Currently, there are two things that really excite me in the automotive industry. These two are electric vehicles and the Chinese automotive industry. Infiniti Middle East managed to spot it and invited us to the 2019 Shanghai Motor Show where they revealed the concept of what will become the brand’s new design language. Now, you might be asking yourself what does this have to do with electrification, right? To know the answer, join me in reading this article.
All manufacturers have announced or are announcing their plans when it comes to EVs. While some of them are currently presenting and/or selling EVs or saying that by year "y" we will convert all our line up to electric cars, Infiniti has a completely different and very interesting approach to the topic.
During the presentation of the Qs Inspiration at the 2019 Shanghai Motor Show, I learned the luxury Japanese brand is focusing on the design since electric cars provide a world of new possibilities. Here is where you need to relate this topic with electrification. And this, I must admit, is quite a refreshing approach which called my attention. We were also lucky to have a very engaging round table discussion with Karim Habib, who is the head of design for Infiniti - the man behind this concept.
During our discussion he mentioned, a couple of interesting points regarding the importance of the design of electric vehicles. To begin with, the interior of electric cars have more room for passengers since the floor is flat (where they sit the batteries). This allows different configurations for the rear and front seats which are more driver and passenger focused. When it comes to the exterior design, the car is higher per se giving a more elegant look. In addition, they can reduce the size of the hood since there is no engine at all, which effectively also helps the interior space of the cabin.
Now, what is this Qs Inspiration design all about?
In a nutshell, the Qs Inspiration is a sport sedan concept which is showcasing some hints on how Infiniti electric vehicles will look like. Infiniti has a plan to launch their electric vehicles in a three-year period. Hence, it is safe to assume we will also start seeing these design elements on their petrol line up as well.
The Qs Inspiration is all about clean and minimalistic lines with a higher driving position which will be also speaking to a high performance electrified all-wheel drive. This basically means that Infiniti electric vehicles will be on the high-performance side and will come with All-Wheel-Drive.
With the Qs Inspiration, Infiniti is also thinking about the more connected/autonomous driving; giving both the driver and passengers more comfort and technology within the cabin.
After sitting and learning more about this concept, it feels like Infiniti has cracked it the right way. I'm really looking forward to seeing how this concept translates to the actual cars.
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