Competition is stiff in the semi-rarefiedair around $50,000. One can choose from Cadillac, Mercedes-Benz, BMW, Jaguar,
Lexus and Infiniti. Of that august group, the Infiniti Q45 has had the
most difficult time attracting and keeping a sizable audience. We've never
quite understood that. The Q45 has style, performance, luxury; the whole
nine yards.
Perhaps the style has been the problem. It's lacked the conservative,
classical luxury car look of Mercedes,
BMW and Lexus. And Jaguar's style is a thing unto itself.
For 1997, the Infiniti folks say the Q45 is clean-sheet-of-paper new.
That's hard to see at a glance. Although the differences from last year's
model are significant, they are subtle. The sheetmetal has been reshaped