Nissan and Infiniti to share 300kW electric-hybrid platform

Nissan and Infiniti will replace the ageing FM rear-wheel-drive platform, underpinning the current 370Z and Q60, with brand new all-wheel-drive underpinnings set to harness a confirmed 300kW electric-hybrid sports car powertrain set to hit the market from 2021.

Recent reports – as published by MOTOR – have indicated that Nissan will replace its dated 2009-vintage 370Z with a brand new generation model using the next-generation Q60’s twin-turbo V6 petrol engine, however it could instead be an electrified, all-paw model.

Speaking at a recent event in Victoria, Infiniti Motor Company product strategy vice-president Francois Bancon did not speculate on the future of a 370Z, but he did reveal secrets about the next Q60 and how its electric/AWD platform will be shared with Nissan.

One of the reasons Bancon cited for needing to ditch the rear-drive FM platform was because it was suited to a V6 petrol engine application, something he sees little future in. Instead, what the product planning vice-president has committed to is an electric-hybrid powertrain set to deliver around 300kW and sub-5.0-second 0-100km/h performance.

“We are going to have to change, this [FM] platform is a V6 platform, it is a rear-wheel drive V6 platform,” he said of the 370Z/Q60 underpinnings.

“We have updated it many times, the current version has nothing to do with the first one, but I mean now we are going to have to shift because this platform is not an electrified platform. All new product we do after 2021 is going to be electrified, and it should be in sync with the new package or platform.”

Bancon added that the Q60 will “probably not” be available in rear-wheel drive, but its all-wheel drive system will offer “distribution more 50:50 than the 60:40 we have today, so probably a little more rear distribution than we have today.”

“Since you shift electric you have a motor in the front and in the back, rear-wheel drive does not make sense anymore,” he explained.

“You can be rear-wheel drive, you just decide, it’s not anymore structural change when you have powertrain at the front and the rear-wheel drive push. So with the new generation electrified platform … it’s a little bit like Audi and it’s 4x4.”

However, as sports cars are increasingly turning to ‘electric turbocharging’ – where an electric motor gives the internal combustion engine [ICE] performance support – Bancon confirmed Infiniti will go the other way.

From 2021, a next Q60 – the styling of which was recently previewed by the pictured Infiniti Q Inspiration Concept – will be available with a 300kW electric motor and battery pack, with a smaller ICE charging the batteries. Unlike rivals, there won’t even be the opportunity to plug the vehicle into a powerpoint.

“Today you have a V6 twin-turbo with 400 horsepower [298kW], this is what people are used to and this is what the point is to deliver, so this is our target,” he continued.

“[But] I didn’t propose to go plug-in for this one reason, because with plug-in hybrid the biggest reason is most of the time people have a plug-in hybrid they never plug. And if you don’t plug you have the worst system in the world – heavy, ICE dependent, it’s the worst.

“A series hybrid is an electric car where you use this ICE, a smaller ICE, to charge the battery only. But the transmission is only electric. The difference is you don’t need to plug. The ICE charges the battery, [efficiency] is quite good, I don’t know the number because we are still finalising, but it is good. When the internal combustion engine doesn’t run the car, you can decide the function, say decide on constant 3000rpm, so the powertrain is super-efficient.”

And could a next Q60 share its all-paw electrified platform with, say, a next 370Z? While not mentioning any specific models, Bancon confirmed, “the big idea is to share with Nissan.”

“It is a radical shift for us,” he reiterated.

“It’s not about, well, you keep the platform but replace [body styling]. When you change everything, including the manufacturing system, it is not a small change.”