Infiniti: M-Series news **Hybrid Revealed (page 34)**
#521
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Originally Posted by rets
Maybe I shouldn't say this, but keep in mind that 04TL's aluminum in central console is easily to be dented.
Will that wide & plain aluminum in M be able to keep dent free?
![Frown](https://acurazine.com/forums/images/smilies/frown.gif)
Will that wide & plain aluminum in M be able to keep dent free?
Yes it can be dented. Before taking delivery of my TL I had the dealership repair a dent cased what seemed to by the seat belt buckle.
#522
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Nissan spending big to market new Infiniti M-series sedan - - By KATHY JACKSON | Automotive News - - Source: Autoweek
Infiniti Division plans to spend about $65 million on the marketing launch of its redesigned M-series luxury sedan.
That figure represents more than one-third of what the luxury division of Nissan North America Inc. spent on all U.S. advertising in 2003, the last full year for which data are available, according to Competitive Media Reporting.
The car is scheduled to go on sale in late February. It will have a base price of $40,510, including destination charges. Infiniti wants to sell 20,000 units annually of the redesigned sedan.
U.S. Infiniti sales rose by 10.4 percent last year over 2003, to 130,986. But sales of the entry-level G35 sedan and of trucks accounted for the bulk of that increase.
In 2004 Infiniti's M45 luxury sedan had sales of 2,090, and its Q45 luxury sedan had sales of 1,972 units. Both sell for more than $40,000.
"Conquesting will be our major task," says Jan Thompson, Nissan's vice president of marketing. She says the target audience of the M series is men in their 40s with annual household incomes of $150,000 to $175,000.
Infiniti will give consumers five versions of the M. It plans to stress the sedan's performance and advanced technology in its marketing.
2 models
The 2006 M comes in two models: the M35 and the M45. Infiniti produced only an M45 for the 2004 model year.
The M35 has a 3.5-liter V-6 engine that produces 280 hp. It comes in luxury, sport and all-wheel-drive versions.
The redesigned M45 has a 4.5-liter V-8 that produces 335 hp. The V-8 has five fewer horsepower than the previous model, but has seven more pounds-feet of torque. It comes in luxury and sport versions.
The vehicles have a new rear active steer system. The technology helps improve handling by making automatic adjustments for speed and steering input, Infiniti says.
The cars also have new systems that warn drivers of unintended lane departures.
Thompson says Infiniti will begin running print ads for the M series in mid-February. TV spots will begin about March 1, she adds.
"The spots will be all about the vehicle," Thompson says. "Price will also be a big part of our marketing message. To establish our position at launch, price will be very important."
Thompson anticipates 75 percent to 80 percent of M sales will come from competing brands. She identifies the car's main competitors as the BMW 5 series, Acura RL and Lexus GS 300/430.
Tough battle
Dan Gorrell, vice president of the auto consultancy Strategic Vision in Tustin, Calif., says the M faces a battle establishing itself in the luxury market.
"There are fewer buyers in the upper-end luxury (segment) and a lot of good competition," Gorrell says. Infiniti, he says, is "not viewed in the same tier as Mercedes and BMW by most consumers."
That figure represents more than one-third of what the luxury division of Nissan North America Inc. spent on all U.S. advertising in 2003, the last full year for which data are available, according to Competitive Media Reporting.
The car is scheduled to go on sale in late February. It will have a base price of $40,510, including destination charges. Infiniti wants to sell 20,000 units annually of the redesigned sedan.
U.S. Infiniti sales rose by 10.4 percent last year over 2003, to 130,986. But sales of the entry-level G35 sedan and of trucks accounted for the bulk of that increase.
In 2004 Infiniti's M45 luxury sedan had sales of 2,090, and its Q45 luxury sedan had sales of 1,972 units. Both sell for more than $40,000.
"Conquesting will be our major task," says Jan Thompson, Nissan's vice president of marketing. She says the target audience of the M series is men in their 40s with annual household incomes of $150,000 to $175,000.
Infiniti will give consumers five versions of the M. It plans to stress the sedan's performance and advanced technology in its marketing.
2 models
The 2006 M comes in two models: the M35 and the M45. Infiniti produced only an M45 for the 2004 model year.
The M35 has a 3.5-liter V-6 engine that produces 280 hp. It comes in luxury, sport and all-wheel-drive versions.
