Infiniti to Debut All-New Model at 2013 North American International Auto Show

Press Conference Will Feature ‘Inspired’ Performance by Cirque Du Soleil® Simulcast Online

Los Angeles – Infiniti announced today it will unveil an all-new luxury sports sedan, January 14, at the brand’s North American International Auto Show press conference, following a special performance by Cirque du Soleil.

For those not able to attend the press conference in Detroit, Infiniti will host a live stream of the event at InfinitiUSA.com and on the brand’s Facebook page, Facebook.com/Infiniti.

Today’s announcement comes as the luxury brand undergoes a new era of inspiration, growing its market share with the strategic expansion of its business worldwide under the helm of new leadership, Infiniti’s president Johan de Nysschen.

In addition to the January 14 unveiling, de Nysschen will present his vision for the brand in a speech that outlines a new direction for Infiniti in the years to come.

Infiniti made a number of strategic changes in 2012, including relocating its global headquarters to a new state-of-the-art facility in Hong Kong. The move in May was followed by the appointment in July of de Nysschen as the brand’s new president.

Since then, Infiniti has recorded U.S. sales increases year-over-year of 20.6 percent through October, pointing to a strong finish for 2012 and an even stronger start to 2013.

Infiniti Premium Automotive Brand Confirmed for Brazil in 2014

• Exclusive Infiniti Centers to open in Sao Paulo and Rio de Janeiro
• "Inspired Performance" model range to include FX crossover, versatile JX and an all-new sports sedan yet to be launched

SAO PAULO, Brazil - Infiniti today announced that it plans to begin sales of its range of sedans and crossovers in Brazil starting in 2014.  Infiniti is expanding rapidly across the globe. This fiscal year saw sales starting in Singapore, Chile, Dominican Republic, South Africa and Australia. Hong Kong has been announced to launch in 2013.

Starting from the third quarter of 2014, Brazilian car buyers will be able to purchase from the exciting Infiniti range and experience unrivalled customer service at two Infiniti Centers in Sao Paulo and Rio de Janeiro. Additional outlets are planned for the states of Santa Catarina and Paraná within three years.

The Brazilian Infiniti Centers will be the latest Infiniti Centers that are currently in 47 countries around the globe and designed according to the IREDI concept (Infiniti Retail Environment Design Initiative). This luxurious lobby-lounge-gallery-concept with a bright entrance and a spacious and air-conditioned showroom guarantee a unique elegance as well as a relaxing ambience. With the "Total Ownership Experience," the global automotive brand is going to exceed the high expectations of a modern premium customer and focus on their individual needs
Initially, the Infiniti model range in Brazil will comprise of the highly distinctive Infiniti FX sport crossover, the versatile 7-seat luxury crossover JX and an all-new sports sedan that is going to be launched soon.
 
"As part of Infiniti's worldwide expansion, Brazil is a logical addition to our footprint for premium car owners," said Johan de Nysschen, President of Infiniti. "By 2014, premium vehicles with a unique combination of inspired performance, attentive hospitality and unparalleled quality will become a reality for the Brazilian market. We are delighted to enter Brazil as we know discerning customers there are very receptive to premium brands."
 
About Infiniti
Infiniti, the premium automotive brand from Japan, reflects its brand promise "Inspired Performance" with a model line-up of sedans, coupés, SUVs and crossovers featuring exhilarating performance, emotive design and cutting edge technology. Infiniti continues to launch across the globe through a dedicated network of Infiniti Centers that share a commitment to exceptional hospitality throughout the entire period of ownership.

Infiniti was launched in 1989 in the United States.  Infiniti's global footprint expanded into Canada in 1990, the Middle East in 1996, Taiwan in 1997, Korea in 2005 and Russia in 2006. Global expansion continued in 2007 with Infiniti Centers opening in the Ukraine and in one of the world's fastest growing luxury automotive markets, China. In 2008, Infiniti launched in Western and Central Europe which has added 19 additional markets to-date. Infiniti is sold globally in 47 markets to-date.

Since May 2012, Infiniti's new global headquarters is situated in Hong Kong, headed by Johan de Nysschen as President of Infiniti on 1 July.

Since the 2011 season Infiniti has been a major partner of the Red Bull Racing team and in 2012 the relationship has been deepened with Infiniti featuring even more prominently on the Red Bull Racing RB8 and the overalls of Sebastian Vettel and Mark Webber. Last year Sebastian Vettel was appointed Infiniti's first-ever Global Brand Ambassador.

Red Bull Racing: 2012 Formula One World Champions

- Fourth Team in History to Achieve Three Consecutive Titles Team Takes its Third World Title in Eight Years -

Car 1 SEBASTIAN VETTEL, Finish Position: 2nd, Start Position: 1st
“I’m very, very happy for the team to win a third Constructors’. It’s been a tough year so far and they have been pushing incredibly hard; they deserve to win, as we have been the best team. Obviously Mark and I were pushing throughout the year. It was a shame for Mark not to finish today. It was a very good race and we did everything we could, but unfortunately we ran into traffic at the wrong time and lost the gap to Lewis. He used his chance well, I tried to cover the inside but he had more speed down the straight. I respect the positions; Lewis beat us fair and square. We showed we had the pace today and now it’s full steam ahead to the next race.”
 

