The company’s priorities shifted away from building a niche performance coupe.
A lot has happened in the world since 2017, so we can’t blame anyone for forgetting about the Infiniti Q60 Project Black S concept. It boasted 563 horsepower (420 kilowatts) and was supposed to make use of Formula One powertrain tech. However, the company has officially canceled the undertaking, according to Automotive News.
“The concept continues to inspire us,” Infiniti spokesperson Kyle Bazemore told Automotive News. The Project Black S is never seeing production, though.
Former Infiniti boss Roland Krueger was reportedly the person spearheading the Q60 Project Black S concept within the company. However, when he left to take over Dyson’s automotive development, the program died with no one else to push it onto the market.
The Q60 Project Black S used a twin-turbo 3.0-liter V6 with three motor-generator units for energy recovery and a 4.4 kilowatt-hour lithium-ion battery for storing the power. In total, this setup was good for 563 hp (420 kW) and 350 pound-feet (475 Newton-meters) of torque. It was able to reach 62 miles per hour (100 kilometers per hour) in under four seconds, the company estimated. The automaker completed two fully running prototypes for testing this powertrain.
As of August 2019, Infiniti’s decision-makers were making the final choice about whether to put the Project Black S into production. Clearly, they gave it the thumbs down.
Dealers aren’t broken-hearted about losing the Project Black S. “I would much rather see something like the QX60 [crossover]. That’s a volume vehicle, that’s where this company needs to go,” Ed Lennon, the Infiniti National Dealer Advisory Board chairman, told Automotive News.
Under Renault-Nissan-Mitsubishi’s new strategy, Infiniti is focusing on appealing to the United States and China. This plan might include not replacing any of its rear-drive coupes and sedans when they reach the end of their lifetimes. More crossovers are likely on the way.