The redesigned M45 has a 4.5-liter V-8 that produces 335 hp. The V-8 has five fewer horsepower than the previous model, but has seven more pounds-feet of torque. It comes in luxury and sport versions.
The vehicles have a new rear active steer system. The technology helps improve handling by making automatic adjustments for speed and steering input, Infiniti says.
The cars also have new systems that warn drivers of unintended lane departures.
Thompson says Infiniti will begin running print ads for the M series in mid-February. TV spots will begin about March 1, she adds.
"The spots will be all about the vehicle," Thompson says. "Price will also be a big part of our marketing message. To establish our position at launch, price will be very important."
Thompson anticipates 75 percent to 80 percent of M sales will come from competing brands. She identifies the car's main competitors as the BMW 5 series, Acura RL and Lexus GS 300/430.
Tough battle
Dan Gorrell, vice president of the auto consultancy Strategic Vision in Tustin, Calif., says the M faces a battle establishing itself in the luxury market.
"There are fewer buyers in the upper-end luxury (segment) and a lot of good competition," Gorrell says. Infiniti, he says, is "not viewed in the same tier as Mercedes and BMW by most consumers."
#523
[chrisrock]Goddam that's a lot of money[/chrisrock]
#527
Originally Posted by DownUnder
$65 million man for advertising?!? There gonna have to sell a lot of M's to break even.
I hope they pick a new advertising agency. Even the new ads leave a lot to be wanted....
#528
Photography Nerd
Originally Posted by LessisBestmakingendsmeet
If they sell 20k cars as they want, it is about $3500 per vehicle sold. That is tons. TONS. Almost 10% of the price and at least 5% of the price. The car is so cheap to build due to shared content, Nissan can afford to go this route.
I hope they pick a new advertising agency. Even the new ads leave a lot to be wanted....
I hope they pick a new advertising agency. Even the new ads leave a lot to be wanted....
I'd take the discount.
#529
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Originally Posted by Dan Martin
I wonder what is more effective: spending $3500 per vehicle in advertising or reducing the price by $3500?
I'd take the discount.
I'd take the discount.
In the car world, image means a lot. A 36.5k base price will make people think it's inferior. A great ad campaign will hammer in peoples' heads that this 40k car is worth every penny. At 36.5k, the car may sell itself, but you get a bunch of sales and nothing down the line except people expecting your E-class and 5-series competitor to be ~36.5k in the future iterations. Very smart move by Nissan.
Last edited by goldmemberer; 02-03-2005 at 09:48 AM.
#530
Originally Posted by goldmemberer
Reducing the price by $3500 won't give you brand image and longevity of sales, it'll make your car cheaper. They figure that if they spend $65M, they can swindle you out of your $3500 without you noticing, and while they're doing it, everyone can think "oh that's a nice car, it's expensive," etc.
In the car world, image means a lot. A 36.5k base price will make people think it's inferior. A great ad campaign will hammer in peoples' heads that this 40k car is worth every penny. At 36.5k, the car may sell itself, but you get a bunch of sales and nothing down the line except people expecting your E-class and 5-series competitor to be ~36.5k in the future iterations. Very smart move by Nissan.
In the car world, image means a lot. A 36.5k base price will make people think it's inferior. A great ad campaign will hammer in peoples' heads that this 40k car is worth every penny. At 36.5k, the car may sell itself, but you get a bunch of sales and nothing down the line except people expecting your E-class and 5-series competitor to be ~36.5k in the future iterations. Very smart move by Nissan.
The car, IMO is worth it, it seems to be a great car so far. Infiniti has to have rock-bottom pricing to penetrate the market. Like it did with the G35s. And that car doesn't sell half as well as the TL, 3 series or even a ES 330. The FX is thousands dolllars less than any Cayenne or X5 and it sells in small numbers for a SUV.
I just hope dealers don't resort to the usual 6-8k off MSRP and $199 lease deals to keep the cars moving. This kills the brand.
Anyway, this is a wonderful car and a true competitor in this segment and could become the leader for those interested in the sport side of things.
![Thumbs Up](https://acurazine.com/forums/images/smilies/thumbsup.gif)
#533
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Originally Posted by Infamous425
refresh looks great ![Thumbs Up](https://acurazine.com/forums/images/smilies/thumbsup.gif)
![Thumbs Up](https://acurazine.com/forums/images/smilies/thumbsup.gif)
#536
Midnight Marauder
Time to trade in my 04!
