2025 Infiniti QX80 First Drive: Luxury 3-Row Renaissance

MotorTrend

The new QX80 is Infiniti's most important vehicle in years

Transcript

00:00If you've been paying attention to the luxury full-size three-row SUV space for the last

00:11couple years, you've probably noticed that one automaker has been missing from the conversation.

00:16Infiniti.

00:17But with the introduction of this vehicle, the 2025 QX80, that could change.

00:26Infiniti hasn't really been a competitor in the luxury full-size three-row SUV space for

00:32quite some time.

00:33It's had a vehicle in the segment, the QX80, but with how old and outdated that truck-based

00:39vehicle was, it just really wasn't a competitor.

00:43Infiniti claims that its product renaissance is staked on this vehicle.

00:47Welcome aboard the 2025 Infiniti QX80.

00:51This redesigned full-size three-row luxury SUV shows what's in store from the brand with

00:57a new design, new technology, but it's clinging on to classic cues that Infiniti thinks its

01:03longtime customers will appreciate.

01:06Does this look to the future enough to bring the struggling brand back into contention?

01:12That's what we're here to find out.

01:14Here on these twisting mountain roads, it's clear that the QX80 is tuned not so much for

01:18sporty engagement and much more for comfortable enjoyment.

01:22And at that, it definitely succeeds.

01:24The ride quality from the air suspension is appreciably plush.

01:28The cabin is rather hushed.

01:30All I'm hearing is a bit of this twin-turbo V6 engine, and the biometric body scanning

01:35system is keeping me nice and comfortable with the automatic climate control engaged.

01:40Infiniti talks a lot about how agile the new QX80 is, and while that may be true relative

01:46to its predecessor, I can't say it's true in the grand scheme of things.

01:50This is still a three-ton-plus SUV, so it's not going to exactly rip around corners.

01:56That being said, with this air suspension system, it's very composed and comfortable,

02:01avoiding body roll and rounding off impacts in a nice way.

02:05Meanwhile, this driver's seat is plenty supportive, and it's hard to complain about the massage

02:10I'm getting right now, too.

02:12Although it's down on size compared to the outgoing V8, this new twin-turbocharged V6

02:18seems like a much-improved engine.

02:20It makes about 50 more horsepower and 100 more pound-feet of torque compared to the

02:24V8, and I'm noticing very little turbo lag and good responsiveness from the nine-speed

02:29automatic transmission it's connected to.

02:31Design and quality inside the QX80 certainly qualifies it for luxury categorization.

02:43Materials are soft to the touch, there's good attention to detail, hard-touch plastics are

02:48nicely hidden.

02:50This dual-display infotainment setup finally brings Infiniti's tech features into the modern

02:56era.

02:57This is a huge improvement over the automaker's outgoing system, and it's all thanks to

03:01the Google integration, which makes user-friendliness so much easier thanks to its familiar applications

03:06and great voice recognition capabilities.

03:09Infiniti really seem to consider the QX80 as a three-row family vehicle.

03:14The second and third rows each have their own USB-C ports as well as air vents, so no

03:20matter where occupants are sitting, they can stay connected and comfortable.

03:24One of the highlight features of the new QX80 is the available 24-speaker, 1,200-watt Klipsch

03:29audio system.

03:31That includes speakers distributed throughout the cabin, including in the headrest here.

03:35That allows for me to take phone calls such that no one else in the cabin can hear what's

03:38going on, and whoever's on the other line actually isn't going to hear any of the music

03:42that's playing in the cabin, so you can keep the tunes bumping even when you're on a call.

03:47Infiniti's latest ProPILOT Assist, Active Safety, and Driver Assist features are included

03:52on the 2025 QX80, which now includes a feature that allows you to remove your hands from

03:57the steering wheel on certain pre-mapped stretches of road.

04:00Even when you're not on those pre-mapped stretches of road, it still has the useful

04:04tech that you'd expect from a vehicle like this, such as Adaptive Cruise Control and

04:07Lane Keep Assist, the latter of which uses a capacitive sensor in the steering wheel,

04:12so all you have to do to provide confidence to the vehicle that you're holding onto the

04:15wheel is just rest your hand there lightly.

04:18In this era of automotive electrification, it is perhaps fair to say that the new QX80

04:24isn't the most cutting-edge vehicle to hit the scene in 2025.

04:28But Infiniti is aware of that, and they are confident in their approach.

04:32After 20 years of building QX80s, the automaker says that it knows its customer base very

04:37well and that the vehicle's, shall we say, relatively classic feel will appeal to those

04:42long-time customers.

04:45I've been driving the 2025 QX80 all day, and one thing is very clear, this is a huge improvement

04:50over its outgoing predecessor.

04:52But the three-row luxury SUV segment is very competitive right now.

04:56Time will tell how the QX80 stacks up against its rivals, but I'm excited what Infiniti

05:00has done with the car, and I'm excited to see what this indicates as a renaissance for

05:05the Japanese automaker.

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