2027 Infiniti QX65 Review -- Performance Tradeoffs Need To Be Justified

To be fair, my time with the 2027 Infiniti QX65 was limited -- I drove it at an event last month in which media only gets about 20 minutes with a car. Still, those 20 minutes on a loop around the picturesque town of Elkhart Lake, Wisconsin, were informative. The loop I drove had a nice mix of twisty two-lanes surrounded by trees, lonely stretches of highway surrounded by cornfields, and small bit of around-town driving surrounded by a golf course.

What Torque News Found About The 2027 Infiniti QX65's Performance

Infiniti touts the QX as a performance crossover, and it does look swoopy, complete with a sloping rear roofline. Judged on looks alone, it does remind of the FX crossover "coupes" that roamed American streets about two decades or so ago.

Can the performance match the looks? Does the QX65 deliver on what its style promises? The answer is no -- or perhaps more accurately, not quite.

This all-wheel-drive crossover is motivated by a 2.0-liter turbocharged inline four-cylinder that makes 268 horsepower and 286 lb-ft of torque. The transmission is a nine-speed automatic with paddle shifters.

"Slow" is too strong a word to apply here -- there is some gusto when it comes to acceleration. I just wish there was more. It's unclear if the engine needs a tad more torque or if the curb weight (about 4,600 pounds, depending) is just a tad too much, or both.

Don't get me wrong -- you'll be fine in daily driving. Passing and merging won't be a problem. But should you be expecting a true performance crossover, you'll be a bit let down.

Handling is similar. It's good enough for light duty, even engaging at times, but push too hard and the Infiniti feels a bit off the task. Body roll is controlled well enough, and turn-in is fairly sharp, but the steering is too light and artificial in feel.

At least the ride is well-balanced. Infiniti is a luxury brand, and luxury customers will be happy with the ride quality. It's cushy but never veers into soft, and get it in the correct drive mode and it stiffens up nicely for sportier driving.

Torque News Investigates The Interior And Features

Luxury customers expect a luxury feel to the interior -- and the materials mostly feel class and price appropriate. Infiniti and its parent, Nissan, have leaned into haptic-touch controls in the infotainment systems, but unlike with other automakers (cough Volkswagen cough), it seems to work OK here. Also unlike other automakers (cough Volkswagen cough, again), Infiniti still offers plenty of knobs for easy audio and climate-control adjustments.

I didn't have a chance to really check out how the sloping roofline affects rear-seat headroom or cargo room -- I look forward to a longer loan to go ahead and get into a deeper dive.

I did note that the vehicle was relatively silent and buttoned-down on-road, with only some engine noise at higher RPMs seeping through -- and the engine sounds pretty good when on the boil. The QX65 sounds sporty, at least.

Infiniti is offering the vehicle in three trims -- base Luxe ($53,990), Sport ($55,690), and Autograph ($62,590). Those prices don't include $1,545 for destination fees. Fuel economy is listed at 20 mpg city/26 mpg highway/22 mpg combined.

Available features, depending on trim, include 20-inch wheels, 21-inch wheels, ProPilot Assist semi-autonomous driving, wireless Apple CarPlay, wireless Android Auto, climate-controlled front seats, wood trim, wireless phone charging, panoramic sunroof, power liftgate, tri-zone climate control, 360-degree 3D camera, LED lighting, smart cruise control, camera rear-view mirror, premium audio, heated rear seats, massaging front seats, head-up display, available towing package, and more.

Infiniti set out to make a sporty, sleekly styled crossover that has a coupe-like feel. The second part, it got right. The QX65 looks the part.

The problem relates to sportiness. The QX65 is sporty, for sure, but not quite sporty enough. And that becomes a problem when you sacrifice some utility. It's not just that the looks can cut into interior room -- the question is, is the trade-off worth it? And not just in terms of style, but also performance.

Infiniti gets the QX65 part of the way there, but it's not enough. The engine does need a bit more grunt and the steering does require a bit of tuning.

The good news is that the QX is, as noted, on the right track. It's not a total letdown. I've done this long enough to have come across some vehicles that we were told were "sporty" and they were complete flops. Just not sporty at all.

That's not the case here. The QX65 is engaging -- just not quite engaging enough.

Fortunately, that can be easily fixed at the mid-cycle refresh.

Infiniti took a step in the right direction with the QX65 -- but didn't complete the path.

About The Author

Tim Healey is an experienced automotive writer and editor from Chicago. He has covered automotive news at Consumer Guide Automotive, Web2Carz, AutoGuide, and was the managing editor at The Truth About Cars. Tim is a member of the Midwest Automotive Media Association. You can find him on Facebook, X/Twitter, and on LinkedIn.