![Thumbs Up](https://acurazine.com/forums/images/smilies/thumbsup.gif)
#538
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Originally Posted by 04EuroAccordTsx
I don't see any difference aside from having an M45x now. ![Dunno](https://acurazine.com/forums/images/smilies/dunno.gif)
![Dunno](https://acurazine.com/forums/images/smilies/dunno.gif)
#539
Chloe @ 17mo
Originally Posted by mrdeeno
tail lights are differeng, rear bumper is different, front bumper is different, grille is different.
![Werd](https://acurazine.com/forums/images/smilies/werd.gif)
#540
Maybe it's just me, but the taillights don't look so big anymore. I know it's an illusion, but it looks smaller without so much red dominating most of it.
#541
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Originally Posted by phile
Maybe it's just me, but the taillights don't look so big anymore. I know it's an illusion, but it looks smaller without so much red dominating most of it.
![](http://www.autospies.com/images/users/Agent001/2008-Infiniti-G37-teaser/23-07-20070723.01.49.jpg)
![](http://www.cardata.com/spoilers/images/DAR_Spoilers/fg-040_2006up_Infiniti_M35.jpg)
#542
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Originally Posted by AsianRage
![Werd](https://acurazine.com/forums/images/smilies/werd.gif)
![Bandito](https://acurazine.com/forums/images/smilies/bandito.gif)
#543
Originally Posted by titan
The best thing of all though (to me atleast), is that the M's amber lit gauge cluster will go in favor of the new led lit white and violet cluster of the new G.
![Woot](https://acurazine.com/forums/images/smilies/woot.gif)
![Ecstatic](https://acurazine.com/forums/images/smilies/ecstatic.gif)
#544
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Originally Posted by 04EuroAccordTsx
I don't see any difference aside from having an M45x now. ![Dunno](https://acurazine.com/forums/images/smilies/dunno.gif)
![Dunno](https://acurazine.com/forums/images/smilies/dunno.gif)
#545
Why is Infiniti putting more and more chrome trim on their models? Looks so tacky....
#549
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Originally Posted by phile
![Woot](https://acurazine.com/forums/images/smilies/woot.gif)
![Ecstatic](https://acurazine.com/forums/images/smilies/ecstatic.gif)
never was a fan of the orange/amber gauges Nissan/Infiniti used from 2003-2006 on their cars.
hope that the FX also gets the G35 color gauges too in 2008.
#550
Senior Moderator
Originally Posted by titan
My only gripe is that I don't think the '08M will have it's V6 upped to the 3.7L found in the G coupe. When does the car debut? Next spring?
Bottomline: It is time for a 380hp+ VK50HR...or something.
![Too Cool](https://acurazine.com/forums/images/smilies/toocool.gif)
Back on topic: decent refresh.
#552
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Originally Posted by F23A4
I think the 330hp VQ37HR in an M37 might make the 335hp M45 obsolete, at least when it comes to the marketing. Admittedly, this did not stop Lexus from selling a 303hp GS350 in same lineup as the 290hp GS430.
Bottomline: It is time for a 380hp+ VK50HR...or something.![Too Cool](https://acurazine.com/forums/images/smilies/toocool.gif)
Back on topic: decent refresh.
Bottomline: It is time for a 380hp+ VK50HR...or something.
![Too Cool](https://acurazine.com/forums/images/smilies/toocool.gif)
Back on topic: decent refresh.
#555
Go Big Blue!
Originally Posted by mrdeeno
The RL was out before the M, yet the M gets a refresh before the RL (which needs anything it can get at this point).
#556
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Originally Posted by SpicyMikey
agree. watching Acura "advance" their product line is like watching the grass grow. It's painful. Doesn't seem like they have a good sense of what they want this brand to be. .
#557
Burn some dust here
Originally Posted by 04EuroAccordTsx
I would love to see a 400-500hp G55 sedan to compete with the CTS-V.
#558
Senior Moderator
Originally Posted by mrdeeno
The RL was out before the M, yet the M gets a refresh before the RL (which needs anything it can get at this point).
Speaking of which, when did they stop making the Q45? Any plans for a flagship again for them?
#559
Originally Posted by mrdeeno
The RL was out before the M, yet the M gets a refresh before the RL (which needs anything it can get at this point).
![ugh](https://acurazine.com/forums/images/smilies/ugh.gif)
#560
Senior Moderator
Originally Posted by Crazy Sellout
Speaking of which, when did they stop making the Q45? Any plans for a flagship again for them?