Infiniti presents Q50 Eau Rouge performance sedan concept in Detroit

Infiniti has formally premiered the Formula One inspired - the Q50 Eau Rouge performance sedan concept - at the ongoing Detroit Auto Show. The Infiniti Q50 Eau Rouge expresses the firms design vision of a high-performance Q50 premium sports sedan.

"The design has a number of distinctive Formula One inspired touches. In particular, the sculpted front wing assembly and the rear aerodynamic packaging take their cues from the RB9 race car. The rear fog light packaging is unmistakably Formula One," said Alfonso Albaisa, Infiniti's Executive Design Director.

The Q50 Eau Rouge mirrors components from the successful RB9 race car and almost every exterior panel is custom to the Q50 Eau Rouge. Only the front doors and the arch of the roof pillars are retained from its stock brethren.

According to the premium Japanese marque, the interior of the Q50 Eau Rouge was designed to offer command and comfort. Precision control is afforded by a high-grip sports steering wheel and paddle shifters akin from Formula One. Red infused carbon fibre detail the doors - while the centre console complement the exterior styling. Once again, a darker shade of chrome replaces the more energetic silver chrome in the red cockpit.

"If we built this car I would expect it to feature over 500bhp and 812Nm of torque. Through our various alliance partners, we have access to a range of engines featuring this performance capability which, with a fair amount of engineering effort, can be developed to exhibit Infiniti character and accommodated within the Q50 engine bay. The engine we are evaluating for the Q50 Eau Rouge is a big personality, V-cylinder engine with forced induction," said Johan de Nysschen, President of Infiniti Motor Company Limited.