The 2015 Infiniti Q70 AWD is the largest sedan offered by Infiniti (excluding the longer 2015 Infiniti Q70L) and comes equipped with a powerful engine, plush interior, many advanced safety features and of course a curvaceous design true to Infiniti.
A base price of $56,900 gets you into this luxury sedan, while an upgrade to the Sport model ($62,800) provides sportier tuning and exterior finishes and a few technological feature additions, like the new lane departure and blind spot monitoring and prevention system.
ENGINE & DRIVE
Sporting the same engine as the 2015 Infiniti Q50, but being a larger and heavier car means that the 2015 Infiniti Q70 AWD is a bit slower off the line and a bit more sluggish to react but still has more than enough power for spirited driving. The 3.7L six cylinder engine outputs 330 horsepower and is paired with a 7 speed automatic transmission and intelligent AWD. Our 250km combined city and highway test drive yielded a 12.9 L/100km fuel consumption.
The 2015 Q70 is a RWD car to allow for the most responsive performance, but when slippage is detected, the Intelligent All-Wheel Drive system will divert up to 50% of the power to the front wheels to enhance traction and improve control.
The 2015 Infiniti Q70 AWD is also equipped with a drive mode selector allowing for preprogrammed performance for snow, normal, sport and ECO modes. The ECO mode even teaches drivers how to drive more efficiently as the gas pedal will push back gently when depressed too much (although this can still be overridden by pressing harder). I did however find that driving in ECO mode was not quick enough to keep up with the traffic in front of me.
Although all the power you could want is there and the accelerations are quick, I found the drive to be a bit sluggish with gears wanting to change early and acceleration response a bit lacking. In sport mode things loosen up a bit, but there’s still the feeling of the car clenching its power and not wanting to release it!
One thing the 2015 Infiniti Q70 does amazingly well is provide a smooth, comfortable and quiet ride for its passengers. Manoeuvrability is also quite easy even with the larger size of this sedan because of the front and rear sonar system combined with the backup and 360 degree camera features.
INTERIOR & EXTERIOR
The exterior lines of the 2015 Infiniti Q70 are unmistakably Infiniti and create a powerful looking design with the curved accent lines, a wide stance, chrome trim and dual exhaust.
Step into the cabin and you’ll find the luxurious trim you expect from Infiniti. With high quality materials and finishes, a touch screen control center, firm and comfortable leather seating and Japanese Ash wood trim, there’s not much more you could ask for! It also comes complete with all of today’s conveniences like climate controlled front seats, heated steering wheel and a deep, powerful and rich sound from the BOSE stereo system with speakers built into the front seats to provide an unbeatable surround sound experience.
The features of the 2015 Q70 that really got me excited were the new lane departure and blind spot monitoring systems that go one step further and steer you back to the safety of your lane to prevent potential collisions. The collision detection system will also apply the brakes to reduce the speed at impact while driving or it will apply brakes to prevent a collision while parking.
FINAL THOUGHTS
The 2015 Infiniti Q70 combines classic performance and luxury with the latest driving technologies, giving you the complete and most up to date vehicle worthy of many praises. I did find the future technology still had some glitches but the result was only a few erroneous beeps here and there. Definitely a fair trade off for a second set of eyes on the road!
