Anyone else think the Nissan GTR should've been an Infiniti?

Anyone who knows anything about cars wouldnt care. Just people who dont know about cars care about what brand line.

 

Its an interesting point comparing it to the NSX but in this case I think badging it a Nissan is better.

I think the Infiniti brand, while upscale, doesnt have the sports car heritage that Nissan does with the 300zx and Skyline.

I agree with their decision to label it Nissan and as the previous poster said most people buying this car know what it is and where it comes from...no need to 'hide' the name Nissan.

 

Thats just a silly arguement right there. Would it make any diffrence? The car is going to be a great one regardless of if it is a Nissan or a Infiniti anycar that puts out those numbers is bound to be a hit.

My only complaint about the GTR is the name GTR they should have thrown in the Skyline GTR moniker insead of just GTR and the price of the car, other than that I look forward to driving one in the near future regardless of its a Nissan or Infiniti.

 

I think Nissan wanted to keep this special one to themselves.

Who knows, maybe an even hotter (or luxury) version will be sold as Infiniti in 2010.

 

the gtr already has such a following with people who know it as a nissan it won't make any difference if they badged it as an infiniti. In fact by using an infiniti badge it would shed further light on the marketing gimiks that work so well with US consumers (believe it or not still 99% of people I know do not understand how toyota and lexus are the same freaking thing in japan).

 

No. The GTR has been a Nissan (Datsun) and should continue as such. If someone wants a car more because of its brand name, they can find something else. Those that want the GTR for the right reasons won't care if there's a Nissan burger on it.

 

The vehicle should've unquestionably been an Infiniti - I think this is a huge mistake for both brands. "Regular" brands with extremely expensive cars are always left in weird positions - for example, the Toyota Land Cruiser and Volkswagen Phaeton. This is no different.

The real reason the car should've been an Infiniti is because they're trying to portray a sporty image for that brand - this car would've been the perfect halo car to portray that image.

You're missing the point. If the car's an Infiniti, it raises awareness of the awesome potential of the Infiniti brand - thus more people want to buy less-expensive Infinitis, more people associate 'sporty' and 'Infiniti,' and Infiniti's resale values increase. There are many auto industry examples of this.

 

Many already flock to the Infiniti marque. They need no brand booster.

Resale value of an Infiniti is much like that of a used Acura, BMW, Mercedes, et cetera in that it is pretty much based on the supply and price of new ones and the availability and quality of old ones. Both Mercedes and BMW have made and still make great performance vehicles, and somehow the value of any other Mercedes or BMW still manages to drop like a rock once you drive it off the lot and in the immediate years following.

The only reason for making the GTR an Infiniti would be for the service department and overall dealer experience. Benefitting the brand image itself would be of little significance.

 

And as for expensive cars being in "weird positions" with "regular brands," think of the Chevrolet Corvette and the Dodge Viper. Even some Mustangs sticker for over 50k.

 

Surely you're kidding. Infiniti has nowhere near the market share of the top brands, never mind the cachet, and their resale values aren't anywhere near major premium brands - just check the Q45 thread! This car would be and should be a brand boost for Infiniti, which needs such a thing. Their lineup has significantly improved over the last few years, but this could be an even larger improvement.

Point taken (except on the Mustang thing) - sometimes it works, and sometimes it doesn't. Time will tell in this case.

 

Isn't Acura, Lexus and Infiniti a US thing only????.......because shallow Americans won't buy an expensive car from a "regular" brand, the Japs decided to make more "luxurious" names to sell said cars.......

maybe I don't pay enough attention, but I've never seen an infiniti, lexus or acura in Japan or Europe.............it's either Honda/Nissan/Toyota.

besides, like someone already said......the GTR always has been a Nissan, why change the tradition now?.....

 

I believe you are correct - rebadged and marketed here.

 

No. Lexus is sold worldwide (Lexus Australia / Lexus Germany / Lexus UK). Up until very recently, Lexus sold everywhere but Japan, but that has changed, and Lexuses are now going to be sold in Japan too. Infiniti and Acura are sold only in North America. Interesting fact of the day: from 1997 to 2005, Canada got an upscale, Acura version of the Honda Civic called the Acura EL. In 2006, it was re-named the Acura CSX.

 

This article about sums up resale value:
http://www.motortrend.com/features/newswire/91/32081/

As far as market share data I have no idea. . . although I see more new Infiniti's in my area than any other luxury brand. It would be interesting to see some actual market share research though.

