Infiniti Taps NFL Star Power to Reveal 2027 QX65 in New York

Michael Strong
by Michael Strong

After a few weeks of teases, Infiniti wanted to ensure the new 2027 QX65 would be a hit. Who knows more about hits than professional football players so former New England Patriots Rob Gronkowski and Julian Edelman took the stage March 26 to hype the coupe-style SUV.


Infiniti headed to the famous Grand Central Terminal in New York City looking to highlight its ongoing efforts to revive the luxury brand, hoping to generate some buzz with a staged “typical day in NY” scenario replete with Gronkowski and Edelman stepping off a train and walking through part of the terminal to “arrive” just in time for the reveal the Sunfire Red SUV.

While the staged event may make eyes roll, it reflects the level of importance Nissan’s luxury unit is placing on the new fastback ute’s arrival. Not only did it use the station’s famed Vanderbilt Hall to do the reveal, but it’ll also be on display there all weekend, before it moves to the Jacob K. Javits Center for the 2026 New York International Auto Show. 

“The all-new 2027 Infiniti QX65 accelerates Infiniti into its next era, building on an impressive heritage of standout design language, luxurious client experiences and refined driver performance," said Eric Ledieu, vice president, Infiniti Americas.

That design language mirrors the coupe or fastback look other luxury makers, such as BMW and Mercedes-Benz, have applied to their midsize SUV models, looking to tap into buyers who used to settle for a boxy midsize, but wanted something a little sportier. The new QX65 hits dealer showrooms this summer with a starting price of $53,990.

“The all-new 2027 Infiniti QX65 invigorates the luxury space with a sporty fastback profile inspired by the spirit of the iconic FX, a cabin shaped by thoughtful hospitality, and responsive, rewarding performance. Designed for the heart of the midsize luxury segment, QX65 reflects Infiniti’s legacy of challenging convention,” the company noted.

Since it looks sporty, it should at least show a little in the performance department. The QX65 features a Variable Compression Turbo 2.0-liter inline-4 putting out 268 horsepower and 286 lb-ft of torque. It’s tied to a 9-speed automatic with paddle shifters so you can try to wring out a bit of extra power from it. All-wheel drive is standard and can tow up to 6,000 pounds. 

With an aggressive look outside, and a reasonable drivetrain under the hood, the interior’s got to shine. Infiniti’s cabin is tech-forward with two 12.3-inch touchscreens, a Qi2 wireless charging pad standard — no more burning your hands on a hot phone — and depending upon which trim level you buy, you can get a 16-speaker, 600-watt or 20-speaker, 1,200-watt Klipsch sound system. Buyers can download Infiniti’s Personalized Sound app to customize the sound quality of the QX65.

And while they’re checking it out, headroom isn’t too bad, the company contends. The stretched arch profile leads the eye toward the vehicle’s powerful rear stance, all while preserving utility with competitive cargo capacity: 35.8 cubic feet behind the second row and 67.7 cubic feet behind the first row.


[Images: Infiniti]


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Michael Strong
Michael Strong

Michael Strong has spent more than 25 years writing about the automotive industry. A Detroit-area native, he’s written about everything from local car shows to product reviews to financial news. Currently he writes and edits for a variety of national and local publications. He’s also a longtime member of the Automotive Press Association and the International Motor Press Association, and a graduate of Georgia Southern University. Hail Southern! Despite a love for ’70s land yachts and BMWs from the late ’80s and early ’90s, his personal vehicle is neither of those.

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  • Normie Normie on Mar 28, 2026

    Styling to delight a three year-old, the only age group that could use the rear seat.

  • Redapple2 Redapple2 on Mar 28, 2026

    PS- many AFL fans hate ; HATE the patriot players from that era

    • See 1 previous
    • Bd2 Bd2 on Mar 29, 2026

      What about AFI fans?



  • Amwhalbi My 1972 Mercury Capri was my first stick shift car. God, I miss that thing. It was a blast to drive.
  • Vid169489471 The technology exists today to produce a variable color temperature (kelvin) LED lamp. It can vary from 2700k that soft orange look to 6500k the bright daylight with the bluish tint.Since everything in a late model car is computer controlled, it would be an easy task to write a few lines of code that enables your vehicle to not only dim down from hi to low beam but to shift color temp down to the 2700k range for oncoming traffic, then back up to 5000k once oncoming traffic has passed. For the operator it would be automatic and seamless. For older cars they could be retrofitted with LEDs that are 2700k on low beam and 5000k on hi beam. As far as standards, there could be a lumens max, and a minimum. Several States already have minimum lumen standards going back to the old incandescent bulbs. Why not update these to national standards.
  • Jam169859557 More regulation is needed for ALL vehicle lighting systems. [list=1][*]The lighting that is most blinding are the rapidly flashing red, blue and amber lights on emergency vehicles. The lights themselves are blinding, flashing so rapidly that it's impossible for even the sharpest eyes to adjust. What's worse, is the nature of the emergency requires a careful view of the area surrounding the emergency vehicle. There is something going on that needs to be seen. More flashing lights is not the solution.[/*][*]Brighter headlights need to be regulated. The tall riding vehicles do not need headlights positioned so high that they blind drivers in lower riding vehicles. And those heasdlights need to be aimed properly. When I first started driving my 2020 Subaru Outback, many drivers would flash their lights, hoping I would dim my lights. This stopped after I performed am easy adjustment that tilted the beam lower. Late model Subaru headlamps are designed with a sharp cutoff that project less glare above the hood line. When the headlights are properly aimed, other drivers are not blinded by the beam.[/*][*]Customized light assemblies make it more difficult to see the marker lights (tail lamps, turn signals and side marker lamps) that have been tinted. There are many municiple codes that prohibit this tinting, but these laws are seldom enforced.[/*][/list=1]Solutions: Tight controls on emergency vehicle lighting. In trying to make these vehicles more visible, a dangerous side effect is reducing the ability of drivers to see the surrounding perils.Headlight design regulations that reduce the height of the headlight assemblies. Just because a pickup truck has a hood that sits 4 feet abouve the pavement, it does not mean the headlights need to be so high. Owneres should maintain proper adjustments to their vehicle headlights.Establish and enforce regulation requiring a illumination standard be followed.
  • Stl170698708 as someone who hates big government, and their interference;but you can add me to the list of people that are blinded by the lights.unfortunately "the poop is out of the horse and no way is it going back in"They have had 5 years to make lights bigger, badder and brighter because in the vehicle work it is go big or go home!Trucks are the worst because so many people use them to express their dominance and that is big, big, big $$ both at the Original Purchase and in the Aftermarket world.If, we are so lucky to get some good government regulation on this it will also take some very good Court enforcement to get the aftermarket people with fines and lawsuits.Much like the EPA did with the Diesel Tuner Industry that felt emission regulations didn't apply to them.This is from someone that owns said pickup truck with the same bright headlights,but i only use the truck when I have too and always turn off the Fog lights when driving in traffic.
  • Art65765977 I saw a porsche 911 with the most amazing headlights from behind approaching the Sunshine skyway in Florida. The pattern was 108 degrees across sweeping the road like a broom. My brother and I were amazed. I don't know what it looked like from the front but i am sure it was better than American cars
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