2022 Infiniti QX55: Test Drive Review

Hey my dear friends, Sam Haymart with Test Driven TV. Today we are looking at the new 2022 Infiniti QX55 Sporting Luxury Crossover. We are going to have a good look inside now. We're going to take it for a test drive and then I'm going to tell you what I really think. Okay my friends, let's have a look at this QX55 2022 all-wheel drive sensory model. As tested, we're pricing out at $60,000 and some change. And essentially this is the QX50 only with a different styling persona. This has a sportier roofline, a coupe-like roofline that gives it more of a fastback look. And there are quite a few differences styling-wise. Getting right up front, this has the traditional DNA from Infiniti of late. A nicely sculpted grille and sort of almost animalistic face going on there. It definitely looks more aggressive than the QX50. I like it. I think it's handsome. And the hood has some nice contouring going on. You can see how it wraps down over the fenders. And from behind the wheel, it has a lot of shape, a lot more than most cars. It actually makes driving this vehicle something a little bit unique in that way. LED headlights, LED fog lights, and these headlights do work quite well at night. I always like to mention that with LED headlights because some don't. And coming around the corner, this has large 20-inch wheels. Pretty big for a vehicle this size. Run-flat tires as well. A lot of little details on this vehicle sort of bring it into this luxury space. Looking at the fender, you can see a nice piece of chrome that divides the fender from the hood. The mirrors themselves actually as well have some nice detailing. What really makes this vehicle sing stylistically coming back is you can see this roof line where the windows die nicely into that three-quarter view. This has a very high hip line, about a two-thirds height from the overall. LED taillights, nicely sculpted, and they just they're very sleek the way they wrap into that rear deck. Those are, of course, LED taillights. This does have a power rear gate. Works with your foot underneath the bumper, as well as by the key fob or a button inside. And when we get down to the lower fascia, you can see some very well done exhaust finishers. The interior of the QX55 is nearly identical, if not identical, to the QX50 that we tested earlier this year. And it's a beautiful place, especially here with the rich colors and textures that I've got. Black and red together always make a nice luxurious interior for me. And this black maple wood, real genuine wood, the soft stitching in here, and the nice metal finishes really just make for a place that feels worth the money. Semi-aniline leather on these seats. They are very comfortable, both heated and ventilated here. The steering wheel, soft stitching and nice accent stitching on it. Paddle shifters for the continuously variable transmission. Switch gear in here of excellent quality. Ahead of me is the Nissan Corporate Design Instrument Cluster. I say that because if you've been around Nissan or Infiniti, that instrument cluster is in a lot of vehicles from some of their cheapest vehicles all the way up to the most expensive. It is fully functional, however. It does have a big digital display in the center that can be customized. Looking at the center stack, we've got dual screens with hard controls for the HVAC and all your infotainment right there. There is a storage cubby down here with a nice roll top. Gives you access to USB and 12-volt power as well as connectivity for Bluetooth and Apple CarPlay. There's also a place to put your phone cup holders. Look at the nice design that this has with the soft stitch and the sculpted elements that come back into this. A traditional gear shift lever here in the middle. It is an electronic toggle, but much more easier to use than some of the push button and twist knobs that we find out there. Drive mode selector behind it. Inside the center console, about one and a half tissue boxes worth of storage in there. Pretty impressive. Not all vehicles in this class have this much storage. Like the QX50 I tested earlier this year, I'm impressed with the rear seat because of the fact that it has a reasonably high seating position. And even though I do have a much lower roof line here, I don't seem to be missing much in the way of headroom. I don't feel like I'm that much more compacted in here. These seats are set for my height about 5'8", 5'9", with my boots on. And I've got plenty of legroom as you can see. These seats also have a sliding and reclining adjustment, so you can actually get the back rake and get some adjustments to where you want to be for a little bit longer of a road trip. Center vents down in the middle, perfect for here in Arizona. And there's also HVAC controls down there that have a readout for the temperature. Here you'll find that you've got a fold-down armrest and cup holders. Pretty much everything you need to be comfortable in the back seat. The trunk area, pretty generous. Now because we do have a lower roof line back here, you can't put some of the big box stuff in. You might be able to do with the QX50, but as you'd expect, these seats do fold down in a 60-40 split and allow you a larger flat load floor. And I do need to point out there is no spare tire back there. This does come with an emergency inflator kit. No spare tire. When it comes to rating this interior, I'm very impressed with the design. It's beautiful to look at. The craftsmanship with the soft stitching and the wood and the metal finishes I really think is near top of class. The one area that I sort of look at this and go, they could have done better, is some of the