 

That article refers solely to the G35, which does hold its value quite well, admittedly. Let's have a look at four-year depreciation of their car lines, versus major competitors:

Vehicle: value new / value today / percentage retained

Sport sedan
Lexus IS300: $29400 / $18600 / 63.2%
Infiniti G35: $27800 / $17000 / 61.1%
BMW 330i: $34600 / $20700 / 59.8%
Audi A4 3.0: $31700 / $17400 / 54.9%
Mercedes C320: $35200 / $19100 / 54.2%

Midsize premium sedan, 6-cylinder
BMW 330i: $34600 / $20700 / 59.8%
Lexus ES300: $31700 / $18900 / 59.6%
Audi A4 3.0: $31700 / $17400 / 54.9%
Mercedes C320: $35200 / $19100 / 54.2%
Infiniti I35: $29100 / $15100 / 51.9%

Large premium sedan
Lexus GS430: $47800 / $24700 / 51.7%
BMW 540i: $51800 / $24700 / 47.6%
Mercedes E500: $54900 / $25700 / 46.7%
Infiniti M45: $42300 / $19700 / 46.6%
Audi A6 4.2: $48000 / $21000 / 43.8%

Luxury sedan
Lexus LS430: $55100 / $27700 / 50.2%
BMW 745i: $68500 / $34000 / 49.6%
Mercedes S430: $72600 / $31400 / 43.7%
Infiniti Q45: $56500 / $23000 / 40.7%
Audi A8: $68500 / $23700 / 34.6%

I would imagine their SUV lines would be even worse, since the antiquated QX4 was sold through 2003, but that comparison would be unfair to Infiniti. Regardless, it shows that their resale values need a kick in the teeth - and the GT-R would've been a great way to do that. Imagine if Infiniti dealers were able to sell a "performance model" of the G37, just as BMW dealers sell M models, Mercedes dealers sell AMG models, and Audi dealers sell 'S' models.

 

Well, it's pretty clear:

Audi A8 sucks

 

Actually ALG awarded Infiniti the "2008 Luxury Brand Residual Value Award" and *in addition* it awarded Infiniti the "Near Luxury Residual Value Award" for the G series.

I can't seem to get the motortrend article to load for some reason, but I found this one which also includes a little more information:

http://www.autospies.com/news/Can-You-Guess-What-Brands-Hold-Their-Value-the-Best-22250/

Residual values and things of that nature change from year to year as companies change their products, services, et cetera. The I35 data you show would bring in a vehicle that is at least 4 years old since the last model year of that was in '04. I'm not exactly sure how ALG makes their calculations, but I'd imagine they are taking into account more data overall.

 

That's like saying the Supra should have been badged as a Lexus.

The only reason it should have be under the Infiniti brand is that it looks like a "G" car.

 

Perhaps they're looking at data from only the last couple of years, since Infiniti went on something of a 'new product' tear - but I think looking at data like that is a bit misleading, since you don't know the long-term resale of those cars. Sure, it may hold its value well in two years, but it could tank after that for various reasons. Infiniti provides the best example of this: the 1993-1997 J30 was lauded upon debut for its 'futuristic' styling, but the styling grew tired quickly and resale values plummeted in the late 1990s. I wouldn't be surprised if the same thing happened to the Mercedes CLS (save for the fact that it's a Mercedes).

It's incredible. People think the Volkswagen Phaeton is such a deal because it has depreciated so much, but the A8 is trading on the same level. People who buy these things new are crazy; people who buy them used are savvy.

 

Close - the Toyota Soarer was the Lexus SC 300/400 here in the US

 

I have some fairly affluent and intelligent friends. Many have never heard of Infiniti.

 

They have made great strides recently but most can't even spell it right or think you mean speakers when you say it.

As for the title....
Carlos Ghosen wanted the new GT-R to be worldwide so it could be profitable. He will not build a car that does not make money. The GT-R was sold in the UK and Australia and Japan...Infiniti for the most part is US only.

US Infiniti dealers BEGGED for it to be branded a Infiniti (similar to Acura dealers begging the S2000 to be An Acura years ago) as they had no new product and no flagship. The Q45 was doing awful (now discontinued) and they wanted a "halo" car as an Infiniti.

It never was given a serious thought. The GT-R is Nissan's top car and will be a Nissan.

There are rumors a possible GT-R maybe rebadged as an Infiniti, slightly softer and more luxurious. There will be no Q45 replacement, rumors of a sedan/coupe (ala CLS) are flying.

Infiniti continues to not be on many buyers radar and still has an identity crisis as a luxury brand. Now that Nissans top car, the GT-R costs at least $70,000, which is MORE than the most expensive Infiniti, well that does not help at all.

Sales were up 4% in 2007 to around 127k cars, which is less than their high of 134k cars 3 years ago. BMW sells more 3 series cars in America than the entire brand!

The GT-R has gotten so much positive press and has performance of cars twice as much. Infiniti really could have used that boost.

Instead, Infiniti gets a cute ute EX SUV for 2008. They now have 2 cars (G/M) and 3 SUVs (EX/FX/QX). Owners have just found out in the owners manual the EX cannot tow anything. lol!

 

Lexus was launched worldwide in 1989 but no Japanese dealer network was established. So they rebadged them Toyotas there. That changed in 2006, as Lexus is now home in Japan.

Lexus has just won another sales title in the USA for the 8th straight year. In Europe, sales are up 50% b/c of hybrids and FINALLY a diesel in the IS 220d. For the most part, Lexus efforts in Europe until recently were not very good and sales of 50k in Europe are a drop in the bucket to the Germans. Worldwide, Lexus is 4th in sales behind the big 3 Germans.

So yes, seeing a Lexus is rare in Europe.