Large luxury SUVs are a relatively small segment of the market, but they have their place as the first stop for the features and technology introduced by the brands that build them.
With its redesigned 2025 Infiniti QX80, Nissan’s premium marquee is looking to roll out exactly that – and capture a bigger share of the segment in the process. It rides on a new frame and has a new engine and advanced technologies. It’s also surprisingly agile for its size, and great to drive.
New Frame, New Engine
Infiniti initially tapped into the full-size SUV market for 2004 with the then-new QX56, renamed the QX80 nine years later. It got a redesign in 2017 and a new interior in 2021.
Previously based on the Nissan Titan pickup truck, which left the Canadian market after 2021 and will soon do the same in the United States, the QX80 is still body-on-frame, but this new frame is far stiffer than before – and, as odd as it may seem, a stiffer vehicle usually has a smoother ride, because it doesn’t flex as much.
Four-wheel drive (4WD) is still standard on the QX80. There’s a new off-road setting in its selectable drive modes, but it no longer has a truck-style locking differential or low-range gearing for truly rough-and-tough stuff.
The outgoing 2024 QX80 uses a 5.6L V8 that makes 400 hp and 413 lb-ft of torque. This new version uses a twin-turbocharged 3.5L V6 that puts those eight cylinders to shame, churning out 450 hp and 515 lb-ft of torque. A nine-speed automatic transmission replaces the previous seven-speed.
Natural Resources Canada (NRCan) tags the new V6 at 15.1 L/100 km in the city, 12.2 on the highway, and 13.8 combined, while the V8 rated 15.2 L/100 km combined, Both engines call for premium-grade gasoline. Maximum towing capacity is 3,855 kg (8,500 lbs), and the standard blind-spot monitoring system now includes the length of a trailer.
Three Trims to Choose From
Going on sale in midsummer of 2024, the QX80 starts out as the Luxe at $107,490, including a non-negotiable delivery fee of $2,495; the Sensory at $116,490; and the Autograph at $127,490. During this media drive event, I drove the Autograph.
More Cohesive Design
The QX80 has always had in-your-face styling, and it’s still chunky, but the rough edges have smoothed out. The grille design is meant to invoke a bamboo forest, while the headlights are inspired by piano keys.
The door handles are flush-mounted and pop out when you approach the vehicle with the key fob. They likely improve aerodynamics, and some might like the tech aspect of a vehicle that reacts to them, but I’m not a fan of any of these electronic hidden handles. They add an extra layer of complicated mechanism, along with Canadian winters that can lay substantial coats of ice on vehicles.
Technological Showpiece
The flowing dash contains two 14.3-inch screens, one for the instrument display and the other for infotainment, both behind a single glass panel. The interface is a five-year subscription (paid-renewable afterwards) to Google Automotive Services, plus wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto. The console contains a nine-inch screen with haptic touch, controlling the drive modes, and climate and seat functions.
The Luxe and Sensory trims have a second-row bench seat for up to eight-occupant seating, while the Autograph is seven-passenger with its exclusive captain’s chairs. Those chairs also have a tablet-style touchscreen for their climate and seat functions. The Autograph also has premium leather upholstery on all three rows; its third row is heated; and a cooling box in the console keeps drinks and snacks chilled.
In all trims, the first- and second-row seats are both heated and cooled. The Luxe adds massage to the front seats and the Autograph extends that to the second-row chairs, too. Both these trims include “biometric” cooling, which determines the upper-body temperature of second-row passengers, and adjusts the vent airflow to quickly cool them as needed.
Compared to the outgoing QX80, the 2025 version has 107 mm (4.2 in) more front legroom, while the second row is marginally less than before but still very generous. Third-row occupants benefit from 835 mm (32.0 in) of leg space, a gain of 104 mm (4.0 in), so all but the longest-legged should be fine back there. The second-row chairs in the Autograph are power-sliding, and they and the third row power-fold for carrying cargo. Flipping the captain’s chairs forward gives 561 mm (22.1 in) of space for climbing into the third row, which Infiniti says is best-in-class access.
Tech is the name of the luxury game these days and the QX80 has its fair share, starting with a stereo with 14 or 24 speakers, depending on the trim. In addition to the expected driver-assist technologies – emergency braking, lane-keep, blind-spot monitoring and more – the QX80 features a front camera that can broadcast an ultra-wide view across both the 14.3-inch screens. If you regularly travel a route with a tough-to-see-around intersection, you can set it as a GPS location and every time you stop there, the front camera view will automatically appear on the screen.
An “invisible hood” view shows what’s ahead of and also directly under the wheels (the plan of course being that anything vulnerable ahead doesn’t end up under those tires). And while the two lower trims offer Infiniti’s ProPilot highway driving assist, which combines adaptive cruise control and lane centring, the Autograph has ProPilot Assist 2.1, which does it hands-free and will change lanes on its own after you’ve activated the turn signal switch. Similar to systems like Super Cruise from General Motors (GM) or Ford’s BlueCruise, it only works stretches of pre-mapped highways – however, Nissan won’t yet reveal exactly how many kilometres of Canadian highways are mapped and ready for use at launch.
Small-ish Drive
Infiniti’s engineers have worked some impressive magic on the QX80, and it’s a genuinely good vehicle to drive. The new turbo V6 is smooth, strong, and quiet; but what really impresses is that for its heft, this big beast feels amazingly light and nimble. On a series of twisty roads, the steering is responsive, the handling is tight, and there’s no suspension wallow that some of these large vehicles can have. My co-driver is prone to car sickness in a vehicle that lurches on curves, but lurch it never did, and his lunch never made any reappearances.
Adaptive damping and an air suspension – which lowers for easier entry or cargo loading – provide a composed, quiet, and extremely comfortable ride, with any bumps sopped up long before they reach the cabin. All of these big, three-row luxury SUVs are ultra-comfy on a straight stretch of highway, but however those engineers did it, the QX80 is a standout for what it does on curves and corners.
Final Thoughts
The segment of SUVs like the 2025 Infiniti QX80 is a relatively small one, including entries like the Cadillac Escalade, Lexus LX, and Lincoln Navigator, among others. None of them are cheap, and automakers in this segment are serious about delivering performance and luxury to reach those discerning customers. With this vastly improved version, the QX80 is more than ready to compete with the best of them.
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