INFINITI TO GO ELECTRIC FROM 2021

The News

With a single unexpected announcement, Nissan CEO Hiroto Saikawa shocked the automotive industry. Speaking at the Automotive News World Congress in Detroit, Saikawa announced that INFINITI would phase out combustion engines and be fully electric by 2021, just five years from now. This announcement left many observers and experts stunned for many reasons. INFINITI’s stated goal is to become the premier electric car brand. The decision may portend wider implications for the automotive industry, however.
What it Means

To fully understand what makes this a genuine shock to the automotive industry, some context is required.

The 2019 INFINITI QX50 offers the first production engine with a Variable Compression Turbo, or VC-T. The VC-T system provides the driver with a spectrum of excellent performance, excellent fuel efficiency and minimal environmental impact by adjusting the compression ratio on the fly.

The VC-T system was thought of as a starting point for more fuel efficient performance engines of the future. Many auto manufacturers have been experimenting with variable compression systems. The VC-T by INFINITI was thought of as a breakthrough and an engineering marvel. It was a technical coup by INFINITI to make the first working production VC-T engine.

The VC-T was thought to be the next evolution of INFINITI’s lineup. It was expected that INFINITI would branch out from their initial two liter VC-T system and build an entire range of engines using this technology.

While many car manufacturers have committed to a more electric lineup in the future, INFINITI is signaling an intent to completely abandon traditional gas engines by 2021. INFINITI is only intending to offer fully electric or mostly electric hybrids with small gas engines there to power electric charging.

The decision confirms what many experts have suspected. Most of the auto industry is convinced their future is fully electric. INFINITI’s decision is not necessarily unexpected, but nobody expected the auto industry’s arms race to fully electric vehicles to begin so soon. Though some fully electric cars do exist, INFINITI will be the largest all electric lineup by volume in 2021, dwarfing all other electric competitors by a wide margin.

If you would like to get more information on INFINITI’s decision to expand to electric vehicles, or more information on the impressive VC-T technology, contact your local INFINITI dealer today.

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