Short Take Road Test
Infiniti’s original FX moon buggy debuted in 2003 intending to be a sports sedan wearing a fanny pack. It handled well, accelerated smartly with the optional V-8, and looked particularly glam on its optional 20-inch wheels. It also rode as if its axles were welded directly to the body. Averaging 23,000 sales per year, the FX reached a small, mostly male audience willing to be pummeled in the name of fashion.
The redesigned 2009 Infiniti FX35 and FX50 stick to the original recipe but strive to offer a more luxurious interior and softer ride and thus to appeal to a wider audience, including the fairer sex. Although the basic platform remains the same ubiquitous FM chassis (for “front mid-ship,” the basis for everything from the Nissan 350Z to the GT-R to every Infiniti save the QX56 to CEO Carlos Ghosn’s chaise longue), this FX has mostly new parts, says Infiniti.
They include a new 5026cc V-8 making 390 horsepower in the FX50, a boring-out and stroking of the previous 4.5-liter V-8 with 80-percent new parts. There’s also a new seven-speed automatic, a first for Infiniti, that is standard across the line. The base 3.5-liter V-6 in the FX35 gets more muscle, up 28 horsepower to 303. As before, the FX35 is offered in rear-wheel- and all-wheel-drive configurations. The FX50, which now rolls on available 21-inch wheels, is exclusively AWD.
Quicker Than a Mustang GT
This new V-8 packs a mega-punch. We saw 60 mph flash past in 5.0 seconds in our FX50S, with the quarter-mile dispatched in 13.6 seconds at 104 mph. That’s quicker than a Mustang GT through the quarter-mile, and within 0.1 second of our quickest BMW 335i. Are we moving past the point of sanity with ever-quicker SUVs? The FX generated 0.87 g on the skidpad, and braking from 70 mph was completed in a scant 161 feet. Those are platinum-plated numbers—ones the average Porsche wouldn’t be ashamed to deliver.
Prices are not yet finalized, but Infiniti hinted that base prices for the FX35 and FX50 should rise slightly to about $40,000 and $54,000, respectively, with the loaded-up prices inflating to more than $60,000 because of new options packages, including an FX50 Sport package that includes rear-axle steering, sport seats, adjustable shock absorbers, and a red S on the car’s rump.
Although there’s more horsepower, there are also more size and weight. This FX gets another 1.4 inches in the wheelbase, mainly by moving the front axle forward for better weight distribution. It has sexier styling and extra not-so-sexy crash protection. It’s longer by almost two inches; width and height stay about constant. Seating accommodations are better in the front and rear, and we even found some extra usable space in the cargo area despite official capacity ratings that have decreased.
Pounds were shaved using aluminum door skins, aluminum suspension arms, and a plastic hatchback, but the curb weights still rise from 150 to 200 pounds, depending on the model—our loaded FX50S weighed 4648 pounds. It’s thus an achievement that EPA-rated fuel economy improves by 1 to 3 mpg, although our observed average of 14 mpg isn’t anything to brag about.
