Sebastian Vettel’s role as Director of Performance for Infiniti has been ramped up, with the Japanese luxury car maker now saying the F1 superstar’s feedback will directly influence future models from the brand. Infiniti claims the he was already involved in fine-tuning the new Q50 sedan, and yet bigger changes are expected for the upcoming premium compact car due in 2015.
The Red Bull Racing driver recently evaluated Infiniti’s current cars against their competitors with Infiniti’s European Dynamic Performance Team around Circuit Paul Ricard. The point was to align the engineer’s expectations of what makes a great car with Vettel’s own opinions. His feedback on what a premium, performance road car should be like will be reflected in Infiniti’s next-generation Q cars.
“Similar to Formula One cars, it’s interesting to feel how different cars are configured for steering response and braking as well as driver assistance features like ESP and Traction Control. Getting these things right is what makes a good car great,” said Vettel. Infiniti aims to gain in terms of handling, steering feel and response, vehicle agility and ride comfort through this relationship.
There’s a long precedent for F1 drivers developing road cars. Michael Schumacher helped Ferrari with the 430 Scuderia and recently jumped into bed with Mercedes-Benz. Ferrari now has a new golden boy in the form of Fernando Alonso who’s helping out with the LaFerrari, and McLaren does the same for its P1. Time will tell if Vettel’s on-track magic can rub off on Infiniti’s road cars.
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