Autoblog

We slid behind the wheel of the 2009 Infiniti M35 S last week in Napa, California. It was a quick jaunt, but we wanted to try out the newly revised powerplant under the hood. Yes, even thought the nomenclature remains the same, the Japanese automaker has swapped out the mass of aluminum up front for something a bit more updated and powerful. Find out how the 2009 Infiniti M35 S did after the jump.

Photos Copyright ©2008 Michael Harley / Weblogs, Inc.

Official word has yet to come down from on high, but it's pretty much a foregone conclusion that the Infiniti G37 will eventually get AWD hardware. Potential buyers are asking dealers, who are in turn asking Infiniti about channeling the VQ's urge through all four wheels. The M45 and G35S will both be gaining AWD in the near future, so it does bode well for the possibility of a G37x. Official statements are vague about any actual developments, other than to say "it's reasonable to expect it may happen." It's also reasonable to assume that Infiniti's watching the competition like BMW and Audi proliferating AWD euro-luxers, and they'd be remiss to neglect offering the same capabilities.

[Source: Inside Line]

Click image for photo gallery

So, when we posted on the updated Infiniti M earlier today, word was that we'd have to wait until Saturday for the pics and info. Well, apparently that was not the case, or we've stepped into a time warp. In any case, we can now give you the rundown on the highlights. In brief, they are:

• Revised front and rear fascias, grille, rear decklid, rear fenders, taillamps, and chrome accents
• New 18" and 19" wheel designs
• Better visual differentiation between Sport Package and standard models
• Sport Package gets unique bumpers, side sills, dark headlight housings and 19" wheels
• Rain sensing wipers
• New paint colors
• All-wheel-drive V8 power with addition of M45x
• Introduction of camera-assisted Lane Departure Prevention (LDP) system
• Updated wood and aluminum interior trim
• new center console
• Revised Hard Drive Nav System
• Updated Sport Package interior (seats, steering wheel & pedals)
• Updated gauges
• New and/or updated interior colors

You can read all the details in their entirety after the jump and check out the gallery of 20 photos below. Of course, if you're lucky enough to be headed to Pebble Beach this weekend, you can have a gander at the freshened sedan in person.

[Source: Infiniti]

The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) in Arlington, Va. has just concluded testing on some 75 vehicles' head restraint systems and after performing a simulated rear-end impact of 20 MPH, only 22 of the systems received the top score of "good."

At the head of the class was Audi's A4, S4 and A6, along with the Chevy Cobalt, Ford Five Hundred (Taurus, whatever) and its Mercury counterpart, Honda's Civic, Hyundai Sonata, Jag S-Type, Kia Optima, Merc E-class, Nissan Sentra and its lesser sibling the Versa, Subaru's Impreza, Legacy and Outback, as well as Volvo's S40, S60 and S80 (no surprise).

The flunkees included the Acura TSX, BMW 5-series, Buick LaCrosse and Lucerne, Caddy CTS, DTS and STS, Chevy's Aveo, the Honda Fit and Accord, Infiniti's M35, the Jaguar X-Type, Kia Rio, Mitsubishi Galant, Pontiac's Grand Prix, plus the Toyota Avalon and Corrolla.

Considering that the IIHS estimates that the injuries sustained to the back and neck in these types of collisions costs insurance companies around $8 mbillion dollars per year, their interest in the matter is obvious. Whether or not consumers will include this in their purchasing criteria is another matter however.

[Source: IIHS]

Today's tale of litigation between automakers is brought to you by the letter M, which both BMW and Infiniti are claiming rights to use in a Canadian court. Unfortunately for Infiniti, BMW has been using the letter M to designate its many performance variants since 1978 in Germany and 1987 in Canada. Infiniti, however, only registered the names M45 in 2004 and M35 in 2005. As such, Infiniti has lost the battle over M, at least in Canada.

The silly thing is that Infiniti could have avoided being sued by BMW if it had steered clear of using the letter M alone in advertisements. It also produced a model of the G35 coupe it called the M6, which obviously steps on the toes of BMW's own high-end M6 coupe. Had Infiniti gone on just using the M45 and M35 monikers alone, it would likely not be liable for damages in a Canadian court right now. The amount of damages that Infiniti must pay BMW has yet to be determined, but in the meantime it has to "deliver to the plaintiffs [BMW] or to destroy under oath, all literature, invoices, packaging, signs, advertisements, promotional or marketing material, printed or otherwise recorded, in the possession, custody or control of the defendant."

Thanks for the tip, Tom!

[Source: CBC.ca]

Infiniti is at this year's Moscow International Auto show, marking the launch of Nissan's luxury brand in Russia. When word first broke back in March, the only details we knew were that there would be two dealers in Moscow and one in St. Petersburg. Now, however, we have the rest of the story.

Potential customers visiting the stand will learn that when sales begin in the fall, the first vehicles available will be the FX crossover and the M sedan. Both engine options (V6 and V8) will be available for each. The second wave of products will include the redesigned '07 G35 sedan and the ginormous QX56 SUV.

Also on display is the Infiniti Coupe Concept, which Infiniti's press release states "hints at the future," but we get the picture: they'll get the G35 Coupe, too. When all is said and done, Russia will have access to the entire Infiniti lineup.

The other news out of Moscow is that Infiniti has chosen Switzerland as the site of it's new European HQ. The Euro nerve center will be located in the town of Rolle outside Geneva.

[Source: Infiniti]

Sales for Nissan's upscale Infiniti division in the United Arab Emirates skyrocketed in the first quarter, up 183 percent year-over year. Of course, total sales over the same period were just 552 units, but there's reason for optimism: sales have more than doubled each year for the past couple of years (the brand was re-launched in the region in 2004), and the advent of the new M in the marketplace is expected to continue the trend.

Check out the brand's Middle East website here.

[Sources: Gulf News; Infiniti]