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Coming up with clear automotive model nomenclature is a thankless job. Names are hard to conjure up and nearly all the letters in the alphabet are taken.
Infiniti was at a point where its current system had become unsuitably awkward, so it binned the whole approach and started over. This is why the 2014 Infiniti Q50, while bearing a brand-new badge on the rump, is a mix of new and familiar parts.
The Q50 is effectively the next-generation G37, but it's not that simple. Infiniti feels like the Q50 is actually a modest step up from the G37 in terms of refinement, style and equipment. "It's the finest sedan we've ever built," company officials like to say.
So it's not a direct replacement in the traditional sense, but a whole new idea of what the company's midrange sport sedan should be.
Major Changes to a Familiar Car
Like the G37, the Q50 will be offered in rear- or all-wheel-drive variants, now separated into three trim levels (base, Premium and the zoomier S). New wrinkles in the G/Q transition include the availability of the Q50 Hybrid, and the fact that no Q50 configuration will include a manual gearbox.
Blame for the latter can be spread equally among consumers and Infiniti. For their part, buyers shunned manual-equipped Gs. On the flip side, Infiniti offered them half-hearted manual gearboxes that only soured the people that did give them a shot.
Our Q50 test car was a rear-wheel-drive Premium model equipped with only two options, leather seating and navigation. Infiniti said this was a typically equipped configuration so its sticker price of $42,805 is close to what you'll see at dealers.
Tiresome Tires
The Q50's overhauled body is 2 inches wider and rides on the same wheelbase as the G37. It's also underpinned by a new rear suspension and wider rear track. Both are notable changes, yet it's the decision to adopt run-flat tires across the board that arguably has the most influence on the way the Q50 drives.
In our case, the Q50 rolled on 225/55/17 all-season Bridgestone run-flats that were hopelessly overmatched by the chassis. There is so little grip that it's as though somebody accidentally mixed clay into their carcasses instead of silica. As a result, when given the mere suggestion of spirited cornering, the front tires protest audibly and early before washing out into understeer. This lack of enthusiasm was reflected in its meager skid pad performance of 0.79g and lackadaisical 60.9-mph slalom result.
Curiously, the Q50's ride quality dispatches truly bumpy pavement well, but is slightly fidgety on roads with prominent irregularities. It's not that the Q50 rides poorly — it doesn't — it's just that the busy-ness never quite settles out on freeway drives.
This would be a totally reasonable ride-handling tradeoff were this a red-blooded sport sedan capable of demolishing back roads with impunity. But the Q50 in non-S trim like our test car is not that car, and the reason hinges largely on its tires. If you want summer tires — and our experience indicates that you should — you need to step up to the Q50S.
Outstanding Powertrain
So, our Q50 tester gives up more handling than it gains back in ride quality. But it's still quite a pleasant car in which to spend time. The hydraulic steering (Infiniti's Direct Adaptive Steering steer-by-wire system was not present on our test car) is wonderfully precise and builds effort naturally as you turn around center, even if its effort overall is a shade light. Noise levels have also been dialed back on every front.
Its 3.7-liter V6 and seven-speed automatic powertrain, while largely carried over, remains a standout. The V6 boots the 3,603-pound sedan forward with such authority that you might mistake it for a V8. It's tremendous. The stats alone of 328 horsepower and 269 lb-ft of torque don't sufficiently convey its hugely flexible power delivery, or the rapid rate at which it turns that truck lumbering in your lane into a dot in the Q50's mirror.
That power is backed by a sharp, capable transmission calibration that's not afraid to drop a few gears and tap into the engine's ability to rev. In our testing the Q50 finished the 0-60-mph sprint in 5.5 seconds (5.2 with one foot of rollout like on a drag strip) and ran the quarter mile in 13.7 seconds at 102.8 mph.
The brake pedal is slack-free and offers excellent modulation around town. Drop the anchors as hard as possible and you'll discover another limitation of its all-season tires — the Q50's stopping distance from 60 mph is 123 feet, a far cry from the 107 feet of the summer-tired G37S we last tested.
Looks Better Than Ever, Inside and Out
Outside, the styling trades the soft, amorphous forms of the G37 for a far more sinewy stance that recalls its M — soon to be called Q70 — stablemate. To our eyes, the new sheet metal is a big step forward and its tip o' the hat to the Essence show car, one of the dead-sexiest show cars in quite some time, was wisely considered.
The cabin, too, sees upgrades in materials and presentation which make it a more noticeably more luxurious space. There's a bit more shoulder room inside as well, a result of the Q50's greater width. Six-footers can sit in back comfortably without brushing their heads, so it remains a true five-passenger sedan.
There's a new center stack that features a double touchscreen interface, one below for the audio/climate controls and one above for the navigation screen. Both are responsive and fairly intuitive, but neither can avoid the usual touchscreen drawbacks of suspectibility to fingerprint smudges and washout on sunny days. Thankfully, there are hard buttons along the side of the screens if you prefer more traditional controls.
