Infiniti Q50 Eau Rouge: GT-R-powered M3 rival canned

Infiniti’s planned rival to the BMW M3 and Mercedes C 63 AMG, the Q50 Eau Rouge, has been canned. According to Car magazine, the projected sales of the super saloon versus the costs involved just didn’t add up for Nissan’s luxury brand.

“It was originally presented as a prototype but after we evaluated sales numbers, we realised it was not realistic to produce it. It was just too costly. That was it. It is always a matter of balance of cost versus benefit, and we decided to reign in our costs,” said Infiniti VP Francois Goupil de Bouille.

First seen at the 2014 Detroit show, the Infiniti Q50 Eau Rouge looks amazingly muscular, with bespoke aerodynamic carbon fibre bodywork and a lower and wider stance than the standard car. Only the front doors and the arch of the roof pillars are carried over from the stock Q50.

Behind those curves and the luxury car interior was the Nissan GT-R‘s powertrain. The 3.8 litre twin-turbo V6 engine made 568 PS and 600 Nm of torque, sent to all four wheels via a seven-speed automatic gearbox.

In comparison, the F80 M3 makes 431 hp/550 Nm while the W205 C 63 AMG does 510 hp/700 Nm in the more powerful S form. It would have been great, the “Q50 R”.

Despite the premature death of the Q50 Eau Rouge, Infiniti still has plans for performance models. “Performance will always be a key attribute,” de Bouille said, hinting that the company would consider alternatives routes such as a high-performance diesel or stripped-out lightweight models over the usual high-powered petrol formula.

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