitsubishi even sells cars in the US. They have a good medium-duty truck market, and they make everything else under the sun, including components used in other brands of cars.
… and they seem to be successful in European, Asian, African, and South American markets. Meanwhile, they’re circling the bowl in The US.
And they’ve been circling that same bowl for decades.
If Stellantis contracted with them to build cars–as Chrysler did, back in the '70s–it might actually help both Mitsu and Stellantis. Instead, much of what Stellantis tries to sell in the US simply amounts to recycled Fiat designs. Remember the now-gone “new” Dodge Dart, or the also-departed Chrysler 200, or the now-cancelled Dodge Hornet?
I’ve never had an Infiniti, and don’t plan to.
But I have a buddy whose wife just “had to have” a full size “luxury” SUV. They ended up getting a used QX60, I think it was. One of the headlights went out on it after they bought it. When he looked into getting the “bulb” replaced, he was shocked to find out it was going to cost around $1500 (!).
Maybe all “luxury” SUVs are priced like that, IDK. But it made me not want to ever own an Infiniti.
I live in a Midwestern city with a population of 65,000 in the city is a university with an enrollment of 20,000 students. There has never been an Infiniti dealer. The Subaru, Volkswagen, Mazda and Nissan dealerships all closed. We have never had Mercedes Benz, BMW, or Volvo dealership.
Before I retired, I had colleagues that owned Mercedes Benz and BMW automobiles. The nearest BMW and Mercedes Benz dealerships are 60 miles away. I know I don’t appreciate some of the finer things in life, but I don’t want to be inconvenienced by a car. I learned my lesson 55 years ago when I was in graduate school and owned a Rambler. There was no Rambler dealer in that town. Some parts had to be shipped in from a dealer 60 miles away to my local service station. When I assumed a tenure track position at the university where I had my career, when the Rambler wore out, I replaced it with a Ford Maverick. In servicing or repairs that I couldn’t do in half an hour, I dropped the car off at a Sunoco station near campus and walked to my office. I didn’t have time to own a car that I had to drive 60 miles to have serviced. I will admit that a Ford Maverick really wasn’t a luxury car. It had an interior that made a school bus look luxurious and rode like a wheelbarrow, but it didn’t cost much to maintain in time and money.
Now the local service stations that service and repair cars are long gone, I want a dealer in town to take care of my vehicles.
My doctor wrote me a prescription that for my mental health, I should have a Mazda Miata. I took the prescription home and Mrs. Triedaq said she would have the prescription filled. She came back home with a Toyota Sienna minivan. I said, “That isn’t a Mazda Miata.” Mrs. Triedaq replied, “There is no Mazda dealer in town, so I had the prescription filled generically.”
No one wanted them here in Australia,not that popular. Lexus on the other hand are extremely popular.
I wouldn’t buy a new Mitsubishi or Nissan/Infiniti here in the USA
Even if the price was very good
I don’t know why Mitsubishi gets so much hate. Mitsubishi Mirage models from 2014 to 2024 are somewhat common around here. Mitsubishi Eclipse models from the 2000s are still a common sight on the road here. Their vehicles are no worse than anything else on the market. The main problem is that they don’t offer many models and configurations right now.
Perhaps Mitsubishi should bring back the sports coupe, compact sedan, and compact pickup truck like they used to offer. Maybe even a new minivan model.
I can remember when Chrysler sold rebadged Mitsubishi vehicles, and even used the Mitsubishi “Astron” 4-cylinder and 3.0L V-6 engines in Chrysler vehicles. They were at least as good as anything else on the road at the time.
Do you truly believe they’re on the same level as Toyota and Honda, for example . . . ?
Thanks for the laugh!
Nearest Dealer in Tacoma has 18 vehicles total, nearby Lexus, Mercedes-Benz, Audi, and Acura Dealers have as many or more of their entry-level sun’s. All the premium foreign brands and Cadillac are facing I-5 on one side or the other. Tesla next to BMW and Rivian found space n a converted warehouse across the road from lexus and clise to infiniti.
At one point dad was willing to spend a day or so visiting all the options to look. Even though you have to navigate JBLM and Tacoma traffic to get to these dealers frim Olympia. Infiniti wadot on our radar but Acura would have been a lower priority. Friend of his was charged $4,000 markup for an early MDX at that dealership although she’s loved the vehicle.
I had great luck with my 1990 and 1998 Nissan Pathfinders. When I bought my 2014 Highlander back in 2014 I looked at the new Pathfinders. They were no longer a Pathfinder. The Pathfinders I owned competed directly with the 4runner. The 2014 Pathfinder was the size of the Highlander but not as nice. They also offered a Hybrid with a CVT transmission. And unfortunately for Nissan they had a lot of problems with their CVT transmission.
Now 10+ years later they redesigned the Pathfinder to be more like the 1998 Pathfinder I owned. However, they no longer have a Hybrid option. Gas mileage is decent, but nowhere near the 34mpg I’ve been getting with my new 2026 Highlander Hybrid.
Like most of the luxury brands, Infinity is just a rebadged (plusher) version of their lower models (Nissan) at a premium price.
I hope they get their act together because I really loved my Pathfinders.
Acura is Honda, not Nissan. I’ve been a liittle concerned with the bedside manner of Toyota dealers, not from any experience, but just from customer reports from time to time. A week ago or so a guy bought a new toyota truck. Found residue on th3 garage floor. Found out several rats had made their home in the truck while parked at the dealer. Dealer response was under whelming and wouldn’t take the truck back. Warranty grey area maybe but still chewed wires and foam can be an on-going issue, let alone family members still residing in said truck. It’s this kind of thing that gives them a bad rep
Infiniti gets their version of the upcoming Nissan Rogue e-power hybrid for 2027 that gets rid of the cvt and drives the wheels on electric power. Gas engine is just a generator. And a return planned for a g35 equivalent sports sedan. Right now Nissan is selling a plug in hybrid that’s really the Mitsubishi Outlander phev. Have to see how this goes.
Isn’t it the other way around, with Mitsubishi selling a re-bodied Nissan?