DRIVEN + VIDEO: Uh Oh! Is The Infiniti Q50 Eau Rouge NOT As GT-R As We Thought!?!

It seems that there may be trouble on the horizon when it comes to the all-new Nissan GT...er...Infiniti Q50 Eau Rouge. The past two weeks haven't been kind to it.

First, we saw the departure of Johan de Nysschen. The former Audi executive is pretty masterful at his job and this is a big blow to Infiniti. From what we heard the Infiniti brand hadn't even begun to see the changes he was working on. Perhaps the Eau Rouge was going to be his first move in a massive chess match. Given the change in leadership, I'd say the future of the Eau Rouge is most definitely up in the air.

Second, the first driving impressions of the Eau Rouge — Evo Magazine got a crack at it and from what I've seen I think this is the first journalist behind the wheel — are not all that flattering. There's a couple of, frankly, BIG problems surrounding the car.

To be honest, I figured this would essentially be a GT-R wrapped in a Q50 body. It turns out that's not the case. At all. The Eau Rouge uses a GT-R motor, BUT the two most key components aside from the motor are not from the GT-R at all. BOTH the all-wheel drive system and automatic transmission are inherited from the Q70 sedan.

This is a problem.

The magic of the GT-R's tremendous speed is its AWD system and sharp dual-clutch gearbox. If you take those away, you're missing a HUGE part of the equation. According to Evo, the gearbox won't fit.

From there, if you listen to the commentary it doesn't sound all that exciting with exception of the brakes. But, if want fantastic stopping power you can invest in a super big brake kit or a set of carbon ceramics these days.

While this vehicle is a working prototype, which means NOTHING is final, is this starting to sound like this project may be a bit underwhelming — and possibly doomed — at this stage?


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JDMUSMuscle - 7/19/2014 7:28:15 AM

-1 Boost

What did you expect, really. Even though I am a huge fan of Japanese cars, *sigh*, really, who really can make better cars than the Europeans in this world to be honest?

I guess Nissan got lucky and made a GT-R. But well, what else does Nissan have, really.

We all just know why the Europeans are the only ones who make the best brands in the world.

I mean, *sigh* I really wish Infiniti did better than this.

Agent00R - 7/19/2014 8:57:04 AM

+1 Boost

Is this sarcasm or the truth?

I'll bite.

The LFA and GT-R are great. And I think the 370Z is one of the best sports cars for less than $35-40k.

Herein lies the problem. If this is productionalized and it doesn't have the great AWD system AND the right transmission, it will be a wasted effort UNLESS they build 100.

TampaCarNut - 7/19/2014 8:02:36 AM

+1 Boost

Is anyone really surprised? I purchased a new Infiniti M37 a few years back when the new body style debuted and it was one of the biggest mistakes I've ever made when it comes to purchasing a car. While Infiniti products may have a little more personality then say Lexus, at the end of the day they are still appliances that lack flavor or personality. The service experience always fell short, nothing luxurious about it. The entire ownership experience left me wondering how the hell I had willingly put myself into that situation. Infiniti makes great cars, don't get me wrong... but they should stick to what their good at - making move-up Nissans. Why try to be all things to all people and continuously fail at it? Pick one thing, fine tune it and become the best at it. It worked for BMW, Mercedes & Porsche, didn't it?

MattDarringer - 7/19/2014 9:46:43 AM

-2 Boost

Johan de Nysschen's "departure" was more of a "resign or be fired" moment. The Eau Rouge is patently desperate/stupid grandstanding and in typical Infiniti fashion betrays its "Datsun" heritage. Johan de Nysschen's incompetence shows because the Eau Rouge was his "brilliant" idea rather than something that actually set Infiniti on a path to being taken seriously.

I think hiring him for Cadillac was suicidal.

Agent00R - 7/19/2014 8:36:52 PM

+2 Boost

I think it was too soon for him to get fired. None of his work, from what our sources said, actually made it to market.

MattDarringer - 7/19/2014 10:09:38 PM

-1 Boost

@Agent00R you're an apologist of the worst kind.

Agent00R - 7/20/2014 5:05:19 AM

+1 Boost

I disagree.

You're basing your thoughts on bullsh!t and I am telling you what's actually being said in the industry.

poot66 - 7/21/2014 3:08:20 PM

+1 Boost

MattDarringer you're making assumptions off your opinions which to me sound ridiculous.

AgentOOR I could be wrong but from my understanding he was hired not to fix the company but help them to become a global one instead of just American while struggling in other markets. Though they are not thriving yet world wide they do offer other engine platforms which at least allows them to be serious competitors. I would think that and the relationship with Mercedes was due to him. Do you know if my assumption is correct?

cidflekken - 7/21/2014 2:47:50 AM

+1 Boost

So....let's talk about that $100k price tag again, shall we?

NeoReaper - 7/22/2014 11:49:48 AM

+1 Boost

As much as I would love to see the dual clutch tranmission and AWD system from the GTR make it into the Eau Rouge, I didn't realistically expect that to happen. People opt for an Infiniti over a Nissan for the combination of performance/luxury/comfort. Completely transplanting the GTR drivetrain doesn't make a lot of sense for its target demographics. Thank about it, the 350Z/370Z always offered more performance than the G35/G37/Q50/Q60 but people buy the Infiniti anyway. If this car actually makes it into production, I highly doubt the lack of the GTR's AWD and dual clutch will affect sales drastically. It probably would have been a huge technical challenge to "silence" the drivetrain noise from GTR transmission and AWD system also. Afterall, if I bought an Infiniti and had to deal with the ridiculous transmission clatter of a GTR, I would defintely be a disgruntled owner.