Nissan parts bin use that I see going on here, especially now that we've moved up into their luxury brand. But that said, very well done Infiniti. Four and a half out of five stars. The infotainment system here is a dual screen layout. Don't see that very often anymore. And it's two 8-inch screens. They're both touch screens. They both allow you to control what's going on by touching and navigating around. And you can split the functions up. You can have a map up top and use the bottom screen for more of your other information related functions. And this does have a lot of features. This has Apple CarPlay, Android Auto, but only the Apple CarPlay is wireless. Android Auto, you still have to plug in to use that. While most of the HVAC controls are built around the hard controls here, there are still some things you have to go to a screen menu to actually do some adjustments on. So kind of a mix and match. It's something you definitely have to get used to using, not something you're going to be sitting in this vehicle and being an expert at right out of the gate. The Bose audio system to its credit does have excellent sound, 16 speakers. Overall though, this is a system that gets four out of five stars. All right, my friends, now it's time to take a drive. And you know, the first question I always like to ask is how does it go? So we're going to come to a complete stop and go. Nice little kick in the back and 60. Now what we've got under the hood is actually something very special here, very unique. And in fact, it's groundbreaking. And we've talked about it before in our test drive of the QX50. This is a variable compression turbocharged four-cylinder engine. The first of its kind, it has variable compression so that that can be adjusted for either performance or efficiency. And with the turbocharger and all the other controls it has, it has 268 horsepower, 280 pound feet of torque. It is made here to a continuously variable transmission, a CVT, not my favorite. And that does have paddle shifters, and it does have drive modes that help enable it to feel a little bit more like a normal transmission. And when it comes to CVTs, it's actually one of the better ones out there in that way. And now that we've come to a stop, the other thing I want to point out about this powertrain is the fact that it doesn't have an auto start stop system. Infiniti has not yet polluted our driving experience yet with that terrible thing. Fuel efficiency here, I got 21 miles to the gallon in my week with it. Not the best, not the worst. I think my big takeaway with this powertrain is the fact that while they went to a lot of work to really create something that was unique and different and offered something special, the driving experience really doesn't bore that out. It's really not that much of a driving experience difference from anything else in its class that has a traditional four-cylinder engine with the turbo. The big thing is, is it doesn't have a transmission that behaves like a normal transmission. It fakes it pretty well, but it's faking it. This powertrain gets four out of five stars. Of all the things that Infiniti has done to create this vehicle that has really impressed me, it's the chassis. And that's because driving it around town here in my neighborhood and out on the highway, I've been most impressed by how solid it feels, how refined it is, and how well worth the price it feels. I have these speed humps, which are ubiquitous here in my town, and this literally sails over these things feeling like it was built to. And by that I mean I don't get any clunking in the suspension or any rattles in the chassis or in the interior. This is a vehicle that is well bolted together. Fully independent suspension, front and rear, and this also has a variable adaptive steering. And what that means is that the steering is actually adaptive in its ratio. It's a variable ratio, and so depending on your speed and other factors, it can speed or slow down the actual steering ratio to make it either easier to maneuver at slower speeds or to give you better steering feel and more stability at high speeds. It is somewhat firmly sprung, which means it has a sporty feel, and it's got some pretty astute reflexes when you're throwing it around in a curve. I've really just been impressed with this chassis all the way around. It's fun to drive, it's comfortable, and it's very refined. This chassis gets five out of five stars. All right my dear friends, let's talk about value for just a moment. $60,000. I don't think that's that out of line here, and some of you might go infinity $60,000. Here's the deal. It's a beautiful package. I think it's handsome to look at. It's well built. It's got a wonderful interior, and it's fun to drive. It has a lot of little details that remind you that you spent up. The only thing I would complain about here really is the fact that it's got a continuously variable transmission. It's a very good one. We talked about that on the drive, but I'm just not so sure it belongs in a luxury vehicle, and that certainly hits competitiveness because at $60,000 you can get a Jaguar, a Mercedes, a BMW. None of those people are putting a continuously variable transmission in their luxury vehicles. You get something more engaging, more appealing to the driver in us. That said, very minor detail. Overall I think they've created a vehicle here that is definitely worth a look if you're shopping in this category. I put value at four out of five stars, and when you put that in with everything we've already talked about, we're at four and a half stars for the review. Very good. So there you go. 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