ACURA Vs. INFINITI: FIVE YEARS From Today WHICH Of These Will Be GONE? Or Will It Be BOTH?

This is a tale of two brands who when they BOTH launched had tremendous opportunity and had high hopes.

And from the start made quality, reliable products whether you liked how they looked or not.

And both over the years have had waves of success although sporadic. To be fair, Acura has done better in our opinion but not by much. Say what you want about Infiniti, but who could forget the BEAK? The name we coined for the Acura grill.

To this day it's a mystery to us that both ended up where they are today. We thought both could turn things around in the tough times.

But alot has changed and this business is moving at warp speed.

There are NO guarantees for anyone. No company is safe.

So we ask you to predict...

In five years which brand will be GONE? Acura? Infiniti or BOTH?

Spies, discuss...

MDarringer - 8/12/2020 9:18:25 PM

+1 Boost

Infiniti will be dead in 2.

Nissan can't afford to do new platforms. The Titan was a thinly disguised restyle job. The Frontier is likely to do the same. Nissan is now saying that the 400Z will be a reskinned 370Z which itself was a reskinned 350Z which was cobbled together from pre-existing parts of the FM platform which is 20 years old.

With Infiniti so dead, Nissan isn't going to waste money on anything for them that is "all-new".

The local dealers are hurting for stock regardless of price point, but not Infiniti (and Mitsubishi). They have a big selection, but no one's buying. And you know Nissan would love to clear out the leftovers.

Acura is hell-bent on being the new Buick and because "Queen Mary" can't move, Honda will be able to pick up the pieces that Buick abdicates. But the days of Acura being taken seriously as a premium vehicle have been over for quite some time.

arrowmg - 8/12/2020 11:02:19 PM

+5 Boost

Sad to admit it, but once Infiniti decided that they could not also continue with a mid-sized sedan flagship, (after already discontinuing their full-sized flagship over a decade ago) I understood that to be the handwriting on the wall. When my lease ended last summer, I left. Driving crappy German cars now, lol

MDarringer - 8/13/2020 9:17:52 AM

-4 Boost

Get a Lexus or a Genesis and improve your satisfaction.

arrowmg - 8/13/2020 9:59:30 PM

+4 Boost

Haha, I thought about getting the LS, but no way will I buy the Genesis. I did have a G80 as a rental last summer and although they are nicely appointed, anything below the Japanese is a step down from a prestige standpoint, imo. Although I've raged against the prestige factor on this very blog previously, it's a large part of the reason we tolerate the German luxury cars unreliability, smh.

cidflekken - 8/13/2020 12:47:34 AM

+2 Boost

The response to the new TLX and the Type-S has been overwhelmingly positive. If Acura does the next compact Type-S right, as was leaked recently, it will be a one-two punch.

The next MDX, if the RDX is any indication, should make a big impact The current MDX still sells very well. And the next MDX will have a Type-S.

That said, Acura needs to bring an SUV in below the RDX, and consider a true, large luxury SUV above the MDX.

Infiniti already has that type of SUV lineup and can't get the sales. If Infiniti can't gain market share in the most popular categories in the biz, then there's really nowhere for them to go but away.

F1_Driver - 8/14/2020 5:23:57 AM

+1 Boost

How does one call the new TLX a compact with exterior dimensions larger than the current Honda Accord???

cidflekken - 8/14/2020 9:52:23 PM

+1 Boost

Who calls it a compact? If you are saying I did, then you need to re-read.

F1_Driver - 8/15/2020 12:59:25 AM

+1 Boost

So, you didn't say the following?

"If Acura does the next [b]compact[/b] Type-S right, as was leaked recently, it will be a one-two punch."

qwertyfla1 - 8/13/2020 9:00:14 AM

+1 Boost

Acura will be fine as they have some good looking product and decent sales combined with Honda reliability -which isn't as stellar as it once was but still light years ahead of the German brands.

The new RDX is a looker but I wish they offered the 3.5 motor as an option as I have a 2017 for a beater and would like to get something else but don't want no turbo 4 so I will wait for the new MDX as I also want a bigger towing capacity so I can retire the old F150 and simplify down to 2 vehicles.

cidflekken - 8/13/2020 4:25:01 PM

+2 Boost

I'm with you on the RDX. I was disappointed to see that they will Type-S every other model in the Acura lineup by 2022 but not the RDX. I think they need to do it be/stay competitive with the GLC43, X3 M40i and SQ5. Maybe they don't feel it's necessary as its sales are very robust in 2019 without it. It was right on the heels of the Q5, without an upgraded powertrain offering. And maybe they're waiting for a new model or a refresh for 2023? It looks like Acura is running 6-7 year model cycles now so a refresh could come in 2022 for model year 2023.

MDarringer - 8/13/2020 7:46:39 PM

-2 Boost

I think a hunkered-down Type-S biased toward on-road handling would be great.

A Ford rep was puzzling about how the Escape has been a dud. I said do an Escape ST with a 2.0T FWD and an Escape RS with a 2.3T AWD, both lowered and set up for handling. His exact words were: "Why would anyone want that?"

Like an RDX Type S, I think they'd sell.

F1_Driver - 8/14/2020 5:26:00 AM

+2 Boost

I'd say both already have a foot in their grave.