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Infiniti QX56 acts surprisingly spry for a huge but posh SUV
Bob Plunkett
Date Posted: 5/10/2005
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TWENTYNINE PALMS, Calif. -- Desert sand fills the unpaved path of Old Dale Road in Joshua Tree National Park, a cacti-covered expanse charted across California's Mojave Desert near Twentynine Palms.
All four of the 18-inch Conti-Trac tires underpinning a vast new sport-utility vehicle from the luxury line of Infiniti bite into the sand as we steer the humongous wagon up the rugged trail.
Traction in the slippery stuff remains constant for all tires, thanks to the vigilance of four-wheel-drive (4WD) equipment that's always engaged.
And the big SUV struts high across the rough desert floor with a ground clearance maintained at well over 10 inches, due to a sophisticated rear auto-leveling air suspension system aboard which automatically adjusts the air pressure in bladders posed over each rear wheel.
But what makes this trek through an inhospitable desert tolerable -- even downright comfortable -- is that Infiniti's wagon also packs into the enormous passenger compartment the plush trappings of a luxury car.
That means a driver and as many as seven more riders can troop off to where the wild things roam but remain as comfortable as if resting in a posh living room.
Infiniti puts an alphanumeric badge on this wagon, calling it the QX56.
It's by far the biggest set of wheels ever to come to the upscale line of Infiniti, which is developed through Nissan of Japan.
New Q also scores as the first Infiniti assembled in North America, since production occurs at Nissan's new $1.43 billion manufacturing plant in Mississippi.
Consider the QX56 as an ultra-luxury variation of Nissan's Pathfinder Armada SUV, since the two wagons share powertrain and mechanical components plus sheetmetal aft of the windshield.
Both wagons ride on the platform of Nissan's full-size Titan truck and both show a wheelbase stretching for 123 inches and a tip-to-tail measurement of 206.9 inches.
That makes the QX56 more than 17 feet long and well over six feet wide, with the roofline rising some six feet off the ground.
Despite these king-size dimensions for the package and a huge V8 engine tucked into the firebox, the Q-wagon also comes with user-friendly mechanical hardware and an independent double-wishbone suspension so it's surprisingly spry and easy to maneuver.
Styling of the exterior does not disguise the big-ness of this wagon -- it looks big because it is.
The two-box format features a bold chrome-plated face with slab-sided flanks and an undulating shape for the roof that arches over the side doors and dips lower across the rear section.
Up front, the massive chrome-bar grille thrusts forward of corner headlamp clusters above a thick body-colored bumper housing angular foglamps.
Step rails run below side doors and rails on the roof add options for car-top storage.
At the tail, there's a large top-hinged gate for accessing the cabin's rear cargo bay.
Inside, the QX56 carves out enough space for as many as eight passengers on the three tiers of seats with twin buckets in front, a second row with bench or flip-forward buckets and a standard third-row bench that drops easily into the floor to expand the cargo capacity.
Infiniti rigs the Q with a commendable array of standard safety systems.
Gear extends to side-impact air bags in the two front seats and curtain-style side air bags for all three tiers of seats, plus a proximity sensor system that warns about obstacles in the vehicle's rearward path, and electronic vehicle controls such as an anti-lock brake system (ABS), electronic brake force distribution (EBD) and Infiniti's vehicle dynamic control (VDC) with active brake limited slip (ABLS), even a device to monitor the tire pressure (TPMS).
To motivate such a behemoth requires massive muscle and the Q gets it from a V8 forged at Nissan's engine plant in Tennessee and shared with the Titan pickup and Armada wagon.
The plant, constructed with an aluminum block, displaces 5.6 liters and comes with dual-overhead cams and four valves in each cylinder.
It generates 315 hp at 4900 rpm and big-time torque of 390 lb-ft at 3600 rpm.
And almost 90 percent of the torque from the plant is available below 2500 rpm -- just where it's needed for towing tasks or off-road maneuvers at a slow speed.
Tied to the engine is an electronically-controlled automatic transmission with five forward gears and a tow/haul mode, which reworks shift patterns when towing.
When properly equipped with a tow rig, the QX56 earns a trailer tow rating of 8900 pounds.
It also works well with the 4WD version.
The 4WD equipment utilizes a sophisticated full-time automatic control system. It can instantly distribute the engine's torque between front or rear wheels, depending on pavement conditions and the potential of tires to slip, with as much as half the torque available at front wheels when needed.
A two-speed electronic transfer case enables the driver to switch between automatic all-wheel-drive (AWD), full-time 4WD in high range or 4WD in low range for crawling over uneven terrain off pavement, but the device runs in two-wheel-drive (2WD) mode with all power sent to the rear wheels for normal driving on dry roads.
The AWD version adds protective skid plates to shield areas of the oil pan, fuel tank and transfer case.
Infiniti casts the QX56 as only one fully-equipped trim but it brings the choice of RWD or AWD traction.
Standard to all are soft leather-clad seats and decorative trim on console, steering wheel and doors in blond hardwoods plus plastic that looks like aluminum facing center-stack instruments.
Options for QX56 are minimal -- a sunroof, the Smart Vision Package (a video camera in the tailgate to display the rearward view on the navigation system's dashboard screen when the vehicle moves in reverse gear), DVD-based video entertainment system, and satellite radio service through XM or Sirius subscription.
List price for new QX56 amounts to $47,400 for RWD or $3,000 more for AWD.
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| Vehicle Specifications: |
| 2004 INFINITI QX 56 Specs |
| Description: |
Full-size luxury SUV
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| Model Options: |
Full-size luxury SUV
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| Wheelbase: |
123.2 inches
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| Overall Length: |
206.9 inches
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| Engine Size: |
DOHC 5.6-L V8
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| Transmission: |
Auto/5
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| Drive: |
RWD (2WD Rear)
AWD (4WD full-time)
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| Braking: |
Power 4-disc
ABS/BA/EBD/TPMS
VDC/TCS/ABLS
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| Airbags: |
2 (front)
2 (side)
6 (side curtain)
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| Towing Capacity: |
QX56 RWD: 8900 pounds, QX56 AWD: 8900 pounds |
| Gas Mileage: |
QX56 RWD: 13/19 mpg
QX56 AWD: 13/18 mpg |
| Price: |
QX56 RWD: $ 47,400, QX56 AWD: $ 50,400 |
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