2022 Infiniti QX60 Luxo Crossover Announced
Infiniti’s 2022 QX60 has merged a 9-speed automatic transmission with the company’s 295-horsepower, 3.5-liter V6 in the latest SUV in the QX stable.
A question we posed to an Infiniti spokesperson was, how can the 2022 QX60 be considered all-new if it includes the same 3.5-liter V6 engine that powered previous Infinitis, long enough to be an award-winner? How about that new, 9-speed transmission, our source replied.
Calm, quiet, and confident are adjectives I’d associate with a bank or brokerage firm, or perhaps a mattress. Then again, I like vehicles that behave in ways that inspire criminality, so maybe being refined and advanced as the QX60 claims to be is a good thing.
“The upcoming, all-new 2022 INFINITI QX60 embraces the tenets of what our brand stands for,” said Infiniti chairman Peyman Kargar. “Teams from Japan and the U.S. have worked tirelessly to bring to customers the new QX60, our most refined and advanced three-row crossover yet.”
The new 9-speed automatic transmission, developed with supplier ZF, “has a direct and linear acceleration feel. The 9-speed has a larger ratio spread — almost 10:1. It gives the driver confidence to increase their standing start, passing on the freeway, and in the city,” said Dave Kiesel, manager of powertrain performance at Infiniti’s Arizona Testing Center. “You just step on the pedal, it downshifts, and you go.“
In Death Valley, California, engineers subjected the QX60 to temperatures above 122 degrees Fahrenheit. The desert is conducive to testing the QX60’s cooling capabilities and its interior environment. They fine-tuned the QX60 to be tranquil and relaxing, despite the oppressive heat and punishing landscape outside the cabin.
Like Buzz Lightyear, who famously said, ‘To infinity, and beyond!’, Infiniti, the car company, is cueing up the QX60, their latest three-row luxury crossover cruiser, as a family wagon for families who dislike wagons. More details about the 2022 Infiniti QX60 are to be divulged soon.
[Images: Infiniti]
With a father who owned a dealership, I literally grew up in the business. After college, I worked for GM, Nissan and Mazda, writing articles for automotive enthusiast magazines as a side gig. I discovered you could make a living selling ad space at Four Wheeler magazine, before I moved on to selling TV for the National Hot Rod Association. After that, I started Roadhouse, a marketing, advertising and PR firm dedicated to the automotive, outdoor/apparel, and entertainment industries. Through the years, I continued writing, shooting, and editing. It keep things interesting.
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Still based on the old Nissan D platform? The loss of Jatco CVT is a start though.
Infiniti QX60 and Nissan Pathfinder. Same vehicle under the skin, have been for years. So if one changes to a ZF 9 speed, well, so will the other. They're both made in Tennessee by Nissan. Chrysler has a joint-venture factory building the ZF 9 speed in the USA for its four cylinder stuff. Honda used to use the 9 speed in Acura TLX, Pilots and MDXs, but seem to be migrating to their own 10 speed. Uh oh, production cuts for ZF. So, no doubt ZF/Chrysler made Nissan a deal it couldn't afford not to take on the 9 speed. Plus, a CVT uses a non-trivial amount of power for a hydraulic pump to keep the two cones at exactly the right distance apart or belt slippage occurs, so not really the most energy-efficient transmission for a torquey V6. Better suited for lighter vehicles and lower torque engines.