Infiniti Etherea Concept Car
Magnasteyr and Nissan will finalize the ultimate production agreement in early 2012, after which the new car will be manufactured at Magna's Graz factory in southeastern Austria.
Relevant company management disclosed that the new Infiniti compact car will be based on Mercedes-Benz's front-wheel-drive architecture, MFA (Mercedes Front-wheel-drive Architecture), which also underpins the second-generation Mercedes A-Class and other models.
In addition to providing platform architecture technology, Daimler-Mercedes will supply Infiniti with a large number of pre-assembled "complete components." This means that the cooperative relationship between Daimler and Nissan has been further deepened since their alliance began 20 months ago. However, Daimler officials refused to comment on the above information.
To compete against Audi A3 and BMW 1 Series
According to the production agreement established by Nissan and Magna Steyr, the Infiniti compact cars produced in Graz will be exported to the global market, with an expected annual output of 50,000-60,000 units. The vehicles will feature Mercedes four-cylinder or six-cylinder diesel engines and gasoline engines.
The new car aims to compete with Audi A3 and BMW 1 Series. In March this year, Nissan showcased the Infiniti Etherea concept car at the Geneva Motor Show, giving consumers a basic understanding of the entry-level compact luxury car from Infiniti.
The new compact car will be a key component of Infiniti's growth strategy. Renault-Nissan Alliance CEO Carlos Ghosn previously stated that by March 2017, Infiniti's global sales will reach 500,000 units, tripling its current volume. This means that Infiniti will capture 10% of the global luxury car market by then.
Infiniti claims that if the above goal is achieved as scheduled, it will capture 10% of the global luxury car market. The United States, following China, is Infiniti's second-largest target market.
After signing a cooperation agreement with Magna Steyr, Japan may put plans to build an Infiniti production base in Europe on hold. Since the new model uses components provided by Mercedes, Infiniti will save a significant amount of R&D costs. In return, Mercedes will receive production licensing fees and benefit from economies of scale.
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