The layout is simple, elegant and easy to get comfortable with. Our only real gripe was the standard seats. The base seats of our test car were short of lower thigh support, and the flat bottom induces road butt in just a couple of hours. Upgraded sport seats come with the "S" trim and are likely a noticeable step up.
Almost There
The sticker on our Premium test car was $2,850 more than the base Q50 which undercuts the current G37 Journey by a hair. Suffice it to say that prices have crept upward but not drastically. In the bargain, EPA fuel economy sees an improvement to 20/30 city/highway mpg, a gain of 1 and 3 mpg respectively over the G37.
There are a lot of reasons to like the Q50, as it brings tangible improvements to an already excellent car in virtually every area. Comfort, space, refinement and efficiency have all stepped forward, and the powertrain is terrific. That word "virtually," though, has our curiosity piqued for the S version which promises to put all of the pieces together in a more convincing fashion.
Used 2014 INFINITI Q50 listings and inventory:
Shop Edmunds' used car, SUV, and truck listings of over 6 million pre-owned vehicles to find a cheap used and certified pre-owned (CPO) 2014 INFINITI Q50s for sale near Ashburn VA. There are currently 273 used and CPO 2014 Q50s listed for sale in your area, with list prices as low as 18,392 and mileage as low as 0. Simply research the type of used car, SUV, or truck you're interested in and then select a vehicle from our massive database to find cheap pre-owned vehicles for sale near you. Once you have identified a used vehicle you're interested in, check the Carfax and Autocheck vehicle history reports, read dealer reviews, and find out what other owners paid for the used 2014 INFINITI Q50. Then select Edmunds' special offers, perks, deals, and incentives to contact the dealer of your choice and save up to 500 on a used or CPO 2014 Q50 available from one of 2,631 dealerships in your area.
What's a good price on a used 2014 INFINITI Q50 ?
Save up to $500 on one of 131 used 2014 INFINITI Q50s for sale at dealerships within 25 miles of Ashburn, Virginia with prices as low as $19000 as of Apr 24, 2018, based on data from 18 dealers and 63 consumer-driven dealer ratings ranging from 2.3 to 5 out of 5 stars.
Price comparisons for used 2014 INFINITI Q50 trim styles:
The used 2014 INFINITI Q50 Base is priced around $22998 with average odometer reading of 22062 miles.
The used 2014 INFINITI Q50 Hybrid Sport is priced around $25817 with average odometer reading of 33239 miles.
The used 2014 INFINITI Q50 Premium is priced around $21401 with average odometer reading of 43107 miles.
The used 2014 INFINITI Q50 Sport is priced around $23260 with average odometer reading of 55944 miles.
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What options are available on the 2014 INFINITI Q50?
Available INFINITI Q50 2014 Submodel Types: Sedan, Hybrid, RED SPORT 400, Red Sport 400
Available INFINITI Q50 2014 Trims: 3.0t LUXE, Premium, 3.0t SPORT, 3.0t Premium, Hybrid Sport, RED SPORT 400, Sport, 2.0t, 2.0t Premium, 2.0t Sport, Hybrid Premium, Red Sport 400, 2.0t LUXE, Base, 2.0t PURE
Exterior Colors: Majestic White, Black Obsidian, Moonlight White, Liquid Platinum, Midnight Black, Graphite Shadow, Venetian Ruby, Iridium Blue, Hagane Blue, Mocha Almond, Chestnut Bronze, Malbec Black, Pure White, Dynamic Sunstone Red
Interior Colors: Graphite leatherette, Graphite leather, Stone leather, Wheat leatherette, Graphite premium leather, Design Package Graphite leather, Design Package Havana leather, Stone leatherette, Wheat leather
Popular Features: Keyless Entry/Start, Remote Start, 360-degree camera, Alarm, Audio and cruise controls on steering wheel, Auto Climate Control, Aux Audio Inputs, Back-up camera, Bluetooth, Multi-Zone Climate Control, Power Driver Seat, Rear Bench Seats, Stability Control, Tire Pressure Warning, Trip Computer, USB Inputs, Upgraded Headlights, Sunroof/Moonroof, Heated seats, AWD/4WD, Navigation, Leather Seats, Parking sensors, Fold Flat Rear Seats, Adaptive Cruise Control, Automatic Emergency Braking, Blind Spot Monitoring, Lane Departure Warning, Pre-collision safety system, Upgraded Stereo, Post-collision safety system
Engine/Mechanics: 6, 4 cylinders
Transmission: AUTOMATIC
Fuel Types: premium unleaded (required), premium unleaded (recommended)
Drivetrains: all wheel drive, rear wheel drive
Used 2014 INFINITI Q50 Overview
The used 2014 INFINITI Q50 is offered in the following submodels: Hybrid, Sedan. Available styles include Premium 4dr Sedan AWD (3.7L 6cyl 7A), Premium 4dr Sedan (3.7L 6cyl 7A), and 4dr Sedan (3.7L 6cyl 7A). Pre-owned Q50 models are available with a 0-liter gas engine, with output up to 0 hp, depending on engine type. The used 2014 Q50 comes with all wheel drive or rear wheel drive. Available transmissions include: 7-speed shiftable automatic.
