When you have a lot of brand cachet, you can get away with charging a lot of money for your products. Why? Well, besides mostly having an earned reputation, there is that badge on the front. In the luxury sector, that counts for a lot. Companies like BMW and Mercedes-Benz and even Lexus have reached that status. Infiniti, on the other hand? In a word.
Infiniti has a long way to go to reach anywhere near their heights, especially globally where they compete on the smallest of scales. An audacious move has come though with pricing of the new 2013 Infiniti IPL Convertible. It dings the cash register at a hefty $60,600. If you’re counting, that’s just $200 less than the BMW 335is convertible.
And this is all for an “entry-level” luxury line. IPL comes fully loaded, and opting for the performance package means ticking off a host of performance upgrades. Horsepower from the G’s 3.7-liter VQ V-6 is up by 23, to 343, and the suspension has been worked over with stiffer tuning. Darkened headlights, IPL-exclusive 19-inch aluminum-alloy wheels and a choice of “just two exterior colors” (those are Infiniti’s words) – Malbec Black or Moonlight White make up some of the other changes. Inside there is a choice of Stone or Monaco Red interior colors.
The cooled seats have gotten their Infiniti logos swapped out for IPL ones instead. Special, but $60K special? Not really. IPL isn’t a comprehensive performance upgrade a la M, AMG or V-Series. Rumor has it that in the future, Infiniti plans to change that with twin-turbocharged V-6 power and a more thorough working over. What’s more, the G is aging (it is particularly glaring in the interior design and materials) and needs more of a definitive luxury identity. But hey, we’re a critical bunch aren’t we? The coupe (at $52,400) is a whole lot more appealing. Ultimately though, we say bring on the next-generation G!
