2015 Infiniti QX60 Review

Infiniti implemented its new, more-like-the-Teutons nomenclature not long ago, and now names for coupes and sedans start with Q and names for crossovers and SUVs start with QX — far simpler than before, or so I thought. If the forthcoming Infiniti QX30 will be the smallest crossover while the QX80 — formerly the QX56 — is the largest, then one could surmise that the QX50 would be the new version of the EX350, the QX60 would be the new FX, and the QX70 would be the new three-row JX.

I really liked the Infiniti FX, a crossover hot rod with an unexpectedly capable chassis, so I booked a 2015 Infiniti QX60 test vehicle for my trip to New Braunfels. But it turns out the QX60 is actually the JX, the seven-passenger crossover with a continuously variable transmission and a chassis that’s as springy as the beds in Spiel Haus. (The FX is now the QX70, as Infiniti seemingly positions by prestige, not size.)

“It’s probably because I’m a single, impetuous man-child, but I don’t get the QX60,” I admit. “It doesn’t have enough headroom for how big it is, the third row is a joke, the second row is uncomfortable, the infotainment system is unintelligible, and most significantly, it’s far less functional than a minivan.” My mom pauses before saying, “You don’t want to be seen in a minivan. And minivans have sliding doors.” So I reply, “I never liked sliding doors because I thought they could chop off little kids’ fingers.”

And then I ask my mom, “If I were still a little kid, would you buy a three-row crossover?” She thinks for a moment and says yes. I ask, “Would you consider buying a 2015 Infiniti QX60?” She says yes. “Would you consider buying a 2015 Nissan Pathfinder?” She says no. “You know they’re basically the same car, right?” She asks, “Wait, whose underwear did you find in the house?”