2022 Infiniti QX60 First Drive: The Much-Needed Update Gives Results

Auto123 gets in a first drive of the 2022 Infiniti QX60.

Picton, ON - In an ideal world where there are no huge development costs and infinite resources, a complete model renewal would occur every five or six years, or even more often. Some models do follow this demanding schedule, but in other cases, like the Infiniti QX60, the long-awaited redesign can wait and wait.

The first units of the Infiniti JX35 arrived in our market in 2012 as a 2013 model; the three-row crossover played third fiddle behind the two other SUVs in the Infiniti lineup. Some derided the JX - eventually to be renamed the QX60 - as a marshmallow on the road, referring both to the behavior of the spongy suspension and the elasticity of the CVT. We kind of have to say they were right.

It's true that compared to the brand's two other utility models at the time - you remember the EX35 and FX37, don't you? -The JX35/QX50 almost looked like a minivan minus the sliding rear doors. However, this criticism betrayed a misunderstanding of what consumers wanted. They quickly adopted the Infiniti, QX60, which was in essence a more luxurious cousin of the Nissan Pathfinder. So much so, in fact, that the QX60 is Infiniti's best-selling model, accounting for 35 percent of sales in Canada.

Needless to say, this first complete redesign is important to the brand. I got to drive the new model for a few hours in the Picton area of Ontario. Here's what I learned from this first contact.

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