Car 2 MARK WEBBER, Finish Position: DNF, Start Position: 3rd
“A third Constructors’ for the team is an incredible achievement. Three years in a row is something that I think all of us would never have envisaged when we first started to be successful, so the results that we’ve had over the years is really astonishing. This Championship was probably the toughest one so far, for lots of different reasons and – it’s a cliché – but it’s been a real team effort. Looking to today, I had to stop with an alternator problem. We had low battery voltage for a few laps before and then I lost gearbox sync and KERS, something was happening on the battery side. It’s frustrating; as we had a reasonable start to the race and a good fight with Lewis. We had issues to manage, but even when I knew we had them we tried to keep going and get something out of it, but we had to stop.”

CHRISTIAN HORNER, Team Principal:
“It’s incredible for the whole team to have won a third consecutive World Championship. The Constructors’ is what we use to measure ourselves against our competitors and, for every member of the team, it’s how we gauge our performance. The Drivers’ obviously has the prestige and public following but within the team they carry equal importance. So, to have achieved a consecutive third World Championship, which only three other teams in the history of the sport have achieved, puts us into a very elite group and having done it in such a short space of time is testimony to all the members of the team. That’s all the hard work, the long hours and dedication from every department. It’s a very proud moment for every single member of the team and Red Bull.”

ADRIAN NEWEY, Chief Technical Officer:
“It’s been an amazing year. To achieve the hat trick is a tremendous tribute to the whole team. It shows we’ve managed to keep our standards up and keep consistency. The hard work, the dedication, the talent of the people back in Milton Keynes – that’s what this is all about. I hope they are celebrating and having a drink tonight. We are always thinking how we can improve the car and what we can do in the coming races. It’s been a difficult year and unfortunately my pre-season concerns proved to be right. Having developed the car around side exhaust technology for the last two years, losing that was a bigger step back for us than our competitors and it’s been quite a difficult evolution to get the car back to where we wanted. Getting a third title shows we’re not a flash in the pan; we’ve managed to stay at the top, to understand the car and maintain consistency which is not easy at all. The first title was amazing because when I left McLaren for Red Bull, it was a bit of a career gamble, I was joining with a dream of perhaps trying to win races in the future with the team that I’d been involved with more or less from the start. To actually fulfil that dream and to achieve three titles has been amazing. We can all have dreams, but to do it is something special. It’s not just me personally but it’s the whole team and this is a tribute to everyone within it.”

CYRIL DUMONT, Renault:
“Securing the Constructors’ Championship today is a massive achievement for the Red Bull Racing-Renault partnership. It’s our third title in six years, and the first time since 2004 that a team has won three consecutive titles. The run to the title wasn’t completely trouble-free today however, as we had an engine-related DNF on Mark’s car, but we are managing the situation with Red Bull as of course we still have a Drivers’ Championship to win so we will keep pushing for Brazil.”

Infiniti U.S. Sales Up 27.6 Percent in October

FRANKLIN, Tenn. – Infiniti today reported U.S. sales of 8,757 units for October, an increase of 27.6 percent versus 6,862 units a year earlier. Calendar year-to-date Infiniti sales of 95,353 units are up 20.6 percent compared to the 79,043 units sold during the same period last year.

Infiniti sales highlights for the month include:

•     With 1,467 deliveries, the Infiniti QX was up 17.9 percent, making it the best October in history for the full-size luxury SUV.
•     The Infiniti FX line, now available with a new 325-horsepower, 3.7-liter V6 engine, was up 18.5 percent to 783 units.
•     Infiniti's all-new JX 7-passenger luxury crossover continued its successful launch with 2,084 units sold.
•     The 2013 Infiniti M line, supported by newly available all-wheel drive Sport packages for both the M37 and M56 models, had sales of 738, up 11.1 percent in October.
•     Overall, with its luxury crossovers and sport utility vehicles showing sales increases of 93 percent in October, Infiniti was up 27.6 percent in October, its sixth straight month of double digit sales increases.   

"October was a fantastic month for Infiniti, with a large increase in sales of our luxury crossovers and sport utility vehicles," said Ben Poore, vice president, Infiniti Americas. "We expect this momentum to continue into November, as we begin our Winter Limited Engagement Sales Event and luxury car buyers start their holiday shopping."

Infiniti also announced today it will offer employee pricing and special financing with deferred payments to people in the designated FEMA disaster area who have an insurance claim on their current vehicle due to Hurricane Sandy. Infiniti Financial Services (IFS) will also defer payments for new purchases for up to three months to provide extra assistance to those in need. Current IFS customers in FEMA disaster areas will be offered payment extensions for qualifying leases and retail purchases for up to three payments without extension fees.

"Our hearts go out to the millions of people along the East Coast that are affected by this devastating storm," said Ben Poore, vice president, Infiniti Americas. "We hope Infiniti's special pricing and financing programs help people resume their normal lives and get mobile again."

	Oct		Oct		Monthly		CYTD		CYTD		CYTD
	2012		2011		% chg		2012		2011		% chg
Infiniti Total	8,757		6,862		27.6		95,353		79,043		20.6
Infiniti G Sedan	2,720		2,986		-8.9		38,486		34,737		10.8
Infiniti G Coupe	718		838		-14.3		11,004		12,470		-11.8
Infiniti M Line	738		664		11.1		7,497		8,813		-14.9
Infiniti EX	247		469		-47.3		2,727		5,058		-46.1
Infiniti FX Line	783		661		18.5		8,245		7,718		6.8
Infiniti JX	2,084		0		---		16,437		0		---
Infiniti QX	1,467		1,244		17.9		10,957		10,247		6.9
Total Car	4,176		4,488		-7.0		56,987		56,020		1.7
Total Truck	4,581		2,374		93.0		38,366		23,023		66.6