Infiniti's Emerg-E concept car is getting plenty of attention in Geneva.
It’s barely five years since Infiniti belatedly made its entrance in the crowded European luxury market, and gaining traction hasn’t been easy, company officials acknowledge – which is why they’ve made a point of bringing some eye-catching concepts to the annual Geneva Motor Show.
What global design chief Shiro Nakamura dubbed the “third part of the Infiniti trilogy” is now on display and takes the Nissan luxury brand to a new extreme. Following on the original Essence and the more recent Etherea, the Infiniti Emerg-E concept provides a glimpse at what the maker might do if it were to push into supercar territory.
But not just a conventional challenger to an establishment dominated by the likes of Ferrari and Lamborghini, but one using a high-performance, battery-based drivetrain.
The heart of the striking 2-door is a plug-in driveline that can make 400 horsepower – enough to launch from 0 to 60 in 4 seconds. But with a little less aggressive use of the throttle, Emerg-E will deliver up to 30 miles on lithium-ion battery power alone. Once the gasoline engine kicks in, it will get a total of 300 miles before having to recharge or refuel.
The Emerg-E "illustrates the future design direction of Infiniti," says Nakamura.
“Emerg-E is a symbol of performance,” Nakamura suggested, “but one that can be engaged in without guilt.”
These days, it seems like every luxury maker is looking at battery power – even Bentley, which promises a plug-in driveline for the EXP 9F concept SUV it’s debuting on its own Geneva Motor Show stand. So, a plug-in isn’t quite as unique as it might have seemed a few years ago.
That’s where design comes in. Once relegated to the second tier of global luxury brands, Infiniti has become intent on joining the mainstream, and it’s gaining ground in Europe, as well as the U.S., where it originally debuted. Continental sales surged 33% last year, noted Bernard Loire, head of operations in Europe and the Middle East.
Products like the stylish G series and striking FX have helped grab some much-needed attention.
A look inside the plug-in supercar concept.
Going forward, Infiniti now plans to put a version of the Etherea concept car into production – here sharing the MFA compact luxury platform developed by its new alliance partner, Daimler AG, for the next-generation Mercedes-Benz A-Class (which also debuts in Geneva).
Might there be plans for the even more radical Emerg-E? Don’t expect the concept to make the leap into production as it appears on the show floor, according to insiders, but “it illustrates the future direction of Infiniti design,” hints Nakamura, and some of its more intriguing elements just could reappear.