When we talk about the cultural and commercial output of Japan, be it fashion, tech, film, food, music, or even pro wrestling, it’s impossible not to talk about the Japan of it all. The identity of the country—its philosophies, its peculiarities—are so vivid and pronounced that every export exudes it, whether it’s intended to or not.
Everything, of course, except the Japanese automotive industry. When people talk about Japanese cars, the talking points are rarely about the Japanese culture, and more just centered on their basic function—the quality of craftsmanship, the dependability—often completely divorced from where they were wrought. If anything, it’s likely that buy-and-forget trust that the best Japanese cars have earned that stops us from thinking about them, unlike the old European roadsters we yearn for that always break down, forcing us to contemplate their origins as we await the tow truck. Too often we romanticize the prodigal son, not reliable one.
Allow us, then, to romanticize a bit the new Infiniti QX60 before we talk about how reliable it surely is, a revamp of the brand’s most popular model that firmly plants it in the company of the best everyday luxury vehicles for families on the market.
More than most, the 2022 QX60, launching early next year in the Middle East, is a mix that is firmly rooted in its Japanese identity, taking inspiration both in its foundation and its smallest details. According to Infiniti’s Senior Design Director, Taisuke Nakamura, the car is inspired by the Japanese concept of ‘Ma’, an artistic philosophy from Japanese art and culture that values negative space as much as positive, what you leave out is as important as what you leave in to any design.
If you look more closely at its details, the QX60 has other Japanese touches. There’s the origami-inspired grill on the front, the subtle quilting in the leather on the seats and trim inspired by ripples in a Japanese pond, the touches of chrome. The Japan of many eras comes through in the QX60, building to what is surely Infiniti’s finest run of cars yet, with the larger QX80 update also planned for next year.
The three-row SUV, which Esquire Middle East had the opportunity to glide through the vineyards and on the winding roads of the misty mountains of Napa Valley, California all the way to the Pacific Coast and down, should a formidable contender for your family’s next mid-sized luxury SUV.
Under the hood, the transmission is completely overhauled, now a 9-speed automatic with paddle shifters and a Shift by Wire selector that uses a torque converter that makes acceleration more responsive and the noise less pronounced, a must in the Tesla era where pure instant driving force is beginning to be taken for granted. The all-new all-wheel drive system also improves stability and near-effortless control.
Comfort, you’ll notice, is everything here. The front-row passengers have ‘zero-gravity’ seats and in-seat massagers—yes, really—pushing comfort to its limits at this price point. Its 12.3 inch touchscreen, with Apple Play and USB-based Android Auto works beautifully, too, with an XL wireless charging matt right underneath for even the bulkiest of smartphones.
From there, it’s built to make things even simpler, adding Infiniti’s ProPILOT Assist for the first time in the Middle East, keeping the car firmly within the single lanes for natural steering and braking during autopilot. And don’t even turn around—the ‘smart’ rear-view mirror has a camera monitor that lets you see much wider than your turned head ever could. And the features go on from there—many we don’t have room to tell you about, each geared towards making every-day family life easier.
After all, luxury comes in many forms. At the highest price points it’s a bit more in your face, but every day, more accessible lifestyle luxury is often the ability to stop thinking about the thing you’re using at all. That’s what the QX60 is built to do—perhaps the reality of the ‘Ma’ it’s based on is the empty space left in your own head to focus on other things. Let’s be honest, you probably need it.
